Abstract
As part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration New Aviation Horizons initiative to demonstrate and validate future high-impact concepts and technologies, the X-57 Maxwell airplane – the first all-electric X-plane – was conceived to advance research in the area of electric propulsion to show the feasibility of minimizing fuel use, reducing emissions, and lowering noise during flight. Through several configuration modifications to the X-57 airplane, validation of electrical-powered flight with increasing efficiency between each modification when compared to the baseline original airplane is anticipated. In the case of the X-57 Modification II airplane, a ground vibration test was needed to identify the airplane structural modes and use them to update and validate the finite element model. To determine the airworthiness of the airplane, the updated finite element model will be utilized to investigate both classical and whirl flutters. The X-57 Modification II ground vibration test was performed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Armstrong Flight Research Center Flight Loads Laboratory. This paper will highlight the testing performed to acquire the modal data as well asthe results.
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Abbreviations
- A/C:
-
Aircraft
- accel:
-
Accelerometer
- AFRC:
-
Armstrong Flight Research Center
- ail:
-
Aileron
- anti-sym:
-
Anti-symmetric
- AW1T:
-
Anti-symmetric wing first torsion
- AW1B:
-
Anti-symmetric wing first bending
- AW2B:
-
Anti-symmetric wing second bending
- BCM:
-
Battery control module
- CAD:
-
Computer-aided design
- DOF:
-
Degrees of freedom
- F1LB:
-
Fuselage first lateral bending
- F1VB:
-
Fuselage first vertical bending
- F/A:
-
Fore/aft
- FEM:
-
Finite element model
- FLL:
-
Flight Loads Laboratory
- GVT:
-
Ground vibration test
- HL:
-
High-lift
- lat:
-
Lateral
- long:
-
Longitudinal
- MLG:
-
Main landing gear
- Mod:
-
Modification
- NASA:
-
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- OOP:
-
Out of phase
- rotn:
-
Rotation
- SW1B:
-
Symmetric wing first bending
- SW1T:
-
Symmetric wing first torsion
- SW2B:
-
Symmetric wing second bending
- SWFA:
-
Symmetric wing fore/aft
- sym:
-
Symmetric
- TE:
-
Trailing edge
- vert:
-
Vertical
References
NASA Armstrong Fact Sheet: NASA X-57 Maxwell, https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/news/FactSheets/FS-109.html, accessed November 9, 2020
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Armstrong Flight Loads Lab, https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/research/Facilities/FLL/index.html, accessed November 9, 2020
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, “Flight Demonstrations and Capabilities (FDC) Scalable Convergent Electric Propulsion Technology and Operations Research (SCEPTOR),” Critical Design Review,” Edwards, CA, November 2016, https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/sceptor_cdr_day_1_package.pdf, and https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/sceptor_cdr_day_2_package.pdf., accessed November 9, 2020
Heeg, J., Stanford, B.K., Wieseman, C.D., Massey, S.J., Moore, J., Truax, R., Miller, K.: Status report on aeroelasticity in the vehicle development for X-57 Maxwell. AIAA 2018–3487, June 2018, https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2018-3487
Heeg, J., Stanford, B.K, Kreshock, A., Shen, J., Hoover, C., Truax, R.: Whirl flutter and the development of the NASA X-57 Maxwell. IFASD-2019-056, June 2019
Costruzioni Aeronautiche TECNAM srl, Aircraft Maintenance Manual, Doc. No. 2006/045, 2nd Ed – Rev. 2, Italy, September 29, 2012
“BK Connect® User’s Help Guide Version 2019,” Brüel & Kjær, Nærum, Denmark, 2019
Vold, H., Kundrat, J., Rocklin, G.T., Russel, R.: A multi-input modal estimation algorithm for mini-computers. SAE Int. 820194 (1982). https://doi.org/10.4271/820194
Acknowledgments
The authors thank the X-57 project team and crew as well as the NASA AFRC FLL mechanics and technicians for assisting with the test setup and test conduction. The authors also thank Doug Lovelace from Hottinger Brüel & Kjær for his on-site assistance and support during the test.
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Spivey, N., Truong, S., Truax, R. (2022). All-Electric X-Plane, X-57 Mod II Ground Vibration Test. In: Walber, C., Stefanski, M., Seidlitz, S. (eds) Sensors and Instrumentation, Aircraft/Aerospace, Energy Harvesting & Dynamic Environments Testing, Volume 7. Conference Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Mechanics Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-75988-9_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-75988-9_2
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