Portfolio

Request for Proposal

This RFP is for a future (2020) aircraft design that incorporates new technologies, operational procedures and alternative fuels... The design shall be considered a 737NG/A320 replacement aircraft to have the greatest impact.  The design shall be evaluated in relationship to its improvement over the aircraft it replaces.

Executive Summary

No Trace Aerospace is proud to present the GFX-50 in response to the 2009-2010 AIAA Undergraduate Team Aircraft Design Competition Request for Proposal (RFP).  With the continual push for more environmentally friendly modes of transportation, and the necessity of using more advanced technologies and streamlining airport operations, the GFX-50 is a perfect replacement to the Airbus 320’s and Boeing 737’s which are currently operating.

The GFX-50 is a 176 passenger, medium to long range transport, powered by three of GE’s new unducted fans.  According to claims from GE, this updated version of their GE-36 engine boasts a 25-30% reduction in overall fuel burn and 20% fewer NOx emissions.  They also claim that, through blade shaping, they have solved the noise problem inherent with unducted fans and are confident that the design update will easily meet ICAO Stage 4 noise regulations.  Because of the large fan diameter of these unducted fans, it would be difficult to place the engines under a high wing.  As a result, the engines are mounted above a low wing, allowing the GFX-50 to take advantage of the synergy accomplished by having the landing gear structural support and wing carry through structure in the same place.  At a takeoff gross weight of 138,000 pounds, the wing, with an optimized span of 108 feet, utilizes trailing edge flaps to easily achieve the 8,200 feet takeoff distance required by the RFP. 

Meeting the need for green and efficient operations, the GFX-50 burns less fuel per nominal range mission than either the Boeing 737 or A320, resulting in lower CO2 emissions per flight.  By taking advantage of the noise reduction GE claims with its new unducted fans, the GFX-50 operates at 15 dB below ICAO Stage 4 standards.  By utilizing the aft-mounted third engine to take advantage of boundary layer ingestion, the overall drag of the GFX-50 is reduced by approximately 5%, correlating to less fuel burn and therefore greater efficiency.  Since this rear engine is mounted along the centerline of the fuselage, in the case of an over-the-wing engine out, the overall moment of the GFX-50 is lessened, allowing for a more outboard placement of the over-the-wing engines, pushing them from a typical one third of the semi-span, to one half of the semi-span.  This outward placement of the engines provides better load alleviation during flight, which allows for a lighter wing-box structure, saving approximately 580 pounds in wing weight. Overall the 3-engine configuration results in an 8% reduction in nominal mission fuel burn over a 2-engine UDF configuration. 

Given its unique design, along with the accompanying reduction in fuel burn, noise, and emissions, No Trace Aerospace is confident that the GFX-50 is the perfect response to the 2009-2010 RFP.

Deliverables

Results

We achieved Second Place!

• http://intranet.aiaa.org/industryresources/PDF/09-10_AircraftDesignCompetitionPR.pdf
• http://www.calpolynews.calpoly.edu/news_releases/2010/September/Aero.html
• http://mustangdaily.net/cal-poly-places-first-second-in-aiaa-design-competition/

Lessons

Learned how to work in a team: downselecting ideas, managing time, and design organization - content management. Public speaking got easier as the year went on, confidence in numbers coupled with much practice alleviated my nervousness. Most valuably I learned how to take criticism constructively and that airplane design is an infinite cycle; a design freeze, therefore compromise, is inevitable.

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Requirements

This past year the payloads were softballs and "baseball bats," a few of which are included below, to be flown over 3 different missions.

• Battery packs must weigh less than 4 lbs
• Teams will be allowed a maximum of 5 flight attempts or 4 successful scoring flights whichever comes first.
• All flight hardware must fit in a 2’x2’x4’ Case.
• All payloads must be secured sufficiently to assure no movement of payload elements or variation of aircraft cg during flight. The payload restraints may NOT use tape, magnets or Velcro in any way.
• Assembly crew and ground crew size is limited to 3 people.
• "Bats" will be between 26 and 30 inches long and weigh between 16 and 20 ounces.  
  Bats will have a nominal diameter of 2".  Bats will not be tapered.  
  Each Bat will have a 3/16 inch hole located at the cg.  The team's bat mounting system MUST include a pin that registers in the hole to assure the bat can not slide in the mount along it's length.
  Bat mounting systems must securely restrain the Bat in all six degrees of freedom.
• "Softballs" will be ASA Girls Fast Pitch 11" (reference circumference) and 12" (reference circumference) Softballs.

Executive Summary

The overall goal of the competition was to design an aircraft system that excelled in all missions. Design was the integral part of successfully achieving this goal, as new and different designs are needed each and every year to succeed. This past year's competition required a plane to be fast, light, easily loadable, and capable of carrying both an internal and external payload. The final design is a conventionally shaped plane with a grid patterned internal softball payload bay and a fully external "bat" payload integration system. The design was chosen through intensive testing, analysis, and hard work put in by a completely volunteer student team from Cal Poly.

Deliverables

Driving factors in the score are weight, loading time of mission 2, and lap time. Instead of focusing on analysis, often very difficult to to the scale and unsteady nature of R/C airplanes, we designed based on experimental observation; we had flown our first prototype before Christmas break!

Prototypes

The goal with the prototypes were to make them as reconfigurable as possible in order to evaluate feasibility. We had an adjustable tail boom and shortened the wings / empennage to find minimum control limits... an experimental approach to sizing. The brick of a fuselage simulates the softball payload, "bats" will be stored under this section (for now). Prototype 1 flights felt a little underpowered, however the last two test flights of that day (we progressively shortened the boom) felt "better," because the plane gained agility or maneuverability. For prototype 2 we integrated the Castle Creations ICE 50 ESC and logged pertinent flight data - the most important being mA per flight and flight velocity for different propeller combinations. The mission profile is three circuits with a 360° turn mid-runway.... it takes about 1000mAh with NiMh 28.8V pack w/ Neu 1905/3Y + 17x10 APC.

Final Design

The competition airplane used kevlar-balsa composite ribs with our novel spar-less wing design. Torsional rigidity is assured by kevlar string sewn from rib-carbon rod junction to junction. This allowed us to build an incredible light and strong wing. I modeled the entire airplane in solidworks and laser cut out all pieces. I taught club members how to perform carbon and kevlar composite lay-ups, general R/C airplane know-how, construction and manufacturing techniques.

Dimensions and Sizing
Wingspan = 72"
Chord Length = 12"
Length = 56"
AR = 6.0
Wing Area = 864 in2
Tail Volume Coefficient = 0.61
L/D = 10
Airframe Weight = 4 lbs

Results

We achieved 5th place! We did extremely well due to organization and practice, from loading simulation to full mission flights.

• http://www.aiaadbf.org/2010_files/DBF_2010_Competition_Summary.pdf
• http://www.calpolynews.calpoly.edu/news_releases/2010/April/Aviation.html
• http://mustangdaily.net/29626/

Lessons

The toughest management item did not deal with the organization of the team, layout of the process, or design decisions. It was the level of commitment and choice of the team member to follow through with their assigned task that was most critical. Since this was a volunteer club, there is no grade or possibility to fire someone based on poor performance; it was essential that team members were there because they wanted to be. Also, it was stressed that members should always place school-work ahead of club activities and only jump into tasks that they were truly interested in. I recognized that they are donating their time to the club, and that it takes a concerted effort by both sides in order to progress... It took a huge time commitment on my end to ensure progress, it paid off in the end!

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In progress ...

Abstract

The aim of this report is to demonstrate how modern design and optimization techniques can improve the performance of a system, in our case the 1903 Wright Flyer. The objective was to obtain a maximum cruise velocity constrained by early 20th century materials, however applying 21st century technology. The choice was also made to stay somewhat true to the original design, which are built into the constraints of our design optimization. This project is a testament of the remarkable achievements of Orville and Wilbur Wright and shows how capable their design was. The design analysis was optimized using a brute force, large data point, optimum estimator. A feasible design was found with a maximum speed of 86 miles per hour. The optimized span is 60 feet, the optimized gap to chord ratio is .8, the optimized aspect ratio is 7.4, and the optimized angle of attack is 1.5 degrees. A Loukianoff airfoil was found to provide the highest maximum speed.

Something was done wrong, forgot what exactly, but it involved lift theory assumption.

Deliverables

References

[1] F.E.C. Culick and Henry R. Jex, Aerodynamics, Stability, and Control of the 1903 Wright Flyer – The Wright Flyer: An Engineering Perspective, Washington, D.C: National Air and Space Museum, 1987
[2] John D. Anderson, The Airplane: A History of its Technology, New York, AIAA, 2002
[3] John D. Anderson, Fundamentals of Aerodynamics, 4th Edition, New York, 2005. §5.3.3, Page 424
[4] National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, Nomenclature for Aeronautics, NACA Technical Report No. 157, 1922
[5] Richard Von Mises, William Prager, Gustav Kuerti, “Theory of Flight”, Pg 138
[6] L. Prandtl, Induced Drag of Multiplanes,  NACA Technical Report No 182, 1924
[7] Max M. Munk, General Biplane Theory, NACA Technical Report No. 151, 1922.
[8] Bradley Jones, Elements of Practical Aerodynamics, 1936, Chapter 6
[9] Roskam, Jan, and C. T. Lan. Airplane Aerodynamics and Performance, Darcorporation, 2000
[10] Wright Flyer an Engineering Perspective. Washington, D.C: National Air and Space Museum, 1987
[11] Prints & Photographs Online Catalog - Wright Brothers Negatives - About." American Memory from the Library of Congress - Home Page. 16 Mar. 2009 http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/wrihtml/wriabt.html
[12] Drew Landman Wind Tunnel Testing of the Wright Brothers Model B Airfoil AIAA-2001-0310

In case you dont want to use the scroll bar...

Abstract

The aim of this report is to determine the polar for a Standard Cirrus Sailplane using IGC GPS data. An airspeed polar was determined using sink rate measurements from actual GPS flight data at various set airspeeds. Significant aerodynamic performance characteristics were graphically deduced from this plot, such as minimum sink rate and maximum glide ratio, 1.3 ft/s at 46mph and 42 at 57 mpg respectively. Finally a drag polar was built from the airspeed polar and performance metrics compared to actual Cirrus data.

The following programs / data sources were required to parse the flight data, and were crucial to determining the glider polar:

• IGC Flight Replay - Google earth plugin to replay logged flight data
• G7toWin - GPS data file conversion
• The Deturbulator Project - .IGC flight data logs

Deliverables

References

[1] Eta Aircraft Germany. (2009, Dec.) Wikipedia. [Online]. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eta_Aircraft_eta
[2] J. Hendrix. (2009, Dec.) The Deturbulator Project. [Online]. http://www.deturbulator.org/
[3] D. S. Sinha and J. Hendrix, "Sailplane Performance Improvement Using a Flexible Composite Surface Deturbulator," AIAA-2006-446.
[4] FAI. (2009, Dec.) GNSS Recording Devices. [Online]. http://www.fai.org/gliding/GNSS
[5] R. Johnson, "Sailplane Performance Flight Test Methods," Soaring, pp. 26-37, May 1989.
[6] P. Bikle, "Polars of Eight," Soaring, pp. 20-37, Jun. 1971.
[7] J. Hendrix. (2009, Jul.) Measuring Glider Performance, Oxford Aero Equipment. [Online]. http://www.oxaero.com/Oxaero-Performance.asp
[8] USAF Test Pilot School, "High L/D," in Volume 1: Performance Flight Testing Phase. 19970121 002: Edwards Airforce Base, 1992, ch. 4.
[9] F. Thomas, Fundamentals of Sailplane Design, 3rd ed. College Park, Maryland, USA: College Park Press, 1999.

You could use the up arrow...

Abstract

The aim of this project is to apply computational tools to various algebraically simple, low-dimensional, nonlinear equations which exhibit chaotic flow. Two classic examples are the Lorenz [1] and Rössler [2] attractors, each consisting of seven terms with two and one quadratic nonlinearities respectively. These systems prove that a variety of interesting dynamical behavior may rise out of relatively simple differential equations. Depending on control parameters systems may exhibit fixed points, limit cycles, intermittent chaos, noisy periodicity, as well as strange attractors — a defining characteristic of chaos.

Numerical investigations by J.C. Sprott [3-5] led to a series of simple systems of autonomous ordinary differential equations (ODEs) with one or two quadratic non-linearities and fewer than seven terms whose solutions are chaotic. My project investigates Sprott's cases with the goal of validating his findings, however more importantly a deeper understanding of the courses final concepts were sought after.

By the way, Sprott had an interesting paper on "Dynamic Models of Happiness" which attempted to model happiness ... I suggest jumping to the conclusion!

Deliverables

References

[1] E.N. Lorenz, "Deterministic Nonperiodic Flow," vol. 20, p. 130, 1963.
[2] O.E. Rossler, "An Equation for Continuous Chaos," vol. 57A, no. 5, p. 397, 1976.
[3] J.C. Sprott, "Some simple chaotic flows," The American Physical Society, vol. 50, no. 2, p. §50, January 1994.
[4] J.C. Sprott, "Simplest dissipative chaotic flow," Physics Letters A 228, pp. 271-274, 1997.
[5] J.C. Sprott and S.J. Linz, "Algebraically Simple Chaotic Flows," vol. 5, 2000.

or page up...

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to stabilize and enhance the Cal Poly Flight Lab’s CNC Foam Cutter in hopes that the machine would produce more consistent cuts and operate reliably. This was achieved by ensuring sound mechanical operation, incorporating a support frame to reduce vertical tower sway and provide high tension support, an adjustable constant tension pulley system, and the expansion of past work with optimal cut settings. The tensioning system provided precise control of wire tension while the support towers fully constrained the system. Additional upgrades established a solid foundation for future work on and with this machine and will be very useful for clubs as well as special projects. Experiments proved that high tension, low voltage, and slow cut rates yield pieces which had minimum material waste and the highest degree of accuracy.

Deliverables

References

[1] Foamworks Foam Cutting Software
[2] Foamlinx Foam Cutting CNC Machines

even better, ctrl+home would get you back!

CP Continuing Education, Adult Degree Program, and Summer School

Since my absence Cal Poly WARC has required all departments to use the Cal Poly webpage tempalte, which is now (sadly for my portfolio) integrated into their website. I made the following improvements over the pre-existing website:

Accessibility: WARC 508 Guidelines

Division Based Layout
Linearizes page content by dection in order to optimize screen Reader usability

Division Based Fixed Header
Look Ma, no Frames! Main Navigation stays at the top of the page when you scroll, providing efficient website navigation.

Directory Driven Structure
Instead of piling all links within the root directory of the website, we created subdirectories that house each main-navigation item. You can now point your URL to a main directory item; Shorter URLs = Less typing on user's end. (Ex: In the past linking to 'courses' would've looked something like 'http://continuing-ed.calpoly.edu/courses.html', now its 'http://continuing-ed.calpoly.edu/courses/')

Browser Specific CSS
IE 7 Conditional Statements to Ensure Design Consistency

404 Redirect Page
When you type in the wrong URL you're greeted with this page.

New Look
More attention to details; Commonality among all Continuing Education Programs (ADP & soon OLLI)

Technology

• XHTML 1.0 Transitional
• CSS
• Javascript

• Flash
• Adobe Reader [PDF]
• MS Office Readers [DOC, PPT]

References

• Fixed Header Layout - Stu Nicohls
• CSS and round corners: Making accessible menu tabs
• A List Apart - CSS Switcher
• A List Apart - Print Stylesheet
• IE 8 PNG Fix - See Alpha Transparency in IE < 6
• IE Conditional Statements
• Frequency Decoder - Table Sorting
• Slideshow Pro - Flash Gallery

• Issuu - Digital Publishing
• 404 Redirect

CP Flight Lab

Fixed Header / Footer: http://flightlab.calpoly.edu/

CP AIAA

CSS Rotating NASA Image Gallery: http://aiaa.aero.calpoly.edu/

SnowWhite LTD

My first "serious" website, Gallery 2: http://snowwhiteltd.com/

Yeah that wasn't funny...