Robust Aeroservoelastic Control Utilizing Physics-Based Aerodynamic Sensing, Phase I

New aircraft designs depend on an integrated active approach to flight control, flutter suppression and structural mode attenuation to meet desired handling quality performance and gust load alleviation. Tao Systems will team with Professor Gary Balas at the University of Minnesota to (1) develop a robust controller that demonstrates improved aerostructural performance over the state-of-the-art by utilizing a novel aerodynamic load sensor, and (2) provide a robust linear parameter varying controller that (a) requires no ad hoc methods of gain-scheduling, (b) provides robustness guarantees that more traditional methods do not offer, and (c) allows for explicit rate bounds enabling less conservative, higher performing controller designs. The benefits include improvement of aerodynamic and structural efficiency using robust aeroservoelastic control methods over a range of flight speeds, in the presence of significant turbulence. More »