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Porous wall permeability is one of the most critical factors for the estimation of backpressure, a key performance indicator in automotive particulate filters. Current experimental and analytical filter models could be calibrated to predict the permeability of a specific filter. However, they fail to provide a reliable estimation for the dependence of the permeability on key parameters such as wall porosity and pore size. This study presents a novel methodology for experimentally determining the permeability of filter walls. The results from four substrates with different porosities and pore sizes are compared with several popular permeability estimation methods (experimental and analytical), and their validity for this application is assessed. It is shown that none of the assessed methods predict all permeability trends for all substrates, for cold or hot flow, indicating that other wall properties besides porosity and pore size are important.

Improving the verification and certification process of the high lift system by introduction of virtual testing is one of the approaches to counter the challenges related to testing of future aircraft, in terms of performing more tests of more complex systems in less time. The quality of the applied modelling methods itself and the guarantee of a completely traceable simulation lifecycle management along the aircraft development are essential. The presentation shows how existing processes for the management of all test related data have to be extended to cover the specifics of using multi body simulation models for virtual tests related to high lift failure cases. Based on a demonstrator, MSC Software GmbH and Airbus developed and are still refining the SimManager based “High Lift System Virtual Test Portal”. This portal has to fulfil on the one side global requirements like data management, data traceability and workflow management.

Insufficient chip extraction often leads to disruptions of automated drilling processes and will have a negative impact on the surface qualities. One opportunity to avoid chip accumulation is based on a kinematically enforced chip breakage caused by sinusoidal axial oscillations of the drilling tool. Recent investigations have shown that the quality of chip extraction is, amongst others, considerably depending on the chip shape and mass which are defined by the cutting parameters feed, amplitude and frequency. So far only mechanical systems in the form of tool holders have been available on the market, which are restricted to a fixed frequency (oscillation frequency is coupled to the spindle speed). In the present study a spindle with magnetic bearings was used which allows to adjust the oscillation frequency independent of the spindle speed and therefore enables all opportunities to affect the generated chip shapes.

Aircraft manufacturers desire to increase production to keep up with anticipated demand. To achieve this, the aerospace industry requires a significant increase in the manufacturing and assembly performance to reach required output levels. This work therefore introduces the Variation Aware Assembly (VAA) concept and identifies its suitability for implementation into aircraft wing assembly processes. The VAA system concept focuses on achieving assemblies towards the nominal dimensions, as opposed to traditional tooling methods that aim to achieve assemblies anywhere within the tolerance band. It enables control of the variation found in Key Characteristics (KC) that will allow for an increase in the assembly quality and product performance. The concept consists of utilizing metrology data from sources both before and during the assembly process, to precisely position parts using motion controllers.

The solid state power controller (SSPC) is one of the most important power electronic components of the aircraft electrical power distribution (EPS) systems. This paper presents an architecture of the DC SSPC and provides the mitigation techniques for transient voltage overshoot during its turn-off. The high source side inductance carries breaking current (9xnominal current) just before turnoff and induces large voltage transient across the semiconductor devices. Therefore, the stored inductive energy needs to be dissipated in order to prevent semiconductor switches from over-voltage/thermal breakdown. Three different transient voltage suppression (TVS) devices to reduce voltage stress across switches are included in the paper for detail study. The comprehensive comparison of the TVS devices is presented. In addition, the thermal impact of the TVS devices on the semiconductor switches is also analyzed.

The aim of this work was to develop a new assembly process in conjunction with an adaptive fixturing system to improve the assembly process capability of specific aircraft wing assembly processes. The inherently complex aerospace industry requires a step change in its capability to achieve the production ramp up required to meet the global demand. This paper evaluates the capability of adaptive fixtures to identify their suitability for implementation into aircraft wing manufacturing and assembly. To understand the potential benefits of these fixtures, an examination of the current academic practices and an evaluation of the existing industrial solutions is highlighted. The proposed adaptive assembly process was developed to account for the manufacturing induced dimensional variation that causes significant issues in aircraft wing assembly. To test the effectiveness of the adaptive assembly process, an aircraft wing assembly operation was replicated on a demonstrator test rig.

Electroimpact has developed a new Fastener Feed System which provides an automated solution for fasteners previously hand fed via drop tubes. The hardware is simple, compact, and is supplied a fraction of the cost of hoppers or cartridges. It can be used as a primary feed system or it can be used as an auxiliary feed system when combined with feed systems designed for high quantities of fasteners. We have installed this system on the A380 Stage 0 LVER lower panel wing machines and feed 5 diameters, 10 grips each, for a total of 50 different fastener types. This system moves 547 total fasteners per ship set from manual feed to automatic feed, saving considerable build time.

Many More-Electric Aircraft (MEA) Electric Power System (EPS) architecture paradigms are being studied in order to provide the on-board electrical loads with high-quality supply and to ensure safe operation. EPS with dc distribution appears to be more promising due to higher efficiency, higher reliability, easier integration and lower overall weight. Another advantage of dc systems is the ease of sources paralleling, together with the optimization of load power sharing, this can lead to further EPS weight reduction. The DC bus can be fed by multiple sources such as generators, batteries and other energy storage devices. Many loads in MEA EPS are tightly controlled by power electronic converters and often behave as constant power loads (CPL). These are known as main contributors to the degradation of EPS stability margins. Therefore, stability study is one of the key topics in the assessment of potential EPS architecture candidates.

The presented paper describes the software complex developed in St. Petersburg Polytechnical University for AIRBUS aimed at simulation of aircraft assembly process. Previous version of this complex was described in [1].

Measurements in snow conditions performed in the past were rarely initiated and best suited for pure and extremely detailed quantification of microphysical properties of a series of microphysical parameters, needed for accretion modelling. Within the European ICE GENESIS project, a considerable effort of natural snow measurements has been made during winter 2020/21. Instrumental means, both in-situ and remote sensing were deployed on the ATR-42 aircraft, as well as on the ground (ground station at ‘Les Eplatures’ airport in the Swiss Jura Mountains with ATR-42 overflights). Snow clouds and precipitation in the atmospheric column were sampled with the aircraft, whereas ground based and airborne radar systems allowed extending the observations of snow properties beyond the flight level chosen for the in situ measurements.

ASRP (Assembly Simulation of Riveting Process) software is a special tool for assembly process modelling for large scale airframe parts. On the base of variation simulation, ASRP provides a convenient way to analyze, verify and optimize the arrangement of temporary fasteners. During the assembly of airframe certain criteria on residual gap between parts must be fulfilled. The numerical approach implemented in ASRP allows to evaluate the quality of contact on every stage of assembly process and solve verification and optimization problems for temporary fastener patterns. The paper is devoted to description of several specialized approaches that combine statistical analysis of measured data and numerical simulation using high-performance computing for optimization of fastener patterns, calculation of forces in fasteners needed to close initial gaps, and identification of hazardous areas in junction regions via ASRP software.

The work describes a concept application that aids a safety engineer to create a layup of equipment models by using an image scan of a schematic and a library of predefined standard component and their symbols. The approach uses image recognition techniques to identify the symbols within the scanned image of the schematic from a given library of symbols. Two recognition approaches are studied, one uses General Hough Transform; the other is based on pixel-level feature computation combining both structure and statistical features. The application allows the user to accept or edit the results of the recognition step and allows the user to define new components during the layup step. The tool then generates an output file that is compatible with a formal safety modeling tool. The identified symbols are associated to behavioral nodes from a model based safety tool.

This paper considers a wide range of options for the allowing regeneration onto the aircraft bus for possible inclusion in future aircraft power quality specifications. For many loads, such as actuators, the size and weight of power converters could be significantly reduced if the requirement to avoid regeneration was removed from the specifications.

Rising energy costs and increased regulation in recent years have caused industrialists to investigate how to apply ‘energy efficiency’ to their manufacturing operations. As well as reducing operating costs, the benefits of a ‘green’ image as a market differentiator are beginning to be realised. The literature describes the successful implementation of a variety of approaches to energy reduction, with particular focus on energy intensive industries (such as foundries) and on improvements to building services (such as lighting). However, a systematic approach to applying sustainable practices to the manufacturing processes involved in the production of high value products, such as aircraft, is noticeably absent. This paper describes how a number of sustainable manufacturing approaches have been combined, enhanced and applied to the shop floor of a manufacturing facility in the UK responsible for the production of large component assemblies for the aerospace industry.

Current assembly systems that deal with large, complex structures present a number of challenges with regard to improving operational performance. Specifically, aerospace assembly systems comprise a vast array of interrelated elements interacting in a myriad of ways, resulting in a deeply complex process that requires a multi-disciplined team of engineers. The current approach to ramp-up production rate involves building additional main assembly fixtures which require large investment and lead times up to 24 months. Within Airbus Operations Ltd there is a requirement to improve the capacity and flexibility of assembly systems, thereby reducing non-recurring costs and time-to-market. Recent trends to improve manufacturing agility advocate Reconfigurable Assembly Systems (RAS) as a viable solution. Yet, adding reconfigurability to assembly systems further increases both the operational and design complexity.

The objective of this paper is to present a numerical method to rank thick ice shapes for aircraft by comparing the ice accretion effects for different icing scenarios in order to determine the more critical ice shape. This ranking allows limiting the demonstration of the aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft in iced condition during certification to a reduced number of ice shapes. The usage of this numerical method gives more flexibility to the determination of the critical ice shapes, as it is not dependent of the availability of physical test vehicles and/or facilities. The simulation strategy is built on the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) and is validated based on a representative test case, both in terms of aircraft geometry and ice shapes. Validation against existing experimental results shows the method exhibits an adequate level of reliability for the ranking of thick ice shapes.

AmSafe®, Airbus and IABG were the first in decades to undertake an ultimate forward load Full-Scale Test (FST) of a 9 g₁ Barrier Net. Barrier Nets are safety-critical products used during an emergency landing (FAR25.561/CS25.561) to protect passengers and crew. When Airbus Military required an A400M Barrier Net they identified requirements well beyond the "normal" and demanded that payloads from a rigid structure to a frangible be restrained. AmSafe uses non-liner Finite Element Analysis (FEA) technology to analyze their nets and proposed an innovative solution for a new Barrier Net to satisfy these very demanding requirements. Given these new requirements, it was decided to also carry out a Full-Scale Test (FST). This test required the expertise of IABG, a testing facility based in Germany.

Evolving of aircraft design towards further electrification requires safe and fault-free operation of all the components. More electric aircraft are increasingly utilizing electro-mechanical actuators (EMA). EMAs are prone to jamming and subsequent failure due to large forces on the shaft. Large forces are generated due to the high reflected inertia of the electric machine rotor. To limit the force acting on the shaft, a torque limiting device is connected to the power train which can separate the rotating mass of the electric machine from the power train. In this paper, a concept of integration of torque limiter and the electric machine rotor is presented to reduce overall volume and mass. It is connected closely with the rotor, within the motor envelope. A commercially available torque limiter and an electric machine designed for actuator application are used to demonstrate the concept. While essential for safety, the torque limiter adds to the mass and size of the overall EMA.

Bleeding in engines is essential to mitigate the unmatched air massflow between low and High Pressure (HP) compressors at low speed settings, thus avoiding unstable operation due to surge and phenomena. However, by emerging the More Electric Aircraft (MEA) the engine is equipped with electrical machines on both high and Low Pressure (LP) spools which enables transfer of power electrically from one spool to another and hence provides the opportunity to operate engine core components closer to their optimum design point at off-design conditions. At lower power setting of the engine, HPC speed can be increased by taking power from LP shaft and feeding it to HP shaft which can lead to the removal of the bleeding system which in turn reduces weight and fuel consumption and help to overcome engine instability issues. Fuel consumption can be decreased by decreasing inconsistent thrust with the aircraft mission for flight and ground idle settings.

This paper describes a high-speed electrical machine for an aircraft starter-generator. A surface mounted permanent magnet machine is designed to have minimal rotor losses and a novel cooling system for the stator. An inner stator sleeve is adopted to allow for a flooded stator whilst minimizing rotor windage losses. Different slot-pole combinations are compared in view of attaining an optimal combination that provides minimum losses whilst satisfying the electromagnetic, mechanical and thermal constraints.