AIAA Design Build Fly Copper Tails
Faculty Mentor Name
Johann Dorfling, Joseph Smith
Format Preference
Poster
Abstract
The Design Build Fly team is a student-led organization on campus that competes in an annual competition hosted by the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Each year the team is tasked to develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to achieve the mission given by AIAA. This year we are creating a UAV that would be capable of performing electronic warfare. The UAV must also be able to fit inside standard airline luggage dimensions with two sets of wings. There are four separate missions that the UAV must prove proficiency. First is proof of flight, we need to fly three laps of a flight course. Second, we need to carry a simulated electronic payload. In the final flight mission, we will fly with a simulated jamming antenna sticking vertically from the wing tip. This mission has created some odd drag characteristics at low speeds. The final mission is a ground mission in which the aircraft is loaded while supported at the wing tips. Our team typically goes through a rapid iterative design process, however, this year we have been more methodical in the initial design process. This has resulted in an excellent aerodynamic model. This has pushed us from planning on developing five aircraft to three (Aero, Integrated and Final). Our team is getting consecutively better with each year thanks to generational knowledge. This is allowing us to maintain the top 10 for the past two years.
AIAA Design Build Fly Copper Tails
The Design Build Fly team is a student-led organization on campus that competes in an annual competition hosted by the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Each year the team is tasked to develop an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to achieve the mission given by AIAA. This year we are creating a UAV that would be capable of performing electronic warfare. The UAV must also be able to fit inside standard airline luggage dimensions with two sets of wings. There are four separate missions that the UAV must prove proficiency. First is proof of flight, we need to fly three laps of a flight course. Second, we need to carry a simulated electronic payload. In the final flight mission, we will fly with a simulated jamming antenna sticking vertically from the wing tip. This mission has created some odd drag characteristics at low speeds. The final mission is a ground mission in which the aircraft is loaded while supported at the wing tips. Our team typically goes through a rapid iterative design process, however, this year we have been more methodical in the initial design process. This has resulted in an excellent aerodynamic model. This has pushed us from planning on developing five aircraft to three (Aero, Integrated and Final). Our team is getting consecutively better with each year thanks to generational knowledge. This is allowing us to maintain the top 10 for the past two years.