Technical innovations in aircraft and beyond

Aviation is developing in different directions. Airplanes increase their flight range, become more economical, more aerodynamic and accelerate better. There are cabin improvements, passenger seats and the airports themselves.

The flight lasted seventeen hours without a break. Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner The Australian airline Qantas with more than two hundred passengers and sixteen crew members on board made a flight from Perth, Australia to Heathrow Airport in London. The car flew by 14 498 km. It was the world's second longest flight just after Qatar Airways' connection from Doha to Auckland, New Zealand. This last route is considered 14 529 km, which is 31 km longer.

Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines is already waiting for the delivery of a new one. Airbus A350-900ULR (very long distance flight) to start a direct service from New York to Singapore. The total length of the route will be more than 15 thousand km. The A350-900ULR version is quite specific - it does not have an economy class. The aircraft was designed for 67 seats in the business section and 94 in the premium economy section. It makes sense. After all, who can sit almost all day cramped in the cheapest compartment? Just among others With such long direct flights in passenger cabins, more and more new amenities are being designed.

passive wing

As aircraft designs evolved, their aerodynamics underwent constant, though not radical, changes. Search improved fuel efficiency Design changes can now be accelerated, including thinner, more flexible wings that provide natural laminar airflow and actively manage that airflow.

NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center in California is working on what it calls passive aeroelastic wing (STALEMATE). Larry Hudson, chief test engineer at the Armstrong Center's Air Load Laboratory, told the media that this composite structure is lighter and more flexible than traditional wings. Future commercial aircraft will be able to use it for maximum design efficiency, weight savings and fuel economy. During testing, experts use (FOSS), which uses optical fibers integrated with the surface of the wing, which can provide data from thousands of measurements of strains and stresses at workloads.

Aircraft cabins - project

Thinner and more flexible wings reduce drag and weight, but require new design and handling solutions. elimination of vibration. The methods being developed are associated, in particular, with passive, aeroelastic adjustment of the structure using profiled composites or the manufacture of metal additives, as well as with active control of the moving surfaces of the wings in order to reduce maneuvering and explosive loads and dampen wing vibrations. For example, the University of Nottingham, UK, is developing active control strategies for aircraft rudders that can improve aircraft aerodynamics. This makes it possible to reduce air resistance by about 25%. As a result, the aircraft will fly more smoothly, resulting in lower fuel consumption and COXNUMX emissions.₂.

Changeable geometry

NASA has successfully put into practice a new technology that allows aircraft to fly folding wings at different angles. The latest series of flights, conducted at the Armstrong Flight Research Center, was part of the project Adaptive wing span — PAV. It aims to achieve a wide range of aerodynamic benefits through the use of an innovative lightweight shape memory alloy that will allow the outer wings and their control surfaces to fold at optimal angles during flight. Systems using this new technology can weigh up to 80% less than traditional systems. This venture is part of NASA's Converged Aviation Solutions project under the Aeronautical Research Missions Authority.

Innovative aircraft cabin design

Folding wings in flight is an innovation which, however, was already being undertaken in the 60s using, among others, the XB-70 Valkyrie aircraft. The problem was that it was always associated with the presence of heavy and large conventional engines and hydraulic systems, which were not indifferent to the stability and economy of the aircraft.

However, the implementation of this concept can lead to the creation of more fuel-efficient machines than before, as well as simplify the taxiing of future long-haul aircraft at airports. In addition, pilots will receive another device to respond to changing flight conditions, such as gusts of wind. One of the most significant potential benefits of wing-folding has to do with supersonic flight.

, and they are also working on the so-called. fluffy body - mixed wing. This is an integrated design without a clear separation of the wings and fuselage of the aircraft. This integration has an advantage over conventional aircraft designs because the shape of the fuselage itself helps generate lift. At the same time, it reduces air resistance and weight, meaning that the new design consumes less fuel and therefore reduces CO emissions.₂.

Rendering of X-48B mixed-wing design

Boundary layer etching

They are also tested alternative engine layout - above the wing and on the tail, so that larger diameter motors can be used. Designs with turbofan engines or electric motors built into the tail, “swallowing”, the so-called “swallowing”, depart from conventional solutions. air boundary layerwhich reduces drag. NASA scientists have focused on the aerodynamic drag part and are working on an idea called (BLI). They want to use it to reduce fuel consumption, operating costs and air pollution at the same time.

 Jim Heidmann, Glenn Research Center Advanced Air Transportation Technology Project Manager, said during a media presentation.

When an airplane flies, a boundary layer is formed around the fuselage and wings - more slowly moving air, which creates additional aerodynamic drag. It is completely absent in front of a moving aircraft - it is formed when the ship moves through the air, and in the rear of the car it can be up to several tens of centimeters thick. In a conventional design, the boundary layer simply slides over the fuselage and then mixes with the air behind the aircraft. However, the situation will change if we place the engines along the path of the boundary layer, for example, at the end of the aircraft, directly above or behind the fuselage. The slower boundary layer air then enters the engines, where it is accelerated and expelled at high speed. This does not affect engine power. The advantage is that by accelerating the air, we reduce the resistance exerted by the boundary layer.

Scientists have prepared more than a dozen aircraft projects in which such a solution could be used. The agency hopes that at least one of them will be used in the X test aircraft, which NASA wants to use in the next decade to test advanced aviation technology in practice.

Seeing new seats on an airplane

Twin brother will tell the truth

Digital twins is the most modern method to dramatically reduce the cost of equipment maintenance. As the name implies, digital twins create a virtual copy of physical resources using data collected at certain points in machines or devices - they are a digital copy of equipment that is already working or being designed. GE Aviation recently helped develop the world's first digital twin. Chassis system. Sensors are installed at points where failures typically occur, providing real-time data, including for hydraulic pressure and brake temperature. This was used to diagnose the remaining life cycle of the chassis and identify failures early.

By monitoring the digital twin system, we can constantly monitor the status of resources and receive early warnings, forecasts, and even an action plan, modeling “what if” scenarios - all in order to extend the availability of resources. equipment over time. Companies investing in digital twins will see a 30 percent reduction in cycle times for key processes, including maintenance, according to International Data Corporation.  

Augmented reality for the pilot

One of the most important innovations in recent years has been the development displays and sensors lead pilots. NASA and European scientists are experimenting with this in an attempt to help pilots detect and prevent problems and threats. The display was already installed in the fighter pilot's helmet F-35 Lockheed Martinand Thales and Elbit Systems are developing models for commercial aircraft pilots, especially small aircraft. The latter company's SkyLens system will soon be used on ATR aircraft.

SkyLens by Elbit Systems

Synthetic and refined are already widely used in larger business jets. vision systems (SVS / EVS), which allows pilots to land in poor visibility conditions. They increasingly merge into combined vision systems (CVS) aimed at increasing pilots' awareness of situations and the reliability of flight schedules. The EVS system uses an infrared (IR) sensor to improve visibility and is usually accessed through the HUD display (). Elbit Systems, in turn, has six sensors, including infrared and visible light. It is constantly expanding to detect various threats such as volcanic ash in the atmosphere.

Touchscreensalready installed in business jet cockpits, they are moving to aircraft with Rockwell Collins displays for the new Boeing 777-X. Avionics manufacturers are also looking speech recognition specialists as another step towards reducing the load on the cab. Honeywell is experimenting with brain activity monitoring To determine when the pilot has too much work to do or his attention wanders somewhere "in the clouds" - potentially also about the ability to control cockpit functions.

However, the technical improvements in the cockpit are of little help when the pilots are simply exhausted. Mike Sinnett, Boeing's vice president of product development, recently told Reuters that he predicts "41 jobs will be needed over the next twenty years." commercial jet aircraft. This means that more than 600 people will be required. more new pilots. Where to get them? A plan to solve this problem, at least in Boeing, application of artificial intelligence. The company has already revealed plans for its creation cockpit without pilots. However, Sinnett believes they probably won't become a reality until 2040.

No windows?

Passenger cabins are an area of ​​innovation where a lot is happening. Oscars are even awarded in this area - Crystal Cabin Awards, i.e. awards to inventors and designers who create systems aimed at improving the quality of aircraft interiors for both passengers and crew. Everything that makes life easier, increases comfort and creates savings is rewarded here - from the on-board toilet to the lockers for hand luggage.

Meanwhile, Timothy Clark, President of Emirates Airlines, announces: aircraft without windowswhich can even be twice as light as existing structures, which means faster, cheaper and more environmentally friendly in construction and operation. In the first class of the new Boeing 777-300ER, the windows have already been replaced with screens that, thanks to cameras and fiber optic connections, can display the outside view without any differences visible to the naked eye. It seems that the economy will not allow the construction of "glazed" aircraft, which many dream of. Instead, we are more likely to have projections on the walls, the ceiling, or the seats in front of us.

Cabin concept with a roof that visualizes the sky

Last year, Boeing began testing the vCabin mobile app, which allows passengers to adjust lighting levels in their immediate vicinity, call flight attendants, order food and even check if the toilet is empty. Meanwhile, the phones have been adapted to interior fittings such as the Recaro CL6710 business chair, designed to allow mobile apps to tilt the chair back and forth.

Since 2013, US regulators have been trying to lift the ban on the use of mobile phones on aircraft, pointing out that the risk of them interfering with the on-board communications system is now lower and lower. A breakthrough in this area will allow the use of mobile applications during the flight.

We are also seeing progressive ground handling automation. Delta Airlines in the US is experimenting with the use of biometrics for passenger registration. Some airports around the world are already testing or testing facial recognition technology to match passport photos with those of their customers through identity verification, which is said to be able to check twice as many travelers per hour. In June 2017, JetBlue partnered with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and global IT company SITA to test a program that uses biometrics and facial recognition technology to screen customers upon boarding.

Last October, the International Air Transport Association predicted that by 2035 the number of travelers would double to 7,2 billion. So there is why and for whom to work on innovations and improvements.

Aviation of the future:

Animation of the BLI system: 

Boundary layer entrance animation | NASA Glenn Research Center