Power electrification and automated driving are being promoted at a remarkable speed for automobiles owing to advances in electronic technologies such as batteries, motors, and power electronics. On the other hand, strict safety requirements are imposed on aircraft engines. Therefore, electrifying them has been considered unfeasible on both a technical and commercial basis, which resulted in efforts in that area being shelved.Nevertheless, the number of passengers in air passenger transport increased by about 2.7 times from 2001 to 2019*1. This has led to concerns about the negative impact on the environment from the exhaust gas accompanying the further increase in the number of flights in the future. Moreover, an increase in the number of accidents has also been predicted. Accordingly, there is a particular need for the development of autopilot systems that enhance safety during takeoff and landing when the accident rate is high.We explain here the electrification of engines, which solves the problem of exhaust gas from aircraft, and the latest autopilot system technologies, which enhance the safety of aircraft operation.*1: Source: <a href="http://www.jadc.jp/files/topics/174_ext_01_0.pdf" target="_blank" data-lf-fd-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true">Japan Aircraft Development Corporation</a> (This linked page is in Japanese.)<h2>Electrification of Aircraft Engines</h2>Aircraft engines have been electrified up to now with a focus on auxiliary equipment such as hydraulic pumps and fuel supply devices. However, amid the international trend toward decarbonization, we have come to see that there is a limit to the extent to which we can curb the amount of exhaust gas with conventional efforts. Accordingly, attempts have begun in recent years to completely eliminate or greatly reduce exhaust gas by electrifying the engine itself (propulsion system). We explain here the limits of conventional efforts, the necessity of electrifying aircraft engines, the system of electric engines, and more.&nbsp;<h3>Conventional Efforts</h3>Electrification has already been promoted in various devices installed on aircraft. This initiative is called More Electric Engine (MEE). It is a technology that electrically drives devices previously driven mechanically, hydraulically, or pneumatically. For example, the power required to drive fuel pumps and hydraulic pumps was obtained from jet engine power and bleed air*2. Replacing that with an electric motor reduces the load applied to the engine. Moreover, carbon dioxide emissions have been reduced by mixing bio-fuel called Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) into aviation fuel, and fuel consumption has been improved by increasing the size of propulsion fans, among other measures.Nevertheless, these measures are only improvements to the auxiliary equipment other than the jet engine and the fuel. There has been a limit to obtaining effects such as eliminating or greatly reducing exhaust gases.*2: This is when some compressed air is extracted from a compressor in a gas turbine engine.<h3>Trend Toward Electrification</h3>The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and other bodies have set a target to be achieved by 2050 of halving carbon dioxide emissions compared with the level in 2005. In the midst of such international trends, it has become clear that it would be difficult to achieve that target with the electrification of engine auxiliary equipment up to now and improvements in the fuel and the fuel consumption.Accordingly, the electrification of aircraft engines is attracting attention as a technology to both handle the increase in aviation demand expected in the future and to reduce exhaust gases. If we replace jet engines with electric motors for aircraft engines, we will be able to eliminate or greatly reduce exhaust gases from engines. Therefore, the development of electric engines has become a pressing issue for many aviation-related research institutes and aircraft manufacturers.<h2>Electric Engine Systems</h2>There are two types of electric engine systems that replace jet engines: the pure electric system that obtains propulsion with just the electric motor and the hybrid system that employs both a jet engine and an electric motor.<h3>Pure Electric Systems</h3>This is also called the full electric system. The engine in this system consists of a secondary battery, an electric motor, and a propulsion fan (Fig. 1). The electric motor is driven by the power from the secondary battery. The propulsive power is obtained from the rotation of the propulsion fan. Absolutely no jet fuel is used in this system. As a result, there are zero carbon dioxide emissions. However, the propulsive power comes from the electric motor and only the secondary battery supplies power. Accordingly, it is difficult to fly a medium-sized or large aircraft with the energy density of current lithium-ion batteries. That means only small aircraft such as single-seater or two-seater can be flown with this system.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY1ODk1OTI1LWltZzFlbiAoMSkucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Fig. 1: Pure electric system<h3 id="isPasted">Hybrid Systems</h3>There are two types of hybrid system: the parallel hybrid system and the series hybrid system. These are systems that combine a jet engine or a gas turbine and an electric motor. It is possible to obtain large propulsion for a long period of time compared to the pure electric system. Therefore, these systems can also be used to fly medium-sized and large aircraft.<h4>Parallel Hybrid Systems</h4>The engine in parallel hybrid systems consists of a jet engine, a secondary battery, and an electric motor driven by the secondary battery (Fig. 2). The propulsive power is obtained by rotating the propulsion fan using both the jet engine and the electric motor.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY1OTI2NjMxLWltZzJlbi5wbmciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Fig. 2: Parallel hybrid system<h4 id="isPasted">Series Hybrid Systems</h4>The engine in series hybrid systems consists of a generator, a jet engine for driving the generator, and a secondary battery in addition to the electric motor (Fig. 3). The rotation of the jet engine is transferred to the generator to generate power. The electric motor is then driven by that power to rotate the propulsion fan. The jet engine is used to drive the generator. This gives the system some advantages. There is a high degree of freedom in the location where the system is installed on the aircraft. There are also few restrictions on the placement position of the electric fans that generate propulsion and the number of those fans. Moreover, it is also possible to charge the secondary battery by regenerating the surplus power and the rotational energy of the jet engine when not using the electric motor.The power generated by the jet engine drives the electric motor in this system. This means energy loss occurs during power generation. However, it is possible to improve the propulsion efficiency by optimizing the placement and number of propulsion fans utilizing the high degree of freedom in design.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY1OTQ5NzU0LWltZzNlbi5wbmciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Fig. 3: Series hybrid system<h2 id="isPasted">Latest Aircraft Autopilot (Automatic Control) System Technologies</h2>Aircraft autopilot systems have a long history. They are able to provide stable operation after takeoff. However, it has not been possible to use autopilot systems for taking off and landing in difficult conditions due to the accompanying danger. Nevertheless, it has started to become possible in recent years to operate aircraft with the autopilot system even under conditions that would once have been considered difficult. This has been achieved by improving the precision of radar, image recognition systems, and radio wave sensors, increasing the response speed of actuators such as motors and valves, and enhancing other areas. Against such a background, experiments have also begun recently to perform all operations, from takeoff to landing, with the autopilot system.&nbsp;<h3>What Is an Autopilot System?</h3>The autopilot system automates the operation of aircraft to reduce the operational burden on the pilot. When using the autopilot system, the pilot can operate the aircraft automatically by setting the altitude, bearing, speed, destination, and other conditions based on instructions from air traffic control, weather information, location information, information on aircraft in the surroundings, and other data.In general, pilots leave operation to the autopilot system a few minutes after takeoff in the case of passenger planes. After that, it is possible to fly safely except in fog, strong winds, or other poor conditions. The pilot then manually operates the aircraft during landing when there is greater risk. Of course, pilots have the skills to perform all operations manually. However, there are many tasks performed by the pilot other than operating the aircraft such as flight management and drafting flight plans during the flight. Accordingly, it is possible to fly even more safely by entrusting operation to the autopilot system.<h3>Autopilot System Mechanism</h3>Autopilot systems have an aircraft attitude control function (pitch, roll, and yaw; Fig. 4), an altitude and speed control function, and a function to give guidance to the destination.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY1OTc3Mzk5LWltZzRlbi5wbmciLCJlZGl0cyI6eyJyZXNpemUiOnsid2lkdGgiOjk1MCwiZml0IjoiY292ZXIifX19" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Fig. 4: Pitch, roll, and yawOf these functions, the aircraft attitude control and altitude and speed control are performed by the accelerometer, tilt sensor, and other sensors, and the FCC*3, ACC*4, and actuators*5. The sensors detect the attitude, direction, altitude, and speed of the aircraft. The detected signals are then sent to the FCC. The FCC sends the command to operate the actuators to the ACC. The ACC supplies the power required to drive the actuators. Through that, the actuators appropriately operate the ailerons, rudders, elevators, and other rotor blades. Safe flight by the autopilot system is achieved with that.The actuator and rotor blade movements are also normally transmitted to and displayed on the monitors, meters, and other instruments in the cockpit. The pilot can see the operating status of each device and the attitude of the aircraft from the display on the monitors and meters. In addition, autopilot systems comprise multiple systems, as a failure could lead to a major accident. This ensures high reliability.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY2MDE3MDkxLWltZzUuanBnIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">*3: Flight control computer (FCC): The FCC calculates the optimal steering angle according to the flight control law by taking into account the status of each device in the aircraft, the engine propulsion, the airflow, and other factors. It then outputs the signals that determine the degree of movement by the rotor blades (ailerons, rudders, elevators, etc.) to the ACC.*4: Actuator control computer (ACC): The ACC supplies the power required to the actuators that drive the rotor blades according to commands from the FCC.*5: Actuators: Actuators are devices that convert electricity, pressure (oil pressure, air pressure, etc.), heat, magnetism, and other forms of energy into mechanical motions such as rotation, expansion and contraction, and bending. Electric motors, hydraulic pistons, and electromagnetic solenoid devices are examples of actuators.<h2>Electrification of Aircraft Engines and Autopilot System Electronics Technologies</h2>The issue that must be resolved as a top priority for the electrification of aircraft engines is the realization of a long cruising range. One way of extending the cruising range is to increase the amount of energy the aircraft is equipped with by loading more batteries onto it. However, unlike other transportation devices, it is not possible to tolerate an increase in the weight of aircraft by increasing the number of batteries. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the energy density of the batteries. Research and development are already underway in countries around the world to significantly improve the energy density of batteries. There have been reports such as those that say they have reached 450 Wh/kg at the cell level. If a level of about 500 Wh/kg is realized, it will be possible to expect that technology to be used as assist power during the takeoff and ascent of passenger planes with the hybridization of aircraft engines. Moreover, a water cooling system to cool the converters, inverters, and other devices is also a burden in terms of the weight. Accordingly, it is best to adopt an air-cooling system. This means it is necessary to use gallium nitride (GaN) or silicon carbide (SiC), which generate little heat, for semiconductors. Of course, there is also a need for a wide operating temperature range from high to low temperatures and vibration resistance for the electronic parts used in the peripheral circuits.On the other hand, the autopilot system is a bundle of electronics technologies realized by many sensors, computers, and actuators. Therefore, improvements in electronics technologies lead directly to improvements in the functions and safety of the autopilot system. For instance, the FCC transmits electrical signals to the ACC in a fly-by-wire system in which the rotor blades are operated by those electrical signals. If electrical noise enters into these signals, it may cause the actuators to malfunction. For that reason, it is necessary to take measures against that using an optical fiber cable, which is not affected by electrical noise. Furthermore, it is essential to equip the system with a high-precision attitude indicator and an Attitude Heading Reference System (AHRS) to realize full autopilot system flight (autonomous flight), including takeoff and landing. These devices require MEMS sensors*6, which provide both high reliability and high performance.In this way, electrical signals and electric power are responsible for many elements relating to flight in electric aircraft. Therefore, it is essential to improve electronics technologies to put electric engines into practical use regardless of their system.*6:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.murata.com/en-eu/products/sensor/library/mems-basic#guide_01" target="_blank">Basic knowledge of MEMS Technology</a><h2>Summary</h2>The advantage of electric aircraft is that they emit far less greenhouse gases than aircraft equipped with conventional jet engines. They are equipped with a flight system suitable for safe operation employing an excellent autopilot system.In addition to improving the aerodynamic characteristics*7 of the aircraft and the efficiency of the power devices, it will also be necessary to do things such as acquiring technologies and knowledge through interaction with a wide range of fields such as aircraft materials and biotechnologies for the aviation industry in each country to advance globally in the field of electric aircraft in the future. The road ahead is by no means an easy one. There is a tendency to think that the realization of electric aircraft is still a long way in the future from the artist&#39;s impressions of such aircraft we can see today. Nevertheless, as we have stated, research and experiments toward the practical use of electric aircraft have already begun.There are many technologies that have already been realized in other fields, including power electronics, high-power motors, and high-energy-density batteries in the field of electronics in particular. It will be possible to divert the use of those technologies to electric aircraft by further improving their performance. All this tells us that there is no doubt that the day is not so far off in the future when we will see environmentally friendly electric aircraft clear stringent safety requirements to be realized both technically and commercially.*7: Aerodynamic characteristics: Examples of aerodynamic characteristics in the case of aircraft include air resistance, the force that pushes up the aircraft, and the air resistance ratio (lift-to-drag ratio). It is possible to lighten the load on the engine and to reduce the amount of fuel consumption by improving these characteristics.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjk0NDY2MDQ1Mjg5LWltZzYuanBnIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><hr id="isPasted"><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1694466244974-1694466244974.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii">If you have any questions based on this article that you would like to discuss with an expert at Murata, don&#39;t hesitate to reach out. There&#39;s an entire team ready to support you with your question.<a href="https://www.murata.com/en-eu/contactform?&Detail=Wevolver%20request" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" class="button-main-action">GET IN TOUCH</a>

Power electrification and automated driving are being promoted at a remarkable speed for automobiles owing to advances in electronic technologies such as batteries, motors, and power electronics. On the other hand, strict safety requirements are imposed on aircraft engines. Therefore, electrifying them has been considered unfeasible on both a technical and commercial basis, which resulted in efforts in that area being shelved.

Electrification of Aircraft Engines and the Latest Autopilot System Technologies

In this episode, we delve into the remarkable achievement of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) as they successfully execute the maiden flight of their hybrid demonstrator aircraft.

Podcast: Hybrid Takes The Sky With HyBird

It may be a clich&eacute;, but it is a time of unprecedented change in the global aviation, aerospace and space industry. No sooner had the Covid pandemic ended, temporarily grounding air travel, than a high-intensity peer-on-peer war erupted in Eastern Europe with Russia&rsquo;s invasion of Ukraine. Climate action, meanwhile, is now top of the agenda in many places, and the aerospace industry is racing to decarbonise itself &ndash; even as it &nbsp;struggles with supply chain shortages and a skills crisis. Meanwhile, sci-fi dreams of flying taxis, rockets that land vertically, hotels in space and now AI that can hold lengthy conversations with humans are almost here. All of these external factors make for a challenging landscape for today&rsquo;s firms to navigate when deciding on technology and investment priorities. This landmark survey, with an impressive take-up, saw over 1,800 responses from RAeS members, with respondents ticking job roles, such as Engineer (29.48%), Procurement (15.15%), Product Designer/ &nbsp;Development (13.66%), R&amp;D (12.61%), Retired (8.46%), Other (8.08%), IT/Digital (7.47%) and Student (5.09%). In addition, as might be expected for the &lsquo;Other&rsquo; category, this also included a significant number of respondents with &lsquo;pilot&rsquo; in their job title. In terms of seniority, some 27.32% of respondents were in the &lsquo;Middle Management&rsquo; category, while 23.41% described themselves as &lsquo;Experienced&rsquo; and 21.73% as &lsquo;Team Lead&rsquo; level. Let us take a look at some of the key takeaways from this survey.&nbsp;<h2>Key takeaways</h2>Reflecting on the key priorities of the global aerospace industry, recruiting more skilled personnel was chosen as the number one focus by respondents at 52.9%, closely followed by Sustainability (51.6%) and Supply Chain Shortages (50.7%). This tracks closely with the sector-wide skills&rsquo; crisis the aerospace industry now finds itself in, with a combination of demographics and workers not returning after being furloughed or downsized during the pandemic. Meanwhile, the sustainability agenda is also accelerating as the industry races to decarbonise itself. Yet, aerospace is still reeling and attempting to play catch-up with disrupted supply chains that have played havoc with tightly integrated &lsquo;just-in-time&rsquo; global networks. In November 2022, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said he expected &lsquo;supply chain constraints&rsquo; to last another year.The &lsquo;Other&rsquo; (5.59%) category, which allowed respondents to specify additional issues threw up some further challenges and issues, such as &lsquo;inflation and its negative effects on sustainability and growth&rsquo;, &lsquo;regulation changes post-leaving EASA&rsquo;, &lsquo;fuel price increases&rsquo; and a call from one respondent to embrace digitalisation fully: &lsquo;the industry is operating in the past. Most of the leaders in the industry are missing the key lessons regarding AI and automated systems. Nobody is looking at information technology as a key component in aerospace...why?&#39;Meanwhile, the survey found that <a href="https://www.protolabs.com/en-gb/services/cnc-machining/" target="_blank" title="CNC Machining">CNC&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.protolabs.com/en-gb/services/cnc-machining/?utm_source=wevolver&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=uk-aerospace-0523&utm_content=wevolver-aerospace-manufacturing-0823" target="_blank" title="CNC Machining">machining</a>&nbsp;(53.85%) was the key prototyping/manufacturing technology in the aerospace sector, followed by <a href="https://www.protolabs.com/en-gb/services/3d-printing/?utm_source=wevolver&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=uk-aerospace-0523&utm_content=wevolver-aerospace-manufacturing-0823" target="_blank" title="3D Printing">3D printing</a> (51.41%) and then Robotic Manufacturing (44.88%) and <a href="https://www.protolabs.com/en-gb/services/injection-moulding/" target="_blank" title="Injection Moulding">Injection&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.protolabs.com/en-gb/services/injection-moulding/?utm_source=wevolver&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=uk-aerospace-0523&utm_content=wevolver-aerospace-manufacturing-0823" target="_blank" title="Injection Moulding">Moulding</a> (41.51%). While the option of CNC machining in grinding, cutting and milling metallic structures as the number one choice is perhaps no surprise for aircraft production, the selection of 3D printing/additive manufacturing by nearly 50% of respondents is more noteworthy. This indicates that 3D printing has now gone mainstream in the aerospace and space industry, passing from a niche &lsquo;rapid prototyping tool&rsquo; to more &nbsp;widespread use. Indeed, earlier this year saw the first-ever fully 3D-printed rocket, Terran 1, attempt to reach orbit.In the &lsquo;Other&rsquo; category at 4.10%, additional suggestions included &lsquo;casting&rsquo;, &lsquo;digital twinning&rsquo; and &lsquo;MBSE (model based system engineering)&rsquo;, as well as several entries suggesting &lsquo;composites and composites moulding&rsquo;.<img border="0" width="478" src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjkyMDE3NTc1OTAzLTE2OTIwMTc1NzU5MDMuanBlZyIsImVkaXRzIjp7InJlc2l6ZSI6eyJ3aWR0aCI6OTUwLCJmaXQiOiJjb3ZlciJ9fX0=" alt="cnc mill operator" class="fr-fic fr-dii"><h3>In-house or outsourced?</h3>Roughly 25-50% of components are manufactured in-house, found the survey, with 39.68% of respondents picking this option, followed by 23.35% indicating a greater vertically integrated in-house capability at 51-75% and 21.35% for more outsourced enterprises &ndash; under 25%. This backs up consolidation trends in the aerospace industry that have seen mergers and acquisitions in recent years concentrate manufacturing in a smaller number of large &lsquo;Tier 1&rsquo; or &lsquo;Super Tier 1&rsquo; suppliers.&nbsp;<h3>The digital skills gap</h3>However, in embracing the possibilities of this new digital manufacturing landscape, the survey highlighted that the aerospace sector could well be falling behind with respondents selecting &lsquo;Lack of expertise&rsquo; as the biggest obstacle &ndash; highlighting a growing need for &lsquo;digital natives&rsquo; and IT specialists in the aerospace industry. Despite its history of being on the cutting-edge of technology, the aerospace industry is now competing with the financial sector, app developers, AI specialists, motorsports and more. Indeed, consultants McKinsey found that, for every traditional engineer the global aerospace and defence (A&amp;D) industry is trying to recruit, it is also trying to recruit two software engineers. Other challenges identified were &lsquo;Project costs&rsquo; &ndash; an admission perhaps that investing in &lsquo;Factory 4.0&rsquo; technology may be initially expensive. Meanwhile, &lsquo;Secure networks/cybersecurity&rsquo; was also highlighted as a concern. This is particularly relevant with the current geostrategic environment and the &lsquo;decoupling&rsquo; of some industries with China and Russia.<img border="0" width="570" src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjkyMDE3NTc1OTIxLTE2OTIwMTc1NzU5MjEucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" alt="aerospace part design and manufacture" class="fr-fic fr-dii"> The industry as a whole is significantly automated with 29.84% of respondents replying their manufacturing was 51-75% automated, followed closely by the 25-50% segment (28.47%). Interestingly, some 11.29% of respondents chose &lsquo;none&rsquo; as an answer. This could very well indicate sub-sectors in small batch production, artisan-style manufacturing, such as rebuilding WW2 &lsquo;warbirds&rsquo; or assembling custom UAV prototypes.In automated manufacturing, it would also be interesting to revisit this question in a few years time to see the effect of the nascent eVTOL sector on the answers. Here &lsquo;air taxi&rsquo; manufacturers are aiming for automotive-levels of production with Archer and Vertical both planning 2,000 air vehicles a year. This is over double the 661 airliners that Airbus delivered in 2022 and strongly suggests that the level of automation will increase.As might be expected from a highly-regulated industry designing safety-critical equipment and components, &lsquo;quality&rsquo; was the overriding (64%) factor chosen by respondents in designing and manufacturing parts for the aerospace sector. Yet &lsquo;quality&rsquo; is not purely just about safety &ndash; but also flows into overall costs with tightly integrated and complex supply chains, where the discovery of substandard parts or components can cascade further down the production process and disrupt deliveries. Recent examples include the pause in some Boeing 737 MAX deliveries, due to substandard fittings from Spirit AeroSystems.The focus on quality, standards and experts on hand was echoed in the largest (47.47%) &lsquo;very important&rsquo; answer to the question: &lsquo;How important is certification when working with manufacturing partners?&rsquo;&rsquo;&nbsp;<h3>Certification priorities</h3>A free-form poll of the most valuable aerospace certifications to hold produced a wide range of answers &ndash; not all of them manufacturing related. However, despite the UK respondents slightly outnumbering US ones in this survey, the number of people who put &lsquo;FAA&rsquo; as a single answer outnumbered &lsquo;EASA&rsquo; two to one &ndash; potentially a sign of how dominant the US still is in the global aviation regulatory framework and the importance of designing products for this key market.Finally, the top priority for the next three years was again recruiting skills and talent (55.77%), followed by sustainability (52.33%) and ramping up civil production post-Covid (47.56%).This then is a clear message about the immediate skills and recruitment crisis that the industry is facing &ndash; and one that if not solved, then the other two (sustainability/ramping up production) cannot happen. Among the comments in the &lsquo;Other&rsquo; category (4.83%) were &lsquo;Competition with China, Security of Proprietary Data And Technology&rsquo;, &lsquo;Space Exploration and Commercialisation&rsquo; and, interestingly, one suggestion that: &lsquo;a strong PR campaign should be launched to counteract present trends that (falsely) consider aviation a highly polluting industry.&rsquo;&nbsp;<h3>Summary</h3>In conclusion then, this was a landmark survey into the state of the aerospace industry in 2023, providing a significant snapshot of the global aerospace sector as it emerges from the pandemic and attempts to ramp up production, recruit skilled workers and meet sustainability targets. it will be interesting to see what lies ahead for the industry in the future, and good to keep a close eye on how widely digital manufacturing expand through the industry.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1692025170653-Wevovler-Aerospace-Stat-highlights.jpg" style="width: 765px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib"> <div id="_com_1" language="JavaScript"><a href="#_msoanchor_1" target="_blank"></a></div>

In early 2023, a joint survey from the Royal Aeronautical Society and Protolabs was conducted to learn more about the aerospace sector’s most important concerns and top priorities. Tim Robinson FRAeS examines the results, and provides you with a breakdown.

Aerospace manufacturing in 2023

HyBird is a small, hybrid-electric aircraft concept. Its goal is to serve routes of less than 1000 kilometres and with low passenger volumes in a climate-compatible way. The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) has now successfully conducted the first flight of a 1:4 scale demonstrator of HyBird at the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/ux" target="_blank">National Experimental Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems</a> in <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/cochstedt" target="_blank">Cochstedt</a>. The concept, which combines two gas turbines, batteries and electrically powered propellers, was originally designed by students as part of the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/latest/news/2019/03/20190927_dlrnasa-design-challenge-en" target="_blank">NASA/DLR Design Challenge 2019</a> and subsequently further developed by several DLR institutes and facilities in collaboration with Airbus ProtoSpace.&quot;Small aircraft carrying few passengers over comparatively short distances are ideal for bringing sustainable propulsion systems and concepts into widespread use as quickly as possible,&quot; says Markus Fischer, DLR Divisional Board Member for Aeronautics. &quot;With HyBird, DLR is providing an innovative stimulus for climate-compatible connections to remote regions as well as for personalised short-haul air traffic from small airports. I am very pleased that this first demonstration flight has been successful. It will be followed by additional exciting flights and the continued development of this promising concept.&quot;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1691147202828-image-1600-584901812d6d7aa60bde62302bec38f3.jpeg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">The new HyBird configuration was flown for the first time during flight tests at the National Experimental Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems in Cochstedt. The concept for the 1:4 scale demonstrator was designed as part of the NASA/DLR Design Challenge 2019. Credit: DLRThe flight tests in Cochstedt saw a new configuration flown for the first time. The current configuration of HyBird consists of a high-wing aircraft with a large propeller at each wingtip and at both tips of the V-tail. A hybrid propulsion system with two gas turbines for power generation and with the possibility to switch off one of the turbines in cruise flight significantly increases the energy efficiency compared to existing aircraft of this size. At cruising speed, in particular, it is possible to achieve a fuel consumption roughly as low as the per passenger, per kilometre energy requirement of a modern electric car. A &#39;battery boost&#39; enables an all-electric take-off. The location and size of the propulsion systems also helps to reduce noise emissions.HyBird is designed to carry five to nine passengers at least 700 to 1000 kilometres. The concept, submitted as part of the NASA/DLR Design Challenge by the winning team of students from the <a href="https://www.uni-stuttgart.de/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">University of Stuttgart</a>, has resulted in a remotely piloted, instrumented experimental vehicle with a maximum weight of 25 kilograms. &quot;After winning the Design Challenge, things really &#39;took off&#39;,&quot; recalls Project Lead Florian Will from the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/sl" target="_blank">DLR Institute of System Architectures in Aeronautics</a>. This success was followed by employment at DLR for the simultaneously scientifically in-depth and application-oriented research and implementation of the concept.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1691147186420-image-1600-bb629735563542196d91e9f2e9a67f2f.jpeg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">The data collected during HyBird&#39;s first flight will be used to improve the concept. The team from the DLR Institute of System Architectures in Aeronautics is planning another test flight later this year. Credit: DLR&quot;With the first flight, we were able to collect a large amount of valuable data, which are now being used for the improvement of our concept,&quot; Will explains. &quot;This is our strategy; with a demonstrator, you can conduct flight tests at a comparatively early stage. This allows us to gain extensive knowledge and expertise, which in turn flows directly into the design of future aircraft. We are planning another flight with the modified demonstrator before the end of this year.&quot;<hr><h3 id="isPasted">FGAA - Future General Aviation Aircraft</h3>The flight tests with the HyBird demonstrator are integrated into the DLR Future General Aviation Aircraft (FGAA) project. The aim of this project is to design a climate-compatible small aircraft that falls into the CS-23 certification category and to bring this into operation. It was within this context that the project team presented itself at the kick-off of the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/innovation-and-transfer/dlr_startup-factory" target="_blank">DLR_Startup Factory</a>.The FGAA early-stage researcher group is based at the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/images/institutes-1/small-aircraft-technology-research-facility" target="_blank">DLR Innovation Center for Small Aircraft Technologies</a> in <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/aachen" target="_blank">Aachen</a>. DLR researchers from the institutes of <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/sl" target="_blank">System Architectures in Aeronautics</a> (<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/hamburg" target="_blank">Hamburg</a>), <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/as" target="_blank">Aerodynamics and Flow Technology</a> (<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/goettingen" target="_blank">G&ouml;ttingen</a>) and <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/el" target="_blank">Electrified Aircraft Engines</a> (<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/cottbus" target="_blank">Cottbus</a>) work together in the group. The HyBird demonstrator was constructed by <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/news/2016-03-airbus-creators-airbus-protospace" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Airbus ProtoSpace</a> at the <a href="https://zal.aero/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Center of Applied Aeronautical Research</a> in <a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/hamburg" target="_blank">Hamburg</a>.

HyBird is currently a high-wing aircraft with a large propeller at each wingtip and at both tips of the V-tail. The initial concept has now evolved into a remotely piloted, instrumented experimental vehicle with a maximum weight of 25 kilograms. Credit: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

HyBird is a small, hybrid-electric aircraft concept. Its goal is to serve routes of less than 1000 kilometres and with low passenger volumes in a climate-compatible way. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) has now successfully conducted the first flight of a 1:4 scale demonstrator of HyBird at the National Experimental Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems in Cochstedt.

DLR conducts first flight of HyBird demonstrator

In this episode, we discuss the megawatt electric motor design from MIT that aims to address a critical and unspoken shortcoming regarding the future of electric flight: generating enough thrust.

Podcast: Megawatt Motors For Electric Flight

The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/research-infrastructure/research-aircraft-fleet/istar-dassault-falcon-2000lx-d-bdlr" target="_blank">In-flight Systems and Technology Airborne Research (ISTAR)</a> aircraft has begun scientific operations. ISTAR flights focus on the flight-mechanical and flight-dynamic characteristics of the modified Dassault Falcon 2000LX. Novel sensors measure how the aircraft behaves during specific flight manoeuvres. The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) will use the results to further develop ISTAR&rsquo;s digital twin. This will lead to more energy-efficient aircraft designs. The digital twin becomes an exact virtual image of the aircraft in a computer.The flight manoeuvres and ground tests bring together data from novel measurement techniques with state-of-the-art simulation tools. &quot;The digital twin will make virtual flight tests possible in the future,&quot; explains project manager Heiko von Geyr from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/as" target="_blank">DLR Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology</a> in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/braunschweig" target="_blank">Braunschweig</a>. ISTAR should not be limited to testing solely within a flight simulator; instead, it should be possible for the aircraft to undergo realistic testing. The aim of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/as/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-18236/28992_read-76291/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">High-speed inflight validation (HighFly)</a> project is to combine several processes: &quot;This enables us to predict the structural deformation, the airflow and the accelerations at any point on ISTAR at any given time,&quot; explains Geyr. Until the researchers can realistically map the aircraft&rsquo;s behaviour digitally, they have to compare the computational models with measurement results and develop them further. &quot;Only then will we be able to determine whether an aircraft behaves exactly the same on the computer as it does under real conditions.&quot;ISTAR has been taking off from the airport at DLR&rsquo;s Braunschweig site for measurement flights since the end of February 2023. In Braunschweig, the aircraft was modified for scientific purposes and prepared for the project. Almost 400 manoeuvres have been flown so far at different speeds, altitudes and in different environments in a reserved airspace over Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. In the future, researchers will be able to test new aircraft designs digitally at a relatively early stage using a digital twin. This will also enable them to assess whether changes affect the aircraft characteristics and flight behaviour. In addition to virtual flight tests, the researchers are also working towards simulation-based certification in the long term. This could accelerate time-consuming and cost-intensive approval procedures in aeronautics.<h2>HighFly project investigates changes during flight manoeuvres</h2>To measure how the airflow on the wings changes during different flight manoeuvres and how much the wings deform during flight, the researchers attached a dotted foil on the left wing. Up close, some of the dots are round, and some have an elongated shape. Looking through the cameras inside the fuselage pointing at the wing from a certain angle, all the dots appear the same. When the wings bend during flight, the cameras record the change in position of the dots. This is how the local deformation of the wing is determined.Sensors are distributed on and under the right wing. These Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) sensors measure the pressure and temperature distribution with high accuracy and high frequency during the flight tests. &ldquo;The MEMS system is a completely new development within the project and is being used here for the first time in the transonic speed range under real flight conditions,&rdquo; says Geyr. In the transonic range, the aircraft flies slower than the speed of sound, but the airflow around the aerofoil still reaches supersonic speed in places. This results in a very complex flow with compression shocks, which must be reliably detected by the MEMS sensors.In addition, three MEMS sensor surfaces are installed near the flight deck. They measure pressure fluctuations in the thin boundary layers, which are created here by the shape of the aircraft. The DLR Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/dlr/locations-and-offices/goettingen" target="_blank">G&ouml;ttingen</a> developed the MEMS sensor surfaces.<h2>Valuable database</h2>The test pilots fly precisely defined manoeuvres with ISTAR at 11,000, 25,000, 35,000 and 45,000 feet. These correspond to altitudes of 3350, 7620, 10,670 and 13,720 metres. The computers located in the cabin store all the readings. The researchers later compare the treasure trove of data with the results of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/media/videos/2017/video-future-aircraft-engineering-the-numerical-simulation" target="_blank">numerical simulation</a>. Supercomputers, such as DLR&rsquo;s CARO and CARA clusters, are essential for this. &quot;With our measurements, we cover the entire transonic flight range, pushing the boundaries of what can be achieved during flight. The combination of measurement techniques makes this database unique and extremely valuable,&quot; explains Geyr.Researchers from the<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/ft" target="_blank">&nbsp;DLR Institute of Flight Systems</a> have also conducted Parameter Identification (PID) flights as part of the HighFly project. This results in a flight dynamic simulation model of ISTAR. This can then be used in a flight simulator such as the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/research-infrastructure/air-vehicle-simulator" target="_blank">Air Vehicle Simulator (AVES)</a>. &ldquo;In this way, we can first test newly developed flight control and assistance systems using the simulator before we test them during flight,&rdquo; says Christian Raab from the DLR Institute of Flight Systems.<h2>Ground tests for the digital twin</h2>On the ground, the researchers from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/ae" target="_blank">DLR Institute of Aeroelasticity</a> conducted a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/latest/news/2021/03/20210702_vibrating-research-aircraft" target="_blank">Ground Vibration Test</a> (GVT) and Taxi Vibration Tests (TVT) in the summer of 2021. &quot;The results are relevant far beyond the HighFly project; every modification of ISTAR needs an aeroelastic analysis to demonstrate the operational safety of the modification,&quot; explains Marc B&ouml;swald from the DLR Institute of Aeroelasticity. Aircraft do not have a completely rigid structure. To fly safely, elasticity must therefore be taken into account.During the GVT, ISTAR was supported on jacks and subjected to vibrations. More than 200 additional sensors measured ISTAR&rsquo;s reactions, and these were used to create a model. In the TVT, ISTAR was pulled along the runway. Uneven ground causes vibrations via the landing gear. During the current flights, the researchers also monitored the aeroelastic properties of ISTAR using newly developed methods. In future, these tests could also be carried out using the digital twin.The DLR Institute of Aerodynamics and Flow Technology also measured the airflow to the engines with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/en/research-and-transfer/research-infrastructure/particle-image-velocimetry-goettingen" target="_blank">Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV)</a> for various thrust settings. The engine inflow influences the aerodynamics of ISTAR. The data obtained has also been made available for the digital twin.

The upgrading of the In-flight Systems and Technology Airborne Research (ISTAR) aircraft will take place in several stages. As an airborne simulator, it is advancing the digitalisation of aeronautics. The research aircraft is based at DLR’s Flight Experiments Facility in Braunschweig, where it is part of the largest civilian research fleet in Europe. Credits: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

ISTAR flights focus on the flight-mechanical and flight-dynamic characteristics of the modified Dassault Falcon 2000LX. Novel sensors measure how the aircraft behaves during specific flight manoeuvres.

Four hundred flight manoeuvres with ISTAR advance its digital twin

Sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) significantly reduce the climate impact of aviation in terms of both its <a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/dossier/electric-flight/climate-impact-air-transport.html" id="isPasted" target="_blank" title="One-third CO2 and two-thirds non-CO2 effects">carbon footprint and other climate impact not related to carbon dioxide</a>. In the future, the targeted use of SAFs in contrail regions can help to rapidly reduce the climate impact of air transport. Flight tests using aircraft powered by 100 percent SAF are to take place again in order to prepare for this transition. In the &#39;VOL avec Carburants Alternatifs Nouveaux&#39; (VOLCAN) and the DLR Neofuels project, an Airbus A321neo will use pure SAF in both engines for the first time. The Falcon 20E research aircraft from the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) will chase the A321neo and researchers will analyse the emissions and ice crystals in the aircraft&#39;s exhaust plumes. Safran, Dassault Aviation and ONERA are also participating in the project. The research flights will take place from the end of February to the end of March 2023 in specially reserved airspaces off the coast of France.&nbsp;<h2 id="isPasted">A question of condensation</h2>The Airbus A321neo is a modern commercial aircraft equipped with lean-burn engines that enable it to burn kerosene while producing very little soot. &quot;We are particularly interested in how ice crystals form when several orders of magnitude less soot is emitted by the CFM LEAP-1A engines in lean-burn mode,&quot; explains DLR Project Leader Christiane Voigt of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/pa/en/desktopdefault.aspx/" target="_blank" title="External link DLR Institute of Atmospheric Physics">DLR Institute of Atmospheric Physics</a>. &quot;To do this, we will use the Falcon to conduct emission measurements both in the near field, approximately 100 metres behind the A321neo, as well as in the contrails in the far field at distances of several kilometres.&quot;The researchers are planning approximately 15 joint flights, during which the Falcon 20E will follow the A321neo. Different variants of the sustainable fuel &#39;Hydro-processed Esters and Fatty Acids&#39; (HEFA) will be tested under various modes of engine operation. HEFA is produced from paraffinic hydrocarbons, which are generally derived from used cooking oil and other waste fats, and is free of cyclic hydrocarbons (aromatics) and sulphur. Pure SAFs with no aromatics have several advantages, such as the reduced generation of soot particles during combustion. This can also lead to a reduction in ice crystals that form on the soot. Reducing ice crystals and contrail formation can significantly reduce climate effects, as&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2021/02/20210617_significantly-lower-climate-impact-when-using-sustainable-fuels.html" target="_blank" title="Significantly lower climate impact of contrails when using sustainable fuels">DLR has demonstrated together with NASA</a>.<h2>Flight test research stages</h2>DLR conducted extensive flight tests to characterise the emissions of synthetic fuels as early as 2015 with the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2021/04/20211129_100-percent-sustainable-fuels-emissions-study-shows-early-promise.html" target="_blank" title="First in-flight 100 percent sustainable-fuels emissions study of passenger jet shows early promise">ECLIF1 campaign</a>. These flight tests were continued in 2018 with the ECLIF2 campaign in collaboration with NASA. During the ECLIF3 campaign 2021 the first emission measurements were conducted during flight tests using 100 percent SAFs on an A350, in collaboration with Airbus and Rolls-Royce.The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/stories/2021-10-this-a319neo-is-the-latest-to-test-100-saf" target="_blank" title="External link Airbus Newsroom: This A319neo is the latest to test 100% SAF">first test flights of the VOLCAN project</a> with the use of SAFs from the manufacturer Total Energies in one engine took place in 2021. The emission measurements in the VOLCAN project are complemented by ground measurements in which the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.dlr.de/vt/en/" target="_blank" title="External link DLR Institute of Combustion Technology">DLR Institute of Combustion Technology</a> in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/sites/stuttgart.html" target="_blank" title="Stuttgart">Stuttgart</a> is participating. The Falcon 20E research aircraft is operated by DLR&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/fb/en/desktopdefault.aspx/" target="_blank" title="External link To the DLR Websie of the Flight Experiments">Flight Experiments facility</a> in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/sites/oberpfaffenhofen.html" target="_blank" title="Oberpfaffenhofen">Oberpfaffenhofen</a>. The aim of the new experiments is to measure the emissions of lean-burn combustion and to investigate resulting contrail formation. One question is whether other particles also lead to the formation of contrails when soot emissions from lean-burn combustion have already been reduced by orders of magnitude.<h2>The goal &ndash; climate-compatible air transport</h2>The goal is to achieve a climate-neutral economy and society by the middle of this century. The European Green Deal requires a comprehensive commitment to research and development in air transport. To this end, DLR has developed an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2021/04/20211215_towards-zero-emission-aviation.html" target="_blank" title="Towards zero-emission aviation">aviation strategy</a> that maps out the research path to achieve climate-neutral flight. The goal is highly efficient, climate-friendly aircraft that utilise various new propulsion concepts and sustainable fuels according to their flight range and size. DLR&#39;s whole-system research expertise enables it to adopt the role of virtual manufacturer (virtual OEM) and facilitate an accelerated energy transition in the air transport sector. New technologies and fuels, as well as climate-friendly flight management, are intended to further reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particles by air transport and decouple them from the predicted growth. SAFs, in combination with highly efficient turbofan engines, will play a key role here, particularly for long and medium-haul flights.

View of the Air­bus A321neo from the DLR Fal­con 20E. Credit: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

Sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) significantly reduce the climate impact of aviation in terms of both its carbon footprint and other climate impact not related to carbon dioxide. In the future, the targeted use of SAFs in contrail regions can help to rapidly reduce the climate impact of air transport. Flight tests using aircraft powered by 100 percent SAF are to take place again in order to prepare for this transition.

Emissions and contrail study with 100 percent sustainable aviation fuel

Partners:<a href="https://imr.ie/" target="_blank">Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR)</a>, <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en" target="_blank">Airbus</a>, <a href="https://teg.com/" target="_blank">TEG</a>, <a href="https://robotnik.eu/" target="_blank">Robotnik</a>, <a href="https://www.qub.ac.uk/sites/nitc/" target="_blank">Northern Ireland Technology Centre, Queens University Belfast</a>, <a href="https://hexagon.com/" target="_blank">Hexagon</a>, <a href="https://www.kuka.com/" target="_blank">Kuka Robots</a>, <a href="https://www.mvtec.com/" target="_blank">MVTec</a>, <a href="https://multipix.com/" target="_blank">Multipix Imaging</a>, <a href="https://www.photoneo.com/" target="_blank">Photoneo</a>, <a href="https://www.eurekanetwork.org/" target="_blank">EUREKA</a>, <a href="https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/" target="_blank">Enterprise Ireland</a>, <a href="https://www.cdti.es/" target="_blank">the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology</a>Challenge:MAAS (Measurement Aided Assembly of Large-scale Structures) is a 2-year project funded by <a href="https://www.smarteureka.com/" target="_blank">SMART EUREKA</a> and supported by <a href="https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/" target="_blank">Enterprise Ireland</a> (EI) and <a href="https://www.cdti.es/" target="_blank">the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology</a> (CDTI).The aim of MAAS was to improve the way airplane wings were made by developing an efficient automated solution &ndash; an end-to-end assembly process &ndash; for the manufacturing of aircraft sub-assemblies, with a focus on <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en" target="_blank">Airbus</a>&rsquo;s wing manufacture.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjc2MjgzNzUwOTYwLTE2NzYyODM3NTA5NjAucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" alt="" width="579" height="327" srcset="https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-3-400x226.jpg 400w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-3-1024x579.jpg 1024w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-3-768x434.jpg 768w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-3-424x240.jpg 424w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-3.jpg 1300w" sizes="(max-width: 579px) 100vw, 579px" class="fr-fic fr-dii">&nbsp;The project included the development of an efficient robotic 3D scanning solution that could scan and inspect full aircraft wings at the high speed with the high accuracy needed to generate digital 3D scans of the aircraft parts for best ﬁt assembly operations. TEG and IMR worked closely to identify, develop, and deliver a novel wing and panel 3D scanning and measurement solution for parts assembly and the manufacture of wings.&nbsp;&ldquo;The grand challenge was to assemble airplane wings,&rdquo; explains Ken Horan, Director of Robotics and Automation at IMR. &ldquo;Within that, the problem in aircraft assembly was the expense of manufacturing due to variability in panels and wing fames resulting in screw hole misalignment or panel to panel step height and gaps out of specification. An automated system that could scan the frame, panels, locate, measure, and identify the best fit panel for a particular section of wing, to provide ease of assembly and screwing, was required.&rdquo;The final goal was to integrate the solution into a prototype robot-assisted assembly line to demonstrate a production cell integrating all the above described processes.Solution:<a href="https://www.photoneo.com/phoxi-3d-scanner" target="_blank">PhoXi 3D Scanner</a>The team developed an end-to-an automated solution for the assembly process of manufacturing airplane wings.This included a robot scanning solution based on the PhoXi 3D Scanner from Photoneo, which was used for 3D scanning and inspection of aircraft wing parts using a mobile collaborative robot platform to enable robot-assisted assembly and quality assurance of the final sub-assembly by 3D scanning techniques.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjc2MjgzNzUxMjI0LTE2NzYyODM3NTEyMjQucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" alt="" width="679" height="384" srcset="https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMRS-2-400x226.jpg 400w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMRS-2-1024x579.jpg 1024w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMRS-2-768x434.jpg 768w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMRS-2-424x240.jpg 424w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMRS-2.jpg 1300w" sizes="(max-width: 679px) 100vw, 679px" class="fr-fic fr-dii">Methodology:<ol><li>The system consisted of a mobile collaborative robot that scanned the wing panel and performed assembly operations</li><li>3D data analysis allowed fast matching of panels with appropriate assembly locations</li><li>The system was able to carry out post assembly scanning for the measurement of gaps and step heights between panels</li></ol>Discussion:The MAAS project finished in late 2021, bringing about real business-to-business opportunities and valuable strategic partnerships between Irish SMEs, their European peers, and Airbus.The implementation of the project outputs is expected to bring significant efficiencies to aircraft wing assembly, including reduced costs in the aircraft assembly operations and improvement of manufacturing processes.<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjc2MjgzNzUxMTA2LTE2NzYyODM3NTExMDYucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" alt="" width="678" height="383" srcset="https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-1-400x226.jpg 400w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-1-1024x579.jpg 1024w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-1-768x434.jpg 768w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-1-424x240.jpg 424w, https://www.photoneo.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CS-IMR-1.jpg 1300w" sizes="(max-width: 678px) 100vw, 678px" class="fr-fic fr-dii">The MAAS project was funded by <a href="https://www.smarteureka.com/" target="_blank">SMART EUREKA</a> and supported by <a href="https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/" target="_blank">Enterprise Ireland</a> (EI) and <a href="https://www.cdti.es/" target="_blank">the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology</a> (CDTI).The multinational consortium comprised <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en" target="_blank">Airbus</a>, <a href="https://teg.com/" target="_blank">TEG</a>, <a href="https://imr.ie/pages/maas/" target="_blank">IMR</a> and Spanish robotics experts <a href="https://robotnik.eu/" target="_blank">Robotnik</a>. <a href="https://www.qub.ac.uk/sites/nitc/" target="_blank">Northern Ireland Technology Centre, Queens University Belfast</a> and other European SMEs such as <a href="https://hexagon.com/" target="_blank">Hexagon</a>, <a href="https://www.kuka.com/" target="_blank">Kuka Robots</a>, <a href="https://www.mvtec.com/" target="_blank">MVTec</a>, <a href="https://multipix.com/" target="_blank">Multipix Imaging</a>, and <a href="https://www.photoneo.com/" target="_blank">Photoneo</a> were also involved with supply of hardware and expertise.<a href="https://imr.ie/" target="_blank">Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR)</a> is one of Ireland&rsquo;s leading technology centers with extensive robotics expertise, a founding member of <a href="https://www.smarteureka.com/" target="_blank">SMART EUREKA</a>, holding the vice chair seat on the board.<a href="https://www.eurekanetwork.org/" target="_blank">EUREKA</a> is a European-founded public network for international cooperation in research, development, and innovation, operating in 48 countries. SMART is a EUREKA cluster programme, and offers a framework to bring together SMEs, large companies, and research performing organizations to collaborate on international research projects in advanced manufacturing.<a href="https://teg.com/" target="_blank">TEG</a> is a specialist Irish engineering firm and long-term strategic partner to IMR with metrology expertise in highly regulated environments such as biopharmaceutical facilities. They helped with the project with their EASA approved aviation design and production skills and the use of 3D scanning technologies. TEG benefited from MAAS too as the project provided an ideal opportunity to expand their business opportunities, highlight their capabilities in innovative technologies and their professionalism in project management by engaging in research with a global aerospace leader.<a href="https://www.airbus.com/en" target="_blank">Airbus</a> &ndash; a global pioneer in the aerospace industry, which provided first-class expertise in aircraft manufacturing and assembly.For more reference, check out the <a href="https://imr.ie/pages/maas/" target="_blank">IMR website</a> or <a href="https://horizoneurope.ie/horizon-europe/eureka-project-results-in-partnerships-for-irish-smes-and-airbus" target="_blank">Horizon Europe</a>.Would you like to consult your projects with Photoneo? <a href="https://www.photoneo.com/contact-us/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Contact them here</a>.

Assembly of airplane wing parts using the PhoXi 3D Scanner

The MAAS project team developed a unique, end-to-end solution for the assembly of airplane wing parts, which uses Photoneo 3D vision technology to handle challenges such as screw hole misalignment, panel to panel step height, and gaps out of specification.

End-to-end solution for 3D scanning and assembly of aircraft wings

Decarbonisation of aviation relies on a combination of many incremental steps and outright technological breakthroughs. To succeed, both approaches need to exist inside a collaborative ecosystem. In this spirit, Airbus and two leading European research institutions, DLR and ONERA, are exploring how high-performance computing can improve our understanding of the relationship between aerodynamics and aircraft efficiency.Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) combines applied mathematics, physics and high-performance computing. It is used to understand how air moves over complex shapes and helps aircraft engineers maximise lift and minimise drag in order to make an aircraft as fuel efficient as possible at both low and high speeds.&quot;I always say that CFD is where science meets art. It&#39;s a beautiful thing, a kind of computerised wind tunnel,&quot; says Airbus&#39; Head of Aerodynamics Simon Galpin. Galpin oversees a <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/news/2018-01-a-partnership-for-next-generation-computational-fluid-dynamics" target="_blank" title="External link A partnership for next-generation computational fluid dynamics">partnership</a> that has existed for five years with the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/EN/Home/home_node.html" target="_blank" title="External link German Aerospace Center">German Aerospace Center</a> (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) and the French aerospace lab <a href="https://www.onera.fr/en" target="_blank" title="External link Office National d'Etudes et de Recherches Aérospatiales (ONERA)">ONERA</a> (Office National d&rsquo;Etudes et de Recherches A&eacute;rospatiales) on behalf of Airbus.<h2>&#39;Experts at our fingertips&#39;</h2>DLR and ONERA have collaborated with Airbus for decades. Historically, each organisation worked on separate computer code &ndash; the foundations on which the CFD flow simulation is built. Although the code developed by each organisation was effective in its own right, communication between the different development teams was limited. Gradually, it became clear that the code required collective re-engineering for extreme-scale parallel computing platforms. The renewed partnership addresses that shortfall. &quot;It made sense to combine our efforts,&quot; says Galpin. &quot;We&#39;re developing a new generation CFD code that is &#39;industry-ready&#39; for flow prediction and equally applicable to aircraft, helicopters and space systems.&quot;The signing of the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2017/20170621_dlr-agrees-strategic-partnership-with-onera-and-airbus_22913.html" target="_blank" title="DLR agrees strategic partnership with ONERA and Airbus">first agreement in 2017</a> was significant for a field that demands substantial time, resources and investment. &quot;From one day to the next the workforce doubled!&rdquo; recalls ONERA&#39;s Director of Aeronautical Programmes, Philippe Beaumier. &ldquo;We had a team of experts on both sides of the Rhine at our fingertips.&quot;The partners renewed their commitment in late 2022, with the goal of extending the code to current and future Airbus projects, such as <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/innovation/zero-emission/hydrogen/zeroe" target="_blank" title="External link Airbus ZEROe">ZEROe</a>, <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/innovation/zero-emission/electric-flight/ecopulse" target="_blank" title="External link EcoPulse™">EcoPulse</a> and <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-07-airbus-and-cfm-international-launch-a-flight-test-demonstrator-for" target="_blank" title="External link Airbus and CFM International launch a flight test demonstrator for advanced open fan architecture">Open Fan</a> research. It is already being used to mature test cases previously thought unfeasible due to limited physical representation and computational capacity. Soon these cases could influence propulsion, engine integration and wing technology choices that will determine the blueprints for a new generation of fuel-efficient aircraft.&quot;We want to improve the predictability of performance right from the design phase,&quot; says DLR&#39;s Markus Fischer, Divisional Board Member for Aeronautics. &quot;The new code can also help specialists investigate even more radical design concepts, such as the flying wing, with a degree of speed and accuracy that wasn&rsquo;t within the grasp of previous software.&quot;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1675426395963-versatile-software-for-the-flow-simulation-of-the-future.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Ver&shy;sa&shy;tile soft&shy;ware for the flow sim&shy;u&shy;la&shy;tion of the fu&shy;ture. Credit: Airbus/ONERA/DLR&nbsp;<h2>Every gram of energy counts</h2>&quot;Without unfettered digitalisation to accelerate the pace of innovation, decoupling air traffic growth from emissions cannot be guaranteed,&quot; argues Fischer. DLR shares the vision of zero-emission aviation held by Airbus and ONERA, one which Fischer says will require a disruptive approach. &quot;Decarbonisation calls for a twin revolution,&quot; agrees Beaumier, &quot;one technological and one methodological. Aircraft development cycles need to be halved to realise those ambitions. This is where mature numerical simulation plays a major role.&quot;How does CFD make a net-zero contribution? Galpin answers by pointing out that kerosene substitutes are likely to be more costly. &quot;We better be extracting every gram of energy from every kilogram of alternative fuel, using the most efficient aircraft architecture. Using advanced CFD helps us shave off drag little by little.&quot;<h2>Attracting future aeronautical engineers</h2>Airbus has access to some of the highest-performing extreme-scale computational systems in the world to help develop and validate the code, helping boost engineers&#39; confidence in their predictions. It&#39;s an inspiring and rewarding exercise, Baumier says, with a real-world application: &quot;To directly support the aeronautical industry&#39;s sustainability goals.&quot;The final word goes to Pascal Larrieu, Airbus Computational Simulation Expert and the company&#39;s lead for developing the new flow solver: &quot;This project opens doors to a diverse, dynamic and Europe-wide research network. We are convinced our work will help attract future aeronautics engineers to join us in meeting the zero-emission ambition together.&quot;

Flow sim­u­la­tion of DLR’s IS­TAR re­search air­craft. Credit: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

Decarbonisation of aviation relies on a combination of many incremental steps and outright technological breakthroughs. To succeed, both approaches need to exist inside a collaborative ecosystem. In this spirit, Airbus and two leading European research institutions, DLR and ONERA, are exploring how high-performance computing can improve our understanding of the relationship between aerodynamics and aircraft efficiency.

Aerodynamics and the art of aircraft design

Contrails are generated as a result of aircraft emissions. They could amplify the greenhouse effect in the form of long-lasting ice clouds. The soot particles from jet fuel combustion act as particularly strong condensation nuclei for cloud formation in the part of the atmosphere where cold air is present. New engine technologies and the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) offer promising approaches to significantly reduce the climate impact of contrails. To this end, the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) is supporting an <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/innovation/zero-emission" target="_blank" title="External link Airbus test flight programme">Airbus</a> test flight programme, operated by its subsidiary <a href="https://www.airbus.com/en/innovation/innovation-ecosystem/airbus-upnext" target="_blank" title="External link Airbus UpNext">Airbus UpNext</a>, which is investigating for the first time contrails produced by a carbon dioxide emission-free aircraft that is powered by hydrogen. As part of the Blue Condor project, test flights are planned for the end of 2022 and in 2023 in North Dakota, USA.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1659354260522-measurement-flight-above-the-clouds.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Measurement flight above the clouds. Credit: &copy; AV Experts, LLC. All rights reserved<h2>Engine comparison</h2>Two Arcus gliders operated by the <a href="https://perlanproject.org/" target="_blank" title="External link Perlan Project">Perlan project</a> will be deployed for the test flights, one equipped with a hydrogen jet engine and the other with a conventional kerosene-powered combustion engine. To ensure comparability of the data, the test flights will be carried out in immediate succession under the same meteorological conditions.The respective glider will be towed by an EGRETT, a high-altitude research aircraft, to an altitude of more than nine kilometres. There, the glider will ignite the engine with which it is equipped. The EGRETT, outfitted with measurement instruments, then takes on the role of chaser and flies through the contrail in close formation, which also allows for the emissions from the exhaust plume to be measured.The aim is to measure the microphysical properties of &#39;hydrogen contrails&#39; in the atmosphere for the first time. The data will contribute to a better understanding of the formation of contrails resulting from hydrogen propulsion. In this way, technologies can be developed to modify the properties of the clouds impacting the climate and further mitigate their effect. Airbus is providing the hydrogen system and equipment, including the combustion engine, and is planning the flights of the test mission together with DLR. The <a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/institutes/institute-of-atmospheric-physics.html" target="_blank" title="Institute of Atmospheric Physics">DLR Institute of Atmospheric Physics</a> is responsible for the measurements and data analysis.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1659354294872-preparing-for-the-blue-condor-measurement-flights.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Preparing for the Blue Condor measurement flights. Credit: &copy; DLR. All rights reserved<h2>Revolutionising future aviation</h2>&quot;DLR is a world leader when it comes to researching aircraft emissions. In order to achieve climate-neutral aviation, research results must be incorporated directly into the development of new products. We are pleased to be able to support Airbus and its subsidiary with this technology transfer,&quot; says Markus Fischer, DLR Divisional Board Member for Aeronautics. Sandra Bour Schaeffer, CEO of Airbus UpNext adds: &quot;The aviation industry is already working hard to reduce all aviation emissions by 2050, and we are proud to have international experts at our side for this next important step.&quot;Hydrogen engines predominantly emit water vapour and nitrogen oxides. Models show that the resulting contrails could have a much smaller effect on the climate. Direct hydrogen combustion does not produce particulate matter. Experts therefore suspect that the ice particles formed tend to be larger and occur in smaller numbers than with soot emissions. As a result, their rainout occurs faster, which means that the contrails are short-lived and contribute only marginally to global warming. However, science has lacked concrete measurement data on these complex atmospheric processes so far.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1659354310881-group-photo-of-the-blue-condor-project-team.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Group photo of the Blue Condor project team. Credit: &copy; AV Experts, LLC. All rights reservedIf the assumptions based on models can thus be confirmed, hydrogen combustion could revolutionise aviation of the future. This is precisely why measurements at cruising altitudes are necessary because it is not clear whether the models cover all relevant processes. Hydrogen combustion also offers significant reduction potential because it does not lead to carbon dioxide emissions. Only the increased emission of water vapour into the stratosphere could counteract the mitigating climate effect of these contrails and must be taken into account in the analyses. The &lsquo;Blue Condor measurement flights&rsquo; will provide fundamental data that will allow reliable statements on contrails to be issued for the first time.The atmospheric researchers at Oberpfaffenhofen are using tried and tested instruments as well as instruments that were developed specifically for the mission. In particular, water vapour and ice particles as well as nitrogen oxides and aerosols are to be measured during the flight. The DLR project group H2CONTRAIL is leading from the DLR side and supplementing the measurements with targeted simulations to investigate the climate impact of contrails from hydrogen-fueled engines.<h2>Research and industry united</h2>The cooperation between research and industry goes far beyond the Blue Condor project. Airbus, DLR and the other stakeholders are active in several demonstration programmes, including ECLIF2, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00174-y" target="_blank" title="External link NATURE Communications Earth and Environment Paper Ausgabe 17.06.2021">ECLIF3 (Emission and Climate Impact of Alternative Fuels)</a> and VOLCAN (VOL avec Carburants Alternatifs Nouveaux). The common goal is to gain more precise insights into the climate benefits of contrails resulting from sustainable fuels and modern engine technologies. The Blue Condor project serves to complement these programmes. DLR is thus also supporting Airbus&#39; efforts to develop an emission-free aircraft by 2035. This is in line with the aviation strategy set out by DLR in December 2021 for the European Green Deal: &#39;<a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/downloads/publications/brochures/2021/towards-zero-emission-aviation.html" target="_blank" title="Brochure: Towards zero-emission aviation (2021)">Towards zero-emission aviation</a>&#39;.

DLR supports new test flight programme by Airbus and its subsidiary Airbus UpNext for CO2-emission-free flight. The 'Blue Condor' project investigates the effects of contrails from hydrogen engines.

Analysing the contrails of the future

The initial project for the digitalised development of control surfaces for future aircraft wings has now been successfully completed at the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum f&uuml;r Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) <a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/aeronautics/aeronautics-research/virtual-product-house.html" target="_blank" title="Virtual Product House - Integration and Test Centre for Virtual Certification">Virtual Product House (VPH)</a>. At the <a href="https://www.dlr.de/content/en/sites/bremen.html" target="_blank" title="Bremen">Bremen</a> Center for Eco-efficient Materials and Technologies (<a href="https://www.wfb-bremen.de/en/page/commercial-property/ecomat-research-technology" target="_blank" title="External link The ECOMAT research and technology centre">EcoMaT</a>), DLR and partners from industry and research simulated a sequential digitalised chain of development phases for a wing flap on a computer for the first time &ndash; from design to production and testing. In doing so, DLR is laying the foundation for future virtual aircraft design processes through to certification &ndash; an important tool for accelerating the development of highly efficient aircraft.&quot;On the journey towards emission-free air transport, DLR acts as an architect and considers the entire system, with all its interrelationships, in order to get innovative technologies and digital methods to the industrial application stage in a timely manner, working together with our partners. As an integration centre for virtual product development, VPH plays a key role at DLR, and is the interface with industry and the regulatory authorities,&quot; explains Markus Fischer, DLR Divisional Board Member for Aeronautics.Now that the VPH process has been successfully implemented in the initial project, wing and flap concepts can be designed more efficiently and in a more target-oriented way through advance simulations of production and testing. This means that possible complications and shortcomings in later development phases can be anticipated early on and avoided by altering the design. The simulation-based test procedures are also intended to replace some of the physical tests. In future, there will be less need for tests to be conducted using complex facilities. &quot;Not only does this save a lot of time and money for testing and certification, but the &#39;end-to-end&#39; digitalised chain also makes it possible to significantly reduce the overall development time for innovative aircraft components,&quot; says Kristof Risse, Head of VPH at DLR, describing the advantages.VPH has been set up as an integration centre and research platform where experts from various DLR institutes and partners work together to integrate all of the key disciplines involved in aircraft development. Digital collaboration and co-development with the industrial VPH partners are made possible via a &#39;common source&#39; approach in the form of a secure simulation environment, which was developed as part of the VPH initial project.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1657285510131-vph-startproject-2.jpg" style="width: 766px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Consistent linking of process steps for the virtual development of a wing flap. Credit: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)<h2>Climate-neutral aircraft using digitalised processes</h2>Creating aircraft with drastically reduced emissions requires completely new designs. The EU has set a goal for air transport to become climate-neutral by the middle of the 21st century. Meeting this target will require not only low-emission engines and sustainable fuels, but also a new, highly efficient generation of aircraft with a wide range of new components. Development times for new aircraft must be significantly reduced in order to react quickly to the urgent climate goals.There are many approaches with the potential to reduce energy consumption and emissions, such as high-aspect-ratio wings with a larger span and thus reduced drag and fuel consumption. Smart wings with multifunctional control surfaces, which were also investigated in the VPH initial project, can adapt optimally to the different conditions during take-off, landing and cruising flight. Variable adaptations to different flight conditions also enable the design of lighter wings, leading to further fuel savings.One possible solution is using hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources as a sustainable energy carrier. Hydrogen-powered aircraft call for disruptive approaches that require completely new design ideas. Markus Fischer believes that digitalisation will prove particularly helpful in addressing this challenge: &quot;New and radical aircraft concepts and the consistent application of validated digital methods allows an optimal exploration of the design space. The speed of innovation for the introduction of completely new aircraft technologies can be significantly increased by efficiently combining virtual product development and physical demonstrations.&quot; The process developed at VPH can be used for various industrial applications and aircraft components. In addition to the wing, researchers involved in the VPH start-up project have already set up an initial process chain for the digitalised development of a hydrogen tank.<h2>Follow-on project VPH 2.0</h2>At VPH, research is already underway on a follow-up project funded by the Bremen LuRaFo programme. One of the focal points of the VPH 2.0 project is the further development and application of the simulation process established in the initial project for the consistent linking of the virtual design, production and test methods. The goal is to create &#39;digital twins&#39; &ndash; fully functional, digital representations of real aircraft components. The processes that have been developed are being applied in the VPH 2.0 project for concepts relating to &#39;hydrogen tanks&#39; and &#39;intelligent wings and control surfaces&#39;. In this way, VPH will continue to pursue the future vision of virtual test flights and virtual certification for the timely introduction of climate-friendly aircraft programmes.As part of the initial project, VPH partnered with Airbus, FFT Produktionssysteme, IABG, Liebherr-Aerospace and the University of Bremen. It also worked in close conjunction with EASA, the European certification authority, on matters relating to virtual certification. The initial project was funded by the State of Bremen and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Vision of the 'virtual product' as a guiding concept at DLR and for digitalised product development. Credit: DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

The initial project for the digitalised development of control surfaces for future aircraft wings has now been successfully completed at the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) Virtual Product House (VPH).

Developing new aircraft faster with digitalisation

This article is a part of our <a href="http://www.wevolver.com/student-program" target="_blank">University Technology Exposure Program</a>. The program aims to recognize and reward innovation from engineering students and researchers across the globe.This paper presents a software prototype of the first decision support system (DSS) for long‐term and short‐term hangar aircraft maintenance planning (AMP). Due to the lack of optimization methods and efficient approaches for AMP in current practices, airlines usually aim for feasible solutions. The presented DSS can generate a comprehensive, optimized AMP solution, including optimized aircraft maintenance check schedules and associated maintenance tasks of each check and the tasks to be executed for each morning/afternoon/evening shift.&nbsp;The DSS prototype is developed using Python and for Windows operating system. It is a stand‐alone software prototype and has already been converted to an executable file. Thus, it can be run on any individual PC without installation or a license.&nbsp;From a system architecture perspective, The DSS consists of three components (layers), a database, a model, and a graphical user interface (GUI), as depicted in Figure 1:&nbsp;<ul><li>Database: Store the input data, including the maintenance planning document (MPD) from aircraft manufacturers, fleet status, operational constraints, and available workforce from airlines.&nbsp;</li><li>Model: Process input data, optimize the aircraft maintenance check schedule and maintenance task execution plan. This DSS prototype has three models for aircraft maintenance planning optimization (AMPO): aircraft maintenance check scheduling (AMPO‐1), task allocation (AMPO‐2), and shift planning (AMPO‐3).&nbsp;</li><li>Graphical User Interface (GUI): Allow users to interact with the DSS and visualize the planning results and the associated key performance indicators (KPIs).</li></ul><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540658-1656765540658.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="Architecture of the decision support system for aircraft maintenance planning.">Figure 1: Architecture of the decision support system for aircraft maintenance planning.The overall optimization process within the DSS entails the following seven steps: &nbsp;I. Extract maintenance check and task inspection interval &nbsp;II. Collect utilization parameters of each aircraft, such as calendar days (DY), flight &nbsp;hours &nbsp;(FH), &nbsp;and &nbsp;flight &nbsp;cycles &nbsp;(FC), &nbsp;and &nbsp;collect &nbsp;the &nbsp;utilization &nbsp;parameters &nbsp;of &nbsp;all &nbsp;systems and components &nbsp;&nbsp;III. Identify maintenance opportunities and detailed operational constraints &nbsp;IV. Generate optimal aircraft maintenance check schedule (AMPO‐1) &nbsp;V. Generate optimal task allocation for each maintenance check (AMPO‐2) &nbsp;VI. Integrate the optimal maintenance check schedule and task allocation plan &nbsp;VII. Plan the maintenance workforce and shifts (AMPO‐3) &nbsp;The AMPO‐1 generates an optimized long‐term (3&mdash;5 years) aircraft maintenance check schedule for the entire fleet in one go, while maintenance planners of airlines have to do that manually in 2&mdash;3 steps. The AMPO‐2 plans the tasks for each maintenance check for an optimized 3&mdash;5 years maintenance check schedule, compared with the current practices in which maintenance planners can only plan the maintenance tasks for the next 6&mdash;12 months.&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">Application &nbsp;</h2>The DSS prototype was demonstrated as part of the AIRMES project (AIRMES, 2016), on 51 aircraft, in March 2019 (Qichen Deng, 2021). The demonstration was carried out in collaboration with one of the major European airlines and one of the leading aircraft manufacturers and observed by the Clean Sky 2 Joint Undertaking partners involved in the related research effort. The demonstration aimed to validate the value of the DSS and evaluate its applicability, primarily for AMP optimization and the study of future maintenance scenarios. Two test cases were performed in the demonstration but we only show one test case here for the illustration purpose, in which we aimed to validate the DSS and benchmark its performance by comparing the solution obtained with the maintenance schedule of the airline.We compared our results with the maintenance schedule available at the airline (Airline Schedule). According to the results illustrated in Figure 2 and Figure 3, the AMPO‐1 of the DSS outperforms the planning approach of the airline. The AMPO‐1 results in 6946.5 FH for C‐check and 705.1 FH for A‐check, higher than 6783.8 FH and 701.1 FH from the maintenance schedule of the airline, but the result of AMPO‐1 has one fewer C‐check and three fewer A‐checks. Our airline partner also checks the maintenance check schedule obtained using the DSS and agrees that the DSS generates a better schedule than the maintenance planners. Besides, the AMPO‐1 of the DSS optimizes both the aircraft A‐ and C‐check schedule for 2019&ndash;2021 within only 10 min. It means that the DSS user can run the DSS to update its aircraft maintenance check schedule if there are changes instead of manually shuffling the A‐/C‐checks to make another feasible one.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540878-1656765540878.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="The KPIs of maintenance check schedule of the airline. We used the DSS to load the maintenance check schedule of the airline directly and visualized the results on the interface.">Figure 2: The KPIs of maintenance check schedule of the airline. We used the DSS to load the &nbsp;maintenance check schedule of the airline directly and visualized the results on the interface.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540960-1656765540960.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="The KPIs of maintenance check schedule from the AMPO‐1 of the DSS.">Figure 3: The KPIs of maintenance check schedule from the AMPO‐1 of the DSS.<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540751-1656765540751.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="Results of optimal task allocation (AMPO‐2)."><img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540845-1656765540845.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="Results of optimal task allocation (AMPO‐2).">Figure 4: Results of optimal task allocation (AMPO‐2).After the AMPO‐2 completed the optimal task allocation for all maintenance checks, the AMPO‐3 planned the work shifts and created job cards for technicians. Our airline partner set the horizon of shift planning for two weeks. Figure 5 shows an example of the results from AMPO‐3. The 1st column shows the aircraft tail number. The 2nd and 3rd columns indicate the date and work shifts. The 4th column describes the item or action, and the 5th column tells the maintenance planner where the maintenance work is in the aircraft. The last eight columns imply the workload needed for each skill type. The airline evaluated the work shifts after the demonstration and indicated that the work shifts of the first 2&mdash;3 days are almost the same as they planned, yet the difference becomes dramatic in the second week. It is worth mentioning that, for example, if a task requires one labor‐hour for a specific skill type, it can be one technician spending an hour, or two technicians spending half an hour, or even four technicians spending 15 min performing the task.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540572-1656765540572.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii" alt="An example of work shifts planned by AMPO‐3. " style="width: 352px;">Figure 5: An example of work shifts planned by AMPO‐3.Overall, the DSS can address aircraft maintenance planning optimization in an integrated fashion. &nbsp;It can automate repetitive tasks and reduce human errors while enabling fast, efficient, human-in-the-loop decision‐making in the AMP for the aviation industry. &nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">References &nbsp;</h2>[1] Ackert, S. P. (2010). Basics of Aircraft Maintenance Programs for Financiers. &nbsp;&nbsp;[2] AIRMES. (2016). Retrieved from http://www.airmes‐project.eu/ &nbsp;[3] Qichen Deng, B. F. (2021). A novel decision support system for optimizing aircraft maintenance &nbsp;check. Decision Support Systems, 146.&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">About the University Technology Exposure Program 2022</h2>Wevolver, in partnership with <a href="https://mouser.com/" target="_blank">Mouser Electronics</a> and <a href="https://www.ansys.com/academic" target="_blank">Ansys</a>, is excited to announce the launch of the University Technology Exposure Program 2022. The program aims to recognize and reward innovation from engineering students and researchers across the globe. Learn more about the program <a href="http://www.wevolver.com/student-program" target="_blank">here</a>.<img alt="mouser-ansys" src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1656765540434-1656765540434.png" class="fr-fic fr-dii">

Student article showcasing a  software prototype for improving aircraft maintenance planning using a novel decision support system.

A Novel Decision Support System for Optimizing Aircraft Maintenance Check  Schedule and Task Allocation

Designing functional, structural composites is an extremely complicated task that uses various numerical tools, with several disciplines working together in an iterative manner. In this article, the focus is on understanding the key steps in designing structural composites with examples of aerospace components; i.e. wing and fuselage.&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">Key Concepts</h2><ul><li dir="ltr">A focus on thin-walled structures made up of plies with continuous unidirectional fibers or woven fabrics, embedded in a polymer matrix</li><li dir="ltr">Structural composites design typically involves working with computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), and computer-aided engineering CAE iteratively</li><li dir="ltr">Structural composite components use a large number of parameters needed to describe their mechanical properties e.g. the dimension and the location of plies, their thickness, their orientation, and the definition of the stacking sequences</li><li dir="ltr">The use of optimization techniques becomes essential in the design and analysis phases, especially if the fiber-reinforced materials are to be tailored to the specific needs and the benefit of their anisotropy is to be maximized</li></ul>&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">The Structural Composite Design Process</h2><h3 dir="ltr">General Layout of Composite Structures</h3>A composite structure is made up of several plies of different orientations and shapes. The plies are stacked together in defined zones. In each zone, a laminate has a given stacking sequence. As shown in the figure below, the stiffeners and ribs of the wing naturally define the zones of constant stacking sequence.&nbsp;<img alt="A wing made of composite materials" src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjU0MTU5ODEwNTQyLTE2NTQxNTk4MTA1NDIucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" width="524" class="fr-fic fr-dii" style="width: 753px;"><h3 dir="ltr"> </h3><h3 dir="ltr">The Design Phase: CAD and Link toward CAM</h3>The design process uses these zones as a basis for the preliminary design of the composite part. This is called a zone-based design, in which the CAD software assigns a given number of laminates i.e. defined by the total number of plies and their orientations in each zone. At this stage, it is possible to estimate the deviation of fiber orientations, and ply drops (i.e., the gradual thickness changes at the boundary of the laminates). &nbsp;<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjU0MTU5ODEyMzM2LTE2NTQxNTk4MTIzMzYucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" width="624" class="fr-fic fr-dii" style="width: 741px; height: 198.53px;"><h3 dir="ltr"> </h3><h3 dir="ltr">The Analysis Phase: CAE Tools</h3>The structural analysis of complex composite parts is carried out with the ﬁnite elements method. Only for simple geometries and approximated boundary conditions are analytical solutions possible. During the CAE phase, the design provided by the designer in the previous step is validated and possibly modiﬁed by the analyst. Structural integrity is checked, and design improvements are provided, the ultimate goal being to provide a correct (optimal) stacking sequence in each region of the structure. A summary of the methods used for the optimal design of structural composites is shown in the figure below. <img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjU0MTU5ODEwOTMxLTE2NTQxNTk4MTA5MzEucG5nIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" width="624" class="fr-fic fr-dii" style="width: 750px; height: 367.564px;">Figure 3. Methods used for the optimal design of structural composites&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">Summary</h2>The structural composite design is an extremely complicated task, aided by computers and various numerical tools. It involves several disciplines, including CAD, CAE, and CAM, in an iterative process where optimization plays a very important role. According to the large number of parameters needed to design a composite structure, optimization methods are essential to identify the optimal stacking sequences, which is the ultimate goal of the design process. The ultimate solution procedure should address the problem at the CAD&ndash;CAE&ndash;CAM levels simultaneously, in order to provide light and safe designs that are ready to be used in manufacturing.To support the structural composites design,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/post/addpath-installation-instruction" target="_blank">download open access</a> to the 3D Composites Manufacturing Software -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/addpath" target="_blank">AddPath</a>. The open-access platform enables the development of composites digitalization for students, researchers, academia, and SMEs alike. It&#39;s really easy to start using it and create programs and perform simulations for AFP on personal or work computers. <img src="https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/wevolver-project-images/froala%2F1654500997335-1654500997335.png" width="624" id="isPasted" class="fr-fic fr-dii" style="width: 748px; height: 420.527px;">Figure 4. Open-access AddPath&#39;s interface on the laptop For more articles about Composites Manufacturing and Automated Fiber Placement (AFP), please visit further <a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/blogs" id="isPasted" target="_blank">Blogs</a> on the Addcomposites website. If you have any questions, feel free to send your questions to&nbsp;<a href="mailto:info@addcomposites.com" target="_blank">info@addcomposites.com</a>.&nbsp;

Exploded View of Structural Composites in Boeing 777 (Source: ResearchGate)

In this article, the focus is on understanding the key steps in designing structural composites with examples of aerospace components; i.e. wing and fuselage. 

Basic Concepts of Structural Composites Design

<h2 dir="ltr" id="isPasted">What is a Jet Engine?</h2>A turbofan is a type of air-breathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft propulsion. A turbofan engine is the most modern variation of the basic gas turbine engine. As with other gas turbines, there is a core engine, but in the turbofan engine, the core engine is surrounded by a fan in the front which sucks in air, and additional turbine(s) at the rear for exhaust. Most of the air flows around the outside of the engine, making it quieter and giving more thrust at low speeds. Most of today&#39;s airliners are powered by turbofans. Such engines have many components and we will focus on the components that are made using continuous fiber composites. <h2 dir="ltr">Which are the components made with AFP today?</h2>A leader in the jet engines, Rolls-Royce has recently set up a facility to make fan blades and containment casings using the automated fiber placement process. They used<a href="https://www.accudyne.com/" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a>AFP systems to make the fan blades and containment casing respectively. <img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjUyNDQ3MzQ2Mzc5LTIuanBnIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 541px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Rolls-Royce Advanced and UltraFan (Source: Rolls-Royce plc) UltraFan, which the company says will be the world&rsquo;s largest aero-engine and will contribute to sustainable air travel, features what will be the world&rsquo;s largest fan rotor blades made from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/post/reinforcement-fibers-terminology-types-and-formats" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP)</a>. Here is a video showing glimpses of the overall manufacturing process:&nbsp; <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SOwWKN1GxJ4?&wmode=opaque&rel=0&enablejsapi=1&origin=https://www.wevolver.com" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" data-gtm-yt-inspected-7="true" id="874018981" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" title="Rolls-Royce new composite technology hub in Filton"></iframe>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Rolls-Royce&#39;s new composite technology hub in Filton (Source: Bristol 24/7)&nbsp;<h2 dir="ltr">How to program the blade layup via AFP?</h2>To produce a known geometry using AFP, a few sequential steps must be followed:<ol><li dir="ltr">Mold model</li><li dir="ltr">Planning and programming with AFP</li><li dir="ltr">Running AFP manufacturing simulation</li></ol>&nbsp;<h3 dir="ltr">Mold modeling</h3>A demo blade model can be downloaded from <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/sh/2ctq2emjm5r0ioo/AAAnsNc_5A0mnb-v2yvE0FNua/Mold%20files?dl=0&preview=Turbo+Fan+Blade+mold.step&subfolder_nav_tracking=1" target="_blank">here</a> or your CAD model of the blade can be used as well. To make the fan blade mold, the following steps are followed:&nbsp;<img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjUyNDQ3NTEzNTgxLTMuanBnIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 736px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">Mold making steps from a fan of the jet engine to mold design&nbsp; Mold making steps from a fan of the jet engine to mold design<ol><li dir="ltr">Remove any holes from the fan blade surface</li><li dir="ltr">Extend the edges of the surface by up to 50-100 mm, up to 150mm if possible</li><li dir="ltr">Plan for the trimming allowance and draw an outer boundary</li><li dir="ltr">Separate the layup and the boundary area by splitting the surface</li><li dir="ltr">Solidify the surface with vertical walls</li><li dir="ltr">Add mounting and alignment points for placement in AFP robotic cell</li><li dir="ltr">Consider markings or orientation points for fiber orientation definition</li></ol>&nbsp;<h3 dir="ltr">Planning and Programing with AFP</h3>Planning the layup on a 3D mold shape has been made very simple and accessible thanks to AddPath. You can download the AddPath software for free <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HFQ5yuilxkOt9CFpK9kd1eD0G2HXn5W6/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">here</a>. A step-by-step process of planning via AddPath is depicted in the picture below. The process also allows user to define their paths by simply drawing a curve in the chosen CAD modeling software and importing it. <img src="https://images.wevolver.com/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ3ZXZvbHZlci1wcm9qZWN0LWltYWdlcyIsImtleSI6ImZyb2FsYS8xNjUyNDQ3NzQzNTk2LTQuanBnIiwiZWRpdHMiOnsicmVzaXplIjp7IndpZHRoIjo5NTAsImZpdCI6ImNvdmVyIn19fQ==" style="width: 735px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib">&nbsp;<h3 dir="ltr">Running AFP manufacturing simulation</h3>Simulating the process via 3D Programming Software - AddPath is very critical to make sure the following items are being met without error:<ol><li dir="ltr">Mold is positioned correctly</li><li dir="ltr">The robot can reach the entire layup area without overextending or reaching a point of singularity</li><li dir="ltr">Motion sync between robot and mold is smooth and without error</li><li dir="ltr">No collisions are occurring</li><li dir="ltr">Fiber is being placed where you designed them to be among others...</li></ol>AddPath allows for modification of mold position to optimize the planned layup placement, thus enabling the part to be optimally designed. Below is the video showcasing the simulation in the finalized position.Recommended reading:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wevolver.com/article/what-is-automated-fiber-placement-afp-in-composites-manufacturing" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">What is Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) in Composites Manufacturing?</a> <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Alo4-TAWrs4?&wmode=opaque&rel=0&enablejsapi=1&origin=https://www.wevolver.com" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable" data-lf-yt-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" data-gtm-yt-inspected-7="true" id="926036711" data-lf-form-tracking-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" data-lf-vimeo-playback-inspected-kn9eq4roawkarlvp="true" title="jet engine blade simulation"></iframe> <h2 dir="ltr">Setup your production facility</h2>Setting up your facility for such production used to be very difficult as it would cost millions of dollars and would require the hiring of experts. With the advent of free-to-access software like <a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/addpath" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">AddPath</a>, everyone interested in digitally producing composites can join the movement. This virtual production environment provides very critical data for the end-user i.e. material, time, steering/gaps, overlap, feasibility, BOM cost, etc.As a user feels confident in their business case, they can lease the AFP systems to run onto any available robotic arms (e.g., KUKA, ABB, Fanuc, etc.). &nbsp;The lease prices are equivalent to hiring a skilled technician.For more information and knowledge about composites manufacturing, you can find it on <a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/" target="_blank">our website</a> and on the <a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/blogs" target="_blank">&ldquo;Blogs&rdquo;</a> page. If you have further questions, please <a href="https://www.addcomposites.com/contact-us" target="_blank">contact us</a> directly and we are happy to support you.&nbsp;

An air-breathing jet engine (turbofan) is widely used in aircraft propulsion. AFP systems are used for making the fan blades and containment casing for these jet engines. Here step by step process of making a jet engine blade via the AFP process is explained.

How to Produce a Jet Engine Blade via Automated Fiber Placement (AFP)?

In this episode, we talk about how MIT engineers have proven a way to detect the presence and location of origin for cancer cells in pee using nanoparticles, the robotic neck brace developed by Columbia University researchers to accurately diagnose the source of neck pain in cancer patients, and a novel method to reduce the noise generated by airplanes during landing proposed by Texas A&amp;M. As always, you can find these and other interesting &amp; impactful engineering articles on Wevolver.com.<iframe height="200px" width="100%" frameborder="no" scrolling="no" seamless="" src="https://player.simplecast.com/3dd80443-495c-42de-ba81-d0e011b6adea?dark=false" class="fr-draggable"></iframe>&nbsp;<h3 id="isPasted">EPISODE NOTES</h3>(0:55) -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wevolver.com/article/nanoparticle-based-urine-tests-to-detect-and-locate-cancer" target="_blank">Using Nanoparticles To Detect Cancer In Pee</a>:&nbsp;A team of MIT engineers have come up with a way to detect the presence of cancer and localize the region of origin by analyzing a patient’s pee sample. The patient can either inhale or be injected with nanoparticles that’ll exit the body via urine and a paper test - similar to over the counter pregnancy tests - can be used to determine if the patient has cancer. Additionally, if the patient does test positive, the nanoparticles can be coated with a radioactive tracer to show medical professionals the source of the growth via PET scans.(8:20) -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wevolver.com/article/robotic-neck-brace-can-help-analyze-cancer-treatment-impacts" target="_blank">Robotic Neck Brace</a>:&nbsp;Head and neck cancer is the 7th most common type of cancer in the world and doctors typically surgically remove a patient's lymph nodes to examine how the cancer will spread; however, this approach results in severe neck and shoulder pain. This type of pain is difficult to characterize because current methods are either too timely to set up or they’re simply inaccurate but that is exactly what a group of Columbia researchers hoped to address. Two professors have teamed up to create a robotic neck brace capable of recording a patient’s full range of head/neck motion. The duo have proven that by recording data before and after the surgery will allow medical professionals to understand what areas have been affected and what specific types of physical therapy to prescribe.&nbsp;(13:55) -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wevolver.com/article/shape-memory-alloys-might-help-airplanes-land-without-a-peep" target="_blank">Quiet Landing Airplanes</a>:&nbsp;If you live near an airport (like us) then you know how disturbing the sound of planes taking off and landing can be. Fortunately, a team of engineers at Texas A&amp;M University have proposed a design modification to the slats on aircraft wings that could reduce the noise generated upon landing to that of the quietest planes. Their simulations have been promising so now they will be working on creating a scale model to test out and hopefully it works so The Next Byte crew can have an easier time living near the airport.&nbsp;--About the podcast:Every day, some of the most innovative universities, companies, and individual technology developers share their knowledge on Wevolver. To ensure we can also provide this knowledge for the growing group of podcast listeners, we started a collaboration with two young engineers, Daniel Scott Mitchell &amp; Farbod Moghaddam who discuss the most interesting content in this podcast series.&nbsp;To learn more about this show, please visit the <a href="https://www.wevolver.com/profile/the.next.byte" target="_blank">shows page</a>. By following the page, you will get automatic updates by email when a new show is published.Be sure to give us a follow and review on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/nl/podcast/the-next-byte/id1548255861?l=en" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Apple</a> podcasts, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6lPPsRtegnivsRUEsQ09R7?si=IPMiah7xT_apJtPjqvXMlA" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, and most of your favorite podcast platforms!

Schematic of the new robotic neck brace and a picture of a subject using the brace. (Left) A CAD drawing of the neck brace. (Right) A participant wearing the brace during experiments while sitting comfortably on a chair. Surface electrodes are mounted in the head and neck area to record muscle activity. Photo Credit: Sunil K. Agrawal, Roar Lab.

In this episode, we talk about how MIT engineers have proven a way to detect the presence of origin for cancer cells in pee using nanoparticles, the robotic neck brace developed by Columbia University researchers, and a novel method to reduce the noise generated by airplanes during landing.