It can fly the craft faster than the speed of sound

Apr 30, 2009 10:39 GMT  ·  By
This is an artist's concept of an X-43A hypersonic experimental vehicle in flight
   This is an artist's concept of an X-43A hypersonic experimental vehicle in flight

Ohio State University engineers have created what flight experts until now have considered next to impossible – a computerized guidance system for experimental aircraft, which can adapt to the changing conditions of flying faster than the speed of sound. Specifically designed for a new airplane prototype in the works at NASA, the “test pilot” needs to take care of a craft so experimental, that it's out of the question for humans to fly it. In addition, it needs to control it perfectly at a speed higher than that of sound, where even the slightest false move can disintegrate the airplane into thousands of pieces.

“Because these vehicles are unmanned right now, we have to prepare everything ahead of time – anticipate every possible in-flight event. And the controller has to work really fast. At 10 times the speed of sound, if you lose just one second, the jet has gone far, far off course. The truly remarkable feature of our approach is that we consider a realistic, physics-based vehicle model within our stability analysis, using a highly sophisticated controller,” OSU Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Andrea Serrani said.

“Since we are working with Wright-Patterson, we have access to the most sophisticated model available for this aircraft,” doctoral student Lisa Fiorentini, who has collaborated with Serrani for the innovative control system, added. She pinpointed that one of the main reasons why research into computerized test pilots had really taken off lately was the recent success of NASA's X-43 hypersonic jet, which had performed above expectations in experimental flights.

In a paper published in the latest issue of the Journal of Guidance, Control, and Dynamics, the experts detail how the computer worked flawlessly in a simulation of the new NASA airplane maiden flight. The team adds that their controller is able to both keep the plane on course at speeds up to ten times faster than that of sound, and to also keep it balanced and under control, which is something that even some human test pilots cannot do properly.

At this point, the OSU researchers and US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) scientists are working on refining the control options on their computerized controller, in a bid to add more safety elements. The experts explain that one of the main issues that need to be overcome is figuring out how to keep a steady flow of air to the engines, considering that changing altitudes at such high speeds may lead to the mechanical components stalling in mid-air, which could result in the crashing of the plane in just a few seconds.