A review of aircraft wing mass estimation methods

2018 ◽  
Vol 72 ◽  
pp. 256-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Odeh Dababneh ◽  
Timoleon Kipouros
2016 ◽  
Vol 22 ◽  
pp. 133-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte A. Brassey

AbstractBody mass is a key parameter for understanding the physiology, biomechanics, and ecology of an organism. Within paleontology, body mass is a fundamental prerequisite for many studies considering body-size evolution, survivorship patterns, and the occurrence of dwarfism and gigantism. The conventional method for estimating fossil body mass relies on allometric scaling relationships derived from skeletal metrics of extant taxa, but the recent application of three-dimensional imaging techniques to paleontology (e.g., surface laser scanning, computed tomography, and photogrammetry) has allowed for the rapid digitization of fossil specimens. Volumetric body-mass estimation methods based on whole articulated skeletons are therefore becoming increasingly popular. Volume-based approaches offer several advantages, including the ability to reconstruct body-mass distribution around the body, and their relative insensitivity to particularly robust or gracile elements, i.e., the so-called ‘one bone effect.’ Yet their application to the fossil record will always be limited by the paucity of well-preserved specimens. Furthermore, uncertainties with regards to skeletal articulation, body density, and soft-tissue distribution must be acknowledged and their effects quantified. Future work should focus on extant taxa to improve our understanding of body composition and increase confidence in volumetric model input parameters.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1903
Author(s):  
Cheng Hu ◽  
Shaoyang Kong ◽  
Rui Wang ◽  
Fan Zhang ◽  
Lianjun Wang

Radar cross section (RCS) parameters of insect targets contain information related to their morphological parameters, which are helpful for the identification of migratory insects. Several morphological parameter estimation methods have been presented. However, most of these estimations are performed based on polynomial fitting methods, using only one or two parameters, which may limit the estimation accuracy. In this paper, a new insect mass estimation method is proposed based on support vector regression (SVR). Several RCS parameters were extracted for the estimation of insect mass. Support vector regression based on recursive feature elimination (SVRRFE) was used to obtain the optimal feature subset. Specifically, a dataset including 367 specimens was included to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Fifteen features were extracted and ranked. The optimal feature subset contained six features and the optimal mass estimation accuracy was 78%. Additionally, traditional insect mass estimation methods were analyzed for comparison. The results prove that the proposed method is more effective and accurate for insect mass estimation. It needs to be emphasized that the poor number of experimental insects available may limit the further improvement of estimation accuracy.


2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 20140984 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte A. Brassey ◽  
Susannah C. R. Maidment ◽  
Paul M. Barrett

Body mass is a key biological variable, but difficult to assess from fossils. Various techniques exist for estimating body mass from skeletal parameters, but few studies have compared outputs from different methods. Here, we apply several mass estimation methods to an exceptionally complete skeleton of the dinosaur Stegosaurus . Applying a volumetric convex-hulling technique to a digital model of Stegosaurus , we estimate a mass of 1560 kg (95% prediction interval 1082–2256 kg) for this individual. By contrast, bivariate equations based on limb dimensions predict values between 2355 and 3751 kg and require implausible amounts of soft tissue and/or high body densities. When corrected for ontogenetic scaling, however, volumetric and linear equations are brought into close agreement. Our results raise concerns regarding the application of predictive equations to extinct taxa with no living analogues in terms of overall morphology and highlight the sensitivity of bivariate predictive equations to the ontogenetic status of the specimen. We emphasize the significance of rare, complete fossil skeletons in validating widely applied mass estimation equations based on incomplete skeletal material and stress the importance of accurately determining specimen age prior to further analyses.


Electronics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 711
Author(s):  
Utz Spaeth ◽  
Heiko Fechtner ◽  
Michele Weisbach ◽  
Benedikt Schmuelling

One approach to improve the economic efficiency of trolleybuses in the so-called BOB Project in the German town of Solingen is to use them as mobile energy storages in a smart grid. To achieve this, reliable information on available energy is essential, which in turn needs to be derived from a precise range calculator. As shown in this article, vehicle mass is a strong influencing factor, especially in urban traffic. Depending on passenger volume, the total mass and range of the bus varies by about 30 percent. The currently available mass on the bus fluctuates by more than 2 tons for constant payloads, and there is no proven solution for a more accurate mass estimation for buses in public passenger transportation. Therefore, this article presents a viable methodology to detect changes in payload, using high precision pressure sensors on the bus’s tires and air suspensions. These mass inducted pressure changes are extracted from the measurement data, using a filter to be later converted back into the corresponding masses. As the article will show, both approaches have their respective advantages and disadvantages, but have high potential and should therefore be investigated further.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1649
Author(s):  
DaeYi Jung ◽  
Gyoojae Choi

This paper proposes a new mass estimation for a vehicle system, utilizing the characteristics of engine torque local convex minimum, where the mass can be estimated based on the driving forces and the longitudinal accelerations only. Fundamentally, this approach generally requires no other information about an aerodynamic effect, a road grade, or a rolling friction, which is usually demanded by the existing well-known longitudinal dynamics and adaptive filter-based estimation methods. The effectiveness of the proposed approach was evaluated and validated by both TruckSim/Simulink co-simulation and actual field test data. It is found that the proposed estimation technique is more favorable for a situation where the vehicle is exposed to low-speed regions. In addition to this new mass estimation strategy, other new and current existing methods were explored and are reviewed here. Moreover, this study suggested a guideline for a hybrid-type mass estimation strategy to predict a mass by combining a new method with an existing one for every speed.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacek Mieloszyk ◽  
Andrzej Tarnowski ◽  
Tomasz Goetzendorf-Grabowski ◽  
Mariusz Kowalski ◽  
Bartłomiej Goliszek

Purpose Aircraft structure mass estimation is a very important issue in aerospace. Multiple methods of different fidelity are available, which give results with varying accuracy. Sometimes these methods are giving a high discrepancy of estimated mass compared to the real mass of the structure. The discrepancy is especially noticeable in the case of small aircraft with a composite structure. Their mass properties highly depend not only on the material but also on technology and the human factor. Moreover, methods of mass estimation for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms are even less established and examined. The purpose of this paper is to present and discuss various methods of mass estimation. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents different procedures of mass estimation for small UAVs with a composite structure. Beginning from the simplest one, where mass is estimated basing on a single equation and finishing with a mass estimation based on finite element method model and three-dimensional computer-aided design model. The results from all methods are compared with the airworthy aircraft and conclusions are discussed. Findings Mass of flying aircraft was estimated with different methods and compared. It revealed levels of accuracy of the investigated methods. Moreover, the influence on structure mass of human factor, glueing and painting is underlined. Practical implications Mass of the structure is a key factor in aerospace, which influences the performance of the aircraft. Thorough knowledge about the accuracy of the mass estimation methods and possible sources of discrepancies in mass analyses provides an essential tool for designers, which can be used with confidence and allows for the development of new cutting-edge constructions. Originality/value There are very few comparisons of mass estimation methods with an actual mass of manufactured and functional airframes. Additionally, mass estimation inaccuracies based on technological issues are presented, which is seldom done.


2015 ◽  
Vol 449 (3) ◽  
pp. 3082-3106 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Pearson ◽  
T. J. Ponman ◽  
P. Norberg ◽  
A. S. G. Robotham ◽  
W. M. Farr

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document