This paper presents the perspective of the Structural Mechanics program of the Air Force
Office of Scientific Research on the damage assessment of structures. It is found that damage
assessment of structures plays a very important role in assuring the safety and operational readiness
of Air Force fleet. The current fleet has many aging aircraft, which poses a considerable challenge
for the operators and maintainers. The nondestructive evaluation technology is rather mature and
able to detect damage with considerable reliability during the periodic maintenance inspections. The
emerging structural health monitoring methodology has great potential, because it will use on-board
damage detection sensors and systems, will be able to offer on-demand structural health bulletins.
Considerable fundamental and applied research is still needed to enable the development,
implementation, and dissemination of structural health monitoring technology.
Abstract
The paper presents an overview of the fundamental research performed in the US in the field of flight structures under the sponsorship of the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR). After presenting a general overview of AFOSR, the paper focuses on the structural mechanics program. Three large applications areas are considered: (a) future flight structures; (b) structural sustainment; (c) structural dynamics and vibration control. These three broad areas are covered at various levels of complexity and detail. Currently supported topics are presented and major funding and results are discussed. The paper ends with summary and conclusions.
Robust LQR control for stall flutter suppression: A polytopic approach * *This material is based on research sponsored by the US Air Force Academy under agreement number FA7000-13-2-0002 and FA7000-13-2-0009. The authors would like to acknowledge funding from Dr. Douglas Smith through the Air Force Office of Scientific Research Flow Control and Interaction portfolio. The grant of computer resources by the DoD HPCMO is gratefully acknowledged. The views and conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies or endorsements, either expressed or implied, of the French and US Air Force Academies or the French and U.S. Governments.