1,721,005 research outputs found
Preliminary design of a short-medium range windowless aircraft
Full text linkThis paper describes a new aircraft concept, where all windows, except those for emergency exits, are replaced with simulated windows, which consist of monitors connected to external cameras to overcome the discomfort for the passenger due to the absence of real windows. This concept is developed through an analytical method to estimate the potential advantages for the environment and for airline companies deriving from a windowless configuration for a short-medium range aircraft, within the boundaries of the preliminary design. Actually, the reduction in weight is directly linked to the reduction in fuel consumption, providing advantages in terms of operating costs and emissions of carbon dioxide. The method is applied to four models of short and medium range aircraft, namely Boeing 737–800, Airbus 320, ATR72 and Embraer 190. The results show the benefits of a windowless configuration that become very positive for the operating life of an aircraft and the total fleet, potentially leading to the saving of millions of tons of carbon dioxide every year when applied to the whole fleet of the analyzed aircraft
EXTENDED REALITY IN AIRPORT CONTROL TOWERS: FROM CONCEPT DESIGN TO PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF AN INNOVATIVE HUMAN-MACHINE INTERFACE FOR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL OPERATORS
No full textThe growing deployment of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) and electrical Vertical Take-Off and Landing vehicles (eVTOLs) necessitates advanced solutions for collision avoidance and unauthorized area management. This paper investigates the application of augmented reality (AR) for enhanced monitoring and control of UAS traffic, especially in non-collaborative or hazardous scenarios. By leveraging concepts from SESAR projects, including RETINA and DTT, the study introduces a novel AR interface designed for real-time visualization of drone telemetry and georeferenced data. This interface, tailored for airport tower control and remote piloting, aims to streamline situational awareness by integrating critical surveillance information into a head-up display. Preliminary tests with simulated drone incursions promise substantial improvements in operator efficiency and situational awareness. This study provides a framework for the safe and efficient integration of UASs into controlled airspace, highlighting the potential of AR interfaces to meet evolving air traffic management needs
Preliminary design of a long range windowless aircraft concept
Full text linkThe objective of this paper is to describe the preliminary design of a windowless configuration of a long-range aircraft and to analytically assess the achieved weight reduction. As a matter of fact, the reduction of weight is directly linked with reduction of fuel consumption; consequently there are advantages in terms of aircraft operative costs and emissions of carbon dioxide. A feasibility study will bring to the assessment of weight and cost reduction in consideration to the introduction of innovative screens, to give passengers the possibility to see through the fuselage itself. The proposed methodology consists in the preliminary design of a long-range aircraft, considering some defined design parameters and constraints. The activity will finally lead to weight reduction evaluation, in case the same aircraft will be designed windowless. In the end the methodology is applied to two existing aircrafts to estimate potential benefits of the windowless configuration if compared to the traditional one: the Airbus 340-500 and the Being 777-300
Augmented reality technology selection based on integrated QFD-AHP model
Full text linkIn the last decade, Augmented Reality has become increasingly popular. As improved performances are gathered in terms of mature hardware and software tools, we are observing the stemming of a huge number of applications of this technology both in the entertainment and in the industrial domains. On the one hand, such applications are usually claimed to bring benefits in terms of productivity or enhancement of the human’s capability to perform tasks. On the other hand, researchers and developers seem not to adequately consider the different meanings that AR assumes when implemented through visualization devices that can differ significantly in nature and in their capability to provide a mixed real-virtual scenario. In this paper, we describe a user-centred method based on an integrated QFD-AHP approach to select the best visualization display technology with regard to a specific application context. The aim is to establish a repeatable and documented process for the identification of the technology that best suits and mitigates the acceptability risks of the transition from a legacy working environment to an AR based operational environment. The method has been developed in the framework of the RETINA (Resilient Synthetic Vision for Advanced Control Tower Air Navigation Service Provision) project involving the end users, in this case, air traffic controllers. Nevertheless, it can be generalised and applied to other contexts of use. Furthermore, in order to be resilient to the fast, technological development in AR, it can be used to update the results as improvements arise in the performance level of the display devices in a specific technology
Free vibration of variable-thickness plates via adaptive finite elements
No full textNew technologies, such as additive manufacturing combined with topology optimisation or bio-inspired design, can produce lightweight structures with better dynamical properties but more complex geometries. Analysing these components with the finite element method can become time-consuming because of fine 3D meshes. By exploiting the node-dependent kinematic approach of Carrera's unified formulation and using Lagrange expanding functions, this work presents the implementation of adaptive finite elements for the free-vibration analysis of plates with an arbitrary thickness variation through the in-plane domain. In other words, the kinematics of the 2D model on which the element is based can be adapted to the geometry of the plate. The formulation is mainly based on the 3D integration of the approximating functions and computation of a 3D Jacobian matrix inside the element for the derivation of stiffness and mass matrices; substantially, the resulting elements are 3D elements in which the order of expansion through the thickness can be different from that in the plane of the plate. The free vibration analysis of some plates with different thickness variations is performed. The results demonstrate that the present elements allow us to accurately study these innovative 2D structures by employing much fewer degrees of freedom with respect to classical 3D finite elements
Vibroacoustic analysis of an innovative windowless cabin with metamaterial trim panels in regional turboprops
Full text linkThe purpose of this work is to study the possible noise reduction, in terms of sound pressure level, in the passenger cabin of a regional turboprop aircraft under multiple tonal and broadband noise components characterizing the noise generated by the engines during cruise flight conditions. In particular, we want to show the acoustic performances of innovative passive noise and vibration technologies, such as acoustic metamaterials applied to the trim panel of the cabin, in the low-frequency range, from 100 to 300 Hz. Moreover, the removal of windows from the passenger cabin is evaluated, in acoustic terms. Analyses are performed using a numerical tool, Actran, a finite element based software, and a numerical model of a regional aircraft fuselage. According to the results, metamaterials seem to have significant acoustic performances that lead to a reduction in noise and therefore an increase in passenger comfort
Vibroacoustic analysis of an innovative windowless cabin with metamaterial trim panels in regional turboprops
No full textThe purpose of this work is to study the possible noise reduction, in terms of sound pressure level, in the passenger cabin of a regional turboprop aircraft under multiple tonal and broadband noise components characterizing the noise generated by the engines during cruise flight conditions. In particular, we want to show the acoustic performances of innovative passive noise and vibration technologies, such as acoustic metamaterials applied to the trim panel of the cabin, in the low-frequency range, from 100 to 300 Hz. Moreover, the removal of windows from the passenger cabin is evaluated, in acoustic terms. Analyses are performed using a numerical tool, Actran, a finite element based software, and a numerical model of a regional aircraft fuselage. According to the results, metamaterials seem to have significant acoustic performances that lead to a reduction in noise and therefore an increase in passenger comfort
Preliminary user centred evaluation of regional aircraft cabin interiors in virtual reality
Full text linkThe main aim of the CASTLE (Cabin System Design Towards Passenger Wellbeing) European project is to deliver innovative interiors solutions that maximize the comfort and wellbeing of passengers in the next future. To achieve such objective, an effective HCD (Human Centred Design) approach has been employed to derive a Human Response Model based on a holistic assessment of comfort. The overall methodology has been conceived to provide different tools and methods to collect data on the impact that the design of each cabin item has on the user from the earliest design stages. One of these tools is represented by using 3D virtual mock-ups to capture data on the user’s perception and to rate the level of appreciation inspired by the specific design. In this paper we present the experimental procedures and the results from a preliminary experimental campaign of Human in the loop simulations in Virtual/Augmented Reality of a Regional Aircraft
ADVANCED HUMAN MACHINE INTERFACES FOR DRONE MONITORING: ASSESSMENT OF THE TECHNOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE DESIGN OF AN AUGMENTED REALITY INTERFACE
No full textThe growing deployment of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) and electrical Vertical Take-Off and Landing vehicles(eVTOLs) necessitates advanced solutions for collision avoidance and unauthorized area management. This paper investigates the application of augmented reality (AR) for enhanced monitoring and control of UAS traffic, especially in non-collaborative or hazardous scenarios. By leveraging concepts from SESAR projects, including RETINA and DTT, the study introduces a novel AR interface designed for real-time visualization ofdrone telemetry and geo referenced data. This interface, tailored for airport tower control and remote piloting, aims to streamline situational awareness by integrating critical surveillance information into a head-up display. Preliminary tests with simulated drone incursions promise substantial improvements in operator efficiency and situational awareness. This study provides a framework for the safe and efficient integration of UASs into controlled airspace, highlighting the potential of AR interfaces to meet evolving air traffic management needs
Transmission loss investigation of acoustic metamaterials via Adaptive Finite Elements
No full textThis work develops the integration of the Rayleigh’s integral method for calculating transmission loss into a new class of 2D finite elements, the adaptive finite elements. These
elements, recently developed within Carrera’s Unified Formulation framework, allow 2D
structures to be studied independently of expansion along the thickness, allowing for increased
computational efficiency over traditional solid elements. In this paper, they are used to calculate
the transmission loss on a panel of sandwich material. The aim is to demonstrate their efficiency
within a future core geometry optimisation process. These elements make studying different
thickness geometries accurate and fast, always based on the same 2D mesh. The article briefly
presents the formulation of the adaptive finite elements and Rayleigh’s integral method. Then,
the implementation is validated, and a series of geometries chosen as examples are studied by
calculating their transmission loss
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