The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an
Aircraft’s Design and Development Process
ABSTRACT
Modelling and simulation is very often seen as an
expensive and time consuming method of assessing an
aircraft’s behaviour especially when flight test still needs to
be performed. This opinion has been added to by the fact
that it has often relied upon hard coded aircraft data or
complex text files to be created
With a continual drive to reach the market sooner, and
streamline the design and development process, one area
where benefits can be made is through the use of virtual
environments that allow engineers to not only model the
aircrafts flight, but to rapidly update the design and view the
effects and impact of those design changes throughout the
whole flight envelope and a range of disciplines.
Discussions with many individuals and organisations
relating to how things are currently performed are
summarised in this paper, and it will go on to outline the
benefits that can be made throughout the complete design
and development process via rapid prototyping within a
virtual environment. This paper will describe how these
benefits can be achieved using J2 Universal, and the
further advantages of an integrated visualisation capability
to provide a complete understanding of the aircraft’s
behaviour.
INTRODUCTION
It has always been the case that flight modelling and
simulation are viewed as an essential part of the
certification process for large aircraft manufacturing
corporations. This has especially been the case with
envelope expansion of military aircraft. However,
modelling and simulation has had a less than warm
welcome from the more popular sectors of industry such as
General Aviation.
©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd.
John A. Jeffery
J2 Aircraft Dynamics, Liverpool, UK
Set-up and design modifications for modelling and
simulation have often been seen as an expensive and
labour intensive process, as shown in Reference 1) which
states that “The average resources spent in implementing a
new simulation model is 11 staff months”. A perceived less
expensive route has often been to use flight test as a
design tool. Across all areas of the industry, the dynamic
modelling environment was very often an in-house tailor
made software application that relied heavily on the aircraft
dynamic information being hard coded into the system, or
read in from complex fixed format text files. As a result, the
modelling and simulation is still left until late on in the
design process.
With the increase in new designs all targeting a similar
market, especially in the Very Light Jet (VLJ) arena, there
is an increasing need to streamline and improve the design
and development process. This can be done by
establishing design flaws as soon as possible, before any
manufacture takes place. One way to discover problems,
especially with stability, control and handling qualities, is to
bring the use of modelling and simulation forward in the
design process, and with the Commercial Off The Shelf
(COTS) tools that are now available to engineers it is
possible to perform this analysis in a very cost effective
manner.
This paper intends to outline the benefits that Virtual
Environments, in particular modelling and simulation, can
give throughout the design process, describe some of the
COTS tools available, and outline how this can currently
done using J2 Universal to assess designs from simple
early stage design approximations through to detailed wind
tunnel models and supporting flight test. Furthermore, this
paper will describe the added advantages of an integrated
visualisation environment in creating a further
understanding of the aircrafts behaviour.
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BACKGROUND
Flight modelling was viewed for many years as the domain
of large aircraft manufacturing corporations with significant
sums of money available to develop vast quantities of
FORTRAN code and purchase extremely expensive
specialised equipment. Simulation was similarly the
responsibility of specialised companies developing Full
Mission Simulators for training pilots. With these financial
and specialist restrictions in place the capability was only
available to a few of the major organisations within the
General Aviation Sector.
Furthermore, a large proportion of the modelling and
simulation software written within these organisations has,
at its core, code written as far back as the 1960’s and
1970’s. As time has gone on, further updates and
addendums have been made to the software to allow for
design changes and additional features. Throughout this
process, little effort has been spent on applying a top down
approach to developing a new system, with even less time
spent on user interfaces. The result is huge great
monolithic applications with often limited variable names
using historical techniques that are becoming impossible to
support. From the users’ point of view, the software may
require large single or multiple text files to be created to
define not only the aircraft data, but application setup data,
trim and response conditions, and flight analysis data. At
best, a “wrapper” application has been written to provide an
application that can generate these text files from data
entered via a Graphical User Interface (GUI).
Discussions with industry professionals has highlighted
situations where, due to the plethora of engineers that have
been employed in developing and using these applications,
individuals have found their own special work around to
known problems resulting in different answers being
generated for the same problem.
The final issue with this evolutionary approach is the that
legacy computing platforms are being updated, and thus
requiring the porting of the software to new platform, or
face the complex maintenance issues of continuing to run
legacy platforms for legacy in-house applications whilst the
rest of the office moves forward. Furthermore, the porting
of existing solutions can, in itself, generate new problems.
In one instance converting from IBM mainframe to a UNIX
based platform resulted in a missed integer conversion
which resulted in millions of iterations being performed to
find a solution where a much smaller number was
specified.
With all these problems facing larger organisations with
larger budgets, more personnel and additional support
©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd.
August 2006
personnel, it is no wonder that smaller companies with
much lower budgets, and fewer personnel opt for a more
simple approach to modelling and simulation.
In these cases several alternatives are used either in
isolation or in various combinations. These alternative
approaches range from:
1) Using Flight Test as a design tool
The “wind tunnel in the sky” approach has many
hazards associated with it that can have disastrous
consequences. This approach tends to be justified
when new designs are very similar to previous tried
and tested versions, or engineers believe that their
wealth of experience and knowledge means they
tend to avoid making serious mistakes.
This combined with a cautious flight test
program can prove to be cost effective, but does not
account for hidden dangers that may have been
overlooked in the early design stages.
2) Simple spreadsheets and “hand” calculations.
Many texts exist that outline how to assess the
performance and handling of an aircraft. When
following these texts from first principals, it can very
often be seen that approximations have had to be
made in order to simplify the equations. Whilst
experience has proven that these approximations
do not significantly affect the results in a typical
envelope with conventional designs, these
approximations can start to fall down when dealing
with unusual designs or aircraft that are trying to
break away from the traditional flight envelopes.
3) Simple Simulations
In this scenario, engineers will write a very
simplistic form of simulation looking at limited
degrees of freedom, possibly using only linear
models, and occasionally separating out static and
dynamic analyses. As this is often developed to
investigate either a single aircraft, or even a single
characteristic of that aircraft, information is hard
coded in to the software, with very little thought
given to ease of use as once the problem has been
investigated the application will no longer be used.
It is these types of simulations that tend to grow
over the years as engineers recall using something
on a previous project, and try to modify and adapt it
to the current situation. Other engineers will then
see tools being used and request copies etc. until
everybody has something on their desktop each
with its own uniqueness.
In discussions regarding all the scenarios outlined above,
either for large or small organisations, one aspect keeps
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 The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an Aircraft’s Design and Development Process
coming out. The lack of a systematic approach to the tools
development, clear outlines of objectives, and configuration
management within the application itself.
With the continual increasing capability of the personal
computer, especially in the arena of graphics, higher level
languages offering object oriented capabilities, and
improved user interfaces, new tools are being created that
have been designed from the top down to tackle the areas
covered above. These COTS applications range in price
from those aimed at the hobbyist to those only affordable
by large organisations. Functionality also varies and can
be as diverse as system design tools capable of analysing
anything from a Nuclear Power Station to a full fighter
aircraft Flight Control System (FCS), to small specific Java
applets looking at analysing individual characteristics such
as airfoils and propellers.
All these tools can be combined through process to create
a complete new way of designing and analysing an aircraft.
VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS
A Virtual Environment (VE), for the purposes of this paper,
is seen as a computer based simulation or application that
can be used to generate data, assess and optimise a
design. Typically, these are seen as replications of the real
world, but can include any software tool that can be built
into the virtual prototyping process. That is, an engineering
design process that enables a complete design to be
developed and tested before any form of manufacturing
process has taken place.
The sorts of tools and disciplines that can be included in
the virtual environment include:
1) Aerodynamic data generation
These can range from simple spreadsheets
used to apply formulas to multiple points in the
envelope, through to computer fluid dynamics (CFD)
such as Fluent, or specialist aero design tools such
as Advanced Aircraft Analysis
2) Modelling and simulation
This aspect of VE’s is the main focus of this
paper, and can cover a wide range of tools and
capabilities. Engineering tools have a dramatic
range and purpose and includes:
• Simple panel method simulations like X-Plane
• Complex systems tools requiring significant
domain knowledge, development expertise
©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd.
and set-up costs such as Matlab and
MATRIXx,
• Integrated dynamic analysis environments
such as J2 Universal where all the dynamic
modelling is built in requiring the user to
simply enter their aircraft specific numbers.
Pilot in the Loop simulations also vary
significantly, once again starting with simple tools
such as X-Plane, but moving rapidly through
desktop based trainers to full mission/full motion
simulators for detailed pilot and procedural training.
However, even full mission simulators can have a
place in the virtual environment/virtual prototyping
processes when they are used to obtain pilot
feedback on early designs and help to minimise
design flaws.
3) Loads and Stress Analysis
Analysing the loads and the breaking points of
components is crucial when dealing with any
aircraft. Ways to minimise the analysis is to over
engineer components, but that will add weight.
Integrating loads and stress analysis into a virtual
process means that fewer physical tests need to be
carried out on components that may not have ended
up in the aircraft anyway due to errors found from
another discipline. Tools that cover this category
range from spreadsheets through to Finite Element
Analysis (FEA) such as ANSYS, PATRAN and
NASTRAN
4) Computer Aided Design/Manufacture
With the current capability of many CAD/CAM
tools, there is no longer a need to create mock ups
and system wiring/piping layouts. Access,
maintenance and simple fit can all be assessed
through the software. Applications in this arena
include AutoCAD, SolidWorks and CATIA.
As can be seen, VE’s cover all sorts of applications, many
of which are already in used in various organisations.
A White Paper produced by the Aerospace Unit of
MacNeal-Schwendler Corporation, (MSC) outlines a strong
case for an integrated product development environment to
reduce time-to-market and product development costs.
According to MSC, optimising the design process means
“…bringing together various engineering disciplines,
integrating them with design procedures, performing the
engineering early in the design process when changes can
easily be made and interfacing with software tools in a
common IT framework.”
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SAE International General Aviation Technology Conference & Exhibition August 2006

The purpose here is to outline the benefits of the modelling
and simulation aspects, and how they can be best put to
use in the General Aviation Industry as part of a complete
process
THE CAPABILITIES OF THE VIRTUAL
ENVIRONMENT
Concurrent Engineering (CE) techniques provide us with
several tools to evaluate an engineering problem.
However, the underlying philosophy with CE is the
integration of all the engineering disciplines and
understanding of all aspects of the design from the very
beginning of the project. By utilising VE’s as early as
possible, the results and analysis can be integrated into an
overall CE approach.
beginning of a project, it is possible to establish problems
much sooner in the lifecycle where they are less costly and
less time consuming to correct. Not only does this reduce
the costs of the overall project, but can reduce the overall
timescales, and thus enable the aircraft to reach the market
sooner.
INVESTIGATE A VARIETY OF DESIGN OPTIONS
The shear multitude and diversity of designs and aircraft
that are available within the General Aviation market shows
that aircraft design is very often a compromise with many
solutions being available to solve the same problem.
Therefore, one of the key features the VE must have is the
ability to assess a plethora of designs and options before
any manufacture has taken place. This enables engineers
to focus in on their chosen design as quickly as possible.

Whilst many tools allow users to specify geometry, or enter

No. of
No. ofproblems
problems data through complex data files, and thus can be used for
found
found any design, the real key when integrating into a virtual
Cost
environment is the speed with which these configurations
Cost per
perDesign
Design
Change
Change can be entered and updated in order to enable as many
possibilities and options to be evaluated at the as early a
point in the process as possible. To achieve this, the user
interface has to be able to represent the design to the
engineer in a clear and concise way for any combination of
component, shape and aerodynamic object.

The final stage in creating a generic model is the ability to

No.
No. of
ofproblems
problems link dynamic components to create control systems. This
found
found using
using Virtual
Virtual can be done by creating the desired pilot controls, and
Environments
Environments linking the dynamic items through link components to the
pilot controls.

If any design can be evaluated in the VE, so there is the

Specification
ability start looking at more elaborate designs and solutions
Preliminary Design to any specification. With simulation and modelling, this
Detailed Design can mean the ability to hone the handling characteristics
Flight Trials & and stability and look at the true impact of c of g limits at a
Certification very early stage in the design.

Project Lifecycle Example – Analysing an Unusual Design

Figure 1 Number and Costs of Problems throughout an
Aircraft Project’s Lifecycle
Figure 1 Demonstrates the increasing cost of design
changes as an aircraft project progresses and how, using a
classic approach, a significant number of problems are
discovered throughout the middle and even later stages of
the project, where cost can make correcting problems
prohibitive. Through the use of Virtual Environments, and
particularly modelling and simulation from the very
A project was undertaken to evaluate a UAV that is based
upon the Mignet Flying Flea. The aircraft had 2 wings
close together with the aft wing area roughly 50% that of
the forward wing. The engines were mounted to the
fuselage forward of the lead wing with their axis in line with
the leading edge. The forward wing was all moving and the
primary pitch controller. The aft wing contained the
ailerons, and has 3 vertical fins mounted to it.

©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 4

 The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an Aircraft’s Design and Development Process
Traditional Methods
Evaluating the behaviour of this aircraft using traditional
spreadsheets or basic “rule of thumb” estimations would be
almost impossible as it does not fit into the standard
conventional aircraft layout. A picture of the aircraft can be
seen in Figure 2.
Figure 2 The Flying Flea UAV under construction
In this instance, due to the lack information available, it was
viewed that the easiest way to investigate the design was
to develop a scaled prototype. This prototype was not only
costly, but time consuming, and was only a representation
of the possible final solution. With the prototype flying the
engineering team were able to demonstrate that the aircraft
would fly, but found very little additional information. The
high position of the engines relative to the aircrafts centre
of gravity meant that any increase in throttle power resulted
in a pitch down response, which almost resulted in a crash
upon take-off.
Virtual Environment Method
With a virtual environment, the costly prototype
development could have been avoided. Following the
initial flights, it was decided that a Virtual Aircraft was a
preferred method for further investigations.
If a VE is to be of any benefit, it needs to be able to
analyse the aircraft as soon as possible, with as little
information as possible. The Virtual Aircraft was
constructed as a series of hierarchical components using
simple structural items, aerodynamic items, and dynamic
aerodynamic items. Structural items can be used for
equipment and payload positioning. Aerodynamic items
can include the airframe as a whole, or it can be broken
down into its component parts such as wing fuselage etc.
©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd.
Finally dynamic aerodynamic items can be used to
represent any moving surfaces. All these components can
be placed in any order within a user defined hierarchy. The
mass and inertia for each component was added, and the
VE automatically used to calculate the total mass, inertias
and cg positions.
3-D Aerodynamic information was generated for the wings
and vertical fins using a simple Java Applet (JavaFoil
developed my MH AeroTools). Dynamic derivatives were
developed using DAR Corporations AAA. This information
as well as mass and inertia calculations was entered into
the VE hierarchy. At this point in development, engines
were simple thrust generators directly linked to throttle
position. The Virtual Aircraft was trimmed and flown using a
simple manoeuvre whereby the throttle was gradually
increased after 2 seconds.
Figure 3 Pitch Response to a Power Increase
As can be seen from Figure 3 the effect is an initial nose
down pitching moment resulting in the aircraft losing
altitude. The increased throttle and downward flight path
result in the aircraft gaining airspeed until the sufficient lift
was generated to recover from the dive. This response
was validated with video from the prototype aircraft.
With confidence that the Virtual Aircraft was an acceptable
representative, basic pitch stability was investigated. This
took the form of investigating the response to a pitch rate
disturbance from the trimmed condition for a variety of
airspeeds. The results can be seen in Figure 4
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SAE International General Aviation Technology Conference & Exhibition August 2006

In order to rapidly determine what characteristics are

crucial to meeting the specification, it is necessary to
Increasing
perform sensitivity studies and “what-ifs”. With these
Airspeed studies, situations that are not expected or are not
assumed to have an impact on the final design can be
investigated safely. In this way it is possible to establish
how critical the aircraft’s behaviour is to a given design
change (Sensitivity Studies) of what happens if the
aerodynamics turn out to be different to those originally
predicted or an unexpected event occurs.

Example – Optimising Design

Figure 4 Pitch Response to Pitch Rate Disturbance
across various speeds Having established that the Flying Flea UAV had some
stability concerns, and that it was unable to fly as slowly as
What was very apparent from the results was that the required, various design changes were to be investigated.
stability became more relaxed as the speed increased. In
Reference 2), the original Flying Flea was evaluated, and
When investigating the different designs, the key
this characteristic was also noticed, as “Longitudinal
characteristics being investigated was to obtain the
stability was dependent upon lift coefficient, being most
maximum trimmed lift, and as a result the minimum
stable at large angle of attack and high Cl, and least stable
trimmed speed. In achieving this, the aircraft is intended to
at low “
fly with minimum positive AoA and with a limited deflection
on the lead wing, thus creating positive lift from both
The Benefits of VE surfaces.

The time taken to construct and fly the Flying Flea Virtual
Traditional Methods
Aircraft was approximately 1 man week, significantly less
than the time taken to construct the prototype.
Design optimisation can be, and is, carried out using
traditional methods. Using the simplest approach, this can
The ability to construct the aircraft from its component take the form of developing multiple spreadsheets, each
parts, to accurately portray not only the aerodynamics, but containing the complete set of simple linear data for each
also the inertias and centre of gravity, the VE was able to option and performing calculations to investigate the new
model an unusual aircraft. The results demonstrated the stability characteristics. The results of these calculations
behaviour to an acceptable level for early investigations are then compared to see which produces most favourable
and managed to highlight a significant flaw, which could results.
have led to the loss of the aircraft.
In the case of the Flying Flea, spreadsheets were used to
SENSITIVITY STUDIES AND EVALUATING “WHAT- look at the lift and pitching characteristics of using different
IF” SCENARIOS airfoils for the lead wing. The original airfoil is the Clark YH,
with the Eppler 423 and NACA127115 as possible
With any form of analysis, its effectiveness is only as good alternatives. The lift curves used for the 3 airfoils can be
as its results. In the case of the modelling and simulation seen in Figure 5
environment, that means the comparison to flight test.
However in the early stages of a design, especially one
developed with a VE, flight test data will not be available,
so there is a danger in attempting to ensure all aspects of
the aircraft’s model have been covered. This can be done
to such a degree that the time spent can outweigh the
benefits. As such, it is possible to expend vast amount of
energy and money in establishing the exact value for a
given coefficient or derivative only to find that it has little or
no impact on the overall performance and handling
characteristics.

©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 6

 The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an Aircraft’s Design and Development Process

2 From Figure 6, it can be seen that both new airfoil sections

have higher pitching moment values. Without the use of a
1.75
VE, it would necessary to now develop additional
1.5 spreadsheets that could be used to try to evaluate the
trimmed lift and deflections for each airfoil section and
1.25
combination.
1
CLift (-)

0.75 Virtual Environment Method

0.5
Using a Virtual Environment it is possible to look at the
0.25
trimmed lift characteristics for various combinations of
0 airfoil sections.
-10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
-0.25
Using the Virtual Environment, 3 additional models were
-0.5
created (Eppler 423 Front and Rear, NACA 127115 Front
-0.75 and Rear, NACA 127115 Front Clark-YH Rear). These
alpha (°) referenced the original model, and the changes in
aerodynamic characteristics due to the new airfoils were
Clark YH Eppler 423 NACA 127115
applied as deltas to the original model. This enabled us to
Figure 5 Lift Curves for Airfoils under Investigation run scenarios with 4 different models for comparison with
only a minimum amount of effort in establishing the delta
These airfoil profiles show that both new wing sections values.
produce significantly more lift than the original Clark-YH
section. Using the 4 aircraft models created (Original and 3 Deltas);
analysis was carried out by creating a trim model to look at
The lift of course shows only part of the problem, and the straight and level flight over a range of airspeeds using the
wing deflection to trim must be considered. As such the forward wing deflection as a pitch controller.
pitching moment also needs to be investigated. These can
be seen in Figure 6 Figure 7 shows the airframe angle of attack for the 4
configurations. Although the Eppler gives the slowest
available airspeed, this is done with a significant downward
0 force required from the horizontal tail to counter the
-20 -10 0 10 20 30 pitching moment.
-0.05

-0.1
CM 25% (-)

-0.15

-0.2

-0.25

-0.3
alpha (°)

Clark YH Eppler 423 NACA 127115

Figure 6 Pitching Moment Curves for Airfoils under

Investigation

©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 7

SAE International General Aviation Technology Conference & Exhibition August 2006

The Benefits of VE

NACA127115, Clark YH By utilising a Virtual Environment to investigate the new

Clark YH airfoils, and merging more complex aerodynamics from the
original model with simple deltas, it was possible to carry
out more detailed analysis than could be performed with
simple linear approximations and spreadsheets.

Example – Sensitivity Studies

NACA 127115
In this scenario, a new VLJ was being evaluated to
establish the basic handling characteristics. The data
being used in the model had been generated from several
sources, including Non-Linear coefficients established from
Eppler 423 wind tunnel data, and simple linear derivatives.

The purpose of the test was to determine whether the

aircraft may experience rudder lock at any angle of sideslip.

Figure 7 Angle of Attack of Airframe for different airfoil
sections
Figure 8 shows the lift distributions between the forward
and aft wings (horizontal tail).
Reference 3) Describes rudder lock as “‘When a condition
of rudder lock is encountered the rudder floats to an angle
greater than that required to hold the airplane in a steady
sideslip, and the pilot must exert right rudder force to return
the rudder toward neutral when the airplane is in a right
sideslip, and vice versa.” As expected, this condition may
be very dangerous on a large airplane because the rudder
force required to push the rudder from its stops and start it
turning toward neutral may exceed the strength of the pilot.

Eppler 423
Traditional Methods

This condition is very difficult to estimate without some form

of simulation. Classical sensitivity studies can take the
NACA127115,
Clark YH form of making small modifications to the aircraft
NACA 127115
coefficients, and recalculating the stability approximations
Clark YH to establish new values. This can be performed
NACA127115, Clark YH automatically using such tools as DAR Corporations AAA
Clark YH which includes sensitivity analysis in its features. However
NACA 127115
this approach still deals with linear approximations.

Eppler 423
Figure 8 Forward and Rear Wing (Horizontal Tail) Lift
Coefficients
From the results found from the analysis, it was established
that the best results could be found by using a mix of
airfoils, using the NACA127115 for the forward wing, and
the Clark YH for the horizontal tail.
In the case of rudder lock, the problem is predominately
due to the non-linearity of the aerodynamics, and as such
cannot be found using linear approximations.
Other experience has included detailed dynamic response
modelling of multiple aerodynamic models, and comparing
the results. This was only performed once a complete set
of wind tunnel data had been generated. For each
variation, a complete new model was developed, and all
results had to be compared manually. This was an
extremely time consuming process to set up each model,
and very labour intensive when comparing individual
graphs to establish the worse combination, and then to

©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 8

 The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an Aircraft’s Design and Development Process
further establish the overall behaviour of the chosen
configuration. This analysis was performed at the very end
of the design process during flight trial investigating
envelope expansion.
Virtual Environment Method
In this example, it is known that the hinge moment of the
rudder plays a key factor in rudder lock, so the study was
used to establish if the estimated figures for hinge moment
would result in rudder lock, and if not how inaccurate do the
values have to be before a rudder lock is encountered.
By using a core model it was only necessary to add the
changes to the rudder hinge moment as deltas, in order to
evaluate different scenarios. Several delta models were
created with increasing deviations of hinge moment from
the estimated values. The first delta looked at a 10% error
which is within the possibilities of early estimates. The
most extreme delta included adding additional terms.
A trim model was then created which trimmed the aircraft in
a steady heading sideslip over a range of sideslip angle
values, and the results plotted. This enabled full non-linear
trims to be performed over the full sideslip range.
From the results, it was found that the only situation where
the rudder lock occurred was when the extreme changes to
the coefficients were used. As such it was possible to
confirm that the initial estimates and calculations of the
rudder coefficients would have to be wildly inaccurate for
any rudder lock problems to arise in flight.
The Benefits of VE
If a Virtual Environment is to be of any benefit, it must be
able to perform Sensitivity Studies quickly, and very early in
the design process to ensure that the best possible
configuration is being developed. Establishing the real
drivers of the design in terms of satisfying the specification
and regulations can result in significant time savings over
the overall design process. In some instances, especially
where the results may be catastrophic, a virtual
environment is the only place where these studies can be
carried out.
With a fully integrated Virtual Environment, using deltas
that reference the base design means that as the core
model is updated the rudder lock test can be re-run without
the need to modify any other models as the delta will
continually reference the latest version of the core aircraft.
This can result in major time savings as the project
develops.
©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd.
PRE FLY THE COMPLETE CERTIFICATION
PROGRAMME
Whilst there are significant benefits in carrying out small
studies using a VE, it could still be argued that the initial
set-up time does not justify the analysis savings. However,
once the models have been set up, not only can the
studies be performed repeatedly with an ever evolving
design, but these studies can be performed over multiple
points. It therefore becomes possible to evaluate the
complete flight envelope for all c of g values. Furthermore,
with a VE, the complete flight test and certification
programmes can be assessed prior to flight. Again this
analysis can take place whilst the aircraft design is in a
state of flux, and can be simply re-run following every
configuration change and design decision. By performing
flights prior to certification, it is possible to establish any
problem areas that could lead to the aircraft not being
certified, and the need for a redesign at a much more costly
point in the aircraft’s lifecycle. In some instances, it may
even be possible to substitute results from a VE for flight
test data.
Example - Investigate Regulations
Section 23.157 of FAR 23 details the rate of roll
requirements for an aircraft in the take-off configuration.
This outlines the maximum time for an aircraft in the take of
configuration at 30° bank angle, and with critical engine
inoperative, to bank through 60° to the opposite bank.
In this example, the response of a VLJ was compared to
the FAR 23 requirement. This gave a time of 5.2 seconds
from the initiation of the roll.
Traditional Methods
Utilising traditional methods, it is not possible to assess the
aircraft against this regulation without the use of some form
of simulation. This involves the use of, Complex Systems
tools or in house developed software, each of which
requires detailed models to be built. This is often only
performed at the later stages of design, where correcting
any problems found can become time consuming and
expensive.
Virtual Environment Method
As with traditional methods, using a Virtual Environment
will also require simulating the aircraft’s response.
The VE used the same aircraft model developed for
previous investigations. Using the VE, the aircraft was
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SAE International General Aviation Technology Conference & Exhibition August 2006

trimmed at a 30° bank coordinated turn, with one engine
inoperative. The aircraft was allowed to run with no change
for 1 second, the roll stick was then pushed over, and the
throttle for the operating engine pushed to maximum. The
response was then allowed to run until the aircraft achieved
the opposite 30° bank. The time to bank was then read
straight of the plot.
In this case it was found that the aircraft had insufficient roll
authority to satisfy the requirement. As such some re-
design was required in order to achieve the targets. This
re-design could encompass moving equipment to adjust
the inertia, or increasing the roll authority through additional
roll control devices. What is crucial to note is that this
information was established before any manufacture had
taken place.
The Benefits of VE
By using simulation through any method, it is possible to
evaluate that design changes were required to satisfy the
regulatory requirement. However with a VE the simulation
code and aircraft structure is already built into the Virtual
Environment. In addition to this, the Virtual Environment is
designed to be used throughout the aircraft design
process, and so can work with much less data than more
complex simulations. Having used the VE for earlier
studies, time savings were made through re-use of the
same data model. Any design changes made as a result of
the investigation can then be automatically re-analysed
across all areas of study.
needs to be passed back to the engineering department for
updates to design and/or data models.
Traditional Methods
The traditional way for test pilots to understand the
behaviour prior to test flights is the use of pilot in the loop
simulation. This is often expensive and beyond the reach
of all but the largest of organisations. The construction of
the dynamic models for simulators can be time consuming
(Reference 1)
When returning information back to the engineering
department, this is in the form of flight test reports and
recorded parameters from on-board sensors. These
parameters can then used to generate time-histories,
however simply viewing graphical data, even to the most
experienced eye, can lead to key points being missed or
misunderstood. Pilot flight test reports, do not always
indicate engineering issues.
Virtual Environment Method
With visualisation capabilities built into a VE, it is show a
pilot what a manoeuvre may look like from the cockpit so
he is aware of what to expect. By importing the recorded
flight parameters back into the VE, engineers can use the
visualisation to obtain a clearer understanding of pilots’
comments, and what really happened in more quantitative
terms.

COORDINATE PILOTS COMMENTS, FLIGHT DATA

AND PREDICTIONS

As the aircraft approaches completion of the prototype, so

more data is known regarding the actual aircraft. These
can include equipment positions etc for accurate weights
and balance analysis as well as smaller details such as
vortex inducers. At this point the data model is assumed to
be accurate.

However, there is no substitute for real data, and as soon

as the flight test programme begins, the data recorded
during flight test can be used to further check the model
and update where errors are found.

Example - Coordination with Flight Test

When developing flight test programs, it is always Figure 9 Flight Visualisation

beneficial to try to inform the Test Pilots and flight test
engineers as to what is expected. When test flights are
completed, the information as to what actually happened

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 The Benefits of using Virtual Environments throughout an Aircraft’s Design and Development Process

Figure 9 shows the visualisation of the flight with the body
axis and flight path clearly visible. Using these real time 3-
D playbacks, a deeper understanding of complex
manoeuvres or anomalies can be found.
Work is also taking place within NASA and the simulation
community to standardise the format of simulator dynamic
models (Reference 4). With this capability also integrated
in the VE, simulator models can be automatically generated
at any stage in the design to obtain pilot comments.
application, or process, the real benefits are not in the one
off usage to get a single set of results, but more in the
continual streamlining of the design and analysis process.
All the examples described, can be applied to a single
aircraft project progressing through the design process as
can be seen in Figure 11. In this instance using a VE can
become very powerful if it is used to evaluate early designs
as quickly as possible, and as the data is further refined
and understood so the analysis can be re-run with the
minimum amount of effort, especially if this effort is re-
running existing scenarios.

Finally integrating a further capability of Regression

Analysis enables a very rapid turnaround of data model
updates through comparison of predicted and actual flight Specification

test data. Investigate a Variety of

Design Options

Preliminary
Design

Sensitivity Studies and

Evaluating “what-if” scenarios

Detailed
Design
Pre Fly the Complete
Certification Programme

Figure 10 Flight Test Comparison

Flight Trials
(dashed lines represent re-predicted data) &
Coordinate Pilots Comments,
Certification Flight Data and Predictions
The Benefits of VE
Knowledge Based
Networked Engineering
Virtual Environments can provide an enhanced insight into New Projects for Collaborative &
the behaviour of the aircraft, either predicted or actual by and Variants Future Projects
display 3-D playback data.

When the VE is fully integrated to include visualisation, full

simulator data modelling and regression analysis the
turnaround time for fly-design-assess-simulate can be
reduced to a matter of days rather than the months of
traditional methods. In this way multiple designs can be
evaluated and optimised in the same length of time to
previously asses a single option.
EVALUATING DESIGN FROM CONCEPT TO
COMPLETION
The previous section has described just some of the ways
in which dynamic modelling can be used within part of a
virtual environment. However when utilising a new software
Figure 11 Utilising the VE within the Project Lifecycle
In the case of modelling and simulation, early data
generated may be in the form of simple linear derivatives
and steady state coefficients about a series of flight
conditions, whilst further along the process as the design is
refined, so the data can become more detailed and can be
generated by more accurate methods such as wind tunnel
or CFD analysis. Eventually, flight test data will be
available, and the models can be further refined using real
data. Being able to use the same tools throughout the
design process and through to flight test can provide major
advantages, as data can be upgraded piecemeal, and the
impact of all improvements and enhancements on the
results can be assessed.

©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 11

SAE International General Aviation Technology Conference & Exhibition August 2006

If a virtual process can discover one single problem that REFERENCES

would not have been picked up until after manufacture, and
especially if it wouldn’t have been discovered until flight
test, then the process and the VE has already recouped 1) E. Bruce Jackson “Results of a Flight Simulation
any initial costs from purchases and training. Software Methods Survey” AIAA 95-3414, 1995
2) Darrol Stinton “The Design of the Aeroplane"
Direct savings such as problem discovery are very tangible, October 1985
and do not need any further explanation. However there 3) National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
are additional savings achieved through using VE’s that are “Report 927” NACA-TR-927
not as easy to calculate. These are the savings made
through improved process, resulting in reduced engineering 4) E. Bruce Jackson “Flight Dynamic Model Exchange
and development time, and ultimately reduced time to using XML” AIAA 2002-4482, 2002
market. Discussions with aircraft manufacturers regarding
using an integrated VE over the whole process as opposed
to in-house simulation software investigating specific
models and characteristics has resulted that a 30% saving
in analysis time could have been achieved.

CONCLUSION

One thing that is for certain is that the ability to construct a

complete virtual environment is here and has already
started to be employed in some industries, noticeable the
motor industry where Jaguar have the ambition of a
completely virtual process through to production.

Extensive work is being carried out in Europe with the

SimSAC project looking at a full Virtual Process providing
high fidelity solutions for Simulating Aircraft Stability and
Control. This will integrate multiple methods for estimating
aerodynamics, modelling aircraft dynamics and FCS, and
automatic evaluation techniques into a single suite of tools.

With the race to continually develop new aircraft for new

markets, it is now very clear that the company that does not
adopt integrated and improved techniques in all aspects of
its business, and especially in the design process, will be
the last one to market.

Space Solutions Business Centre

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United Kingdom

T: +44 (845) 052 9489

E: john.jeffery@j2aircraft.com
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©2006 J2 Aircraft Dynamics Ltd. 12