CALIBRATION, OF 3D BALANCE

 FORCES, MOMENTS, AND

REFERENCE FRAMES

 Two mostly used reference frames

- frames of the body axis and
frames of the wind axis

 A thii frame of reference is called - stability axes

 a set of three orthogonal axes via - frame of reference

convention labeled always with a
right-hand sequence.

 comprised by several hardware - wind tunnel balances

and software components,
provides directly the pursued
measurements, with high accuracy
and reliability.

 considered first for application in

- WIND AXES
wind tunnel.

Axes in wind frame:

x, pointing in the sky, z, pointing
down, and y pointing in the sky
towards the right.

drag is in negative x, direction

and lift is in negative z, direction
is in positive y, direction is the
side power.

 bound to and travel together with

the model - Body Axes

 a plane of symmetry - xb-zb

- axial force/ body drag, , and (xb),

 factors of force on the axes of the
side force/ body lift (ybr), and
body
natural force/ side force (zb)
 Pitching Moment (x axis)
Rolling Moment (y axis)
Yawing Moment (z axis)

NOTE: wind axes to "yaw" Ψ body axes,

around z, axis, and about xb axis, "pitch,"
θ, around an intermediate y axis, and
"roll," Φ,

II. BALANCES

 The expressions for equilibrium in -

the X and Z directions are:

 most challenging issues in the - Balance Design

industry.

 Concept of a Six-Component - LIFT (L) = C+D+E

Balance - DRAG (D) = A+B
- Side force (Y) = F
- Rolling moment (l) = (C-D) x b/2
- Yawing Moment (n) = (A-B) x b/2
- Pitching Moment (m) = E x c

 obtained by the sum of forces in

- Lift
the vertical wires

 sum of the forces parallel to the

direction of V in the two - Drag
horizontal wires

 side-force is.. - Y=F

 this is referring to a point halfway - rolling moment

between the two wires C and D,
through which F's line of action
passes, and described as E in the
plane.
 a moment with regard to a point - yawing moment
halfway between A and B and the
line of F passes through.
- moment to pitch
 a moment concerning the line that
contains F

 the greatest force in traditional

- Lift
aircraft wind tunnel model design,
strict care must be taken to
ensure that it is orthogonal to the
other components.

III. BALANCE REQUIREMENTS AND

SPECIFICATIONS

 Wind Tunnel Balance an

incredibly complicated device and
its design and construction are
much better left to engineers of
balancing than to engineers of
tunnels.

 Any wind tunnel balance is of

necessity a compromise between
the required maximum load
capability of all components and
the accuracy required for
minimum loads.

 The estimated loads a balance has - feature of the size and speed of
to bear are primarily a the tunnel test section.

 If a tunnel size is doubled, the size

of the platform and the loads are
increased fourfold for a set
vehicle-to-tunnel-size ratio,
platform attitude and tunnel
speed.
 it is important to use a thorough - External Balances
analysis to try to account for and
form of model and test.

 the most flexible due to its wide

- External Balances
load range and adaptability to
uses that were never considered
when built.

 There is no substitute in this form - External Balances

of research for large and long
experience in wind tunnel testing.

 They are placed outside the

model, inside or outside the wind - External Balances
tunnel chamber test section, but
they always introduce some
interference in the wind flow.

 They are placed inside the model

thus, no interferences are - Internal Balances
introduced in the wind flow by
the balance components

 a mechanical support for the

- Internal Balances
model is always needed to
maintain it in the test chamber
and change the model orientation
if desired.

 solution to this problem is much

easier, as many balances can be - Internal Balances
planned and installed for various
load ranges, and one chosen for
the desired loads.

 the model can unintentionally

exceed the ability of the balance. - Internal Balances; Faulty Balance
This can lead to a _______

 Four types of External Balance - Wire Type, Platform, Yoke and

Pyramid Balance
 external balance advantages - Its great resolving power
- its capacity to maintain its
equilibrium over very long
periods of time.

 external balance Disadvantages - high initial cost

- the time it takes to coordinate or
minimize the interactions
between the six components
initially.
- The interactions can be balanced
and the equilibrium not matched.

 benefit of a sting or internal - a lower initial cost

balance - it could be possible to use one
balance in many tunnels
- useful for fighter testing

 The model was usually mounted

- Wire Balances
inverted so that the aerodynamic
lift applied to the weight to
prevent the wires from being
removed, as the resulting stress
can never be reduced to zero.

 There’s a strong tare drag on the

wires that was hard to accurately - Wire Balances
determine.

 The wires appeared to split, which - Wire Balances; model losing

would result in the _____

 much less stable and flexible and - Wire Balances

the space occupied is very large.

 These balances provide - Platform, Yoke and Pyramid

mechanisms for changing the Balances
angle of attack and yaw and
transmit the model loads down
into a system of linkages that
separate them into force and
moment components.
 the strut being rigid, minimizes - Linkage Type
deflection.

 It is more when three point strut - Interference Drag

support is exhibited.

 It can be encounter in high speed - Deflections

flows.

 most troublesome problems of - Deflections

wind tunnel balances is the lack of
rigidity.

 must be kept down to where they - Deflections

are negligible or they must be
evaluated and accounted for in
the data reduction process.

 the greatest source of deflection. - Mounting Mechanism

 must be long in reaching out of - Mounting Mechanism

the test section and thin in order
to prevent over interference.

 The only way that the wind tunnel - high-modulus elasticity materials
engineer can solve the deflection
is to use ________

 Usually the joints between the - pivots

levers are ____ with very limited
angular motion.

 Early _____ were knife edges in

- pivots
wind tunnel balances. Because the
edges of the knife can be
damaged by shock loads and can
bear loads only in a compressive
direction, they have been
replaced by flexure pivot.
  utilizes three or four legs to - Platform Balances
stabilize the main frame

 Advantage of Platform Balance - Rugged and naturally orthogonal,

they can be designed and aligned
with least difficulty.

 It has an advantage over the

platform balance in that the - Yoke Balance
moment-resolving core is close to
the tunnel centre.

NOTE:
The benefits of flexures include:

1. They may be designed to withstand

loads between the coupled members in
either direction with no loss of motion.

2. They are practically frictionless and thus

reduce the symptoms of hysteresis.

3. They can survive treatment which is

relatively harsh.

4. They are practically wear proof;

therefore they remain constant for an
infinite period of time.

 The concerns normally heard - Pyramidal Balances

about the balances of the
platform and the yokes are largely
resolved by the innovative
pyramidal style engineering.

- reads the moments about the

 Advantages of Pyramidal resolution center
- the six components are divided
naturally and read directly by six
units of measurement.
- There's no need to connect,
delete, or multiply elements.

- reading the minor variations in

 Disadvantages of Pyramidal
large forces are removed
- the equations are simplified by
direct reading of the forces and
times.
  It involves loading the balance
components to see if they
- Calibration
read what they should,
testing the system deflection,
calculating the natural
frequency of the balance in
order to prevent resonance,
and applying fluctuating load.

 These balances are normally

supplied to the customer - Internal Balances
already calibrated and with
the acquisition system.

 It is compounded by several
items that allow the - data acquisition system (DAQ)
conversion of physical forces
into digital values that can be
managed by a computer.

NOTE:
Data acquisition components
The main components are the following:

 Mechanics
 Sensors or transducers
 Weight balanced sensors
 Pneumatic and hydraulic
sensors
 Electromagnetic sensors
 Spring sensors
 Strain-gauge sensors
 Electronic amplifiers
 Wires
 Analog to digital converter
(ADC)
 Software
  Types of Transducer for internal - Strain Gage and Piezoelectric
balances

 These are extremely stiff and have - piezoelectric devices

outstanding frequency response,

 Measure steady loads well. - Strain Gage

NOTE:

The calibration method serves various

purposes including:

 Loading the balance to show

 Determining the coefficients of
equilibrium
 Defining deflections as load
feature
 To check the repeatability over
short periods of time
 Tests reliability for longer periods
of time
 Defines sensitivity or minimum
response load
 To detect hysteresis

 This means the model attachment

portion is kept horizontal for all - Calibration of Internal Balances
loading conditions since this
system uses weights and gravity
to apply the loads.
 It also allows the balance and
sting deflection to be measured.

 It used to apply the loads.

 These bars are indexed so that
various values of moments can be
- Calibration Bars (164 mm)
applied while holding the normal
or side force constant.
 leveled to zero load.
 Used during test to correct the
indicated angles of attack
 used to keep the applied load
system aligned to the model
- pitching moment
attachment portion of the
balance, just as the model will be
when the system is loaded in the
tunnel.

 There are two main types of

components of internal - force components, and moment
equilibrium elements.