Abstract by Abhishek Jain, Zeus Numerix

Aerospace Simulations, its Applications in

Other Fields and Entrepreneurship
Simulations in Mechanical sciences have always been motivated by Aerospace
and Defence applications. In the old days, physics of the problem was
invariably approximated/simplified to produce mathematical statements
which were amenable to analytical methods for their solution. With the
passage of time, the emphasis shifted to capturing the physics with no
approximation or minimum assumptions. This, therefore, produced far more
complex mathematical equations, which required numerical methods for their
solution. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for simulation of fluid
mechanics and Finite Element Methods (FEM) for stress analysis are well-
known examples of this trend.
With the availability of cheap computing power and many user-friendly
software, the trend that complex physics and numerical methods are a must
for engineering analysis has strengthened so much so that the aerospace
engineers engaged in simulations put excessive blind faith in the results from
the software. The ability of engineers to identify the best analysis method to
extract the required information most efficiently is lost.
The current talk consists of case studies which highlights the need of
understanding of physics leading to a suitable simulation methodology. This
chosen theme of talk cuts across all disciplines of engineering analysis and it
therefore does not discuss the mathematical formulations, numerical
schemes, implementation issues, validation, etc.
The methods of analysis discussed include fluid dynamics, structural
dynamics, rigid body dynamics, control, etc. The case studies belong to
component mono-disciplinary analysis and multi-disciplinary analysis in
applications such as store separation, aeroelastic (divergence) prediction.
Finally, analysis of system such as rockets, fans/propellers, water turbines,
parachutes, etc. are also covered.
Lastly the speaker would be happy to give freewheeling talk on
“Entrepreneurship in Aerospace” and broach on topics such as “from idea to
innovation”, “formation of team”, “business plan”, “role of incubation centres”,
etc. Based on his own experience of 15 years, the speaker plans to highlight
motivation for industry-academia partnership including some success stories.