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AE441 Aerospace Systems Design

This is the capstone design course in the undergraduate Aerospace Engineering curriculum. The following information is for the Spring 1999 course offering. Information from previous course offerings is available by "clicking" on the following.

Additional details on this course, design proposals and video records of the flight tests are available by contacting Stephen M. Batill. This page was last updated April 22,1999.

Spring 1999 - Project Description and Major Milestones:

The following describes the project for this team-based, design-build course. As you review this mission you will see that the students are attempting to design an aircraft system which will effectively duplicate the first flight of the Wright Brothers but without Orville at the controls. They are replacing Orville with a computer. Developing the aircraft concept, sensors, computer control and fabricating the entire system in a single semester course is quite an undertaking! This semester the students will be building upon the experiences gained with similar missions over the past two years but will have the added challenge of attempting to develop hardware requirements for an extended mission using a GPS system.

Design Teams:

The following student design/build teams are participating this project. They have been requested to prepare a web site link which overviews their design activities. These sites will be updated throughout the semester.

Critical Design Review:

The Critical Design Review took place on Thursday, April 1, 1999. The industry review team was composed of the following:

Important Deliverable Items:

Each design group has developed a simple ground simulation model to assist with the development of the autonomous control system for their aircraft. Certain characteristics of the control system were demonstrated on March 18. The following show these simple demonstration models.

Group A: The Force

Group B: Wing and a Prayer

Design Project Work Area:

For the first time, the project development teams will be working in the new Systems Design Laboratory in Fitzpatrick Hall. This facility provides a design "studio" for the student teams as well as access to fabrication support equipment.

The CAD/CAM workcell for part fabrication.

Initial flight tests took place on Thursday, April 22, 1999. Both teams completed flightworthy aircraft and delivered them to the flight test area at 6:30 a,m. on that date. Mr. Gabriel Torres served as chief test pilot for these tests. The following illustrate some of the highlights of this phase of the project.

Group A: The Force and the Marauder

It made it!!!!!!!!!!!

Group A: Wing and a Prayer and the Skywolf

Two out of three wheels off of the ground!
None of the intial test flight were performed in an autonomous manner. Depending upon schedules, weather and "technology" additional flight tests are being considered.

Course Personnel: