Unsteady panel method for complex configurations including wake modeling

Abstract

The calculation of unsteady air loads is an essential step in any aeroelastic analysis. The subsonic doublet lattice method (DLM) is used extensively for this purpose due to its simplicity and reliability. The body models available with the popular implementations of the DLM are however not very versatile in terms of geometries that can be modeled. The ZONA6 code offers a versatile surface panel body model including a separated wake model, but uses a pressure panel method for lifting surfaces. This paper describes the development of an unsteady subsonic wing-body code based on the DLM, with a source panel representation of bodies, a separated wake flow model based on the ZONA6 approach and an approximate method of images to model wing-body interference. This approach provides greater flexibility in body shapes that can be modeled while retaining the reliability of the DLM for lifting surfaces.