Experimental and Computational Instrumentation for Rotorcraft Noise and Vibration Control Research at the Penn State Rotorcraft Center

摘要

A team of faculty at the Penn State Rotorcraft Center of Excellence has integrated five new facilities into a broad range of research and educational programs focused on rotorcraft noise and vibration control. The new facilities are: (1) Airframe Driveshaft Active Control Testbed, (2) Real-Time Visualization and Computation Facility, (3) High Frequency Elastomeric Material and Component Characterization Test Facility, (4) Scanning Laser Vibrometer for Rotorcraft Noise and Vibration Control, and (5) Scale Model Helicopter Fuselage Vibration test Facility. These new facilities have significantly improved the ability of Penn State graduate students and faculty to contribute to DoD sponsored research programs in the field of Rotorcraft Engineering. Each item is linked directly to existing multi-year programs at Penn State including the ARO sponsored MURI on Active Control of Rotorcraft Noise and Vibration, the NRTC rotorcraft Center of Excellence, ARO Young Investigator Awards, ARO, ONR, and NASA Core Program Grants, and numerous coordinated contracts with Industry. This experimental equipment has allowed for new data and measurements in the areas of rotorcraft vibration and noise control, low vibration dynamic systems, enhanced safety and reliability, and advanced composite materials. In addition, new specialized computational facilities will be focused on an array of numerically intensive rotorcraft optimization projects, aeroacoustic prediction methods, and aeroelastic simulations. This equipment has had a major positive impact on the educational infrastructure and resources at the recently established Penn State Rotorcraft Center of Excellence.