FLEXIBLE WING DESIGN STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE UNDER STATIC AEROELASTIC CONDITION

Abstract

This study investigates the static aeroelastic response of a flexible wing, emphasizing the role of the internal rib configurations in governing the structural deflection and stiffness. With the aerospace industry advancing toward lighter weight, having high-aspect-ratio wings and achieving the structural efficiency without compromising integrity has become a central design challenge. A baseline aluminum wing box was developed using finite element methods, fabricated and experimentally validated through experimental modal analysis (EMA). To improve model accuracy, design sensitivity and optimization (SOL 200) was employed to refine material properties, ensuring close validation between simulated and measured natural frequencies. Using the validated model, multiple rib configurations were evaluated under aerodynamic loading via the linear static analysis (SOL 101) at a fixed angle of attack. The results demonstrate that rib topology strongly influences static aeroelastic behavior. In particular, optimized rib layouts reduced the wingtip deflection and also improved the natural frequencies by up to 13%, indicating enhanced stiffness without added weight. On the whole, findings from this study highlights the potential of rib configuration tailoring as an effective aeroelastic strategy for lightweight aircraft and unmanned aerial systems, advancing the structural optimization practices through the integration of simulation, experimental validation and fabrication.