Model-based system engineering - integrating modeling and physical testing - is gaining traction in the aerospace industry as a viable means for augmenting the design and testing of components, substructures and full-scale structures. In recent years, the MTS Aero team has been hard at work pursuing a spectrum of model-based approaches, including virtual testing, model-assisted compensation and hybrid simulation. In this first in an ongoing series, the team explores the promise of virtual testing while demonstrating the power of the MTS tool set.
Part 1 - Virtual Testing: the simulation of a physical test, using finite element analysis tools, to predict loads, motion and damage information accurately in advance of physical testing
Dr. Shawn You, Senior Staff Engineer, introduces the virtual testing method and explores how it can yield a wealth of predictive data for streamlining the setup and start-up of highly complex aerospace structural tests.
Michael Dembinski, Systems Integration Engineer, and Dr. Shawn Gao, Senior Systems Integration Engineer, run a validation test for a modeled system by running a square wave in parallel to a four-actuator physical test rig and it's virtual counterpart, demonstrating the predictive fidelity of the virtual testing method across an increasing range of PID values.