MTS Systems Logo Contact Us
  • Industries
    • Automotive
      • Passenger Cars & Light Trucks
      • Driver Assisted & Autonomous Vehicles
      • Electric & New Energy Vehicles
      • Heavy Trucks & Commercial Vehicles
      • Off-Highway Vehicles (OHV)
      • Racing & Motorsports
      • Recreational Vehicles
      • Motorcycles
      Automotive

      Automotive

      320 kph

      flat-belt roadway enables precise replication of motorsports cornering maneuvers

      Read the Case Study
    • Materials
      • Metals
      • Composites
      • Plastics
      • Rubber & Elastomers
      • Adhesives
      • Concrete & Rock
      • Ceramics & Glass
      • Textiles
      • Wood
      • Paper Products
      • Universities
      Materials

      Materials

      1500 degree Celsius

      solutions for testing high-temperature alloys, composites, ceramics and polymers

      Read the Article
    • Aerospace
      • Fixed Wing Aircraft
      • Helicopters & Rotary Wing Aircraft
      • UAM (Urban Air Mobility)
      • Delivery Drones
      • Supersonic Aircraft
      • Space Structures
      Aerospace

      Aerospace

      20% increase

      in testing speeds using state-of-the-art cross-coupling compensation technology

      Read the Article
    • Biomedical
      • Orthopedic
      • Medical Devices
      • Dental
      • Hospitals & Universities
      Biomedical

      Biomedical

      1 in 1,000 children

      will need corrective scoliosis surgery

      Read the Case Study
    • Civil Engineering
      • Multi-Hazard Engineering
      • Seismic Engineering
      • Structural Engineering
      Civil Engineering

      Civil Engineering

      1.32 million pound

      force capacity enables the testing of very large specimens all the way to failure

      Read the Case Study
    • Rock Geomechanics
      • Fossil Fuels
      • Geothermal Energy
      • Mining
      • Construction
      • Carbon Sequestration
      • Research
      Rock Geomechanics

      Rock & Geomechanics

      3x stronger

      concrete materials make it possible to carry higher loads

      Read the Case Study
    • Energy
      • Wind Energy
      • Oil & Gas
      Energy

      Energy

      56 MNm

      overturning moment capacity enables testing of the largest wind turbine drivetrains

      Read the Article
    • Rail
      • Commuter Trains
      • Freight Trains
      • High-Speed Trains
      Rail

      Rail

      550 kph

      test system enables lab-based studies of high-speed rail operating environments

      Read the Article
  • Applications
    • Materials Applications
    • Test Type
      • Tension
      • Compression
      • Fatigue & Fracture
      • Flexure & Bend
      • Shear, Peel & Tear
      • Torsion
      • Non-Contacting Strain Measurement
      • High Temperature
      • Bi-Axial & Multi-Axial
      • High Rate
      • Dynamic Mechanical Analysis

      Material Applications by Material

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Test Standard
      • ASTM Test Standards
      • ISO Test Standards
      • EN Test Standards

      Material Applications by Material

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Materials
      • Metals
      • Composites
      • Plastics
      • Rubber & Elastomers
      • Adhesives
      • Fasteners & Welds
      • Concrete & Rock
      • Ceramics & Glass
      • Wood & Paper Products
      • Additive Manufacturing

      Material Applications by Material

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Automotive Applications
      • Full Vehicle
      • Axle & Suspension
      • Steering System
      • Drivetrain
      • Dampers
      • Elastomeric Mounts & Bushings
      • Tires
      • Exhaust System
      • Body Mounted Components
      • Cooling System Components
      • Transportation & Packaging
      • Motorcycle
      • Farm, Construction, Off-Highway Vehicles (OHV)

      Automotive

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Aerospace Applications
      • Complete Full-Scale Structures
      • Sub-Assemblies
      • Sub-Systems
      • Flight Control Systems
      • Airframe Components
      • Rotary-Wing Components
      • Gas Turbine Component Fatigue

      Aerospace

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Biomedical Applications
      • Orthopedic
      • Biomechanic
      • Medical Device
      • Biomaterial

      Biomedical

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Civil Engineering Applications
      • Civil Structures
      • Structural Sub-Assemblies & Components
      • Non-Structural Systems
      • Oil Rig Stay Cables
      • Construction Materials

      Civil Engineering

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Energy Applications
      • Wind Turbine Testing
      • Oil & Gas Pipeline

      Energy

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Rock Geomechanics Applications
      • Fossil Fuels
      • Geothermal
      • Nuclear Waste Storage

      Rock Geomechanics

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Rail Applications
      • Rail Car Suspension Components
      • Rail Car Coupler
      • Rail Car Wheels & Rail
      • Rail Car Axles
      • Rail Car Bogies
      • Complete Rail Cars
      • Rail Car Pantographs
      • Railway Track & Road Bed
      • Catenary & Trolley Wire

      Rail

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

  • Products
    • Automotive Systems
      • Full Vehicle Test Systems
      • Subsystem & Component Test Systems
      • Tire Test Systems
      • Damper Test Systems
      • Elastomer Test Systems
      • Hybrid Simulation Solutions
      • Modular Components

      Automotive

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Materials Test Systems
      • Static Materials Test Systems
      • Dynamic Materials Test Systems
      • Extensometers
      • Grips
      • Fixtures & Platens
      • Furnaces, Chambers & Fluid Baths
      • High Temp Subsystems & TMF
      • Load Cells / Force Transducers

      Materials

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Aerospace Systems
      • Turnkey Control & Data Acquisition
      • Turnkey Hydromechanical Power Distribution
      • Test Article Safety Solutions
      • Series 261 Structural Pressure Test Controller
      • High Force Test Systems
      • Modular Components
      • FlexDAC Data Acquisition Systems

      Aerospace

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Biomedical Systems
      • Orthopedic Test Systems
      • Biomechanic Test Systems
      • Medical Device Test Systems
      • Biomaterial Test Systems

      Biomedical

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Civil Engineering Systems
      • Seismic Simulators & Shake Tables
      • Multi-Axial Subassemblage Structural Test Systems
      • Hybrid Simulation Solutions
      • Seismic Isolation Bearing Test Systems
      • High-Force Test Systems
      • Modular Components
      • STEX Pro Software

      Civil Engineering

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Energy Systems
      • Wind Turbine Blade Fatigue Test Systems
      • Wind Turbine Blade Static Test Systems
      • Wind Turbine Blade Rain Erosion Test System
      • Wind Turbine Bearing & Drivetrain Test Systems
      • Oil & Gas Pipe / Coupling Test Systems
      • High-Force Test Systems
      • Modular Components

      Energy

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Rock & Geomechanics Systems
      • Rock Mechanics Test Systems
      • Polyaxial Rock Test System

      Rock Geomechanics

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Rail Systems
      • Air Spring Test System
      • Railway Damper Test System
      • Rolling Contact Fatigue (RCF) System
      • 4-28 Channel Bogie Frame Test System
      • Bogie Vibration & Characterization System
      • Pantograph Wear & Performance System
      • High-Force Test Systems
      • Damper Durability Test Systems
      • Elastomer Test Systems
      • Modular Components

      Rail

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Test System Components
      • Actuators & Servo-Valves
      • SilentFlo™ Hydraulic Power Units
      • 295 Hydraulic Service Manifolds
      • Stands & Frames
      • Load Bearing Components
      • FlexTest® Controllers
      • FlexDAC Data Acquisition
      • SWIFT® Evo Wheel Force Transducers

      Test System Components

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

    • Software & Monitoring
      • RPC® Connect Software
      • TestSuite™ Software
      • AeroPro™ Software
      • STEX™ Pro Software
      • Elastomer Testing Software
      • Damper Testing Software
      • MultiPurpose TestWare® (MPT)
      • First Road Interact Software
      • Multi-Pump Control Manager
      • Equipment Monitoring

      Software & Monitoring

      Solution Finder

      Search by Test Material, Test Type, or Test Standard to find relevant products fast.

  • Services
    • Services
      • Calibrations & Metrology
      • Consulting & Engineering Services
      • Equipment Monitoring
      • Routine Maintenance & Fluid Care
      • Repairs & Remanufacture
      • Relocation Services

      Services & Support

    • Plans
      • Software Support Plans
      • Technical Support Plans
      • Service Plans
      • Extended Warranty

      Services & Support

    • Training

      Training Courses

    • Parts

      Parts

    • Support

      myMTS Portal

  • Company
    • Our Company
      • About MTS
      • Global Presence
      • History

      Our Company

    • Careers

      Careers

    • Sustainability

      Sustainability

    • Suppliers
      • Supplier Home
      • Products & Services

      Suppliers

  • Solution Finder
  • Contact Us
  • R&D Test Systems
  • E2M Technologies
  • myMTS Portal
  • Global Sites
  • Search
Home > Gulfstream

Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation: Cleared for Takeoff

MTS:  Gulfstream Cleared for Takeoff
MTS enables a leading aircraft manufacturer to optimize the flight controls of its flagship business jet.

CUSTOMER CHALLENGE

When executive decision-makers need to travel from New York to Dubai or London to Buenos Aires, no other business jet will get them there faster than the Gulfstream G650® — an ultra-large-cabin, ultra-high-speed aircraft that sets the standard for excellence in business aviation. It carries eight passengers and four crew members on nonstop flights up to 7,000 nautical miles, and at speeds up to Mach 0.925.

To make sure the G650 jet delivers a safe, smooth flight experience, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation uses an “Iron Bird” test system — a spatially correct, dimensionally accurate structure specially fabricated to replicate the actual aircraft — to rigorously evaluate representative flight controls, hydraulics, electrical systems and landing gear in a range of operating conditions.

These evaluations became more complicated when Gulfstream decided to use an interactive mode of testing, with a pilot operating the jet’s fly-by-wire (FBW) controls. Because this type of testing involves spontaneous human commands, it provides the most accurate simulation possible for takeoff, in-air maneuvers and landing. But it requires a testing system that can apply variable forces precisely to all 12 flight control surfaces, dynamically and in real-time.

“Real-time simulation is critical for testing the G650 instrumentation, especially because it is our first aircraft with FBW controls,” said Jim Moriarty, lead technician on the project. “We have to know exactly how the aircraft would perform when receiving real flight commands.”

Even though the Iron Bird is grounded, the rudder, stabilizers and other control surfaces move just as they would in flight. Test systems must deliver precise loading and displacement, because even very small errors could potentially skew the test results or damage flight system hardware and control surfaces. Gulfstream began looking for testing partners who could integrate a system capable of interacting with the company’s flight control software.

“We knew the process would involve customized integration between our software and the loading system software,” said Dave Powell, testing lab manager for Gulfstream. “We were looking for a partner with significant technical expertise, including the ability to make it easy for us to manage advanced hardware functionality in the lab. MTS turned out to be the ideal candidate.”

MTS SOLUTION

To help the Gulfstream team achieve its ambitious testing objectives, MTS created a customized control scheme that detects how the control surfaces are changing and delivers these measurements through an electronic interface. The testing solution uses the data to anticipate how the pilot is directing the simulation and then applies the correct loads dynamically with minimal risk of error.

Forces are applied with 11 Model 244 hydraulic actuators and one electric actuator for the jet’s horizontal stabilizer. To help protect the Iron Bird system from any potential damage, Gulfstream employs the MTS Load Abort system, a customized manifold that simultaneously and uniformly removes all hydraulic energy present in the system if an error threshold is exceeded.

“This is the first time we designed a new aircraft using the Iron Bird in interactive mode to prove out the design prior to first flight,” Moriarty said. “It’s a safer, more efficient and more cost-effective way for us to see how forces would impact the aircraft. We’re running tests that were previously done during flight. It’s also an incredible setup. We bring in aircraft owners and FAA personnel and they always walk away impressed.”

CUSTOMER BENEFITS

The MTS solution enables Gulfstream to create an Iron Bird test environment with dynamic, load-following capabilities in the lab before first flight.

“One of our primary objectives was never limiting the capabilities of the rig,” said Walter Dumas, Iron Bird engineering lead. “Now we can program any simulation we want, and we have complete confidence that the MTS system will apply the correct aerodynamic loading to each surface in real-time. This helps us test the performance of the flight control hardware and software systems, as well as simplify the integration of other parts — all of which helps validate these innovative new technologies.”

By incorporating MTS technology, the lab has been able to accelerate its leading-edge flight control testing. It is completing tests more quickly, which improves efficiency and keeps the G650 on pace for its planned entry-into-service date. Introduced in 2008, the G650 completed its first flight in November 2009 and began flight testing in December 2009. Today, Gulfstream continues to expand the G650 test fleet, working toward FAA and EASA certification in 2011 and entry-into-service in 2012.

“The Iron Bird testing system played a key role in the success of the G650’s first flight,” Powell said. “The testing we performed in 2009 really shook down the flight control systems and identified areas for improvement. We were able to work with our engineering team and our suppliers to correct potential issues proactively and make sure the aircraft met performance expectations from day one.”

Smooth collaboration between the MTS and Gulfstream teams was essential to a successful integration. MTS software engineers worked on-site at the Gulfstream lab, and remained available by phone. MTS engineers provided assistance during the design and development, integration, implementation and training phases of the project, as well as offering ongoing technical support.

“The experience with MTS was great,” Powell said. “Every time I needed them, they were a phone call away. The field service team was very responsive, and the work they did was phenomenal. As a result, the Iron Bird test rig feels like a system we designed in-house. MTS should be proud of its contributions to our success with the G650 aircraft. I know we are.”


 

MTS:  Gulfstream Cleared for Takeoff

MTS enables a leading aircraft manufacturer to optimize the flight controls of its flagship business jet.

Download Case Study
Also of Interest:
  • Extensometers >
  • Wind Turbine Test Applications >
  • Materials Compression Test Applications >
Stay Connected
  • INDUSTRIES
  • Automotive
  • Materials
  • Aerospace
  • Biomedical
  • Civil Engineering
  • Rock Geomechanics
  • Energy
  • Rail
  • SALES & SUPPORT
  • Sales Offices
  • Services
  • Training
  • Parts
  • Customer Portal
  • SUPPLIERS
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Products & Services
  • Expectations
  • Workmanship Standards
  • Packaging & Labeling
  • Routing Guide
  • COMPANY
  • About
  • News
  • Careers
  • Culture
  • Sustainability
  • History
  • SOLUTIONS
  • Applications
  • Test Standards
  • Products
  • RESOURCES
  • Learning Center
  • Solution Finder
  • Quality
  • Product Safety
  • Patents
  • CONTACT US
  • SUPPORT: 952-937-4000
  • Online Request
  • Request A Quote
  • Sales Offices
  • BUSINESSES
  • MTS Systems
  • E2M Technologies
  • R&D Test Systems
  • MTS SANS China
    • © MTS Systems. All Rights Reserved
    • 952.937.4000
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms Of Use
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Sales Offices
    • Cookie Preferences
We use necessary cookies to make our site work. We'd also like to set up optional analytics cookies to help us improve it. We won't set optional cookies unless you enable them.
Decline Accept
We use necessary cookies to make our site work. We'd also like to set up optional analytics cookies to help us improve it. We won't set optional cookies unless you enable them.
Decline Accept