In this thesis we investigate the problem of designing a control system for a modern bicycle so that the bicycle is stable and follows a path. We propose a multi-loop control architecture, where each loop is systematically designed using linear control techniques. The proposed strategy guarantees that the bicycle asymptotically converges to paths of constant curvature. A key advantage of our approach is that by using linear techniques analysis and controller design are relatively simple. We base our control design on the nonlinear (corrected) Whipple model, which has been previously verified for correctness and experimentally validated. The equations of motion for the nonlinear model are very complicated, and would take many pages to explicitly state. They also have no known closed form solution. To enable analysis of the model we linearize it about a trajectory such that the bicycle is upright and travelling straight ahead. This linearization allows us to arrive at a parameterized linear time-invariant state-space representation of the bicycle dynamics, suitable for analysis and control design. The inner-loop control consists of a forward-speed controller as well as a lean and steer controller. To keep the bicycle at a constant forward speed, we develop a high-bandwidth proportional controller that uses a torque along the axis of the rear wheel of the bicycle to keep the angular velocity of the rear wheel at a constant setpoint. To stabilize the bicycle at this forward speed, lean torque and steer torque are treated as the control signals. We design a state-feedback controller and augment integrators to the output feedback of the lean angle and steer angle to provide perfect steady-state tracking. To arrive at the gains for state feedback, linear-quadratic regulator methods are used. When following a constant-curvature path, a vehicle has a constant yaw rate. Using this knowledge, we begin designing the outer-loop path-following control by finding a map that converts a yaw rate into appropriate lean angle and steer angle references for the inner loop. After the map is completed, system identification is performed by applying a yaw-rate reference to the map and analyzing the response of the bicycle. Using the linear approximation obtained, a classical feedback controller for yaw-rate tracking is designed. In addition to yaw-rate control, to track a path the yaw angle of the bicycle must match that of the path and the bicycle must physically be on the path. To analyze these conditions a linear approximation for the distance between the bicycle to the path is found, enabling construction of a linear approximation of the entire system. We then find that by passing the signal for the difference in yaw rate and the distance through separate controllers, summing their output, and subtracting from the reference yaw rate of the path, the bicycle converges to the path. After developing the general design procedure, the final part of the thesis shows a step by step design example and demonstrates the results of applying the proposed control architecture to the nonlinear bicycle model. We highlight some problems that can arise when the bicycle is started far from the path. To overcome these problems we develop the concept of a virtual path, which is a path that when followed returns the bicycle to the actual path. We also recognize that, in practice, typical paths do not have constant curvature, so we construct more practical paths by joining straight line segments and circular arc segments, representing a practical path similar to a path that would be encountered when biking through a series of rural roads. Finally, we finish the design example by demonstrating the performance of the control architecture on such a path. From these simulations we show that using the suggested controller design that the bicycle will converge to a constant curvature path. Additionally with using the controllers we develop that in the absence of disturbance the bicycle will stay within the intended traffic lane when travelling on a typical rural road.

No description available.

The only aeroballistic laboratory of Turkey is the Flight Mechanics Laboratory, FML of T&Uuml / BITAK - SAGE. In FML, flight profiles of projectiles are reconstructed using their tear marks on paper sheets, called yaw cards. Tear marks are created on yaw cards as projectiles pass through them. These yaw cards are tightly stretched to metal frames which are positioned normal to the direction of projectile flight path. The use of yaw cards for flight profile reconstruction is a low cost and reliable solution. However, the yaw card method requires a heavy workload for the analysis of tear marks. Yaw cards collected from the frames are fed through an optical scanner and converted to digital images. These digital images are then processed by operators to calculate the projectile&rsquo / s flight position and angles. To automate this manual process, an algorithm is developed by using histogram based segmentation techniques, custom search algorithms, and Radon transform. This algorithm identifies and locates the projectile marks and finds angle of attack, angle of side slip and roll angle at each frame station by conducting the necessary transformations. Using this automated algorithm, a considerable amount of improvement is accomplished in terms of both decreasing the analysis time and increasing the accuracy of flight profile reconstruction.

An experimental investigation of the mean scalar concentration field of jets into a uniform counterflow stream using planar laser induced fluorescence is presented. The centerline decay and radial spreading of the mean concentration field of the jet were investigated. Jet to counterflow velocity ratios ranging between 4 to 19 were used for two different jet diameters. Universal forms for the centerline concentration decay, and radial concentration profiles of the jet are presented. Scaling factors of the centerline concentration decay are introduced. The jet growth rate was found to be divided into two regions: the linear growth region and the power law growth region. The effects of inlet yaw angles on the penetration length, axial concentration decay and similarity region of the counterflowing jet are presented. A minimal effect of the tested inlet yaw angles on the concentration field was observed. Empirical expressions to predict the centerline concentration decay are given.

The diploma thesis focuses on CFD simulation of a vehicle with various geometric modifications and non-zero angle flow. The goal of the work is to evaluate the effect of crosswinds for individual vehicle modifications together with the validation of these data sets with measured data from the wind tunnel. The last part of the thesis contains analysis of the flow field.

Wind tunnel studies of the wake behind a model wind turbine have been made in order to get a better understanding of wake development as well as the possibility to predict the power output from downstream turbines working in the wake of an upstream one. Both two-component hot-wire anemometry as well as particle image velocimetry (PIV) have been used to map the flow field. All three velocity components were measured both for the turbine rotor normal to the oncoming flow as well as with the turbine inclined to the free stream direction (the yaw angle was varied from 0 to 30 degrees). The measurements showed, as expected, a wake rotation in the opposite direction to that of the turbine. A yawed turbine is found to clearly deflect the wake flow to the side showing the potential of controlling the wake position by yawing the turbine. The power output of a yawed turbine was found to vary nearly as the square of the cosine of the yaw angle. The possibility to use active wake control by yawing an upstream turbine was evaluated and was shown to have a potential to increase the power output significantly for certain configurations. An unexpected feature of the flow was that spectra from the time signals showed the appearance of a low frequency fluctuation both in the wake and in the flow outside. This fluctuation was found both with and without free stream turbulence and also with a yawed turbine. The non-dimensional frequency (Strouhal number) was independent of the free-stream velocity and turbulence level but increases with the yaw angle. However the low frequency fluctuations were only observed when the tip speed ratio (or equivalently the drag coefficient) was high. This is in agreement with the idea that the turbine shed structures as a bluff body. It is hypothesized that the observed meandering of wakes in field measurements is due to this shedding.

No description available.

The purpose of this master thesis is to study the energy efficiency of a vehicle when it is cornering. To achieve this, a Simulink model was built from a simple basic bicycle model and theoretically validated. This model was then analysed and successively improved by adding velocity and yaw moment control. A study of the vehicle model behaviour by changing parameters such as cornering stiffness and centre of gravity position was the nconducted. The traction force needed for a constant radius was calculated and methods such as torque vectoring have been tested using the model to obtain the lowest traction force. The model was compared with different vehicle types and further validated by comparing the simulation results with experimental data acquired from a field test. The rolling resistance and aerodynamic resistance were taken into account when the model was validated with the experimental data and the result suggest that by distributing the required traction force (using torque vectoring between inner and outer driven wheels) the energy efficiency could be improved by 10%. This report ends with recommendations for future work.

No description available.

The transition of flight from manned to unmanned systems has led to new research and applications of technology within the field that, until recently, were previously thought to be unfeasible. The industry has become interested in alternative control surfaces and uses for smart materials. A Macro Fiber Composite (MFC), a smart material, takes advantage of the piezoelectric effect and provides an attractive alternative actuator to servos in the Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (SUAS) regime of flight. This research looks to take MFC actuated control surfaces one step further by pulling inspiration from and avian flight. A dual mode control surface, created by applying two sets of two MFCs to patch of carbon fiber, can mimic the tip feathers of a bird. This actuator was modeled both using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Real-world static testing on a feather confirmed preliminary FEA results, and wind tunnel tests simulating assumed cruise conditions confirmed the feather would not exhibit any adverse structural behaviors, such as flutter or aeroelastic divergence. From its modeled performance on a wing using CFD, the MFC feather proved to be a success. It was able to produce a wing that, when compared to a traditional rectangular wing, yielded 73% less induced drag and generated proverse yaw. However, the MFC feathers alone, in the configuration tested, did not produce enough roll authority to feasibly control an aircraft. / Master of Science