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Introduction
Published in Sergey E. Lyshevski, and Applied Mechatronics, 2018
As an example of the application of the mechatronic concept, consider the motion control problem as applied to advanced aircraft. The aircraft is controlled by flight control surfaces (aileron, canard, elevator, flap, rudder, stabilizer), and direct-drive servo-systems are used to actuate (displace) these control surfaces. A fly-by-wire control surface servo with stepper motor is illustrated in Figure 1.3. The desired angular displacement of the control surface (reference input) is assigned either by the pilot or aircraft flight computer. Using this reference signal (the specified angular displacement of the control surface), as well as the measured by sensors currents in the ab phase windings ias and bs, mechanical angular velocity ωrm and actual mechanical angular displacement of the control surface θrm, the controller develops signal-level signals that drive high-frequency switches, and the magnitude and frequency of the applied voltages to the ab phase windings uas and ubs of the permanent-magnet stepper motor are controlled by the PWM driver (amplifier) (see Figure 1.3).
Hybrid Human Error Assessment Approach for Critical Aircraft Maintenance Practice in the Training Aircraft
Published in The International Journal of Aerospace Psychology, 2022
Ebru Yazgan, Elif Kılıç Delice
The elevator is a component of primary flight controls that are needed to securely control an aircraft during flight. These controls consist of ailerons, elevators (or, in some installations, a stabilator), and rudder, as shown in Figure 2. Movement of any of the primary flight controls makes the aircraft turn about the axis of rotation associated with the control surface. The ailerons control motion around the longitudinal axis (roll), the elevator controls rotation around the lateral axis (pitch), and the rudder controls movement around the vertical axis (yaw; Skybary, 2017). In addition, movement of any of the three primary flight control surfaces (ailerons, elevator or stabilator, or rudder), changes the air flow and pressure distribution over and around the air foil. These changes influence the lift and drag produced by the wing and control surface combination, and allow a pilot to control the aircraft about its three axes of rotation (Federal Aviation Administration, 2016). The main pitch, elevator control movement, is bringing the nose of the aircraft up or down relative to the tail. Thus, the aircraft can gain and lose altitude. If the nose is down, the aircraft is gliding or descending; if the nose is up, climbing occurs. Figure 3 gives an illustration of the elevator control system from the aircraft maintenance manual (AMM) of a Cessna 172 type training aircraft. As stated in the AMM, the elevators are operated by power transmitted through forward and aft movement of the control yoke. This movement goes to the elevators through a system that has a push–pull tube, cables, and bell cranks. The elevator control cables, at their aft ends, are attached directly to a bell crank that is installed between the elevators. This bell crank connects the elevators, and is a bearing point for the travel stop bolts. A trim tab is installed on the right elevator (CESSNA Aircraft Company, 2007). The Cessna 172 Series aircraft type weighing less than 5,700 kg, as shown in Figure 2, is a four-seat, single-engine, high-wing and fixed-wing aircraft, the most produced and popular training aircraft in the world.