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HyperWorks Assists ACENTISS in Developing Elias, an Ultra-Lightweight Electric Airplane
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Digital Twin / Simulation
- Functional Applications - Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)
Applicable Industries
- Aerospace
- Automotive
Applicable Functions
- Product Research & Development
- Quality Assurance
Use Cases
- Manufacturing Process Simulation
- Virtual Prototyping & Product Testing
Services
- System Integration
- Testing & Certification
The Challenge
ACENTISS, a company that provides engineering services for structural design, stress and fatigue competencies for metallic and composite structures, was tasked with the development of ELIAS, an all-electric technology demonstrator airplane. The project, named EUROPAS, required the development of a full electric reconnaissance system, datalinks, and a ground control station. Additionally, ACENTISS had to design the structure of the wings and the landing gear. The challenge was to create a lightweight plane that could fly long distances, while also keeping development time and costs to a minimum. To achieve the optimum balance between weight, strength and performance, and to reduce design iterations with the real-world prototype, ACENTISS needed to leverage computer-aided engineering tools, particularly for the structural layout of the composite wings and the kinematics of the landing gear.
About The Customer
ACENTISS is an Approved Center of Engineering, Technology and In Service Support that supports clients through all phases of the product life cycle. The company primarily serves the Aerospace, Renewable Energy, and Automotive industries. ACENTISS leverages its knowledge and experience to investigate and develop new technologies, analyze and optimize clients’ processes, transfer engineering know-how, and provide interim management services. In the area of Engineering, Simulation & Optimization, ACENTISS provides engineering services for structural design, stress and fatigue competencies for metallic and composite structures in all project phases. The organization uses advanced simulation techniques to achieve high quality for the developed products and employs numerical optimization methods and evolutionary strategies to ensure a lightweight design at reasonable costs.
The Solution
To meet the challenges of the project, ACENTISS utilized the Altair HyperWorks Suite, which includes HyperMesh, HyperView, MotionSolve, and OptiStruct. These tools were used to design, calculate, and proof the composite structure of the plane wings, allowing the engineers to determine the optimal fiber volume of the wings to ensure they were lightweight yet sufficiently stiff. ACENTISS also performed kinematic simulations of the landing gear design and topology optimization to ensure the best possible weight/performance ratio. The optimization enabled ACENTISS to shorten the needed development time until they reached a final valid design with a minimum of weight. The HyperWorks products allowed them to create optimal dimensions of all the components and systems they designed. The components were then produced based on the virtually determined specifications and the new plane passed all certification tests easily.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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