Missile/UAV Dispense Interference Modeling

The innovation proposed is the development of a high-fidelity software tool to be used for the design of hypersonic UAV dispense and subsequent dispense and dispersion of small hardened projectiles (SHAPs) from the UAVs using blast-based concepts. Such dispersed kinetic energy concepts can be effective against maneuverable and depressed trajectory threats for which conventional interceptors would have low hit-to-kill probabilities. The software tool will analyze the full event from dispense of the UAVs from a missile bay to the arrival of the SHAPs at the threat. The tools used include an unstructured grid CFD code (CRUNCH CFD®) with a dynamic adaptive solver (CRISP CFD®) and a coupled 6-DOF code, used to analyze multi-body aerodynamics, and a specialized version of the CRAFT CFD® code with unique non-spherical blast capabilities including a virial equation of state and dynamic grid motion capabilities to analyze the interaction of moving blasts and multiple blast interactions. In Phase I, the various capabilities were demonstrated for a simplified problem. In Phase II, code upgrades will be made to treat realistic scenarios and the codes will be unified for end-to-end operability and demonstration cases performed.