Aero-Mechanical Force Emulator for Aircraft Lasers

For this Phase II proposal, MZA and Etegent Technologies Inc. have teamed to leverage our complementary skill sets and put together a comprehensive force emulation solution for DE systems. MZA has extensive experience in the quantification and analysis of DE aero-effects data. This includes pressure loading and finite element analysis to predict the jitter performance beam directors. Etegent Technologies compliments these skills by with their expertise in vibration emulation and mechanical response characterization. We will design and fabricate a prototype force emulator for sub-scale DE systems. The system will accept user supplied pressure field data and employ a suite of linear actuators to impart realistic forcing in the system. We will undergo a standard SRR, PDR, CDR cycle to select components and design mounting structure. Additional algorithm development will take Phase I technology and expand its use for a multi degree of freedom system. The prototype will be assembled and tested at MZA Dayton using a surrogate beam director provided by the University of Notre Dame. Finally, system will be delivered and demonstrated at the Environmental Laser Test Facility (ELTF) using the HARDROC sub-scale beam director.