High-Fidelity Optical Techniques for In-Situ Position and Attitude Determination of Wind-Tunnel Models

Spectral Energies, LLC and our collaborators at the University of Maryland propose a measurement solution optimized for the non-intrusive investigation of unsteady aerodynamic problems (e.g., store, shroud, and stage separation, and other dynamical maneuvers of interest in practical hypersonic vehicle design and deployment) in wind tunnels and ballistic ranges, based on high-accuracy optical tracking of free-flight models. Our approach utilizes state-of-the-art image-processing and computer graphics techniques to allow the position and incidence of a model of arbitrary geometry to be recovered to micron and arc-second precision from high-speed images, with up to 6 degrees-of-freedom motion possible. This approach is equally applicable to more traditional force measurements with partially restrained models or to determining the motion of nominally static test articles when exposed to aerodynamic loading. Our team personnel have decades of combined experience in providing innovative software and hardware solutions to the USAF and other Department of Defense customers, and have previously made pioneering breakthroughs in the application of free-flight techniques in high-speed wind tunnels. We have worked extensively with government research, test, and evaluation facilities as well as aerospace prime contractors including Boeing, Lockheed and Raytheon, and have found extensive customer and end-user interest in our solution.