The process hereafter presented will focus on the initial DLR Virtual Product House use case, a high lift configuration, in regard to aerodynamic and systems design. The goal of the use case is to achieve a new movable layout and geometry by replacing an existing and already certified component with a new design. In the scope of this work, as the first step of this overall design process, an integrated process for the design and optimization of trailing edge device geometries on a mid-range aircraft is built up and applied. Based upon an existing parametric aircraft model, the existing flap geometry is replaced with an adaptive dropped hinge flap design. Kinematic design, synthesis and assessment of the new trailing edge devices is performed and evaluated. The resulting optimal geometry is returned to the parametric model and can be directly used for further design steps. Key aspects of this approach are its use of low-fidelity tools for an geometric optimization and its subsequent automatic validation with high-fidelity methods. Focus of this paper is to present a multi-fidelity aerodynamic design methodology for trailing edge movables that is applicable for movable design studies on existing aircraft designs as well as for the preliminary aircraft design process in general.

This work presents the current state of the virtual testing activities performed within the Virtual Product House (VPH) start-up project. In this project a multidisciplinary, collaborative end-to-end process for virtual product design is developed. On the basis of preliminary design and concept studies on aircraft level, the process focusses on design, manufacturing and testing of aircraft systems and structural components with special attention to certification aspects. The initial use case considers the trailing edge flap of a long-range aircraft and its actuation system. Design and analysis tools are integrated in a remote workflow execution environment to automatically generate designs and evaluate them by virtual test means. Virtual tests facilitate knowledge on properties and behavior of the virtual product in early development phases and allow to optimize design flaws in consecutive design iterations to hence reduce the risk of costly corrections later in the development process. The testing is setup in multiple stages. Currently, domain-specific tests are carried out for the moveable structure and its actuation system, with the latter being in focus for the current text. These tests address the functional verification of the actuation system in nominal and failure cases. A SysML model comprising system requirements and architecture is used to model test cases and trace test results. On the basis of these test cases, simulation configurations for virtual tests are automatically built, executed and evaluated. With this method, a continuous evaluation of designs in terms of functional verification of the moveable actuation system is possible. Moreover, the automated execution of all steps allows to determine the effects of design changes quickly without a large amount of labor-intensive and error-prone work.

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