Experimental and Numerical Unsteady Aeroelastic Effect Analysis of Wing Model Triggered with Piezoelectric Material

The current study analyzed the piezoelectrically driven mechanism responsible for generating force in both rectangular and hummingbird wings, which mimicked the flapping motion of the micro air vehicles, utilizing a combination of numerical simulation and experimental approaches. Digital image correlation technology was employed within the experimental setup to capture the dynamic deformation pattern of the flapping wing, yielding dynamic deformation data. This dataset was subsequently integrated into the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation software to explain the aeroelastic effects. In this way, the dynamic deformation data played a crucial role in computing inertial forces regarding wing flexibility. In addition, temporal force variations generated by the flapping wing were measured using a load cell. The numerical results provided a full understanding of the flapping wing's unsteady aerodynamics, with an emphasis on vortex formations and pressure distribution. We thoroughly examined the force produced by the piezo-actuated flapping wing system. This analysis was then rigorously compared with the data obtained from the load cell measurements. Our primary emphasis was on the vertical forces along the z-axis. Moreover, a thorough comparison of the combined CFD and experimental data inertial results revealed an overall agreement in the total forces from the load cell.