GeoMACH: Geometry-Centric MDAO of Aircraft Configurations with High Fidelity

This paper presents GeoMACH: Geometry-centric MDAO of Aircraft Configurations with High fidelity. GeoMACH is an open-source aircraft design tool suite under development that is planned to support MDAO with a large number of design variables. First, the overall GeoMACH architecture is described, including a proposed method for streamlined data transfer between disciplines. GeoMACH’s efficient and lightweight B-spline engine is then introduced as it forms the basis for the geometry-centric approach to MDAO. Next, GeoMACH’s OML and structural modelers are presented, which provide parametric aircraft modeling tools that span a configuration-level design space. OMPUTATIONAL tools have undoubtedly had a profound influence on the commercial aircraft design process, but their full potential is far from realized. In terms of impact, design methods such as multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) have lagged behind analysis tools, such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite element analysis (FEA), both of which are now well-integrated into practical aircraft design. CFD and FEA solvers improve with every advance in algorithms and hardware, enabling a more accurate prediction of the ‘perfect’ design; yet, equally important are the design methods and processes that use these tools to find that ‘perfect’ design.

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