Modeling and Simulation of a Laser-Powered Lightcraft Using Advanced Simulation Tools

This paper outlines efforts toward implementation of a new state-time methodology for dynamic simulation of a six-degree of freedom (6-DOF) model of the Type 200 laser-powered lightcraft. The lightcraft problem is a well-suited application demonstrating the potential advantage of using the state-time formulation as the craft’s temporal domain is much larger than its spatial domain. Indeed, while relatively few processors can be effectively utilized in modeling the vehicle via traditional state-type algorithms, more than 105 processors may be potentially exploited in a state-time dynamic simulation. In this paper, a modified state-time methodology is derived in order to account for impulsive characteristics. This impulsive formulation allows for parallelization not only between impulses but also across impulses. Furthermore, an aerodynamic model fully compatible with the state-time formulation is presented. Validation of the proposed method is obtained by comparing the state-time simulation results with the results of a traditional state-type dynamics algorithm using Autolev software.Copyright © 2005 by ASME