PhD Studentship – Landing System Mass Reduction Through the Integrated Design of Landing Gear and Structural Attachments

Structural Attachments

The successful candidate will have the chance to study for a full time PhD. Sponsored by Safran, this studentship will provide a bursary of £14,000 plus fees for three years.

The aim of the study is to generate a methodology that permits the synthesis of landing gear solutions beyond the landing gear itself to include the attachment and other local structure. The approach will be used to account for variations in arrangement and positioning of structural attachments subject to a variety of realistic constraints. The sized landing gear will be added to assess the total landing gear system influence. 

Overview:

Weight prediction methods for aircraft typically divide each section of the aircraft into separate entities that will use specific methods and tools to individually generate mass estimations. For the wing, mass estimation includes the wing master geometry and flight loads. For the landing gear, mass estimations can vary from a simple percentage of the MTOW to a more precise calculation based on the master geometries and ground loads. When all mass estimations of the different parts of the aircraft are combined there is a gap as the structural components linking the landing gears to the wing or fuselage are not accounted for. Although implications due to landing gear interfacing to the overall aircraft weight is not significant, it is nonetheless important in terms of promoting continuous improvements and for obtaining more precise weight estimations at aircraft level. Furthermore, there is lack of knowledge regarding how the positioning of the landing gear attachments affect the mass of the airframe mounted structure. For example, a lighter landing gear may result in a heavier solution at aircraft level due to larger or more complex attachments on the wing or fuselage. This project proposes to examine the implications of modifications to the landing gear attachments on the whole aircraft mass. In order to contain the study to a manageable level the scope will be limited to a wing mounted main landing gear with a rolling and folding single stay.

At a glance

Award type: PhD

Start date: 25th Sep 2022

Duration of award: 3 years

Eligibility: UK, Rest of World, EU

Entry requirements

This PhD may be suitable for someone with applied structural design experience relating to lightweight structures as applied to aircraft. This might include structural layout design, analytical and numerical analysis, Metallic and composite materials, structural stability etc. CATIA and FE skills will be useful.

Likely qualified to MSc level, practical work experience will be taken into consideration.

Funding

Sponsored by Safran, this studentship will provide a bursary of £14,000 plus fees for three years.

About the sponsor

Sponsored by Safran, this studentship will provide a bursary of up to £14,000 plus fees* for three years.

How to apply

For further information please contact:

Name: Prof Howard Smith

Email: howard.smith@cranfield.ac.uk