Progress and challenges for aeroservoelasticity research

The aeroservoelasticity (ASE) problems occurring on the aircraft (e.g. airplanes, missiles) originate from the sophisticated coupling between aerodynamics, structural elasticity and control system. As the aircraft develops to be lighter, faster and more capable, these problems become increasingly acute and thus have a direct influence on flight safety and performance. After more than sixty years of research, great progress has been made at home and abroad in the field of ASE analysis, synthesis and test. In the recent decade, several new issues are revealed due to the design evolution of aircraft with unconventional configuration, and pose the huge challenges to ASE research, which is worth analysis specifically. This paper discusses the problems of rigid/elastic interaction, nonlinearity, thrust vectoring and system identification in ASE analysis, and states the key issues for gust alleviation, active flutter suppression and ASE optimization in the ASE synthesis. Technologies that need to be focused in ASE tests are emphasized, followed by a brief introduction to some representative examples of overseas ASE tests in the recent decade. Some new directions towards advanced ASE research are indicated, and also suggestions are provided for domestic ASE research.