Enhancing Amphibious Vehicles with Wing Shape Research
Key Points:
- UCF’s Associate Professor Samik Bhattacharya is leading research on wing designs that could boost the performance of the U.S. military’s amphibious vehicles.
- The findings may also assist in search-and-rescue efforts and disaster response scenarios.
- This project is funded by a grant from the DEVCOM Army Research Office.
Flying from the water into the sky, like a bird or a mobula ray, seems effortless. However, for drones, this maneuver is quite challenging. Researchers at the University of Central Florida (UCF) are exploring how wing shapes and movements impact the crucial transition from water to air. Their findings could significantly advance the design of amphibious drones.
UCF’s Associate Professor Samik Bhattacharya, along with aerospace engineering master’s student Dominic Polidoro, is studying the forces that come into play when a drone transitions from water to air, a process known as egress. This nine-month project, backed by the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s grant, aims to create mathematical models that enhance military amphibious technology.
“This technology can enable seamless operations between air and water without needing two different vehicles,” Bhattacharya explains. The potential applications for this research extend beyond the military, with possibilities for use in civilian rescue operations and environmental monitoring.
Bhattacharya envisions a future where amphibious drones can dive and ascend smoothly, carrying more weight and operating autonomously in complex environments. He states, “In 10 years, we could see these vehicles performing reliable transitions, far surpassing today’s models.”
While there has been significant research on how drones enter water, less is known about their exit. Past studies indicate that as a wing emerges from the water, it experiences an initial increase in lift, followed by a sudden drop. Understanding this phenomenon is crucial for improving drone stability.
Bhattacharya says, “Typically, when a UAV exits the water, it experiences a surge of lift, followed by a sharp decline.” This instability can result in a loss of control, highlighting the importance of understanding this process to improve drone design.
In UCF’s Experimental Fluid Mechanics Lab, Bhattacharya and Polidoro utilize a water tank and 3D-printed wings to examine how surface ripples, waves, and vortex shedding affect the egress process. Bhattacharya notes the challenge of isolating these effects, as they occur in quick succession and influence one another significantly.
The team recently shared some of their findings at the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics SciTech Forum earlier this year.
About the Researcher:
Samik Bhattacharya, who has been with UCF since 2016, holds a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering from The Ohio State University, a master’s from Auburn University, and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the National Institute of Technology in Warangal, India.
