Fiber-optically sensorized composite wing

Joannes M. Costa; Richard J. Black; Behzad Moslehi; Levy Oblea; Rona Patel; Vahid Sotoudeh; Essam Abouzeida; Vladimir Quinones; Yasser Gowayed; Paul Soobramaney; George Flowers

doi:10.1117/12.2057943

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10 April 2014 Fiber-optically sensorized composite wing

Joannes M. Costa, Richard J. Black, Behzad Moslehi, Levy Oblea, Rona Patel, Vahid Sotoudeh, Essam Abouzeida, Vladimir Quinones, Yasser Gowayed, Paul Soobramaney, George Flowers

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Proceedings Volume 9062, Smart Sensor Phenomena, Technology, Networks, and Systems Integration 2014; 906213 (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057943
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2014, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Electromagnetic interference (EMI) immune and light-weight, fiber-optic sensor based Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) will find increasing application in aerospace structures ranging from aircraft wings to jet engine vanes. Intelligent Fiber Optic Systems Corporation (IFOS) has been developing multi-functional fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor systems including parallel processing FBG interrogators combined with advanced signal processing for SHM, structural state sensing and load monitoring applications. This paper reports work with Auburn University on embedding and testing FBG sensor arrays in a quarter scale model of a T38 composite wing. The wing was designed and manufactured using fabric reinforced polymer matrix composites. FBG sensors were embedded under the top layer of the composite. Their positions were chosen based on strain maps determined by finite element analysis. Static and dynamic testing confirmed expected response from the FBGs. The demonstrated technology has the potential to be further developed into an autonomous onboard system to perform load monitoring, SHM and Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) of composite aerospace structures (wings and rotorcraft blades). This platform technology could also be applied to flight testing of morphing and aero-elastic control surfaces.

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Joannes M. Costa, Richard J. Black, Behzad Moslehi, Levy Oblea, Rona Patel, Vahid Sotoudeh, Essam Abouzeida, Vladimir Quinones, Yasser Gowayed, Paul Soobramaney, and George Flowers "Fiber-optically sensorized composite wing", Proc. SPIE 9062, Smart Sensor Phenomena, Technology, Networks, and Systems Integration 2014, 906213 (10 April 2014); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057943

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