TECHNOLOGY AREAS: Air Platform, Electronics

ACQUISITION PROGRAM: F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Program

The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals, their country of origin, and what tasks each would accomplish in the statement of work in accordance with section 3.5.b.(7) of the solicitation.

OBJECTIVE: Develop a generator/accumulator/control architecture that ensures large-displacement stability of a modern fighter aircraft electric power system against any load type.

DESCRIPTION: The movement toward more-electric architectures during the past decade in military and commercial airborne systems continues to increase the complexity of designing and specifying the electric power system. In particular, the electrical power system faces challenges in meeting the highly dynamic power demands of advanced power electronics based loads. Numerous control techniques and design methodologies have been developed to ensure stable operation for expected operating conditions. However, many of these techniques are difficult to apply to complex systems due to the need to develop small-signal impedance models of all potential loads under all operating conditions including various permutations of which loads are active at any given time. In addition to these challenges, such techniques still do not guarantee large-displacement stability following major disturbances such as faults, regenerative operation, large pulsed loads, and/or the loss of generating capacity.

Practicable approaches are sought to guarantee the large-signal stability of isolated power systems such as those found in modern more-electric fighter aircraft like the Joint Strike Fighter Lightning II. As modern aircraft power architectures often include a variety of potential sources and loads, responses that account for the interaction and coordination of multiple sources such as a generator, electrical accumulator unit, auxiliary power units, and batteries are encouraged.

PHASE I: Determine the feasibility of the proposed approach and architecture for guaranteeing large-displacement stability of the electric power system. Validate the approach using modeling, simulation and analysis (MS&A).

PHASE II: Demonstrate the stability of the electric power system architecture using MS&A. Finalize the system design and construct/assemble appropriate prototype hardware and associated controls to validate system performance in a laboratory setting.

PHASE III: Transition the analysis approach and system design to the F-35 platform for final hardware and software development, system integration, flight evaluation, and procurement.

PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL/DUAL-USE APPLICATIONS: The given technology could have application to commercial aviation as well as future hybrid and all-electric vehicles.

REFERENCES:
1. Wells, J. R.; Amrhein, M.; Walters, E.; Iden, S.; Page, A.; Lamm, P and Matasso, A. (2008) "Electrical Accumulator Unit for the Energy Optimized Aircraft," SAE Power Systems Conference, Bellevue, WA.

2. Jian Sun; Zhonghui Bing (2008) "Input Impedance Modeling of Single-Phase PFC by the Method of Harmonic Linearization," Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition. APEC 2008. Twenty-Third Annual IEEE, pp.1188-1194, 24-28.

3. Sudhoff, S.D.; Glover, S.F.; Lamm, P.T.; Schmucker, D.H. and Delisle, D.E. (2000) "Admittance Space Stability Analysis of Power Electronic Systems," IEEE Transactions on Aerospace and Electronic Systems, vol.36, no.3, pp. 965-973.

4. Weimer, J.A. (2003) "The Role of Electric Machines and Drives in the More Electric Aircraft, Electric Machines and Drives Conference, 2003. IEMDC'03. IEEE International, vol.1, pp. 11-15.

5. Wu, T; Bozhko, S.; Asher, G.; Wheeler, P. and Thomas, D. (2008) Fast Reduced Functional Models of Electromechanical Actuators for More-Electric Aircraft Power System Study, SAE Power Systems Conference, Bellevue, WA.

KEYWORDS: Electric Power System; Modeling and Simulation; Large-Displacement Stability; Electric Accumulator; Power System Stability; Advanced Power Control

** TOPIC AUTHOR (TPOC) **

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