Mk 4
The unneeded flange is removed from the brake, and an offset gear pair is added to the drive shaft. Mounting brackets are added.
Mk 3
Torque calculations find a smaller gearbox is needed. A smaller diameter, keyed drive shaft is added.
Mk 2
Introduces hydraulic actuator model including a motor (green), power off brake (blue), and gearbox (tan).
Mk 1
Original model for rotary actuator is an electric motor placeholder model.
Establishing the Source of Truth (SoT) for the Bio-Inspired Rotating Empennage (BIRE) Project Team
Ryan Schnitter
Advisors: David Myszka, Ph.D. and Andrew Murray, Ph.D.
Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
F-16 with BIRE modification
What is BIRE?
The Bio-Inspired Rotating Empennage is a tailless, highly maneuverable speculative fighter aircraft based on the F-16 Fighting Falcon, drawing inspiration from the flight of birds of prey. The tail stabilizer is replaced with an empennage that allows rotation of the horizontal stabilators about the roll axis of the aircraft. Vertical stabilizer is removed to improve fuel efficiency and stealth capabilities.
What is SoT?
Source of Truth is a file management strategy that coordinates the rapidly changing design of a project’s subsystems through a central model that contains and maintains the geometric representation of the active design parameters. SoT provides an authoritative reference and reliable baseline for cases of conflicting design changes.
F-16 Fighting Falcon
Design Evolution of the BIRE Project
Subsystem Design and Evolution
BIRE is a complicated project with at most four subsystems being worked on simultaneously. Initial subsystem constraints are determined through weight optimization and additional changes are made through geometric optimization and frequency analysis.
Each subsystem evolves independently in quick, small bursts while the SoT evolves slowly but simultaneously. This prevents design overlap by ensuring outdated subsystems are not incorporated into the current designs of different subsystems.
Source of Truth Evolution Timeline
2021
2024
2026
Notable design changes throughout the years (cutaway view of BIRE)
1- Empennage Frame: traditional frame updated with TORSI organic frame
2- Fuselage Frame: weight and frequency optimization changes truce shape
3- Ring Gear: force and weight optimizations change the depth of gear
4- Drive Pinion: torque optimizations result in meticulously dimensioned gear
5- Linear Actuator: appearance and placement updated
6- Rotary Actuator: torque calculations reduced required number of actuators
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Rotary Actuator Subsystem Evolution Timeline