Static Aeroelastic Characteristics of Grid Structure Wing

Several types of grid structure of high-aspect-ratio wing are designed basing on the idea of bionic structure. The static aeroelastic characteristics of the wings of rectangular, polygonal and curve-edged rhombic grid structures are calculated and compared, using finite element models coupled with vortex lattice method. Structural results show that the stiffness of the high-aspect-ratio wings can be improved and the weight will be reduced when the configurations, distributions and curvatures of the grids are properly selected and optimized. The rhombic grid structure has the maximum stiffness among these different grid structures. Despite the high bending stiffness, the grid structure wing has lower torsional stiffness, optimizations in detail are required. Investigations in this paper can inspire the design of lightweight high-aspect-ratio wings.