Evaluation of flying helicopter simulator noseboom correction coefficients

Abstract

The EC135 flying helicopter simulator of DLR is equipped with noseboom-mounted sensors to enable measurements relatively unperturbed by rotor downwash effects. Remaining downwash disturbances on pressure and airflow angles measurements are compensated with correction coefficients, derived with the simultaneous calibration of aircraft data system (SCADS) technique. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the quality of correction coefficients derived using estimated wind by comparing the difference in wind estimation from three different objective functions and two different optimization routines. The results obtained from the SCADS technique are also verified with accurate wind measurements close to the helicopter flight path from position error correction tower flyby maneuvers. The results show that the lower bound of the range in which airspeed can be detected via dynamic pressure measurements has been expanded from 30 to 16.2 kt.