Advanced In-flight Measurement Techniques

Abstract

Advanced optical measurement techniques are beneficial compared to classical sensor measurements in terms of non-intrusiveness, measurement time and areal measurement. Although those techniques (e.g. the Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) or the Image Pattern Correlation Technique (IPCT)) are well established in wind-tunnel and laboratory applications, it is a very challenging task to make them easily applicable for flight testing. Therefore, about more or less nine years ago the first EC project “Advanced In-flight Measurement Techniques” (AIM) was launched. Researchers and specialists proofed in general the feasibility of applying their non-intrusive measurement techniques to industrial flight testing. Later the follow up project AIM² has been started in 2010 intended to improve the AIM techniques towards routinely application in flight testing. The main achievements of the two AIM projects will be presented and some examples of the in-flight application of the AIM techniques will be given.