Fuselage Design and Analysis

Learning Objective

Students will design an aircraft fuselage from scratch and will perform frame analysis to ensure that it meets requirements.

Project Description

Using the Inventor software, I designed an aircraft fuselage part file using 3D sketches. I then put the part file into an assembly file and inserted frames. I then used the frame analysis simulation to test the fuselage frame at landing and during flight.

What I Learned

I learned how structural shapes influenced the pressure distribution of loads on the fuselage frame, such as triangles. I learned where the most force was on the fuselage frame during landing and flight, and how to adjust for those loads if a frame member was under too much pressure.

Conclusion

List three functions that the Frame Analysis tool provides and describe how they relate to aerospace design.

The frame analysis tool lets you easily change how much force you want to test on the frame. This relates to aerospace design because there are many aircrafts that all have a different weight. It also lets you see which parts of the frame have the most or least amount of stress, so you can change some parts of the frame. Finally, it provides a way to see if your frame will bend due to a certain amount of weight. This relates to aerospace design because you will be able to see if the frame can last for a long time while it holds aircraft.