Collaboration in Aeronautical Research Projects

Citation

(2003), "Collaboration in Aeronautical Research Projects", Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, Vol. 75 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/aeat.2003.12775faf.012

Collaboration in Aeronautical Research Projects

Collaboration in Aeronautical Research Projects

Keywords: Aerospace, Aircraft, Research

Boeing, through its Technology and Research Centre, and the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) have signed research agreements covering areas of common interest in the aeronautical field.

The first of these projects, which will be co-ordinated by Professor Joseba Quevedo, Professor at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia's Department of Systems Engineering – Automatic and Industrial Computer Science, is on the integrated health management of aeroplanes. The objective of this project is to provide technologies that will monitor the general state of an airline in flight and send the information to the ground in real time so that the maintenance staff can quickly carry out any indicated repairs when the plane lands. Because this system can also be used to predict when a part might fail, it allows a maintenance crew to replace or repair the part during a regular maintenance check as a preventive measure, preventing inconvenient delays for unscheduled maintenance.

For this project, the UPC team will be initially in charge of modelling the behaviour of a generic power system based on a set of fuel cells and identifying the main types of failures. The objective of the second project, led by Professor Jordi Romeu from the Mechanical and Acoustic Engineering Laboratory (Terrassa), is to measure the environmental impact of aircraft as they approach the airports. This innovative research is aimed at establishing the parts of the aircraft that generate the highest noise level as the planes approach and land.

This information will contribute to the design of quieter aircraft in the future, as well as establish new operational procedures that minimise the environmental impact.

In this project, in which the Dutch NLR Research Institute and the Polytechnic University of Madrid are also participating, the Polytechnic University of Catalonia is mainly involved in designing and constructing a noise measurement system enabled for space directional filtering, based on a lineal microphone matrix. It will also be in charge of testing and validating the system.

Professor Juan Jesús Perez, Polytechnic University of Catalonia's vice-rector of research, has stated that they are delighted that the agreements have been signed, which reflect the level of excellence of the research conducted in Spanish universities.

Dr Miguel A. Hernán, Director of Boeing Technology and Research Centre in Madrid, said, "These projects will provide us with information that can be used to better design and more affordably maintain aircraft of the future, while also reducing their noise levels and emissions".

The Boeing Research and Technology Centre in Madrid, which is part of Boeing's Phantom Works advanced R&D unit, is the first of its type that the company has established outside the United States. The centre opened in July 2002, as part of an initiative to find the best technologies and the best talent throughout the world to help to improve the performance, quality and cost of the Boeing services and products. It currently has 30 employees and its objective is to become a centre of excellence in areas relating to the environment, safety and reliability, and air traffic control technologies. As part of this objective, it will establish partnerships with industry, academia and other research centres around Europe.

In addition to the centre, Boeing has recently strengthened its presence in Spain with the appointment of Pedro Argüelles as Boeing's president in Spain. In this position, Argüelles is in charge of co-ordinating all the company's business activities in Spain.

The Polytechnic University of Catalonia is an institution committed, on the one hand, to promote innovation encouraging research and development in the various branches of science and technology, and, on the other hand, with sustainable development and promoting international co-operation.

As the leading aerospace company, Boeing works with academic centres and universities throughout the world to foster access in innovative ideas and cutting-edge technologies, that are the key to its future growth. The company invests approximately 12 million euros a year in agreements with universities, in a wide range of research and development programmes.

Details available from: Boeing España Annarosa Cànovas (UPC). Tel: +91 4264040, 934 01 62 62; E-mail: Chantal.dorange@boeing.com; Web site: www.boeing.com