Nonlinear Control Strategies in a Co-Simulation Framework for Hybrid Regional Aircraft Design Verification

The nonlinear flight dynamic model of a hybrid regional aircraft is being developed in Simulink for integration into the Open Digital Platform of the European project ODE4HERA. The project aims to accelerate the development of hybrid regional architectures, which are far more complex systems than the in-service airplanes. The scope of this work is to develop the pilot behavior model in a typical flight mission. This is well captured with the Total Energy Control System technique, which simultaneously acts on throttle and elevator controls. The application case aims to verify the integration of on-board systems specifically designed for hybrid electric aircraft. In detail, the flight mechanics model is integrated with the hybrid propulsion system, electric distribution, and power sources. From this perspective, the main role of flight simulation is to demonstrate whether the proposed architecture can cover a typical mission profile expected for regional transport airplanes.