EADS-CASA Completes Airbus A400M Ground Vibration Test
 LEUVEN,
Belgium, Mar 9, 2009 - LMS, the engineering innovation company, and its
Spanish partner Alava Ingenieros have completed a GVT technology
co-operation project with the Ground Vibration Testing team at EADS-CASA
that enabled the team to successfully complete a 700-channel large-scale
aircraft GVT on the Airbus A400M in less than a month’s time. On top of
that, four additional configurations were tested in only two extra weeks.
Part of an on-site support project, LMS and Alava Ingenieros engineers
helped with the EADS-CASA deployment of a 700-channel LMS SCADAS III
hardware and LMS Test.Lab software system over a series of three GVT tests:
the Airbus A310 MRT, the Airbus A330 MRTT and the Airbus A400M respectively.
The project covered complete LMS Test.Lab and LMS SCADAS III system
installation and integration, extensive training and on-site assistance.
“From a software perspective, LMS Test.Lab is very user-friendly and quick to
set up. It is very simple to perform ‘normal’ mode tuning. On the hardware side,
the fact that the LMS SCADAS III equipment acquired by EADS-CASA can record over
700 channels simultaneously is an extremely important time-saver. The A400M test
shows that all kinds of GVT requirements can be accomplished with this equipment
-- even the largest aircrafts,” stated Mr. Posada, Head of Structural Test,
EADS-CASA MTAD. “In addition, we realized a considerable productivity increase
and cut the overall acquisition time in half. This saved several crucial weeks
from our normal test time.”
Beginning September 26, 2008 at the FAL’s Flight Test Centre in Seville,
Spain, the entire GVT cycle took just under a month – a rather fast pace for a
thorough 700 channel set-up that included placing 700 accelerometers. During
this period, various GVT tests, performed by a joint team from EADS-CASA MTAD’s
Structural Test Department in collaboration with EADS-CASA MTAD’s Aero
elasticity & Dynamic Loads department, were carried out on the first aircraft,
the Airbus A400M MSN01, which was placed on an elastic rubber platform to
simulate a “ready for flight” configuration. These standard tests measured the
frequency and damping modal parameters to determine the aircraft’s dynamic
behavior from an aeroelastic point of view.
“The commitment from the LMS and Alava Ingenieros experts regarding the test
objectives was outstanding. This ranged from the test coordination to the way
they helped the team quickly resolve unexpected test and aircraft system
problems. The GVT takes place – usually -- very close to the first schedule
flight. You can easily imagine that there is no room for failure or delay. And
saving a couple of weeks is a rather exceptional achievement for this kind of
mission critical test. It was a tremendous amount of excellent team work from
everyone involved,” concluded Mr. Hector Climent, Head of Aeroelasticity &
Dynamic loads, EADS-CASA MTAD.
“We certainly enjoyed our partnership with the EADS-CASA team. Not only did
the EADS-CASA projects prove the value of our GVT solution for large aircraft
testing campaigns, it also demonstrated that we have an expert team to help our
customers complete these mission-critical testing campaigns. While working
against the clock in a transnational team, we have been able to fulfill all the
test objectives, save precious time and deliver a job well done,” stated Thierry
Olbrechts, Director LMS Aerospace Competence Center.
Special Announcement: LMS will be hosting a webseminar on March 13th at 11AM
Eastern all about the GVT testing done with EADS-CASA. Join us to find out more
about how LMS helped EADS-CASA cut their GVT test time in half during this
informative 45 minute session – register now.
About LMS
LMS is an engineering innovation partner for companies in the automotive,
aerospace and other advanced manufacturing industries. With approximately 30
years of experience, LMS helps customers get better products to market faster
and turn superior process efficiency into key competitive advantages. With a
unique combination of 1D and 3D simulation software, testing systems and
engineering services, LMS tunes into mission critical engineering attributes,
ranging from system dynamics, structural integrity and sound quality to
durability, safety and power consumption. With multi-domain solutions for
thermal, fluid dynamics, electrical and mechanical system behavior, LMS can
address the complex engineering challenges associated with intelligent system
design. Thanks to our technology and dedicated people, LMS has become the
partner of choice of more than 5,000 manufacturing companies worldwide. LMS is
certified to ISO9001:2000 quality standards and operates through a network of
subsidiaries and representatives in key locations around the world.
For more information, visit www.lmsintl.com.
About EADS-CASA
Based in Madrid, Spain, EADS- CASA Military Transport Aircraft Division
(EADS- CASA MTAD) is a division of EADS, the European Aeronautical Defense and
Space Organization that develops and manufactures aircraft and space systems.
About the Airbus A400M
Designed to replace the popular but aging Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules and
similar cargo aircraft, the multi-purpose Airbus A400M, a four-engine turboprop,
will double the payload capacity of existing aircraft as well as substantially
increase the range. The Airbus A400M has been ordered by 10 countries for
personnel and cargo delivery, air-to-air refueling, special operations, disaster
relief and humanitarian missions.
About the EADS-CASA GVT
Critical to the Airbus A400M program, ground vibration testing is necessary
to validate the finite element model, adapt or modify the structure if
necessary, and ultimately obtain final flight certification. Normally, ground
vibration testing is a series of tests performed on the first prototype to
detect aircraft resonances and verify the aircraft’s safety and reliability
prior to the first actual test flight. The EADS-CASA GVT involved placing 700
accelerometers or sensors on the wings, horizontal and vertical tail planes, the
fuselage, engines, cockpit and operating systems. Over 50 exciter points were
used to vibrate the Airbus A400M appropriately during various ‘vibration’ tests
to measure the frequency and damping modal parameters.
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