<html> <head> <title>UIUC Aircraft Models</title> </head> <body> <pre> ************************************************ * * * FGFS Reconfigurable Aircraft Flight Model * * Sample Input Files * * Version 0.73, June 27, 2000 * * * * Authors: * * Jeff Scott (jscott@mail.com) * * Bipin Sehgal (bsehgal@uiuc.edu) * * Michael Selig (m-selig@uiuc.edu) * * Dept of Aero and Astro Engineering * * University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign * * Urbana, IL * * http://amber.aae.uiuc.edu/~m-selig * * * ************************************************ The simulator executable, fgfs.exe, uses the aircraft.dat files located in Aircraft-uiuc to fly the desired aircraft. This file should either be in the same directory as fgfs.exe or should be called from the command line. To do the latter, open a DOS or Cygwin shell and go to the directory containing fgfs.exe. Type the following: > fgfs.exe --aircraft-dir=Aircraft-uiuc/Cessna172 The same procedure can be accomplished using a batch file. A sample batch file (runfgfs.bat) is provided in the top level directory. To run the desired aircraft, simply delete the "rem" command from the beginning of the line. Make sure that all the other model lines still begin with "rem" or you may not actually be flying the plane you want. Double click the file runfgfs.bat to begin the simulation. There is also a record feature that generates a file called uiuc_record.dat. The desired variables can be recorded in this file using the proper record lines. The syntax of these lines and the aircraft.dat files in general is provided in the documentation file <a href="README-uiucDoc.txt">README-uiucDoc.txt</a>. The runfgfs.bat file also provides samples of other command line options, including time of day, cloud and fog options, and the airport from which the flight begins. The airport commands are provided in <a href="README-airports.html">README-airports.html</a>. An overview of all the options available for the command line is provided in <a href="README-options.html">README-options.html</a>. Note that the proper scenery for that segment of the world must be provided for the scenery at that airport to be rendered. If the desired airport is not available (i.e. you see a bluish terrain when the program begins), you will need to download the additional terrain at <a href="http://www.flightgear.org/Downloads/world-scenery.html"> http://www.flightgear.org/Downloads/world-scenery.html</a>. Simply click on the grid containing the desired airport, save to your computer and unzip the file to the Scenery directory. Note that the scenery files are very large and occupy a large amount of disk space! Notes: ------ - All aircraft use the C172 gear model, and this gets overloaded for some of the heavier aircraft. Adding throttle will eventually lead to enough airspeed to fly. Once airborne, some corrective control inputs may be necessary. - For each aircraft, the thrust was set to give more or less "reasonable" performance characteristics. Users are encouraged to vary the thrust (see line > engine simpleSingle [simpleSingleMaxThrust] and change the value) to improve performance. - Most aircraft are modeled using cruise condition data only. Takeoff and landing configurations and associated changes in aerodynamic characteristics are not currently modeled. - Some files use "record" lines to produce flight-data recorder output. These data are written to the file uiuc_record.dat. Be aware that when flying for an extended period of time this file (if written by using record lines) can become very large. To fly, use one of the aircraft.dat files. The aircraft data used in each of these models is provided in the <a href="Aircraft-uiuc/models/index.html">Simulation Specifications</a>. Note that these models may be updated, revised, or extended. For the most recent versions, be sure to visit the on-line <a href="http://amber.aae.uiuc.edu/~jscott/sis/models/">version</a>. Beech99: Beech 99, small commercial commuter aircraft very smooth characteristics Boeing747: Boeing 747, large commercial jetliner too heavy for gear so noses down into ground at 70 degree angle, but this can be fixed by going to max throttle till plane rotates and becomes airborne; sluggish, but flies well Cessna172: Cessna 172, small general aviation aircraft based on Tony Peden's model, but uses stability derivatives only flies very well Cessna172-TD: Cessna 172, small general aviation aircraft uses lift curve data from Peden model to model stall also flies well Cessna310: Cessna 310, twin engine general aviation aircraft elevator seems too effective and slight instability in roll Cessna620: Cessna 620, four engine business aircraft very sluggish Convair880: Convair 880, medium commercial jetliner too heavy for gear so noses down into ground, but this can be fixed by going to max throttle till plane rotates and becomes airborne; play with the controls to obtain the proper orientation; sluggish, but flies pretty well *This model works best already in flight. The example in runfgfs.bat begins at 35,000 ft. To fly, increase the throttle and use small elevator and aileron deflections to level the aircraft. F104: Lockheed F-104, small supersonic fighter flies pretty smoothly but it's called "the Widow maker" for a reason F4: McDonnell F-4 Phantom, fighter/attack plane very difficult to fly and sometimes will have problems taking off from the ground *This model is somewhat buggy and behaves differently on different computers. If it becomes uncontrollable during takeoff, try using the --altitude command (also with --uBody set to a high number) to start already in flight. Increase the throttle and use small elevator and aileron deflections to level the aircraft. Learjet24: Learjet 24, business jet flies very well Marchetti: SIAI-Marchetti S-211 military jet trainer flies very smoothly, probably the easiest aircraft to fly Pioneer: IAI Pioneer UAV, small reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle version uses stability derivatives only slight roll instability, but very responsive Pioneer-TD: IAI Pioneer UAV, small reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle version uses lookup tables for lift and drag and most control surface deflections slight roll instability, but very responsive T37: Cessna T-37 twin jet engine military trainer flies very well TwinOtter: DeHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin otter, small commuter aircraft NASA Glenn Twin Otter for icing research clean version (no ice), flies well TwinOtterAllIce: DeHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin otter, small commuter aircraft NASA Glenn Twin Otter for icing research note the degradation in performance after ice accretion begins (icing begins 2 minutes into flight; transition from clean to iced aerodynamics lasts 5 seconds--this is not very realistic, but you can vary these times and the icing severity factor, eta [0=no ice, 1=max ice], to see the impact on performance) TwinOtterTailIce: DeHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin otter, small commuter aircraft NASA Glenn Twin Otter for icing research, tail icing only TwinOtterWingIce: DeHavilland Canada DHC-6 Twin otter, small commuter aircraft NASA Glenn Twin Otter for icing research, wing icing only X15: North American X-15, rocket-powered high-speed research aircraft go easy on the throttle since this is a very over-powered aircraft, very slow elevator but extremely responsive ailerons *This model is somewhat buggy and behaves differently on different computers. If it becomes uncontrollable during takeoff, try using the --altitude command (also with --uBody set to a high number) to start already in flight. Increase the throttle and use small elevator and aileron deflections to level the aircraft. </pre> </body> </html>