A CORRELATION STUDY OF ROTOR INFLOW IN FORWARD FLIGHT

Correlation of the experimental inflow data obtained in the NASA Langley 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel with the predicted inflow using Scully and Sadler free wake models has been performed. The sensitivity of time averaged induced velocities to wake geometry variations is examined here using the CAMRAD prescribed wake model. A comparison of the predicted free wake velocities is made with the time varying data to illustrate the influence of blade and vortex passage near the measurement point. A computational fluid dynamic model of the rotor, based on the solution of the unsteady full potential equation, has been employed to examine velocities induced at points passing near the blade. The experimental and full potential results are compared with velocities predicted using the lifting line bound vortex methodology inherent in the wake analysis.