A collaborative design method for the aircraft supply chain: multi-level optimization

In the AGILE project, advanced technologies for optimization, multi-disciplinary colla- boration and knowledge-enabled engineering are developed and applied to conceptual and preliminary aircraft design. Various representative use cases of some conventional and un- conventional aircraft configurations are considered. This paper describes the application of a multilevel optimization (MLO) strategy based on analytical target cascading (ATC) to a use case of rudder design on a conventional aircraft configuration. As a reference a traditional nested optimization method is applied as well. Both methods arrive at the same design optima. In the case of ATC the amount of interaction between the global and the local level optimiza- tions is reduced. The MLO is demonstrated by applying surrogate models that were derived from aircraft and rudder design analyses performed by the partners in the AGILE project. The rudder design case illustrates that applying MLO provides insight into the coupled design problem both for the aircraft OEM and for the supplier. Development time is reduced by minimizing the number of interaction events, providing a common understanding of the design problem, establishing interfaces in the design process and therefore reducing the risk of late design changes.