Aerospace Engineering and Aviation

Capabilities

Our research activity encompasses four capability areas, each supporting several key technologies.

Aerospace materials and multifunctional composite structures

• Through-life support of ageing airframes and life cycle cost
• Integrity assessment and airworthiness
• Damage tolerance, progression and failure
• Structural health monitoring
• Robust design and optimisation
• Smart materials and structures

Unmanned aircraft systems design and field operations

• Architecture and system design autonomy
• Flight operations and airworthiness
• New generation from bio-inspired and MAV to high-altitude long endurance UAS
• UAS integration, sense and avoid
• Safety and regulations

Aerodynamic loading and multidisciplinary design and optimisation

• Flow-structure – fluid-structure interaction and hydrodynamics
• Aeroservoelasticity and vibration suppression
• Advanced solutions to enhance air-platforms performance including manoeuvrability and control effectiveness
• System identification
• Energy harvesting
• Hypersonics

Avionics, air traffic management and mission systems

• Future ATM and avionics systems (CNS+A)
• Key technology enablers and systems for a sustainable aviation
• Mission systems for civil and military aviation
• Human factors engineering solutions
• Sensors, multi sensor systems and data fusion
• Intelligent Transport Systems
  

Our impact

We work with a range of Australian and global organisations to provide innovative solutions across civil and defence industries. Our partners include:

• ACS Australia
• Airbus
• Australia Advanced Aerospace Technologies (AAAT)
• Boeing Aerostructures and Boeing Defence
• Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA)
• Capability, Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG)
• Defence Aviation Safety Authority (DASA)
• Defence Science and Technology Group (DSTG)
• Defence Science Institute (DSI)
• DefendTex
• Department of Defence (Australia)
• Department of Defence (USA)
• Flight Data Systems
• Ford Motor Company
• General Electric
• LEAP Australia
• Lockheed Martin
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
• Northrop Grumman
• Pratt and Whitney
• Thales

Highlights of our current research include:

• multidisciplinary design and optimisation
• development of hydrocarbon fuel system for hypersonic airbreathing vehicles
• cognitive human-machine interface and interaction for ATM systems
• cost-benefit assessment of future aerospace concepts for defence
• state-of-the-art nonlinear aeroelastic solver developed within the ANSYS suite
• bragg grating fiber laser ultrasonic sensors for structural health monitoring
• improved autonomous surveillance for UAV flight in complex urban terrains
• submarine dynamics and control

Research centres and groups

Our expertise and facilities contribute to many research organisations across Australia.

• ARC Training Centre for Lightweight Automotive Structures
• Defence Materials Technology Centre (DMTC)
• Intelligent Mobility and Vehicle Evolutions (iMOVE) CRC
• LMS Noise Vibration Harshness Centre of Expertise
• Sir Lawrence Wackett Aerospace Centre
• Cyber-Physical Systems Group 

Facilities

Our work is supported by major state-of-the-art research infrastructure.

• Advanced Manufacturing Precinct
• Composite Fabrication Facility
• Green Engines Laboratory
• Aerospace Intelligent and Autonomous Systems Laboratory
• Flight Simulators
• Unmanned Aircraft Systems Laboratory
• Wind tunnels
• Noise Vibration Harshness Laboratory

Who we are

Aerospace Engineering and Aviation staff