Thiago Guimaraes, an Assistant Research Scientist at the Active Aeroelasticity and Structures Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan, will give a teaching presentation. He was awarded 2nd place in the AIAA Team aircraft Design Competition as a Faculty advisor.

ABSTRACT

The objective of structural sizing is to define realistic dimensions for each structural component of an airframe subject to critical loads determined based on certification criteria. This class will discuss how different components are sized according to specific standards and introduce the definition of load paths on an airframe. The demonstration will use a wingbox test case, and the class will explore the structural function of stringers, skins, ribs, and spars. Load cases will be selected based on the V-N diagram with appropriate flight conditions. The discussion will address the impact of structural layout on the overall aircraft design, and guidelines will be provided to facilitate the creation of finite element models and analyses in NASTRAN.

BIOGRAPHY

Thiago Guimaraes is an Assistant Research Scientist at the Active Aeroelasticity and Structures Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan. Before joining the University of Michigan as a visiting Research Scientist in 2020, Prof. Guimaraes was an Associate Professor of Aeronautics at the University of Uberlandia, Brazil. Prior to that, he worked as a Stress Engineer at Embraer S.A. for five years. His research interests are aeroelasticity, analysis and simulation of advanced vehicles, and structural analysis of composite materials. He has over 40 journal publications and conference papers and has been awarded 2nd place in the AIAA Team aircraft Design Competition as a Faculty advisor.