Wind Tunnel Rig for the Study of Roll Damping and Pitch Damping Effects of Free-Spinning Models at Supersonic Speed

This paper describes the development of a test rig dedicated to tests of artillery-type models and rotating missiles, in order to simulate the roll, yaw and pitch movements of the models. The factors affecting the design of the system are outlined. A special measurement technique is introduced in order to determine at the same time the rotations around the three main axes of the model. Furthermore, a theoretical description based on a six-degree-of- freedom approach is developed for the motion of the model. Part of the investigation concentrates on the characterization of the roll, yaw and pitch damping behavior of the models in use for the calculation the dynamic behavior of the models used during the spin-down phase of flight. Experiments from the first test campaigns are presented. The initial experiments using the test rig have been encouraging and have demonstrated its ability to study the dynamics of configurations at high spin rates.