Dynamic Modeling and Simulation of Powered Parafoil Airdrop Process

A nine degree-of-freedom dynamic model for parafoil-payload system is derived based on Lagrange's equations in terms of quasicoordinate. According to the theoretical model, a simulation tool to simulate the airdrop process of powered parafoil is developed based on the VC++ integrated development environment, Unity 3D engine and virtual reality technology. The tool is divided into three separate modules. The first module is the real-time dynamic simulation program, which can carry out the real-time numerical simulation of the airdrop process with wind field environment and system control inputs taken into account. The second module is the results display program, which can be used to quantitatively and dynamically display and analyze the simulation results in the form of tables and curves. The third module is the 3D scene animation program, which can be used to qualitatively display the simulation results since the motion of parafoil-payload model in the scene is driven by the simulation results. Furthermore, the VR glasses can be used to directly and comprehensively observe the dynamic response of parafoil-payload system. The high fidelity dynamic model and pratical simulation tool help greatly improve efficiency and reduce costs during all stages of the parafoil design.