US 12,134,997 B2
Inlets for hypersonic air-breathing vehicles and design methods and systems therefor
Mark Edward Noftz, Villa Park, IL (US); Joseph Stephen Jewell, West Lafayette, IN (US); Andrew James Shuck, Indianapolis, IN (US); Jonathan Poggie, West Lafayette, IN (US); Andrew Nixon Bustard, South Bend, IN (US); and Thomas James Juliano, Granger, IN (US)
Assigned to Purdue Research Foundation, West Lafayette, IN (US); and University of Notre Dame Du Lac, South Bend, IN (US)
Filed by Purdue Research Foundation, West Lafayette, IN (US); and University of Notre Dame du Lac, South Bend, IN (US)
Filed on Aug. 31, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/240,818.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/402,570, filed on Aug. 31, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2024/0068427 A1, Feb. 29, 2024
Int. Cl. F02K 7/10 (2006.01)
CPC F02K 7/10 (2013.01) 9 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A computer-implemented method of generating a design of an inlet for hypersonic air breathing vehicles using a processor system comprising a plurality of CPUs, the method comprising;
generating a hypothetical inlet shape by specifying a hypothetical front inlet shape of the inlet and an isolator exit shape of the inlet to match an estimated design contraction ratio;
defining a plurality of osculating planes over an azimuthal sweep of the inlet emanating from a global origin;
solving in parallel on a plurality of free CPUs in the processor system for unique Busemann contour solutions from Taylor-Maccoll equations for conical flow in each osculating plane of the inlet by changing boundary conditions;
generating a streamtrace of the inlet from the unique Busemann contour solution in each osculating plane, wherein the streamtraces collectively define the shape of the inlet; and
generating the design of the inlet to have a shape defined by the streamtraces.