Airfoils Incorporated

Only The Best Is Good Enough

Airfoil/Application Design Integration

Each application requires a specific performance from the airfoil; therefore, an airfoil should be designed for each application. No airfoil can be considered "best" in a general sense, only with respect to the specific application (ref.). The airfoil design and the application design are so strongly connected that the overall design process is iterative, as illustrated below. Accordingly, close communication between the application designer and the airfoil designer is required.

Airfoil/Application Design Integration flowchart

Reference

Maughmer, Mark D.; and Somers, Dan M.: Figures of Merit for Airfoil/Aircraft Design Integration. AIAA Paper 88-4416, Sept. 1988. [DOI]

Related

For details on the airfoil design method, see Subsonic Airfoil Design. For real-world examples, see Applications. To understand the design requirements, see Specifications.