FUTURED. ZAL Magazin 2024

LIEBHERR
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE OF FLIGHT
THE ALL-ROUNDER
Liebherr-Aerospace has always been on the
forefront in terms of R&D activities of electro-mechanical
actuation technology (EMA) for
medium to large commercial aircraft applications
(EASA CS-25).
INVESTING
IN THE FUTURE
OF FLIGHT
As a solution provider and leading supplier
of the aviation industry, Liebherr-Aerospace
consistently invests above-industry- average
ratios into the R&D activities in its fields of
competence. The company is conducting intensive
research into solutions to make aviation
more climate-friendly. The focus lies
on the next generation of environmental
control systems, electric actuators as well
as electric wing, auxiliary power generation
systems, hydraulic power supply, and thermal
and power management.
FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGY IN VARIOUS
APPLICATIONS
Liebherr-Aerospace is exploring new materials
and manufacturing processes to reduce the cost
of fuel cell systems and increase their scalability.
Additionally, by collaborating with various partners,
including universities, research institutions
and industry partners, it has been able to advance
the research and development of fuel cell
systems, not only in aviation but also in rail and
automotive industries.
An emblematic project of Liebherr consists of
using a hydrogen fuel cell power source to generate
sufficient electrical power, in the range of
400 kW, to feed all the non-propulsion electrical
systems of a new-generation, single-aisle aircraft,
while ensuring the thermal management
of the whole (fuel cells and electrical systems). In
order to test and assess this solution in a representative
environment, Liebherr installed a
hydrogen test bench in its test center at its
Toulouse site.
Now the company is stepping up the experience
to make it compatible for the future: Liebherr is
expanding its portfolio to smaller-sized actuators.
The new concept allows the transition from
customized design to customized assembly of
standardized modules. It specifically targets the
rising Advanced Air Mobility sector expanding
also into smaller (EASA CS-23) aircraft, business
jets and helicopters. The family concept takes
advantage of millions of in-service flight hours of
geared actuators and related electronics collected
during the last decades in numerous aircraft
programs.
A PERFECT MATCH
The remote electronic unit (REU) is a perfect
match with the small EMA family, and Liebherrʼs
proven system integration capability is taking
credit from decades of flight control system development
for all major aircraft manufacturers.
All relevant actuation system architectures can
be realized with these elements.
The design concept of the REU offers great versatility
for system and position control, data
concentration, monitoring and signal conversion
as well as high reliability – an ideal solution
for different kinds of applications.
Hydrogen test bench in Liebherr-Aerospace’s test center
in Toulouse (France).
SMART INTEGRATED WING
Liebherr-Aerospace is focusing on the development
of next-generation aircraft based on a
more electric architecture. Its Smart Integrated
Wing Demonstrator is one of those architectures.
It was funded by Clean Sky 2, which is part
of Clean Aviation, a European Union research
and innovation program to develop cleaner air
transport technologies. The demonstrator combines
several sub-systems developed in national
research projects and focuses on the electrical
and hybrid wing actuation systems, enabling
synergies with other systems, such as landing
gears. The fly-by-wire controls architecture and
the high-voltage DC power actuation network
are key elements of Liebherr’s vision for more
sustainable next-generation aircraft systems.
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Working on technology for the
next generation of aircraft:
Liebherr-Aerospace’s test lab in
Lindenberg (Germany).
The small electro-mechanical actuation technology
(small EMA) allows the transition from customized design
to customized assembly of standardized modules.
UNFOLDING EFFICIENCY
Improved aerodynamics need longer wing spans
and longer wings need to fold their wing tips to
match with the airport gates. Liebherr is able to
provide reliable folding mechanisms for future
more efficient wing designs.
The aerodynamics of the wing combined with
new energy-savings engines will considerably reduce
kerosene consumption. The folding wing
tips reduce the wingspan of aircrafts allowing
them to use standard gates at the airports, like
all other airplanes, without any additional costs
for the airline. Before the airplane takes off, the
wing tips are once again folded out into the horizontal
position.
CONTACT
Sebastian Ziehm
sebastian.ziehm@liebherr.com