About the project
This project will develop physics-informed digital twins that augment vibration qualification testing of defence systems. By combining models and measurements, the project will predict unmeasured responses, extend test evidence to new conditions, account for ageing and uncertainty, and reduce physical testing while maintaining confidence in certification, qualification and reliability assessments.
This project will develop physics-informed digital twins that work alongside physical vibration tests, enabling defence systems to be certified and qualified with fewer tests and with evidence whose reliability is understood.
Before a mechanical system enters military service, evidence must show that it will perform safely and reliably throughout its life. For dynamic loads, this comes from qualification testing against vibration and shock profiles representing expected environments. Physical testing cannot cover every environment, configuration and ageing state an asset will meet. Laboratory tests also differ from service conditions. Many critical parts sit inside sealed assemblies where sensors cannot be fitted, so their response is never measured directly.
In this project you'll build digital twins of a test article and its test setup, combining finite element and reduced-order models with measured data. You'll:
- model the coupled shaker, fixture, controller and test article to plan multi-axis tests and predict where they depart from service conditions
- extend test results to untested configurations and environments
- estimate responses of inaccessible internal parts from external measurements using state estimation
- quantify uncertainty in each prediction and develop criteria to compare the trustworthiness of twin-based evidence with traditional qualification approaches
- validate the methods on laboratory structures
You'll gain skills in structural dynamics and uncertainty quantification that are in demand across the defence, aerospace and nuclear sectors. You'll also benefit from inclusion in the 'Ministry of Defence and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council Centre for Doctoral Training in Complex Integrated Systems for Defence and Security' (MOD/EPSRC CISDnS CDT), which offers opportunities for interdisciplinary working, collaboration and networking with defence partners.
