Capabilities
What MADETOOL analyses today
Generated from the capability declaration of each solver module (MADETOOL 1.0.0, PRD format 1.7). A configuration runs only if every implemented module supports it.
Configurations
“Supported” = accepted by every pipeline module. “Rejected” = at least one module refuses it at the capability check, so the run stops before analysis.
| Propulsion code | Architecture | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Battery-electric motor(s) driving propeller(s) | Supported |
| 2 | Piston internal-combustion engine driving propeller(s) | Supported |
| 3 | Series hybrid: engine-generator + battery feed electric motor(s) driving propeller(s) | Supported |
| 4 | Parallel hybrid: engine and electric motor mechanically combined on the propeller drive | Supported |
| 5 | Gas-turbine engine driving propeller(s) | Supported |
| 6 | Turbojet or turbofan (jet thrust) | Rejected |
| 7 | Other architecture - must be explicitly described and supported by a model before analysis | Rejected |
| VTOL code | Concept | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Conventional runway, hand or launcher take-off; no VTOL | Supported |
| 1 | Dedicated vertical-lift rotors plus separate cruise propulsor(s) | Supported |
| 2 | Rotors/propellers tilt between vertical lift and forward thrust; wing stays fixed | Rejected |
| 3 | Wing and propulsors tilt together | Rejected |
| 4 | Whole aircraft pitches; takes off and lands on its tail | Rejected |
| 5 | Other VTOL concept - must be explicitly described and supported by a model before analysis | Rejected |
Layouts
CONVENTIONALFLYING_WINGCANARDTANDEM_WING
Tails
CONVENTIONALT_TAILCRUCIFORMV_TAILINVERTED_VH_TAILY_TAILNONE
A conventional layout also needs a tail (NONE is a validation error).
Further limits stated by the modules
- Geometry: fuselage FUSELAGE, POD_AND_BOOM or TWIN_BOOM; lift+cruise with 4 or 8 lift rotors on longitudinal booms; one fuselage propulsor or one wing pair.
- Lift energy with battery-electric cruise: SHARED_BATTERY only (a separate lift pack is not modelled).
- Propulsion fidelity 1 is not implemented; the default fidelity is 2.
- Pure multirotors are outside MADETOOL’s scope.
Analysis modules
Status as declared by each module: IMPLEMENTED, PARTIAL (works within the limits in its notes) or NOT IMPLEMENTED.
| Module | Owner | Version | Status | Fidelity | Notes from the declaration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mission Mission cases, segments and point conditions from req | ARCH | 1.1.0 | IMPLEMENTED | - | Standard profile for every take-off/recovery method; optional [mission.custom] profile; reserve placement APPENDED or HOLD_BEFORE_LANDING. |
| sizing Constraint analysis (W/S vs P/W or T/W; VTOL disk loading) | SIZING | 0.5.0-integ | PARTIAL | 1, 2, 3 | Propeller constraint diagram (installed max-continuous shaft power per weight vs W/S; hybrids: total shaft power, split by PE). The same equations are used at every fidelity level; input fidelity follows aero/drag/propulsion. Take-off line with the air distance at the MAX rating; landing W/S line when the landing inputs are given (PRD 1.3+ keys). Jet T/W lines (code 6) are not implemented. |
| decision Design point (W/S, P/W, AR, DL) and tail volumes incl. stability feedback | DECISION | 0.5.0-integ | PARTIAL | - | Rule D-07 (user decision U-02): highest feasible W/S less design_choices.wing_loading_margin, envelope P/W plus power_loading_margin, AR = min(b_max^2/S, aspect_ratio_max); lift-rotor rule R2-49 (diameter, disk-loading limit or largest rotor that fits, fit called after the tail volumes of the pass); tail-volume feedback from the MSC X-plot and the vertical-tail requirement (V-tails from both). Hybrids (codes 3-4): P/W is the total shaft power; PE splits it (R6-03). |
| geometry Planform, tail panels, fuselage, booms, rotors, gear, wetted areas | AERO | 0.7.0 | PARTIAL | - | Conventional layouts with fuselage FUSELAGE, POD_AND_BOOM or TWIN_BOOM (twin boom: H_TAIL, CONVENTIONAL or INVERTED_V); lift+cruise with 4 or 8 lift rotors on longitudinal booms; one fuselage propulsor (TRACTOR/PUSHER) or one wing pair (WING_TRACTOR/WING_PUSHER); jets (code 6), tilt-rotor/tilt-wing/tailsitter, flying wings, canards and tandem wings are not laid out. Layout data come from the aero-data file. Propeller ground clearance (wheeled gear) and internal-volume budget only when their inputs are given. |
| aero Lift-curve slopes, CLmax, a.c., Cm_ac, Oswald e | AERO | 0.7.0 | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Wing-borne flight only (hover and transition belong to PE). Fidelity 2: VLM + section data; 3: VLM + airfoil polars (wing polars required). Attached flow, subsonic (M < 0.6 nominal), AR >= 3 nominal; CLmax predicts stall onset (critical section). |
| drag CD0 build-up, polar fits (trimmed from iteration 2) | AERO | 0.7.0 | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Fidelity 2: component build-up + VLM induced drag; 3: airfoil-polar strip integration (wing polars required). Drag items without a physical model (gear, turret, stopped rotors, engine installation: COOLING for codes 2-4, INLET for code 5) must be given as drag areas with sources; internal installation losses belong to the installed engine power (PE). Subsonic, attached flow; NaN above CLmax. |
| propulsion Cruise powerplant and lift system: ratings, efficiencies, mass items | PE | 1.4.1 | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Propulsion codes 1-6 with VTOL codes 0-4. Declared exclusions (capability check, R2-29): turbojet/turbofan (6) with VTOL 2-4 (jet-borne VTOL); with VTOL 1, vtol.lift_energy = GENERATOR with codes other than 3 and DEDICATED_BATTERY with codes 1, 3, 4 (one battery partition, CR-PROP-16). Rejected inside the modules (FAIL, never substituted): VTOL 2-4 with n_lift_rotors different from n_cruise_propulsors; code 7 and VTOL 5 (no model). Reserve segments may be placed anywhere in the profile (reserves.placement APPENDED or HOLD_BEFORE_LANDING). Fidelity 2: actuator-disk momentum theory x relative efficiency with a static figure-of-merit bound, momentum theory + figure of merit in hover and axial flight, constant motor/ESC efficiency, pack-level battery, Gagg-Farrar/turbo/table lapse with constant BSFC, referred-parameter turbines (datasheet data; a turboprop with component.engine.power_max_sl = AUTO is a rubber engine: scale from the design point, shape from the data), load-following or per-segment hybrids (both stores carry their own reserves), quasi-steady transition (lift+cruise, tilt-rotor) or hover-equivalent transition (tilt-wing, tailsitter). Fidelity 3: measured propeller CT/CP map, static rotor map, BSFC map / turbine deck required; Kv-R-I0 motor model and cell equivalent-circuit battery when their data are in the component file. Engines: the MAX rating runs the engine at the component-file take-off power ratio x its maximum continuous power, else MAX = MCP (model limit); a hotel load on the engine alternator is a shaft load in the mission and the services (PE 1.3.0). Fidelity 1 is not implemented. Missing component data raise MissingComponentData unless model.allow_generic_estimates = YES. Masses exclude mounts and installation. |
| mission_perf Segment energy/fuel/SOC for every mission case | PE | 1.4.1 | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Propulsion codes 1-6 with VTOL codes 0-4. Declared exclusions (capability check, R2-29): turbojet/turbofan (6) with VTOL 2-4 (jet-borne VTOL); with VTOL 1, vtol.lift_energy = GENERATOR with codes other than 3 and DEDICATED_BATTERY with codes 1, 3, 4 (one battery partition, CR-PROP-16). Rejected inside the modules (FAIL, never substituted): VTOL 2-4 with n_lift_rotors different from n_cruise_propulsors; code 7 and VTOL 5 (no model). Reserve segments may be placed anywhere in the profile (reserves.placement APPENDED or HOLD_BEFORE_LANDING). Fidelity 2: actuator-disk momentum theory x relative efficiency with a static figure-of-merit bound, momentum theory + figure of merit in hover and axial flight, constant motor/ESC efficiency, pack-level battery, Gagg-Farrar/turbo/table lapse with constant BSFC, referred-parameter turbines (datasheet data; a turboprop with component.engine.power_max_sl = AUTO is a rubber engine: scale from the design point, shape from the data), load-following or per-segment hybrids (both stores carry their own reserves), quasi-steady transition (lift+cruise, tilt-rotor) or hover-equivalent transition (tilt-wing, tailsitter). Fidelity 3: measured propeller CT/CP map, static rotor map, BSFC map / turbine deck required; Kv-R-I0 motor model and cell equivalent-circuit battery when their data are in the component file. Engines: the MAX rating runs the engine at the component-file take-off power ratio x its maximum continuous power, else MAX = MCP (model limit); a hotel load on the engine alternator is a shaft load in the mission and the services (PE 1.3.0). Fidelity 1 is not implemented. Missing component data raise MissingComponentData unless model.allow_generic_estimates = YES. Masses exclude mounts and installation. |
| energy Battery and fuel sizing from required energy | PE | 1.4.1 | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Propulsion codes 1-6 with VTOL codes 0-4. Declared exclusions (capability check, R2-29): turbojet/turbofan (6) with VTOL 2-4 (jet-borne VTOL); with VTOL 1, vtol.lift_energy = GENERATOR with codes other than 3 and DEDICATED_BATTERY with codes 1, 3, 4 (one battery partition, CR-PROP-16). Rejected inside the modules (FAIL, never substituted): VTOL 2-4 with n_lift_rotors different from n_cruise_propulsors; code 7 and VTOL 5 (no model). Reserve segments may be placed anywhere in the profile (reserves.placement APPENDED or HOLD_BEFORE_LANDING). Fidelity 2: actuator-disk momentum theory x relative efficiency with a static figure-of-merit bound, momentum theory + figure of merit in hover and axial flight, constant motor/ESC efficiency, pack-level battery, Gagg-Farrar/turbo/table lapse with constant BSFC, referred-parameter turbines (datasheet data; a turboprop with component.engine.power_max_sl = AUTO is a rubber engine: scale from the design point, shape from the data), load-following or per-segment hybrids (both stores carry their own reserves), quasi-steady transition (lift+cruise, tilt-rotor) or hover-equivalent transition (tilt-wing, tailsitter). Fidelity 3: measured propeller CT/CP map, static rotor map, BSFC map / turbine deck required; Kv-R-I0 motor model and cell equivalent-circuit battery when their data are in the component file. Engines: the MAX rating runs the engine at the component-file take-off power ratio x its maximum continuous power, else MAX = MCP (model limit); a hotel load on the engine alternator is a shaft load in the mission and the services (PE 1.3.0). Fidelity 1 is not implemented. Missing component data raise MissingComponentData unless model.allow_generic_estimates = YES. Masses exclude mounts and installation. Energy storage: one battery partition (vtol.lift_energy = DEDICATED_BATTERY with codes 1, 3, 4 is rejected); battery n_parallel is continuous; pack volume only with battery.e_vol_Whl; battery resistance growth at end of life not modelled. |
| loads Design speeds, V-n envelope, limit/ultimate load factors, VTOL and landing cases | MSC | 1.5.0 | IMPLEMENTED | - | V-n envelope after 14 CFR 23.333-23.341 (pre-Amdt 23-64) with PRD [loads] values; VTOL hover limit = all lift rotors at the structural thrust (prop.lift.T_max_struct_each_N); landing factor from an energy balance. Not a certification load analysis: tail balancing, rolling, control-surface, dynamic gust and aeroelastic loads are not computed. |
| structures Wing, tail, fuselage, boom and gear structural mass and margins | MSC | 1.5.0 | IMPLEMENTED | 2 | Beam/shell/tube sizing at ultimate load with typical material values (fidelity 2); fuselage arrangements FUSELAGE, POD_AND_BOOM, TWIN_BOOM; VTOL lift+cruise only. Gear mass from the layout file (not sized). No fatigue, flutter, crash, joint or cut-out analysis; no tail-boom attachment (pylon/strut) item; no engine-mount or nacelle structure (installation mass only); skins not sized by load (presets, WARNING above 25 kg). |
| mass Mass ledger, MTOW, loading states, CG envelope, inertia | MSC | 1.5.0 | IMPLEMENTED | 2 | Mass ledger from calculated structure (mt_structures), delivered propulsion/energy masses and user component data (layout file / PRD); labelled generic estimates only with allow_generic_estimates = YES. VTOL lift+cruise only. |
| stability Neutral point, static margins, X-plot, trim, lat-dir, VTOL control | MSC | 1.5.0 | IMPLEMENTED | 2 | Linear static stability, trim and control authority with aft tail panels; VTOL hover allocation for lift+cruise. Dynamic modes, power effects (except the thrust moment and, with AERO's shares, the slipstream on the tail in the power-on low-speed checks), ground effect and aeroelasticity are not evaluated. |
| performance Point performance, capability missions, payload-range | PERF | 0.5.0-integ | PARTIAL | 2, 3 | Point performance from the drag service and the PE services; capability missions through mt_perf_mission. Landing distance evaluated when the PRD gives approach angle, braking friction and free-roll time (PRD 1.3 keys) with the speed schedule of PRD 1.4. |
| trade One-parameter trade study | DECISION | 0.1.0-integ | IMPLEMENTED | - | Sequential one-parameter sweep; every point is a full sizing run (design_init, iterate, performance, verification). |
Outputs that exist today
- Text report with manifest, validation, capability and stage tables, mission, iteration history, key design data, compliance, DoD group, checks, validation needs, placeholders, methods and sources.
- Compliance CSV, engineering checks CSV, constraint-diagram CSV.
- MAT file of the full results.
- Optional one-parameter trade study.
Not available yet
- Figures (make_plots), payload-range and constraint-diagram plots.
- US-unit columns in the report (the PRD accepts US units as input).
- Dynamic stability, aeroelastic, fatigue, flutter and certification load analyses.
- Configurations marked “Rejected” above.
Engineering disclaimer. MADETOOL produces conceptual/preliminary design estimates. Results are not validated, certified, or flight-ready and do not replace detailed engineering analysis, testing, or certification. Read the full disclaimer.