VortexStepMethod v3.0.0

Diff since v2.3.0

Breaking Changes

Unified Wing type

• Wing and RamAirWing merged into a single Wing struct
• RamAirWing constructor replaced by ObjWing (returns a Wing with
  OBJ-specific fields populated)
• Renamed ram_geometry.jl → obj_geometry.jl

Unrefined sections replace panel grouping

• n_groups replaced by n_unrefined_sections in Wing, WingSettings, and
  SolverSettings
• PanelGroupingMethod enum removed
• Each refined panel maps back to its unrefined section via
  refined_panel_mapping
• n_groups and grouping_method in YAML settings files emit a deprecation
  warning and are ignored

Renamed VSMSolution fields (_array → _dist)

• panel_width_array → width_dist
• alpha_array → alpha_dist
• cl_array → cl_dist, cd_array → cd_dist, cm_array → cm_dist
• panel_lift → lift_dist, panel_drag → drag_dist
• panel_moment → panel_moment_dist
• group_moment_dist → moment_unrefined_dist
• Type parameter Solver{P,G} / VSMSolution{P,G} changed to Solver{P,U} /
  VSMSolution{P,U} (U = unrefined sections)

Mesh refinement separated from reinit

• reinit! no longer re-refines the mesh; it only updates panel properties from
  existing refined_sections
• New refine! function handles mesh refinement explicitly

Changed

• Consistent naming convention: _dist = per-panel, _unrefined_dist =
  per-unrefined-section
• correct_aoa solver setting added (default false)
• alpha_geometric is now the angle between apparent wind and chord
• Panel width calculation uses sum instead of average
• src/plotting.jl removed; all plotting moved to Makie and ControlPlots
  extensions
• TestEnv no longer required as a global dependency

Added

• n_unrefined_sections field in Wing for tracking pre-refinement sections
• refined_panel_mapping for automatic panel-to-section association
• Unrefined distribution fields in VSMSolution: cl_unrefined_dist,
  cd_unrefined_dist, cm_unrefined_dist, alpha_unrefined_dist,
  moment_unrefined_dist, width_unrefined_dist
• alpha_geometric_dist field in VSMSolution
• unrefined_deform! for applying twist and TE deflection to unrefined
  sections; non_deformed_sections preserved for reset/re-deformation
• refine! function for explicit mesh refinement
• plot_combined_analysis in the Makie extension
• Literature comparison plotting in the Makie extension
• obj_file and dat_file fields in WingSettings
• sort_sections kwarg for section ordering control
• Separate test/Project.toml and examples/Project.toml
• New tests: test_unrefined_dist.jl, test_refinement_validation.jl,
  test_yaml_wing_deformation.jl

Removed

• RamAirWing type (use ObjWing or Wing directly)
• PanelGroupingMethod enum
• n_groups from WingSettings, SolverSettings, and YAML files
• src/plotting.jl (920 lines moved to extensions)

Merged pull requests:

• Unify RamAirWing and Wing into Wing (#204) (@1-Bart-1)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v2.3.0

Diff since v2.2.1

Added

• A Makie plotting extension.

Merged pull requests:

• Add Makie plotting extension (#199) (@1-Bart-1)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v2.2.1

Diff since v2.2.0

Fixed

• Reference in vsm_settings.yaml now points to aero_geometry.yaml.

Added

• None.

Removed

• Bridle configuration data (nodes, lines, connections).

Changed

• Renamed wing_geometry_polars_CFD.yaml → aero_geometry.yaml.

Merged pull requests:

• 183 create a load geometry from yaml function for vortexstepmethodjl and run on a simple wing (#200) (@jellepoland)

Closed issues:

• Rename wing_geometry.yaml to aero_geometry.yaml for consistency, with SymbolicAWEModels (#196)

Contributors

• @jellepoland

VortexStepMethod v2.2.0

Diff since v2.1.0

Added

• The kwarg aero_coeffs to the function linearize: if true the linearization will output
  normalized coefficients instead of moments and forces.

Merged pull requests:

• Add stats.jl script (#193) (@ufechner7)
• Fix CI.yml and also test on Julia 1.12 (#195) (@ufechner7)
• Add kwarg aero_coeffs to linearization (#197) (@1-Bart-1)

Closed issues:

• Output of linearization should be constants (#178)
• Something is wrong in CI.yml (#194)

Contributors

• @ufechner7
• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v2.1.0

Diff since v2.0.0

Changed

1. Core New Functionality: YAML Geometry Support

• New file: yaml_geometry.jl (290+ lines) — Complete YAML-based wing geometry loading.
• New structs: WingSectionData, WingAirfoilData, WingAirfoilInfo (with @with_kw macros).
• New function: load_polar_data() — Robust CSV polar data loading with error handling.
• New constructors:
  • Wing(geometry_file::String) — Create wings from YAML files.
  • Wing(settings::VSMSettings) — Create wings from settings.

2. Enhanced Settings System

• Renamed vs() to VSMSettings() constructor.
• Added convenience Solver(body_aero, settings) constructor.
• Improved settings structure and validation.

3. Comprehensive Test Infrastructure

• Split tests: Reorganized from monolithic files to modular structure (test/module_name/test_*.jl).
• New test module: yaml_geometry with test_load_polar_data.jl and test_wing_constructor.jl.
• Test utilities: test_data_utils.jl with shared helper functions.
• Test data: Extensive YAML and CSV test files in data.

4. Data and Examples

• New data sets: Complete TUDELFT_V3_KITE with CFD polars and literature results.
• Enhanced examples: Updated examples to use YAML geometry (e.g., pyramid_model.jl, V3_kite.jl).
• Real-world configs: Production-ready YAML geometry files for various kite configurations.

5. Core Module Improvements

• Path handling: Robust file path resolution for relative/absolute paths.
• Error handling: Comprehensive validation and graceful fallback to INVISCID mode.
• Memory management: Improved file I/O and cleanup in tests.
• Documentation: Added comprehensive docstrings and examples.

Merged pull requests:

• Add a geometry from yaml constructor for Wing (#186) (@1-Bart-1)

Closed issues:

• VSM predicts NANs for ram-geometry at low angles of attack? Is this a convergence issue? (#182)
• Create a 'load_geometry_from_yaml` function for VortexStepMethod.jl, and run on a simple straight wing (#184)
• Create a 'load_geometry_from_yaml` function for VortexStepMethod.jl, and run on a simple wing (#185)
• Run V3 Kite does not produce correct result (#189)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v2.0.0

Diff since v1.2.6

Changed

• bump Interpolations to 0.16
• breaking: rename init! to reinit!

Merged pull requests:

• Rename init! to reinit! (#180) (@1-Bart-1)

Closed issues:

• Use AutoFiniteDifferences with factor keyword to deal with noise (#177)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v1.2.6

Diff since v1.2.5

Changed

• update NonlinearSolve.jl

VortexStepMethod v1.2.5

Diff since v1.2.4

Changed

• suppress @info messages when creating a RamAirWing
• improve examples ram_air_kite.jl and bench.jl

VortexStepMethod v1.2.4

Diff since v1.2.3

Changed

• implement export of solve and solve! correctly
• do not export menu() because KiteUtils exports it
• the polars of the ram air kite are now saved in .csv files
• update CI.yml

Merged pull requests:

• Use csv instead of bin for 2d polars (#171) (@1-Bart-1)

Closed issues:

• Use csv for polar files (#159)
• Release version 1.2.3 (#168)
• Precompilation fails if polar data was created with newer Julia version (#170)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1

VortexStepMethod v1.2.3

Diff since v1.2.2

Changed

• expose the angle of attack alpha_array in the VSMSolution

Merged pull requests:

• Expose alpha corrected (angle of attack of each panel) (#167) (@1-Bart-1)

Closed issues:

• Add NeuralFoil as an extension to the package (#160)

Contributors

• @1-Bart-1