Failure analysis and structural improvement of helicopter landing gear seals based on experiments and three-dimensional numerical simulation

The utilization of O-ring seal structures in landing gears has historically been associated with high rates of failure. Therefore, this study analyzes helicopter landing gear friction failures based on experimental and numerical simulations. The model is designed to replicate the failure phenomena including “seal extrusion”, “seal leakage”, “seal wear”, and “seal distortion”, and to further investigate causes of failure. Corresponding failure criteria are also presented. Addressing the deficiencies inherent in the original O-ring structure, three composite seal structures—namely, the VL seal, double triangle seal, and T-seal—are introduced to enhance the respective seal structure of the buffer pillar. The findings exhibit that, following the transition to the composite seal structure, the strain peaks are optimized. Finally, this paper offers optimal contact pressure ranges for the optimized seals.