Vehicle based optimization system and method therefor

A method for optimizing mission conditions of a vehicle, comprising individually, controllably and differentially displacing two or more control surfaces including an inactive propeller that are movably mounted on a buoyancy-influenced vehicle and configured to maintain stable vehicular movement through a corresponding medium being navigated by the vehicle until an optimal position for each of the control surfaces including the inactive propeller that is collectively suitable to achieve optimum mission conditions is established, wherein said two or more control surfaces including the inactive propeller maintain stable vehicular movement through a corresponding medium being navigated by the vehicle that conforms to a predetermined movement plan, such that the vehicle will be returned to movement that conforms to the predetermined movement plan after being subjected to perturbations that caused a momentary deviation from the predetermined movement plan.

A method for reducing drag induced by a propeller of a propeller-bearing aircraft during forward flight, comprising i) rotating a propeller having one or two blades, when inactive, to an optimal drag-minimizing stowing angle which is angularly spaced from a forward direction of flight of the aircraft;

• ii) determining a change in flight conditions of the aircraft upon receiving data transmitted from a plurality of sensors mounted on the aircraft;
• iii) calculating, by a processor receiving the transmitted data, an optimal position for each of a plurality of movably mounted aerodynamic control surface of the aircraft including the propeller, in response to the changed flight conditions to achieve minimum drag;
• and iv) commanding, by the processor, each of the plurality of aerodynamic surfaces to be displaced to surface-specific positions corresponding to the calculated optimal positions, so that the flight will continue according to the surface-specific positions, wherein the surface-specific position to which the inactive propeller is displaced in response to the changed flight conditions is another optimal stowing angle which is angularly spaced from the forward direction of flight of the aircraft.