Every time an aircraft takes off, thousands of structural components must work perfectly under stress, vibration and changing temperatures. Ensuring that these structures remain safe for decades is one of the greatest challenges in aviation. The COST Action Optimising Design for Inspection (ODIN) decided to rethink this challenge from the very beginning.

Instead of asking how aircraft should be inspected after they are built, ODIN focused on embedding inspection into the design itself. The idea is similar to the human nervous system. Just as your body feels pain and reacts early, ODIN worked on aircraft structures that can ‘feel’ damage and report it before it becomes serious.

As Action Chair, Dr Rhys Pullin, from Cardiff University, explains:

“Much like the human body’s nervous system, these ‘built-in senses’ will provide real-time updates on the health and safety of the aircraft. They’ll also help the plane automatically adjust its shape to improve fuel efficiency, make the ride smoother, and ensure everything is running at its best.”

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Currently, aircraft maintenance largely relies on scheduled ground-based inspections. While effective, this approach can be costly and may miss early signs of damage. “The aerospace industry is famously cautious”, says Rhys Pullin. “New technologies often take decades to move from the lab into real aircraft, partly because every new idea must go through strict certification processes by regulators like the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and similar bodies worldwide. This caution ensures safety, but it can also slow down the adoption of fresh research and innovations.”

ODIN, however, explored a different vision: aircraft structures equipped with embedded sensors that can continuously monitor their own condition while in service.

These ideas are based on technologies such as ultrasonic sensing, energy harvesting and wireless communication, which were brought together within a single design framework.

According to Petar Dimitrov, Science Communication Coordinator of the Action from the University St. Kliment Ohridski, “ODIN transformed structural health monitoring from isolated laboratory research into a coordinated, validated and industry-relevant framework.” By integrating sensing into the structure itself, ODIN has helped to transform inspection from a reactive task into a built-in capability.

ODIN’s impact goes beyond concepts. The Action delivered shared tools, datasets and benchmarks that are already shaping ongoing research and industrial approaches.

The ODIN open-access book, Structural Health Monitoring Damage Detection Systems for Aerospace, introducing key methods for monitoring the health of aircraft structures, has been consulted over 500,000 times, showing its value to both researchers and industry professionals.

According to Petar Dimitrov: “ODIN established durable links between academia, SMEs, and aerospace companies. This network is expected to accelerate the transfer of Structural Health Monitoring technologies into real aircraft design and maintenance practices.”

Knowledge exchange was equally central. Through online research exchanges and short-term scientific missions, eight universities worked together to compare different methods of computer-modelling a complex aircraft wing component.

A major result was the development of a representative aircraft wing structure test, validated and approved by Airbus. As Petar notes: “ODIN’s wing structure test, produced datasets that are already being used in publications, conference workshops and training.”

“ODIN transformed structural health monitoring from isolated laboratory research into a coordinated, validated and industry-relevant framework.” Petar Dimitrov, Science Communication Coordinator of ODIN Action

As part of its dissemination strategy, ODIN collaborated with ‘Science Made Simple’ to develop engaging outreach resources. These were later used at Cardiff University’s ‘Museum at Night’, where visitors experienced hands-on demonstrations of damage detection via an interactive exhibit. The event attracted around 1,700 members of the public, demonstrating ODIN’s success in bringing complex aerospace research to a wider audience.

Finally, one of ODIN’s proudest achievements was helping to secure EU funding for the follow-up project, BAANG, which will carry this work even further.

BAANG, a Horizon Europe Twinning project, grew directly out of the collaborations established within the COST Action. Thanks to ODIN, the project coordinator, Brno University of Technology, was able to apply existing approaches and deepen its collaboration with Imperial College London, an internationally recognised expert in computational structural health monitoring, fracture modelling, and damage. TU Delft and TU Wien joined the consortium, providing expertise in morphing design and material science. The successful BAANG consortium was formed, and a morphing wing design was developed.

BAANG focuses on morphing aircraft wings, taking inspiration from birds that alter the shape of their wings during flight to enhance efficiency. Such adaptive structures depend on embedded sensing, which is a direct continuation of ODIN’s research.

As Prof. Zdenek Hadas, ODIN Working Group Leader from Brno University of Technology, explains: “ODIN’s networking and collaboration activities were key to establishing the BAANG project consortium. A self-sensing morphing wing operation is a critical part of the BAANG project, and many concepts and techniques are commonly used for development in both ODIN and BAANG activities.”

Through ODIN meetings and workshops, partners were able to transfer knowledge directly into BAANG’s design and monitoring concepts, ensuring continuity between the two initiatives.

“Together, they contribute to a vision of adaptive, intelligent, and safer aircraft structures that are both energy-efficient and capable of self-monitoring in service,” concludes Zdenek Hadas.

Although ODIN’s primary focus was on the aerospace industry, its influence extends further. “The partnerships built through the network are still active today and are producing results across a range of industries,” says the Action Chair. “Knowledge shared through exchanges and training schools has begun to filter into areas such as renewable energy, agriculture, and advanced manufacturing”.

Examples include wind and tidal turbines with built-in sensors for real-time monitoring, and smart farming systems that use a combination of sensors and satellite data to track the health of livestock in remote areas. In manufacturing, they are also used to monitor machine wear, supporting more efficient and reliable production across different industries.

The Science Communication Coordinator recognises the broader impact as ODIN’s long-term value: “ODIN’s legacy will be to have shifted structural health monitoring from a laboratory concept into a practical design philosophy. For society, the legacy is safer, more reliable, and more sustainable air travel, plus spillover innovations in other fields that benefit daily life.”

A long-term dream for aviation

Looking to the future, Dr Pullin describes his vision for aircraft that are lighter, smarter and environmentally responsible:

“The big dream for the future of aviation is an aircraft powered by clean, green hydrogen. Imagine a plane built with strong but lightweight wings and frames that can actually adapt and change shape mid-flight to make each journey more efficient. This vision would mean truly net-zero air travel, helping passengers fly sustainably, creating skilled jobs, and protecting our planet.”

And the Chair concludes: “ODIN has already laid the foundation for this vision by testing these smart ‘nervous system’ and ‘shape-shifting’ technologies in the lab, proving they can work in realistic aircraft structures.”

Additional information

Action website

BAANG website

Video: Morphing Wing Demonstrator