Control system for vertical take off and land (vtol) aircraft

ES 2 425 216 T3

DESCRIPTION

Control system for a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a jet aircraft according to the preamble of claim 1.

The present invention relates generally to the field of aeronautics and, more particularly, to a control system for a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, in which the pilot can use the same controls to operate the flight equipment. vertical and forward flight.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the VTOL type of jet aircraft mentioned at the beginning of the present invention, described in US patent 4,482,109 A, the jet engines are arranged in a forward part of the aircraft. During vertical flight, thrust is directed downward through a waterfall-type thrust deflector. During forward flight, the cascade-type thrust deflector is stowed, out of the thrust air stream, within the fuselage.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a jet aircraft according to claim 1. Other embodiments are detailed in the dependent claims.

As used herein, "vertical flight" is defined as flight in which the waterfall is in a deployed, uncollected position.

As used herein, "forward flight" is defined as the flight in which the waterfall is in a stowed position.

Other aspects, objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, including the figures and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 illustrates a partial cross section of the front of an aircraft applying an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly in a stowed state during forward flight, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 3 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly positioned to deflect thrust at an angle of approximately 35 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 4 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly positioned to deflect thrust at an angle of approximately 45 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 5 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly positioned to deflect thrust at an angle of approximately 90 degrees from the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 6 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly positioned to deflect thrust at an angle of approximately 105 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 7 illustrates a perspective view of the cascade and the control box, according to one form of

ES 2 425 216 T3 embodiment of the invention.

Figure 8 illustrates a perspective view of the control box, according to an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 9 illustrates a perspective view of the thrust deflection assembly in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

Figure 10 illustrates a control system for controlling pitch, yaw and roll of an aircraft in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 11 illustrates a more detailed view of a control mixer, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

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invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As shown in Figure 1, an aircraft 100, according to an embodiment of the invention, can have at least one jet engine 10 mounted at its front. The jet engine 10 can draw air from a suction opening 12 formed in the nose of the aircraft 100. The air stream exiting the jet engine 10, referred to herein as the thrust, is directed toward a thrust deflection assembly 200, which is described in more detail below. During forward flight, thrust deflection assembly 200 directs thrust generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. However, during vertical flight, thrust deflection assembly 200 deflects thrust downward along the longitudinal axis of aircraft 100.

Figure 2 illustrates a more detailed view of the thrust deflection assembly 200 in a stowed state during forward flight. In one embodiment, thrust deflection assembly 200 includes a pair of movable doors 202 and 204, cascade 206, and control box 208. Thrust 300, exiting jet engine 10 (not shown), is steers so as to avoid deflection assembly 200 in this figure. Cascade 206 and / or control box 208 can be moved between a folded position and deployed positions (see, for example, Figures 3-6). To achieve this, it is possible to use any suitable apparatus, such as a mechanical lever or a hydraulic actuator.

As shown in Figures 3-6, in certain types of flight, at least a portion of the thrust 300 is deflected by the thrust deflection assembly 200. For example, in Figure 3, the thrust is deflected at approximately 35 degrees. with respect to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. To accomplish this, doors 200 and 204 are moved to direct a portion 300 of thrust 300 toward cascade 206, which diverts thrust 300 through control box 208. As explained in more detail below, the control box 208 can be manipulated in order to control the pitch, yaw and roll of the aircraft during vertical flight. Figures 4-6 illustrate the placement of the thrust deflection assembly 200, wherein the thrust 300 is being deflected approximately 45, 90, and 105 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axis, respectively. As can be appreciated from these figures, as the deflection angle increases toward 90 degrees, the portion 300 of the thrust 300 increases until all or substantially all of the thrust is forced through the deflection assembly of the thrust 200. During hovering, aircraft 100 may use the arrangement of Figure 5.

Figure 7 illustrates a more detailed view of cascade 206 and control box 208. As can be seen in this figure, cascade 206 has a plurality of slats 206a that allow the thrust flow 300 to be directed through it. On the other hand, the control box 208, which is attached to the cascade 206, has a plurality of fins 208a arranged therein. As shown in Figure 8, fins 208a may be hinged to move about pivots 208b. Figure 9 illustrates a perspective view of the assembly

ES 2 425 216 T3 deflection of thrust 200 according to an embodiment of the invention.

During forward flight, the pilot can control the pitch, yaw and roll of the aircraft primarily through conventional control elements (eg rudder, elevator, and ailerons). However, as explained in more detail below, during vertical flight the pilot can control the pitch, yaw and roll of the aircraft primarily through thrust deflection assembly 200.

Specifically, the aircraft control system can be seen in Figure 10. First, it should be noted that, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, two cascades 206 and two control boxes 208 are included. Preferably, each The set is associated with a separate jet engine.

As shown in FIG. 10, a pilot control command entry apparatus 102 may include conventional pilot command entry devices, such as a lever 104 and rudder pedals 106. The control command entry apparatus The pilot 102 may be operatively associated with a control mixer 108 (shown in more detail in FIG. 11). For example, the pilot control command input apparatus 102 may be mechanically linked to the control mixer 108. Alternatively, an electronic link (wired or wireless) may be used. Control mixer 108 may be operatively associated with each rudder 110, elevator 112, ailerons 114, and control box 208. Again, the link may be mechanical or electronic. In the embodiments shown, a mechanical link is used. In addition, the control mixer 108 can directly control the rudder 110, the elevator 112, the ailerons 114 and the control box 208, or it can control servomotors or other devices that, in turn, directly control one or all This elements.

Figure 11 shows a more detailed view of one embodiment of the control mixer 108. As illustrated, a mechanical converter assembly 116 is used to branch the received input from 102 in order to provide controls for the flight devices of advance (110, 112 and 114) and vertical flight devices (208). The relative proportion of motion between the forward flight devices and the vertical flight devices can be controlled by adjusting the positions of the link pins of the assembly 116.

Next, the control of the pitch, yaw and roll of the aircraft will be explained.

Figure 12 illustrates a mechanism for controlling pitch in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. During forward flight, pitch can be controlled primarily by the elevator 112. During vertical flight, pitch can be controlled by rotating the control box 208 about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. As shown in Figure 12, when control box 208 is rotated to the position shown at 208 ', the aircraft will pitch up, while when control box 208 is rotated to position 208, the aircraft will perform a nod down.

Figure 13 illustrates a mechanism for controlling roll in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The right and left are shown reversed in the figure, as this is a bottom view. During forward flight, roll can be controlled primarily by ailerons 114. During vertical flight, roll can be controlled by rotating fins 208a of control box 208.

Figure 14 illustrates a mechanism for controlling yaw in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. During forward flight, yaw can be controlled primarily by the rudder 116. During vertical flight, yaw can be controlled by differential rotation of the left and right control boxes 208. That is, the control boxes 208 are rotated in the manner described above with respect to yaw. However, they move in opposite directions in order to achieve the desired yaw.

It will be understood that the foregoing description has been developed with respect to particular embodiments of the invention. While this description is fully capable of achieving the objects of the invention, it is understood that it is merely representative of the broad scope of the envisaged invention, and that numerous variations of the above embodiments may be known or may become known. They are either apparent or may become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, and these variations are fully included within the broad scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is limited only by the claims appended hereto, and by equivalents thereto. In these claims, a reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one", unless explicitly stated. Rather, such expression is understood to mean "one or more". All equivalents

ES 2 425 216 T3 structural and functional elements of the above-described preferred embodiment that are known or subsequently become known to those skilled in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference, and are intended to are included in the present claims. On the other hand, it is not necessary for an apparatus or method to solve any or all of the problems that are intended to be solved by the present invention in order for it to be included in the present claims. Furthermore, no element, component or process step of the present invention is intended to be dedicated to the general public, regardless of whether the element, component or process step is explicitly described in the claims.