Hybrid unmanned vehicle for high altitude operations

Aeronautics and astronautics – Aircraft – lighter-than-air

Reexamination Certificate

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

C244S025000

Reexamination Certificate

active

11334581

ABSTRACT:
A hybrid aerial vehicle is optimized, for example, and not by way of limitation, to operate above 100,000 feet in altitude and provide persistent and maneuverable flight while carrying a wide array of communications and sensing payloads. The hybrid vehicle may use the high altitude winds to gain altitude by pitching up with the center of gravity (CG) control and using its propulsion drive to thrust into the wind to create aerodynamic lift to rise above the neutral buoyancy altitude. The hybrid vehicle will pitch down with the CG control so as to use gravity and propulsion to accelerate. Yaw control directs the flight towards any compass direction by rotating the gondola. This maneuvering capability permits the vehicle to station operate persistently, even in high winds. The lighter-than-air inflatable saucer shape is optimized for maintaining an aerodynamic cross-section to the prevailing wind from any direction in the vehicle horizontal plane. A gondola below the saucer contains a motor, batteries, solar collector, sensors, and yaw and CG control mechanisms.

REFERENCES:
patent: 1569161 (1926-01-01), Valkenberg
patent: 3223360 (1965-12-01), Hertel et al.
patent: 3971533 (1976-07-01), Slater
patent: 4085912 (1978-04-01), Slater
patent: 4534525 (1985-08-01), Bliamptis
patent: 5518205 (1996-05-01), Wurst et al.
patent: 5906335 (1999-05-01), Thompson
patent: 6305641 (2001-10-01), Onda et al.
patent: 6568631 (2003-05-01), Hillsdon
patent: 6581873 (2003-06-01), McDermott
patent: 7036768 (2006-05-01), Bundo
patent: 7093789 (2006-08-01), Barocela et al.
patent: 2002/0134884 (2002-09-01), Perry et al.
patent: 2005/0151006 (2005-07-01), Krill et al.
patent: 2005/0263642 (2005-12-01), Geery
patent: 2005/0269441 (2005-12-01), Barocela et al.
patent: 2006/0060695 (2006-03-01), Walden et al.
patent: 2006/0091256 (2006-05-01), Palmer
patent: 0312075 (1989-04-01), None
patent: 2681307 (1993-03-01), None
patent: 2803272 (2001-07-01), None
International Search Report and Written Opinion, Jun. 7, 2006

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for the USA inventors and patents. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Hybrid unmanned vehicle for high altitude operations does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.

If you have personal experience with Hybrid unmanned vehicle for high altitude operations, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Hybrid unmanned vehicle for high altitude operations will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3906798

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.