Aeronautics and astronautics – Aircraft – heavier-than-air – Airplane and fluid sustained
Patent
1982-09-29
1984-11-13
Barefoot, Galen L.
Aeronautics and astronautics
Aircraft, heavier-than-air
Airplane and fluid sustained
244 23B, 244 46, 244 48, 244 56, B64C 1512, B64C 2900, B64C 1514, B64C 338
Patent
active
044821085
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DESCRIPTION
1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a short takeoff and landing (STOL) or vertical short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) aircraft in which the engines are positioned upwardly on the wings to permit upper surface blowing, that is, jet exhaust over the wings.
2. Background Art
Known prior art subsonic STOL and V/STOL aircraft designs all had the following disadvantages and/or problems: extensive mechanical transmission and cross-shafting apparatus; exotic vectoring or nacelle tilt schemes; new engine and/or low pressure ratio fan development requirements; engine out control; and poor mission match.
A search of the patent literature discloses a number of systems which, generally speaking, indirectly relate to some of the problems discussed above with respect to the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,007,319 discloses an engine for driving a propeller and having an auxiliary wing attached, centered above the aircraft wing, the engine propeller and auxiliary wing being tiltable to provide variable lifting power or to meet peculiar conditions of operation, either while the airplane is on the ground or in flight.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,657,882 discloses an airplane wing support structure which automatically compensates or neutralizes improper manipulation of the airplane so that the angle of attack of the wing is always maintained within predetermined close limits so that control and lift of the plane are maintained at all times.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,941,752 a trim surface in an aircraft is located forwardly of the center of gravity so as to be effective only at flight attitudes in which excessive stability is available and is of such size and so located relative to the center of gravity of the wing as to permit attainment of the required amount of stability at high values of lift coefficient. The trim surface is a retractable auxiliary airfoil.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,190,583 an airplane is disclosed having one or more adjustable airfoil surfaces which may be disposed to shorten the distance required for takeoff as well as landing of the airplane. When in flight, the airfoil surfaces may be positioned to increase or decrease the lift.
The following patents disclose systems remote from the present invention: U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,015,150; 2,063,030; 2,504,767; 2,695,144; 2,699,300; 2,884,633; 2,941,752; 2,973,166; 3,190,583; 3,206,146; 3,884,435.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is comprised of an aircraft having gull-shaped wings with turbofan engines on each of the ascending portions of the gull-shaped wings and has turbojet lift/boost engines, one on each side of the lower fuselage.
Each wing is adapted to be tilted and translated by a respective varying incidence and translation device.
By proper placement of the engines, all vertical takeoff and landing and short takeoff and landing trim and control moments can be handled with critical engine failure. The net vertical takeoff thrust/engine installed weight for the present invention is of the order 5.5 compared to about 4 for the prior art cross-shafted designs.
In the present invention the wing tilt feature provides additional vectoring capability needed for vertical takeoff and landing; that is, the wing tilt requirement is about 30.degree. to provide a thrust vectoring capability of about 110.degree.. The wing translation provides a center of gravity travel trim and critical engine out moment trim. Thrust vectoring of turbofan engines is accomplished by a combination of upper surface blowing and wing tilt while the lift/boost lower turbojet engines are vectored by swiveling nozzles, the swiveling being made possible by variably directed cascades or ball and socket, rotatable nozzles. Critical engine out lateral trim is accomplished by a combination of airplane bank and differential vectoring by the lift/boost engines.
Synergistically, the variable incidence, translating wing, according to the invention, allows the incorporation of a light, short, tandem landing gear and smaller horizontal tail because nose wheel rotation is not requ
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Barefoot Galen L.
Barnard Delbert J.
Heberer Eugene O.
The Boeing Company
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