초록 ▼

A recovery system for decelerating/stabilizing and protecting space vehicles, boosters, astronauts, equipment and like payloads, including a paracanopy defined by a frusto-conical flexible uninflated skin forming a decelerator/stabilizer surface having a small inflated torus at it leading end and a

A recovery system for decelerating/stabilizing and protecting space vehicles, boosters, astronauts, equipment and like payloads, including a paracanopy defined by a frusto-conical flexible uninflated skin forming a decelerator/stabilizer surface having a small inflated torus at it leading end and a larger trailing torus at its trailing end with an inflated annular protective sheath therebetween protecting the payload housed therein, duct means between the toruses and the annular sheath for forming a fluidically rigidified frame, and the fluidically rigidified frame maintaining the flexible skin in taut though uninflated condition during entry and recovery, The paracanopy further can include an inflated buoyant section for recovery at sea, and depending upon the payload to be recovered, the paracanopy can be deployed as a single structure from one end of the payload or from opposite ends of the payload as two separate cooperative structures. The paracanopy/recovery structure can also include an inflated attenuator for absorbing ground impact forces.

대표청구항 ▼

A paracanopy for decelerating/stabilizing space vehicles, boosters, astronauts, equipment and like payloads comprising a generally frusto-conical flexible uninflated skin defining a decelerator/stabilizer surface having relatively axially spaced leading and trailing end portions, said leading end po

A paracanopy for decelerating/stabilizing space vehicles, boosters, astronauts, equipment and like payloads comprising a generally frusto-conical flexible uninflated skin defining a decelerator/stabilizer surface having relatively axially spaced leading and trailing end portions, said leading end portion being of a smaller diameter than said trailing end portion, an inflatable torus at said trailing end portion, an inflatable annular protective sheath at least partially disposed within said frusto-conical skin, said annular sheath being adapted to intimately surround at least a portion of a payload housed therein, means for connecting said paracanopy to an associated payload, duct means between said torus and said annular sheath for defining upon inflation thereof a fluidically rigidified frame, means for inflating said torus, annular sheath and duct means incident to vehicle reentry to fluidically rigidify said frame thereby maintaining said flexible skin in taut, though uninflated, condition and in progessively spaced relationship from said annular sheath between said leading and trailing end portions, means for spacing an inner annular surface of said annular sheath from an exterior surface of an associated payload, and means for injecting a cooling gas between said annular sheath inner annular surface and said payload exterior surface.