IPC분류정보
국가/구분 |
United States(US) Patent
등록
|
국제특허분류(IPC7판) |
|
출원번호 |
US-0245412
(2008-10-03)
|
등록번호 |
US-8336830
(2012-12-25)
|
발명자
/ 주소 |
|
출원인 / 주소 |
|
대리인 / 주소 |
Hope Baldauff Hartman, LLC
|
인용정보 |
피인용 횟수 :
3 인용 특허 :
16 |
초록
▼
Apparatus and methods provide for the use of retractable aircraft wing tips to increase the wingspan of an aircraft to decrease drag and increase fuel efficiency. According to various embodiments, a flexible lifting envelope is attached to an outboard end of an aircraft wing. Upon receiving pressuri
Apparatus and methods provide for the use of retractable aircraft wing tips to increase the wingspan of an aircraft to decrease drag and increase fuel efficiency. According to various embodiments, a flexible lifting envelope is attached to an outboard end of an aircraft wing. Upon receiving pressurized air, the flexible lifting envelope extends outward to a lift-producing configuration that extends the span of the aircraft wing to which it is attached. When deflated, the flexible lifting envelope retracts into a stowed configuration to decrease the wingspan of the aircraft to allow for parking at airport gates or to alleviate flight loads. Various implementations provide for a telescoping wing tip and for a rolled wing tip.
대표청구항
▼
1. A retractable aircraft wing tip, comprising: a flexible lifting envelope configured for attachment to an outboard end of an aircraft wing, configured to extend from a stowed configuration to a lift-producing configuration that increases a span of the aircraft wing upon receipt of internal air, an
1. A retractable aircraft wing tip, comprising: a flexible lifting envelope configured for attachment to an outboard end of an aircraft wing, configured to extend from a stowed configuration to a lift-producing configuration that increases a span of the aircraft wing upon receipt of internal air, and configured to retract from the lift-producing configuration to the stowed configuration to decrease the span of the aircraft wing upon discharging the internal air; anda release valve in communication with an interior of the flexible lifting envelope and with an atmosphere external to the flexible lifting envelope, the release valve operative to discharge the internal air from the flexible lifting envelope to the atmosphere to retract the flexible lifting envelope to the stowed configuration. 2. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, further comprising a telescoping wing tip spar attached to the flexible lifting envelope, the telescoping wing tip spar configured to extend outward with the flexible lifting envelope to the lift-producing configuration upon receipt of the internal air such that the telescoping wing tip spar provides structural support to the retractable aircraft wing tip while the flexible lifting envelope creates lift. 3. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 2, wherein the flexible lifting envelope comprises a plurality of accordion-style folds when configured in the stowed configuration. 4. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, further comprising a flexible spar attached at an outboard end of the flexible spar to the flexible lifting envelope,wherein the stowed configuration comprises a rolled-up configuration, andwherein the flexible spar is configured to be biased in the rolled-up configuration such that being configured to extend from the stowed configuration to the lift-producing configuration that increases the span of the aircraft wing upon receipt of the internal air comprises being configured to unroll from the rolled configuration at the outboard end of the aircraft wing to an unrolled configuration that increases the span of the aircraft wing for lift creation upon receipt of the internal air. 5. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 4, wherein the flexible lifting envelope being configured to retract from the lift-producing configuration to the stowed configuration to decrease the span of the aircraft wing upon discharging the internal air comprises the flexible spar being configured to roll up toward the outboard end of the aircraft wing upon a release of the internal air such that the flexible lifting envelope rolls up to decrease the span of the aircraft wing. 6. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, wherein the internal air comprises engine bleed air routed from an aircraft engine during inflation of the flexible lifting envelope from the stowed configuration. 7. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 6, wherein the retractable aircraft wing tip is further configured to maintain the lift-producing configuration after the flexible lifting envelope is fully inflated to the lift-producing configuration utilizing backpressure without requiring the engine bleed air. 8. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, wherein the internal air comprises compressed air originating from an air pump. 9. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of ribs disposed within the flexible lifting envelope to provide chord-wise structural support to the retractable aircraft wing tip. 10. The retractable aircraft wing tip of claim 1, wherein the flexible lifting envelope is configured to extend and to retract during any phase of aircraft operations. 11. A reconfigurable aircraft wing assembly, comprising: a primary wing body comprising a wing tip cavity at an outboard end of the primary wing body;a retractable aircraft wing tip configured for attachment to the outboard end of the primary wing body and operative to deploy from the wing tip cavity to a lift-producing configuration that increases a span of the primary wing body upon receipt of internal air and to retract from the lift-producing configuration to a stowed configuration within the wing tip cavity upon discharging the internal air; anda release valve in communication with an interior of the flexible lifting envelope and with an atmosphere external to the flexible lifting envelope, the release valve operative to discharge the internal air from the flexible lifting envelope to the atmosphere to retract the flexible lifting envelope to the stowed configuration. 12. The reconfigurable aircraft wing assembly of claim 11, wherein the retractable aircraft wing tip comprises: a flexible lifting envelope, the flexible lifting envelope comprising a closed wing tip end, anda secured base end opposite the closed wing tip end, the secured base end having an inflation valve for receiving the internal air; anda telescoping wing tip spar attached at a base end to the primary wing body and at a tip end to the closed wing tip end of the flexible lifting envelope, wherein the telescoping wing tip spar is configured to extend outward from the primary wing body to deploy the flexible lifting envelope to the lift-producing configuration upon receipt of the internal air such that the telescoping wing tip spar provides structural support to the retractable aircraft wing tip while the flexible lifting envelope creates lift. 13. The reconfigurable aircraft wing assembly of claim 11, wherein the retractable aircraft wing tip comprises: a flexible lifting envelope, the flexible lifting envelope comprising a closed wing tip end, anda secured base end opposite the closed wing tip end, the secured base end having an inflation valve for receiving the internal air; anda flexible spar attached at a base end to the primary wing body and at a tip end to the closed wing tip end of the flexible lifting envelope, wherein the flexible spar is configured to be biased in a rolled-up configuration such that being operative to deploy from the wing tip cavity to the lift-producing configuration that increases the span of the primary wing body upon receipt of the internal air comprises being configured to unroll from the rolled-up configuration within the wing tip cavity to an unrolled configuration that increases the span of the aircraft wing for lift creation upon receipt of the internal air, and such that being operative to retract from the lift-producing configuration to the stowed configuration within the wing tip cavity upon discharging the internal air comprises being configured to roll up into the wing tip cavity upon discharging the internal air. 14. The reconfigurable aircraft wing assembly of claim 11, wherein the internal air comprises engine bleed air routed from an aircraft engine during inflation of the retractable aircraft wing tip from the stowed configuration. 15. A method for modifying a wingspan of an aircraft wing during flight operations, comprising: inflating two opposing flexible wing tips from corresponding wing tip cavities at opposing ends of the aircraft wing such that each of the two opposing wing tips deploys from a collapsed stowed configuration to an extended lift-producing configuration to increase the wingspan of the aircraft for flight; andactuating a relief valve operative to release internal air from each flexible wing tip to deflate the two opposing flexible wing tips into the corresponding wing tip cavities such that each of the two opposing wing tips retracts from the extended lift-producing configuration to the collapsed stowed configuration to decrease the wingspan of the aircraft for parking. 16. The method of claim 15, wherein inflating the two opposing flexible wing tips comprises routing engine bleed air from at least one aircraft engine into each flexible wing tip. 17. The method of claim 15, wherein each flexible wing tip comprises a telescoping wing tip spar attached to an accordion-style flexible lifting envelope such that inflating the two opposing flexible wing tips comprises pushing air into each flexible wing tip to telescopically extend each flexible wing tip outward until the telescoping wing tip spar has fully extended and the flexible lifting envelope has expanded to a lift-producing shape. 18. The method of claim 15, wherein each flexible wing tip comprises a flexible spar attached to an inside envelope of a flexible lifting envelope and biased in a rolled-up configuration such that inflating the two opposing flexible wing tips comprises pushing air into each flexible wing tip to unroll each flexible wing tip outward until the flexible wing tip spar has fully unrolled and the flexible lifting envelope has expanded to a lift-producing shape.
※ AI-Helper는 부적절한 답변을 할 수 있습니다.