An amphibious aircraft has a tricycle landing gear that is movable between a retracted, or up, position and an extended, or down, position. Each member of the landing gear is protected in the forward direction by a hydrodynamic protector, or vane, or shoe, such as may tend to create lift when brough
An amphibious aircraft has a tricycle landing gear that is movable between a retracted, or up, position and an extended, or down, position. Each member of the landing gear is protected in the forward direction by a hydrodynamic protector, or vane, or shoe, such as may tend to create lift when brought into engagement with water, as during landing. The landing gear protector vanes may be mounted to move with extension and retraction of the landing gear. The landing gear wheels may protrude to extend partially downwardly proud of the sole of the shoe. The landing gear actuator and transmission may operate all gear in concert. The shoes may include sacrificial wear members for ground engagement in the event of an inadvertent gear-up landing on terrain.
대표청구항▼
1. Landing gear for an amphibious aircraft, said landing gear comprising: a wheel for rolling contact with a landing surface, and a deflector;said deflector defining a water-riding shell extending predominantly forwardly of said wheel;said deflector being pivotally mounted to a fixed position member
1. Landing gear for an amphibious aircraft, said landing gear comprising: a wheel for rolling contact with a landing surface, and a deflector;said deflector defining a water-riding shell extending predominantly forwardly of said wheel;said deflector being pivotally mounted to a fixed position member of the amphibious aircraft forwardly of said wheel;said deflector having an accommodation in which said wheel is mounted;said wheel extending partially downwardly proud of said deflector; andsaid wheel and said deflector being mounted to move together, with said wheel protruding partially downwardly proud of said deflector. 2. The landing gear of claim 1 wherein said wheel is movable between a retracted position and an extended position, and said water-riding shell is correspondingly movable in co-operation with said wheel. 3. The landing gear of claim 2 wherein, immediately forward of said wheel said deflector has a centerline slope forwardly and upwardly of said wheel of less than 30 degrees from horizontal when said wheel is in said extended position. 4. The landing gear of claim 2 wherein, in said retracted position, immediately forward of said wheel said deflector has a centerline slope forwardly of said wheel that is tangent to horizontal. 5. The landing gear of claim 2 wherein said deflector forms one leg of a four-bar linkage, and said wheel is carried in a seat defining at least one other leg of that four-bar linkage. 6. The landing gear of claim 1 wherein said wheel has a foremost exposed portion and at said foremost exposed portion of said wheel a tangent to said wheel, when seen in side view has an angle of less than 45 degrees of arc from horizontal. 7. The landing gear of claim 1 wherein said deflector has an opening formed therein, and said wheel protrudes through said opening. 8. The landing gear of claim 1 wherein said deflector has a first side portion, a second side portion, and a keel portion therebetween, said wheel being mounted between said first side portion and said second side portion and said deflector extends at least three diameters forward of said wheel. 9. The landing gear of claim 1 wherein said deflector has a sacrificial spine, and said sacrificial spine is exposed and foremost, whereby in a gear-up landing said sacrificial spine is closer to the ground than any other non-wheel structure. 10. An amphibious aircraft having a water-riding shell and a wheeled landing gear for landing on a landing field, said wheeled landing gear being operable between retracted and extended positions, said landing gear being mounted within, and extending partially downwardly proud of, movable landing gear housings that define water-engaging surfaces forwardly and laterally of said landing gear, said amphibious aircraft having a first fixed position member located forwardly of a first of said landing gear housings, said first landing gear housing being movable relative to said first fixed-position member, said first landing gear housing being pivotally mounted to said amphibious aircraft forwardly of a first wheel of said landing gear; said first fixed position member and said first landing gear housing forming a co-operating common fairing of said amphibious aircraft; and, when said landing gear is operated to move from said retracted position to said extended position, said first landing gear housing and said first wheel of said landing gear move together, with said first wheel of said landing gear extending partially downwardly proud thereof. 11. The amphibious aircraft of claim 10 wherein said landing gear is a tricycle landing gear. 12. The amphibious aircraft of claim 10 wherein said landing gear includes a plurality of wheels and one of said landing gear wheels is a steerable nose gear. 13. A landing gear housing for a landing gear of an amphibious aircraft, said landing gear housing comprising: a water-riding shell having a leading end and a trailing end;said water-riding shell having a leading portion, a first side portion extending upwardly, and rearwardly to one side of said leading portion, and a second side portion extending upwardly and rearwardly to an opposite side of said leading portion, said first and second side portions being opposed;said leading end of said water-riding shell having a first mounting fitting movably connecting said landing gear housing to fixed structure of the amphibious aircraft, said first mounting fitting accommodating motion of said landing gear between a retracted position and an extended position;said trailing end of said water riding shell having a second mounting fitting for a wheel of said landing gear between said first and second side portions, the wheel having an axis of rotation, said second mounting fitting orienting the axis of rotation of the wheel transversely to said water-riding shell;said first mounting fitting is a pivotal fitting having an axis of rotation constraining said shell to angular motion, the axis of rotation of the wheel being parallel to the axis of rotation of said pivotal fitting; andsaid water riding shell having an accommodation through which the wheel protrudes downwardly in both said retracted position and said extended position. 14. The landing gear housing of claim 13 wherein, as installed on the amphibious aircraft the landing gear housing defines one bar of a four bar linkage. 15. The landing gear housing of claim 13 wherein said shell has a keel extending along said leading portion thereof. 16. The landing gear housing of claim 13 wherein said shell has an external surface defining an external surface of the amphibious aircraft during both flight and water borne operation. 17. A combination of the landing gear housing of claim 13 and a co-operating fixed-position member of the amphibious aircraft wherein the fixed position member and the shell form a co-operating common fairing of the aircraft. 18. The combination of claim 17 wherein said shell has at least a first hydrofoil member mounted thereto, and said fixed position member has an accommodation defined therein in which at least a portion of said first hydrofoil seats when said landing gear is in the retracted position.
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Dazet Francis,FRX, Aircraft landing gear, equipped with a device for protection of a nearby fuel tank, and aircraft equipped with this landing gear.
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