Aircraft assembly including deflection sensor
First Claim
1. An aircraft landing gear assembly comprising:
- a shock-absorbing strut comprising a cylinder and a sliding tube;
attachment lugs configured to couple the shock-absorbing strut to an aircraft airframe;
a first region at or adjacent to the attachment lugs;
a second region spaced from the first region by a flexible region, the flexible region comprising at least a portion of the shock-absorbing strut, the first region having greater positional stability than the second region such that flexing of the flexible region due to in-use loads causes the second region to deflect further from a second default position than the first region deflects from a first default position; and
a deflection sensor comprising;
a first gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the first region so as to generate a first signal which represents rotation of the first region about one or more orthogonal axes;
a second gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the second region so as to generate a second signal which represents rotation of the second region about the one or more orthogonal axes, the second gyroscope being synchronised in time with the first gyroscope; and
a controller communicatively coupled to the first and second gyroscopes to receive the first and second signals, the controller being configured to subtract one of the first and second signals from the other to obtain a differential signal which represents deflection of the second region relative to the first region due to flexing of the flexible region.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An aircraft assembly having a first region, a second region spaced from the first region by a flexible region, and a deflection sensor. The first region has greater positional stability than the second region such that the second region deflects further from its default position than the first region during in-use loads. The deflection sensor includes a first gyroscope at the first region to generate a first signal representing rotation of the first region about one or more orthogonal axes, and a second gyroscope at the second region to generate a second signal representing rotation of the second region about the one or more axes. The second gyroscope is synchronised in time with the first. A controller subtracts one of the first and second signals from the other to obtain a differential signal representing deflection of the second region relative to the first due to flexing of the flexible region.
148 Citations
15 Claims
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1. An aircraft landing gear assembly comprising:
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a shock-absorbing strut comprising a cylinder and a sliding tube; attachment lugs configured to couple the shock-absorbing strut to an aircraft airframe; a first region at or adjacent to the attachment lugs; a second region spaced from the first region by a flexible region, the flexible region comprising at least a portion of the shock-absorbing strut, the first region having greater positional stability than the second region such that flexing of the flexible region due to in-use loads causes the second region to deflect further from a second default position than the first region deflects from a first default position; and a deflection sensor comprising; a first gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the first region so as to generate a first signal which represents rotation of the first region about one or more orthogonal axes; a second gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the second region so as to generate a second signal which represents rotation of the second region about the one or more orthogonal axes, the second gyroscope being synchronised in time with the first gyroscope; and a controller communicatively coupled to the first and second gyroscopes to receive the first and second signals, the controller being configured to subtract one of the first and second signals from the other to obtain a differential signal which represents deflection of the second region relative to the first region due to flexing of the flexible region. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An aircraft landing gear assembly comprising:
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a shock-absorbing strut comprising a cylinder and a sliding tube; an axle transverse to the shock-absorbing strut; a first region; a second region spaced from the first region by a flexible region, the first region having greater positional stability than the second region such that flexing of the flexible region due to in-use loads causes the second region to deflect further from a second default position than the first region deflects from a first default position; and a deflection sensor comprising; a first gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the first region so as to generate a first signal which represents rotation of the first region about one or more orthogonal axes; a second gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the second region so as to generate a second signal which represents rotation of the second region about the one or more orthogonal axes, the second gyroscope being synchronised in time with the first gyroscope; and a controller communicatively coupled to the first and second gyroscopes to receive the first and second signals, the controller being configured to subtract one of the first and second signals from the other to obtain a differential signal which represents deflection of second region relative to the first region due to flexing of the flexible region; wherein the flexible region comprises the axle and, the second region is relatively closer to a free end of the axle than the first region is, and the deflection sensor is arranged to measure deflection of the axle.
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15. An aircraft landing gear assembly comprising:
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a shock-absorbing strut comprising a cylinder and a sliding tube; an axle transverse to the shock-absorbing strut; a first region; a second region spaced from the first region by a flexible region, the first region having greater positional stability than the second region such that flexing of the flexible region due to in-use loads causes the second region to deflect further from a second default position than the first region deflects from a first default position; and a deflection sensor comprising; a first gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the first region so as to generate a first signal which represents rotation of the first region about one or more orthogonal axes; a second gyroscope rigidly mounted at, or with respect to, the second region so as to generate a second signal which represents rotation of the second region about the one or more orthogonal axes, the second gyroscope being synchronised in time with the first gyroscope; and a controller communicatively coupled to the first and second gyroscopes to receive the first and second signals, the controller being configured to subtract one of the first and second signals from the other to obtain a differential signal which represents deflection of the second region relative to the first region due to flexing of the flexible region; wherein the first or second region is at or adjacent the middle of the axle, and the flexible region comprises at least a portion of the shock-absorbing strut or at least a portion of the axle.
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Specification