METHOD FOR MOVING AN AIRCRAFT ALONG THE GROUND

• US 20110259995A1
• Filed: 10/22/2009
• Published: 10/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus, Airbus Operations (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS NV)
• Original Assignee: Airbus, Airbus Operations (European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company EADS NV)
• Inventors: Cros, Christophe, Frings, Carsten
• Granted Patent: US 8,788,117 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 244/50
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/22 for handling aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/227 for direct connection to aircraft, e.g. tow tractors without towing bars
• CPC Class Codes: B64F 1/228 remotely controlled; operating autonomously
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/80 Energy efficient operational measures, e.g. ground operations or mission management

Abstract

A method according to which an aircraft is moved along the ground by means of at least two separate appliances connected to the aircraft independently from each other or other appliances. A control element is provided for moving an aircraft, said element sending instructions to at least two separate appliances in order to move the aircraft along the ground by means of the appliances. The invention also relates to an appliance for implementing the method, which can communicate with an identical appliance in order to transmit and/or receive at least one datum relating to a position and/or a movement of one of the appliances.

Claims

1. Method for moving an aircraft, wherein the aircraft is moved along the ground by means of at least two separate appliances connected to the aircraft independently from each other or other appliances.

2. Method according to claim 1, wherein one part of the aircraft, such as a landing gear, is moved forward by one of the appliances and another part of the aircraft, such as a landing gear, is moved backward by another one of the appliances.

3. Computer program comprising instructions that can control execution of the steps of a method according to claim 1 when it is executed on a computer.

4. Appliance for implementing a method according to claim 1, which can communicate with an identical appliance in order to transmit and/or receive at least one datum relating to a position and/or a movement of one of the appliances.

5. Appliance according to claim 4, which can detect that an engine of an aircraft being moved by the appliance has started and, due to this detection, control a movement of the appliance away from the aircraft.

6. Appliance according to claim 4, which can detect presence of an aircraft landing gear in a predetermined zone away from the appliance and, further to this detection, take up a position where it can move the aircraft.

7. Appliance according to claim 4, comprising means to detect when a nose wheel of the aircraft turns and to modify a position and/or a movement of the appliance according to this detection.

8. Control element for moving an aircraft, wherein it can send instructions to at least two separate appliances in order to move the aircraft along the ground by means of the appliances.

9. Element according to claim 8, which can control at least one the appliances according to at least one datum relating to a position and/or a movement of the other appliance or of at least one of the other appliances.

10. Aircraft comprising a control element according to claim 8.