Lift Propulsion and Stabilizing System and Procedure For Vertical Take-Off and Landing Aircraft

• US 20130251525A1
• Filed: 04/12/2011
• Published: 09/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Manuel M. Saiz
• Original Assignee: Manuel M. Saiz
• Inventors: Saiz, Manuel M.
• Granted Patent: US 9,702,254 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 416/23
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 27/26 characterised by provision of fixed wings
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 27/30 with provision for reducing drag of inoperative rotor
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 29/0025 the propellers being fixed relative to the fuselage
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 29/0083 the lift during taking-off being created by several motors of different type
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/06 having disc- or ring-shaped wings
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2221/00 Electric power distribution systems onboard aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/02 Aircraft characterised by the type or position of power plants fuselages specially adapted for mounting power plants B64C1/16; wings specially adapted for power plants B64C3/32
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/026 comprising different types of power plants, e.g. combination of a piston engine and a gas-turbine Hybrid electric aircraft B64D27/33
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/24 using steam or spring force jet aircraft B64D27/16
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 41/00 Power installations for auxiliary purposes
• CPC Class Codes: F01D 5/00 Blades; Blade-carrying members nozzle boxes F01D9/02; Heating, heat-insulating, cooling or antivibration means on the blades or the members special arrangements in rotors dealing with breaking off of part thereof F01D21/045
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/60 Efficient propulsion technologies, e.g. for aircraft

Abstract

Lift propulsion and stabilizing system and procedure for vertical takeoff and landing aircraft that consists in applying simultaneously and combined as lifters during the initial portion of the climb and at the end of the descent of: a) some fans or electric turbines, EDF, and b) at least one rotor with external blades and/or rotary and/or c) the engine flow directed downwards and/or d) pressure air jets injected on leading edges control fins, and/or e) water jets and/or f) supplemented with aerodynamic lift produced during frontal advance of the aircraft, the stabilization is achieved by the gyroscopic stiffness of the rotor and two or more lifting fans oscillating fins and/or air jets located on two or stabilizers more peripheral points in a plane perpendicular to the vertical axis of the aircraft.

Claims

1-55. -55. (canceled)

56. Lift propulsion and stabilizing system and procedure for vertical takeoff and landing aircraft that consists in applying simultaneously and combined as lifters during the initial portion of the climb and at the end of the descent of:

a) some fans or electric turbines, EDF, driven by electric motors powered or driven by flywheels, compressed air stored in the frame tubular hollow structure of the aircraft or in air or nitrogen bottle, GPU, Group tire, APU, turbo-shaft, or generators or supergenerators, fuel cells or batteries and b) at least one rotor with external blades and/or wings rotating at medium or high speed, powered or driven by flywheels, compressed air stored in the frame of the hollow tubular structure of the aircraft or air or nitrogen bottle, GPU, Group tire, APU, turbo-shaft, generators or supergenerators, fuel cells and batteries, electric, pneumatic, hydraulic or mechanical, and/or c) the engine flow directed downwards and/or d) pressure air jets injected on leading edges of the control fins, and/or e) water jets and/or f) supplemented with aerodynamic lift produced during frontal advance of the aircraft, on ground is used preferably GPU and/or pneumatics to speed flywheels, during climb the aerodynamic lift will be increased smoothly and gradually to be equal to or greater than the weight of the aircraft, at that time, is left only the standard or conventional configuration of aerodynamic lift and propulsion, in descent the aerodynamic lift is reduced until this is completely produced by the rotors and/or fans or vertical flow of the turbines, stabilization is achieved with the gyroscopic stiffness of the rotors and two or more lifting fans, oscillating fins or air jets located in two or more peripheral points in a plane perpendicular to the vertical axis

57. System according to claim 56, wherein the fans blades and rotary wings are helical, or else, lenticular, discoidal, lenticular plane-convex, oval, flat-oval with a convex inclined through slots (2f) and recesses (2k and 2c) all parallel to each other, with rounded edges and which rotate around the vertical axis of symmetry.

58. System according to claim 56, wherein the blades of the fans and rotary wing and are helical, or else, rotating lenticular, discoidal, lenticular surfaces plane-convex, oval, flat-oval convex surfaces with a slanted through slots (2f) and fins attached (2h, 2g) projecting slanted or inclined recesses all parallel to each other, with rounded edges and rotate around the vertical axis of symmetry.

59. System according to claim 56, wherein the leading and trailing edge sections of the rotary articulated blades (19) have a strip which tends to elevate them (23).

60. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotor blades and the rotary wings and oval, plane-convex and/or rectangular used NACA 0006, NACA 2206, NACA 2306, profiles, the rotary wings are blocked in the position of conventional wings.

61. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotary wings use radial blades or vanes, one of which is extended by the centrifugal force and is retracted by springs, the other blade remains extended and fixed.

62. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotary wings use two or more blades or vanes which extend radial, rotary or telescopically by the action of the centrifugal force and are retracted by springs.

63. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotary wings use two blades or vanes which extend radially and telescopically by the action of centrifugal force and one of them does no retract totally, acting as a weather vane.

64. System according to claim 56, wherein to the leading edge of the rotary wings are added an airfoil (2s) which provides low aerodynamic drag, that supplementary profile that consists:

a) in a zone of the rotary wing that acts as a leading edge thereof, NACA profile NACA 2206 and 2306, b) in front of the rotary wing and attached to the aircraft fuselage by uprights, or c) a flange surrounding the rotary wing around its front third or d) integrating the supplementary profile forming part of the wing.

65. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotary wing carry multiple peripheral fins to which air is blown or sucked tangentially via a duct from turbofan engines, GPU, APU air bottles and pressurized hollow tubular structure of the aircraft.

66. System according to claim 56, wherein are used at least one rotor and its engine is attached or placed longitudinally on and/or under the fuselage, wings and the horizontal stabilizer fin.

67. System according to claim 56, wherein at least one rotor and its engine is attached or placed longitudinally on and/or under the fuselage, wings and/or on oval aerodynamic elements or ribs arranged parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft on front wings and other rear or horizontal stabilizers, which extends or prolongs backward through the trailing edge and/or forward by the leading edge.

68. System according to claim 56, wherein the half of the rotors or electric fans rotate in one direction and the other in the opposite.

69. System according to claim 56, wherein at least one of the electrical fans is rotatable or tilt-able, being used to support and/or propel during horizontal flight (9d) and to compensate the torque if one of the rotors fails.

70. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotor and fans blades are independent (2a, 2b) and rotate each other, using a blade attached to the drive shaft and dragging the other at 180 by means of pawls, at rest a spring and the air ram tends to route them as a weathervane, the blades are formed longitudinally taking the leading (89) and trailing edge with aerodynamic aerofoil.

71. System according to claim 56, wherein one of the fans and rotors blades has a reduced size and has a counterweight, both blades produce a similar thrust and at rest are routed with the ram air.

72. System according to claim 56, wherein are used two rotary blades or wings in counter rotation (2t).

73. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotors, turbofan engines, turboprop or multiple fans or rotors apply its lift or its resulting in, or on the center of gravity of the aircraft.

74. System according to claim 56, wherein the flywheels (40) have an internal water chamber divided by a diametric partition, the used water is released outside by a pump or by gravity (41) and a valve (42), rpm reducers reduce the rpm of the flywheel and their shafts drive mechanically the rotary wings, the rotors or the generators that power the motors (32b) that drive the main rotor and electrical fans.

75. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotary wing has radial fins (54) on one side and a housing or cover with a spherical cap shape (88) with an upper central hole and radial slots of air inlet, flowing the air flow between both and thrown out centrifugal. axially downward through slots or lower sides zones (48c).

76. System according to claim 56, wherein are used multiple rotary wings integrated on two longitudinal flanges on the sides of the fuselage (2d) and/or on the wings, canard fins and conventional aircraft or delta stabilizers.

77. System according to claim 56, wherein the motors launch the flow over a wing flaps (18c) or flaps compensated aerodynamically (18a) which rotated with electric, pneumatic or hydraulic actuators at least 45°

around their axes, deflect the flow of the turbine down and slightly forward, or use steerable nozzles.

78. System according to claim 56, wherein the turbofan engines throw the flow on wing flaps (18c) or flaps aerodynamically balanced (18a), which rotated by electric, pneumatic or hydraulic actuators, at least 45°

around their shafts, deflect the turbines flow downward and slightly forward, or use tilting nozzles.

79. System according to claim 56, wherein the turbofan engine baffles added to the inlet (17) and outlet (19) of the turbine in which are integrated and are driven with pneumatic or hydraulic motors and actuators.

80. System according to claim 56, wherein the turbofan engines rotated 90°

about its transverse axis. (4d) driven by pressurized air and a piston rod and a cylinder (4P), the flow is regulating by valves (4v).

82. System according to claim 56, wherein at least one turbofan engine is used as the auxiliary source, APU, etc., to lift at takeoff and landing, and as a propellant in case of failure of the other turbofan, are housed within the fuselage and during its use, deflecting flaps are driven allowing the propulsion and lift sucking air from the upper or lateral area.

83. System according to claim 56, wherein are used retractable turbines that rotate and extend out of the fuselage to propel, retracted and lodged in the fuselage when not used.

84. System according to claim 56, wherein the aircraft carries two external lateral beams (22) between the tips of two kinds canard wing and the horizontal stabilizers or between four wings, two front and two rear, which support fans and rotors, and at rest are introduced or attach to the same or as weather vanes.

85. System according to claim 56, wherein the flywheels are placed in pairs rotating in opposite direction to each other and are fed with GPU, APU, turbo-shaft, turbofan engines, turboprop or from a register of a installation in the ground at the place of departure and a mechanical, pneumatic or electric transmission and the related motors and in case of emergency with batteries, fuel cells, ultracapacitors and electric generators of high power/weight, the flywheels deliver electrical energy to the electric motors through a variable or frequency controllers or mechanically through clutches and gearboxes rpm.

86. System according to claim 56, wherein the flywheels rotate in vacuum chambers, and these and the rotors use high speed bearings of ceramic balls or similar materials, using air or magnetic bearings, rotors rotate between 200 and 5000 rpm and flywheels between about 2000 and 120,000 rpm.

87. System according to claim 56, wherein the flywheels use reversible motor-generators integrated therein, with rare earth permanent magnets, neodymium-iron-boron, and the rotor of silicon or carbon nanotubes, of carbon or glass fibers, or using a water chamber as inertial mass.

88. System according to claim 56, wherein the electrical fans are replaced by small wings or disks (2d) with fins or grooves whose surface is flush with the wings, smallwings or fuselage and rotate in the opposite direction to the main rotor, the surface is flush with the wings, small wings and fuselage, and on the underside use a shutter of flexible or rigid rotary fins.

89. System according to claim 56, wherein the rotor blades, the rotary wings, flywheels and the rest of the aircraft structure are carbon fiber or glass fiber or composite materials or pieces of fabric embedded in a plastic or epoxy matrix, fiberglass, aluminum, graphite, Kevlar and the like, and the compressed air bottles, blades, rotary wings and flywheels the fibers are woven crisscross or wound at 30, 45 or 90 degrees to each other and embedded in a plastic matrix or epoxy, also using Kevlar and/or carbon nanotubes or silicon.

90. System according to claim 56, wherein the aircraft adopts saucer shape (1v) with rotary wings as in counter rotation spherical caps on both sides of the fuselage, which bears the turbines and takes lenticular-annular shape with the central partially hollow to let circulate the air stream created by the fins and grooves of the rotary wings driven mechanically and/or air jets inclined in the lower periphery of the upper and lower half-disks (2d).

91. System according to claim 56, wherein the aircraft adopts saucer shape (1v), carry rotary wing in the form of spherical caps in counter rotation and with radial blades (54a and 54b) the semioval fuselage shape (1b) is placed in the bottom and are mechanically driven by turbines, the stability is controlled by air jets, air enters through the top and is thrown centrifugal and axially downwards.

92. System according to claim 56, wherein the stabilizing fans or rotors (2, 5 and 9) or oscillating fins (67) at the tail and wing tips and canard wings, stabilize respect the longitudinal, transverse and vertical axis.

93. System according to claim 56, wherein the upper fans use in automatic actuation shutters consist of one or more tilt around an eccentric axis (25a) which opens with the flow of the fan and close with the ram air, in the lower zone uses flexible or rigid fins (25c) which rotate around an edge, open with the flow of the fan and closed with the ram air.

94. System according to claim 56, wherein the aircraft uses four wings, two front and two rear.

95. System according to claim 56, wherein the aircraft is powered electrically via a quick release cable (76) from the helicopter or aircraft (1a) or a land vehicle.