Reconfigurable Payload Systems (RPS) With Operational Load Envelopes For Aircraft And Methods Related Thereto

• US 20150210392A1
• Filed: 01/23/2015
• Published: 07/30/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: L3harris Technologies Integrated Systems LP (L3Harris Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: L-3 Communications Integrated Systems LP (L3Harris Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hodge, Ben D., Troup, Timothy W., Cropper, Richard D., Stokes, Brandy D.
• Granted Patent: US 9,669,927 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 2211/00 Modular constructions of airplanes or helicopters
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 7/00 Arrangements of military equipment, e.g. armaments, armament accessories, or military shielding, in aircraft; Adaptations of armament mountings for aircraft dropping bombs or the like B64D1/00; armaments or mountings therefor per se F41
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 9/00 Equipment for handling freight; Equipment for facilitating passenger embarkation or the like emergency equipment B64D17/00, B64D19/00, B64D25/00; structures integral with fuselage to facilitate loading, fuselage floors specially adapted for freight, steps mounted on and retractable within aircraft B64C; ground installations B64F

Abstract

Reconfigurable payload systems (RPS) and methods of configuring and using the same with operational load envelopes are disclosed that may be employed to enable external aircraft payloads to be rapidly interchanged or swapped out together with associated internal equipment within a given aircraft so as to modify or change payload capability of the aircraft, e.g., to meet a particular mission and/or to enable use of future payload types as they are developed. The RPS and associated methods may be implemented to allow multiple different payload systems to be swapped in and out on a given aircraft as required based on needs for a given mission.

Claims

1. A reconfigurable payload system (RPS), comprising one or more external payload attachment features mechanically coupled to extend across a given section of a fuselage of an aircraft, the one or more external payload attachment features being configured to be attached to external payload components, external fairings, or a combination thereof;

and where the one or more external payload attachment features are configured with an available operational envelope of total permissible aircraft load at given locations within the section.

2. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprise one or more payload rails, one or more fairing rails, one or more hard points, or a combination thereof.

3. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprise:

at least one section of two outer parallel fairing rails, the fairing rails being configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable aerodynamic fairings; and

at least one section of two inner parallel payload rails disposed between the two outer parallel fairing rails, the inner payload rails being configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components.

4. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprise one or more mounting adapter sections, each of the mounting adapter sections including payload rails and/or payload hardpoints.

5. The RPS of claim 4, further comprising multiple fuselage fasteners that are mechanically coupled to the aircraft fuselage;

and where the one or more mounting adapter sections are mechanically coupled to the multiple fuselage fasteners.

6. The RPS of claim 4, where the external payload attachment features further comprise a fairing interface defined in at least a portion of a peripheral surfaces of one or more of the mounting adapter sections, the fairing interface including multiple spaced fairing interface fastener locations that are configured to align with and be selectably attached to mating complementary spaced fairing fastener locations to mechanically couple the interchangeable fairing component to the aircraft fuselage.

7. The RPS of claim 1, further comprising external structural modification components and internal structure modification components added to an existing aircraft structure so as to strengthen the existing aircraft structure to provide the available operational envelope of total permissible aircraft load that is capable of supporting the external payload attachment features together with the attached external payload components at the given locations within the section of the fuselage.

8. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprise multiple separate mounting adapter sections mechanically coupled to the aircraft fuselage in adjacent end-to-end manner to extend longitudinally across the given section of the aircraft fuselage;

where each of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections includes at least one of;

one or more payload rails having multiple regularly-spaced rail fastener locations provided on each rail that are configured to align with and be selectably attached to mating payload fastener locations of an interchangeable external payload component that has a payload fastener location spacing that is complementary to the regular spacing of the rail fastener locations;

or

multiple payload hardpoints that are each configured with a hardpoint fastener location with the payload hardpoints being spaced apart from each other such that the spacing between the hardpoint fastener locations is regularly spaced and configured to align with and be selectably attached to mating payload fastener locations of an interchangeable external payload component that has a payload fastener location spacing that is complementary to the regular spacing of the hardpoint fastener locations; and

where the multiple mounting adapter sections are mechanically coupled to extend across the given section of the aircraft fuselage such that such that;

the rail fastener location spacing remains regular across the payload rails of the different mounting adapter sections so as to allow the mating payload fastener locations of the interchangeable external payload component to align with and simultaneously attach to mating regularly-spaced rail fastener locations on two or more of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections to mechanically couple the interchangeable external payload component to the aircraft fuselage, or

the hardpoint fastener location spacing remains regular across the payload hardpoints of the different mounting adapter sections so as to allow the mating payload fastener locations of the interchangeable external payload component to align with and simultaneously attach to mating regularly-spaced hardpoint fastener locations on two or more of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections to mechanically couple the interchangeable external payload component to the aircraft fuselage.

9. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprises at least one mounting adapter section, the mounting adapter section including two or more parallel payload rails configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components.

10. The RPS of claim 9, where each of the payload rails is configured with multiple regularly-spaced rail fastener locations.

11. The RPS of claim 1, where the external payload attachment features comprise at least one mounting adapter section, the mounting adapter section including multiple payload hardpoints configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components, each of the payload hardpoints being configured with a hardpoint fastener location and the payload hardpoints being spaced apart from each other such that the spacing between the hardpoint fastener locations is regularly spaced.

12. The RPS of claim 1, further comprising a RPS disconnect panel assembly mechanically coupled to the interior of the aircraft fuselage.

13. A method of modifying an aircraft fuselage, comprising:

defining a baseline reconfigurable payload system (RPS) configuration configured to support a given survey of selected interchangeable external payload components, interchangeable internal payload components, and/or interchangeable external aerodynamic fairings;

determining an operational envelope of total permissible aircraft loads by fuselage locations for the baseline reconfigurable payload system (RPS) configuration, the total permissible aircraft loads including the sum of unmodified aircraft loads for the aircraft with RPS aerodynamic loads, RPS internal payload loads, and RPS external payload component loads by fuselage location; and

modifying the aircraft fuselage with the baseline RPS configuration.

14. The method of claim 13, where the baseline RPS configuration that corresponds to the determined operational envelope comprises one or more external payload attachment features mechanically coupled to extend across a given section of the aircraft fuselage of the aircraft;

and where the method further comprises modifying the aircraft fuselage by attaching the one or more external payload attachment features to an exterior of the aircraft fuselage.

15. The method of claim 14, where the external payload attachment features comprise one or more payload rails, one or more fairing rails, one or more hard points, or a combination thereof.

16. The method of claim 15, where the external payload attachment features comprise:

at least one section of two outer parallel fairing rails, the fairing rails being configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable aerodynamic fairings; and

at least one section of two inner parallel payload rails disposed between the two outer parallel fairing rails, the inner payload rails being configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components.

17. The method of claim 14, where the external payload attachment features comprise one or more mounting adapter sections, each of the mounting adapter sections including payload rails and/or payload hardpoints.

18. The method of claim 14, where the baseline RPS configuration that corresponds to the determined operational envelope comprises structural modifications to existing aircraft structure of an existing fuselage of the aircraft that is not capable of supporting the external payload attachment features together with the attached external payload component loads, aerodynamic loads and internal payload component loads at the given locations within a given section of the fuselage;

and where the method further comprises modifying the existing aircraft fuselage by adding external structural modification components and internal structure modification components to the existing aircraft structure of the existing aircraft fuselage to strengthen the existing aircraft structure to provide the available operational envelope of total permissible aircraft load that is capable of supporting the external payload attachment features together with the attached external payload component loads, aerodynamic loads and internal payload component loads at the given locations within a given section of the fuselage.

19. The method of claim 14, where the external payload attachment features comprise multiple separate mounting adapter sections;

where the method further comprises mechanically coupling the multiple separate mounting adapter sections to the aircraft fuselage in adjacent end-to-end manner to extend longitudinally across the given section of the aircraft fuselage; and

where each of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections includes at least one of;

one or more payload rails having multiple regularly-spaced rail fastener locations provided on each rail that are configured to align with and be selectably attached to mating payload fastener locations of an interchangeable external payload component that has a payload fastener location spacing that is complementary to the regular spacing of the rail fastener locations;

or

multiple payload hardpoints that are each configured with a hardpoint fastener location with the payload hardpoints being spaced apart from each other such that the spacing between the hardpoint fastener locations is regularly spaced and configured to align with and be selectably attached to mating payload fastener locations of an interchangeable external payload component that has a payload fastener location spacing that is complementary to the regular spacing of the hardpoint fastener locations; and

where the method further comprises mechanically coupling the multiple mounting adapter sections to extend across the given section of the aircraft fuselage such that such that;

the rail fastener location spacing remains regular across the payload rails of the different mounting adapter sections so as to allow the mating payload fastener locations of the interchangeable external payload component to align with and simultaneously attach to mating regularly-spaced rail fastener locations on two or more of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections to mechanically couple the interchangeable external payload component to the aircraft fuselage, or

the hardpoint fastener location spacing remains regular across the payload hardpoints of the different mounting adapter sections so as to allow the mating payload fastener locations of the interchangeable external payload component to align with and simultaneously attach to mating regularly-spaced hardpoint fastener locations on two or more of the multiple separate mounting adapter sections to mechanically couple the interchangeable external payload component to the aircraft fuselage.

20. The method of claim 14, where the external payload attachment features comprise at least one mounting adapter section, the mounting adapter section including two or more parallel payload rails configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components.

21. The method of claim 14, where the external payload attachment features comprise at least one mounting adapter section, the mounting adapter section including multiple payload hardpoints configured to be selectably attached to multiple different types of interchangeable external payload components.

22. The method of claim 14, further comprising coupling a RPS disconnect panel assembly to the interior of the aircraft fuselage adjacent a location of the external payload attachment features.

23. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

selecting a first set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings for attachment to the RPS;

evaluating and placing the first set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings on the aircraft at locations in compliance with the operational envelope of total permissible aircraft loads by fuselage locations;

flying a first mission with the first set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings placed on the aircraft at the locations in compliance with the operational envelope of total permissible aircraft loads.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

then selecting a second and different set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings for attachment to the RPS;

evaluating and placing the second set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings on the aircraft at locations in compliance with the operational envelope of total permissible aircraft loads by fuselage locations; and

flying a second mission with the second set of one or more external payload components, internal payload components and/or aerodynamic fairings placed on the same aircraft at the locations in compliance with the operational envelope of total permissible aircraft loads.