Aircraft with reduced environmental impact

• US 7,819,358 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2007
• Issued: 10/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations SAS (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus France
• Inventors: Belleville, Mathieu
• Primary Examiner(s): Mansen; Michael R
• Assistant Examiner(s): O'Hara; Brian M
• Application Number:
  US11/691,200
• Publication Number:
  US 20080105781A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,310 Days
• Field of Search: 244/52, 244/53.R, 244/54, 244/55, 244/53.B, 244/62, 244/56, 602/28, 602/32
• US Class Current: 244/52
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 11/001 Shrouded propellers
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 15/02 the jets being propulsion jets
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 27/20 within, or attached to, fuselages

Abstract

According to the invention, said aircraft comprises at least one engine which has ducted propellers and is mounted on the back of the rear portion of the fuselage, the cowling being able to be oriented about the axis of said engine.

Claims

1. An aircraft with reduced environmental impact, having a fuselage with a longitudinal axis and a vertical mid-plane containing said longitudinal axis, said aircraft comprising:

at least one engine provided with at least one pusher propeller, said engine having its axis at least substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis of the fuselage and being mounted at the aft of the aircraft and on the top of the fuselage by way of a pylon which supports said engine and separates said engine from said fuselage, said pylon comprising an extension above said engine; and

a movable cowling which is arranged around said propeller and jointed in one piece to said pylon, such that the efflux from said propeller can be oriented with respect to said axis of said engine so as to be able to control the direction and the pitch of said aircraft, without the need of a horizontal stabilizer and a vertical stabilizer for the aircraft a lower portion of said cowling being jointed to said pylon, whereas an upper portion of said cowling is jointed with respect to said extension; and

at least one actuating unit supported by said pylon or said extension to turn said cowling with respect to said pylon.

2. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein said engine comprises two contrarotating coaxial propellers, both arranged inside said cowling.

3. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein said lower portion of the cowling is ball-jointed to said pylon and an actuating unit is provided, both at the lower portion and at the upper portion of said cowling, to turn said cowling around said ball.

4. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one engine comprises a single one of the engines which has a ducted propeller or ducted propellers and is mounted at the aft of the aircraft and on the top of the fuselage of said aircraft, and the aircraft further comprises at least two turbine engines carried symmetrically by wings of said aircraft.

5. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one engine comprises two of the engines which each respectively have a ducted propeller or ducted propellers and are mounted at the aft of the aircraft and on the top of the fuselage of said aircraft and which are arranged one beside the other with their axes parallel.

6. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one engine comprises two of the engines which each respectively have a ducted propeller or ducted propellers and are mounted at the aft of the aircraft and on the top of the fuselage of said aircraft and which are arranged one beside the other with their axes parallel, wherein the two pylons respectively carrying said engines form a V which is symmetrical with respect to said vertical mid-plane and which is open to the top, the cowling of each of said engines being jointed about an axis whose direction is coincident with the general direction of the corresponding pylon, and the two joint axes forming a V which is symmetrical with respect to said vertical mid-plane and which is open to the top, and wherein an actuating unit is designed to turn each of said cowlings about the corresponding joint axis.

7. The aircraft as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said two joint axes is defined by a lower joint between the front lower portion of said cowling and the pylon and by an upper joint between the front upper portion of said cowling and said extension of the pylon.