Hierarchical closed-loop control system for aircraft, missiles and munitions
First Claim
1. A missile or a munition comprising:
- a. an aerodynamic surface or surfaces;
b. at least two air flow control zones on one or more aerodynamic surfaces of the missile or munition, at least one of the at least two air flow control zones comprising at least one activatable flow effector capable of being activated and deactivated, wherein the at least one activatable flow effector is deactivated when the activatable flow effector is flush or nearly flush to the aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition on or in which the activatable flow effector is located;
c. one or more digital logic devices, the digital logic devices having a separate local, closed loop control system for each flow control zone for activating and deactivating the at least one activatable flow effector to, in part, maneuver the missile or munition, and a global control system to coordinate the local control systems; and
d. a health monitoring system comprising at least one pattern recognition algorithm and at least one decision system and an output,wherein the health monitoring system output is passed to a user interface and/or to an adaptation algorithm.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention relates to a missile or munition with a hierarchical, modular, closed-loop flow control system, more particularly to aircraft or munition with flow control system for enhanced aerodynamic control, maneuverability and stabilization. The present invention further relates to a method of operating the flow control system.
Various embodiments of the flow control system involve elements including flow sensors, active flow control devices or activatable flow effectors, and logic devices with closed loop control architecture. The sensors are used to estimate or determine flow conditions on the surfaces of a missile or munition. The active flow control device or activatable flow effectors create on-demand flow disturbances, preferably micro-disturbances, at different points along the various aerodynamic surfaces of the missile or aircraft to achieve a desired stabilization or maneuverability effect. The logic devices are embedded with a hierarchical control structure allowing for rapid, real-time control at the flow surface.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A missile or a munition comprising:
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a. an aerodynamic surface or surfaces; b. at least two air flow control zones on one or more aerodynamic surfaces of the missile or munition, at least one of the at least two air flow control zones comprising at least one activatable flow effector capable of being activated and deactivated, wherein the at least one activatable flow effector is deactivated when the activatable flow effector is flush or nearly flush to the aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition on or in which the activatable flow effector is located; c. one or more digital logic devices, the digital logic devices having a separate local, closed loop control system for each flow control zone for activating and deactivating the at least one activatable flow effector to, in part, maneuver the missile or munition, and a global control system to coordinate the local control systems; and d. a health monitoring system comprising at least one pattern recognition algorithm and at least one decision system and an output, wherein the health monitoring system output is passed to a user interface and/or to an adaptation algorithm. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A missile or a munition comprising:
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a. an aerodynamic surface or surfaces; b. at least two air flow control zones on the aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition, at least one of the at least two air flow control zones comprising at least one activatable flow effector capable of being activated and deactivated, wherein the at least one activatable flow effector is deactivated when the activatable flow effector is flush or nearly flush to the aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition on or in which the activatable flow effector is located; and c. one or more digital logic devices, the digital logic devices having a separate local, closed loop control system for each flow control zone for activating and deactivating the at least one activatable flow effector to, in part, maneuver the missile or munition, and a global control system to coordinate the local control systems. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A missile or a munition comprising:
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a. an aerodynamic surface or surfaces; b. at least two air flow control zones on one or more aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition;
at least one of the air flow control zones comprising at least one activatable flow effector that is activated and deactivated, wherein the at least one activatable flow effector is deactivated when the activatable flow effector is flush or nearly flush to the aerodynamic surface or surfaces of the missile or munition on or in which the activatable flow effector is located, selected from the group consisting of active vortex generators, which are deployable or create pressure active regions by suction or air pressure;
pulsed vortex generators, plasma actuators;
wall turbulators;
active porosity; and
thermal actuators;c. one or more digital logic devices, the digital logic devices having a separate local, closed loop control system for each flow control zone, and a global control system to coordinate the separate, local control systems. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification