Equipment for the reduction of the radar marking for aircrafts

• US 9,362,626 B2
• Filed: 02/13/2012
• Issued: 06/07/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alenia Aermacchi SPA (Leonardo S.p.A.)
• Original Assignee: Alenia Aermacchi SPA (Leonardo S.p.A.)
• Inventors: Brenna, Fabio, Merlo, Emanuele
• Primary Examiner(s): Bythrow, Peter
• Application Number:
  US13/985,526
• Publication Number:
  US 20140077987A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,576 Days
• Field of Search: 342 1- 4
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B63G 8/34 Camouflage for other vessels B63G13/02; in general F41H3/00
• 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: F28F 27/00 Control arrangements or safety devices specially adapted for heat-exchange or heat-transfer apparatus control arrangements in general G05
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 3/00 Camouflage, i.e. means or methods for concealment or disguise for vessels B63G8/34, B63G13/02 ; sound camouflage, i.e. simulating gun fire noise, F41A33/04; dummy or decoy targets F41J; chaff per se F41J2/00; ammunition for dispensing chaff F42B5/15, F42B12/70; radar absorbing fabrics H01Q17/005
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 2/00 Reflecting targets, e.g. radar-reflector targets; Active targets transmitting electromagnetic or acoustic waves
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 2/02 Active targets transmitting infrared radiation
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 17/00 Devices for absorbing waves radiated from an antenna; Combinations of such devices with active antenna elements or systems

Abstract

Equipment for the reduction of the radar marking of an aircraft V, can be applied to at least one hot portion H of the aircraft, chosen from the following: a piloting cabin or cockpit, including at least one transparent portion; a first frame of the fuselage; a plurality of junction edges of components, including wings, tail veilings and engine air intakes; at least one motor face. Said equipment comprises at least one device for dissipating incident radar waves, which can be removably applied to at least one hot portion H of the aircraft without affecting the aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft V.

Claims

1. Equipment for reduction of radar marking of an aircraft, which can be applied to at least one hot portion of the aircraft chosen from the following:

a piloting cabin or cockpit, comprising at least one transparent portion;

a first frame of the fuselage;

a plurality of junction edges of components, including wings, tail veilings and engine air intakes;

at least one motor face;

said equipment comprising;

at least one removable device for dissipating incident radar waves, which is applied to at least one hot portion of the aircraft without affecting aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft;

at least one grid to reduce the radar marking from hot portions of the aircraft including at least one motor face;

the grid comprising;

an inner structure with a plurality of openings;

a support structure for securing the grid to the aircraft;

wherein said openings are sized to act like a flat surface for lower frequencies of a frequency spectrum commonly used by low-frequency radar recognition systems;

each of said openings comprising an inner surface coated with a thin radar absorbing material adapted to absorb electromagnetic waves at high frequency;

said grid being adapted to allow air flow to the engine and to reduce visibility of the motor face of the aircraft to radar systems.

2. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein, in order to reduce the radar marking from hot portions of the aircraft including the piloting cabin or cockpit, which comprise at least one transparent portion, said equipment comprises a metallization applied to said transparent portions.

3. The equipment according to claim 2, wherein the metallization is obtained by applying a plurality of coating layers onto the transparent portion of the piloting cabin, comprising:

at least one first layer or base, for preparing the transparent portion to receive the metallization;

at least one second layer, which is the a metallizing conductive layer.

4. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein, in order to reduce the radar marking from hot portions of the aircraft including at least one junction edge of components including wings, tail veilings and engine air intakes, the equipment comprises at least one coating portion, which is positioned on a front edge of the components of the aircraft without affecting the aerodynamic profile thereof.

5. The equipment according to claim 4, wherein said coating portion comprises:

a first structure of metal material, fixed to structure of the component of the aircraft;

a second radar-absorbing coating, laid over said first structure for absorbing incident electromagnetic waves.

6. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein, in order to reduce the radar marking from a hot portion of the aircraft including the first frame of the fuselage, the equipment comprises:

at least one sheet of adhesive metal material, which covers the first frame of the fuselage of the aircraft;

at least one layer of absorbing material, fixed to said sheets of metal material.

7. The equipment according to claim 3, wherein said metallization comprises a plurality of electric devices adapted to ensure electric connection between the metallization and the structure of the aircraft.

8. The equipment according to claim 1, wherein said grid has a circular shape similar to a cross-section of a structure of the engine compartment.

9. The equipment according to claim 8, further comprising a substitutive structure, which has substantially the same shape as the support structure of the grid and is interchangeable with the support structure of the grid to preserve conduit continuity.