Integrated float-wing
AssigneeKitty Hawk Corporation
InventorJoseph Roop
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An aircraft which includes a float-wing having a leading edge, a trailing edge, and an airfoil shape to produce aerodynamic lift when the float-wing flows through air at a lift-producing angle of attack in a forward flight mode of operation. The float-wing further includes a submersible portion that includes at least the trailing edge and which is constructed of materials and in a shape selected to produce a buoyancy force sufficient to prevent at least a non-submersible portion of the aircraft from being submersed under conditions in which the aircraft is in a waterborne non-flight position in which at least the trailing edge of the float-wing is submersed but at least the non-submersible portion of the aircraft is not submersed.
Claims18
An aircraft, comprising:
- a float-wing having a leading edge and a trailing edge, the float-wing further having an airfoil shape to produce aerodynamic lift when the float-wing flows through air at a lift-producing angle of attack in a forward flight mode of operation;
- and
- the float-wing further includes a submersible portion of the float-wing that includes at least the trailing edge and which is constructed of materials and in a shape selected to produce a buoyancy force sufficient to prevent at least a non-submersible portion of the aircraft from being submersed under conditions in which the aircraft is in a waterborne non-flight position in which at least the trailing edge of the float-wing is submersed but at least the non-submersible portion of the aircraft is not submersed;
- wherein the float-wing is a rotatable wing configured to rotate about a fuselage of the aircraft to transition between the forward flight mode of operation and a hovering mode of operation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.