Retractable propulsor assemblies for vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft

An aircraft, comprising:

• a fuselage having control surfaces that are configured to provide lift during forward flight;
• and
• a retractable propulsor assembly, comprising:
• an arm having a first end rotatably coupled to the fuselage;
• a propulsor disposed at a second end of the arm that is configured to generate lift for the aircraft;
• a drive mechanism mechanically coupled to the first end of the arm that is configured to pivot the arm out of a compartment in the fuselage to transition the aircraft into vertical flight, and to pivot the arm into the compartment in response to the aircraft being in forward flight;
• a latching mechanism configured to selectively engage the arm with the drive mechanism, and disengage the arm from the drive mechanism;
• and
• a spring biasing system that operates independently of the drive mechanism to deploy the retractable propulsor assembly upon failure of the drive mechanism, the spring biasing system is mechanically coupled to the first end of the arm and is configured, in response to operating the latching mechanism to disengage the arm from the drive mechanism, to apply a torque to the first end of the arm to pivot the arm out of the compartment and into a deployed position.

A retractable propulsor assembly for aircraft, comprising:

• an arm having a first end rotatably coupled to a fuselage of the aircraft;
• a propulsor disposed at a second end of the arm that is configured to generate lift for the aircraft;
• a drive mechanism configured to pivot the arm relative to the fuselage to transition the retractable propulsor assembly between a stowed position where the retractable propulsor assembly is stowed in a compartment of the aircraft, and a deployed position where the retractable propulsor assembly is deployed to perform vertical flight operations;
• a locking mechanism configured to selectively engage the arm with the drive mechanism, and disengage the arm from the drive mechanism;
• and
• a spring biasing system that operates independently of the drive mechanism to deploy the retractable propulsor assembly upon failure of the drive mechanism, the spring biasing system is mechanically coupled to the first end of the arm and is configured, in response to operating the locking mechanism to disengage the arm from the drive mechanism, to apply a torque to the first end of the arm to pivot the arm out of the compartment and into the deployed position.