US 2004/0111190 A1Published application

Process and system for moving a control surface of an aircraft

AssigneeAirbus France

InventorsMarc Van De Kreeke, Guillaume Cassein

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Abstract

An electric control system (1) comprises a control unit (4) which comprises a member (5) able to be actuated by a pilot and a means of load-wise protection (7), and which delivers a first deflection order representative of the action exerted by the pilot on the member (5), and of the contribution made by the means of load-wise protection (7), an actuator (11) which moves said control surface (2) about an axis (Z-Z), as a function of a deflection order, and a correction device (12) which comprises a means (13) for determining a second deflection order making it possible to limit the load, to which a stabilizer element of the aircraft is subjected, to a maximum load, and a means (14) for choosing one of the first and second deflection orders, which is transmitted to said actuator (11) so as to move said control surface (2).

Claims10

Dependent claims

A process for moving a control surface (2) of an aircraft in such a way as to reduce the induced loads to which a stabilizer element of said aircraft is subjected, said control surface (2) being mounted rotatably about an axis (Z-Z) so as to be able to take any angular position of deflection within a range of travel and being moved in accordance with a deflection order applied thereto, and said aircraft comprising a control unit (4) able to determine a first deflection order as a function of at least the actuation of a control member (5) by a pilot of the aircraft,

wherein the following series of successive operations is carried out automatically and repetitively:
a) a first value is determined, dependent on the maximum load to which said stabilizer element may be subjected;
b) a second value is determined, taking into account the actual load to which said stabilizer element is subjected, when said first deflection order determined by said control unit (4) is applied to said control surface (2);
c) said first and second values are intercompared;
and
d) as a function of this comparison:
if said second value is less than or equal to said first value, said first deflection order is applied to said control surface (2);
and
if said second value is greater than said first value, a second deflection order is calculated, making it possible to limit the load to which said stabilizer element is subjected to said maximum load, and this second deflection order is applied to said control surface (2).

6 more elements

An electric control system for moving a control surface (2) of an aircraft, said control surface (2) being mounted rotatably about an axis (Z-Z) so as to be able to take any angular position of deflection within a range of travel, and said system (1) comprising:

a control unit (4) which comprises at least one control member (5) able to be actuated by a pilot and at least one means of load-wise protection (7), and which delivers a first deflection order representative, on the one hand, of the action exerted by the pilot on said control member (5), and, on the other hand, of the contribution made by said means of load-wise protection (7);
and
an actuator (11) which moves said control surface (2) about said axis (Z-Z), as a function of a deflection order received,
which system moreover includes a correction device (12) which comprises:
a first means (13) for determining a second deflection order making it possible to limit the load, to which said stabilizer element is subjected, to a maximum load;
and
a second means (14) for choosing one of said first and second deflection orders, which is transmitted to said actuator (11) so as to move said control surface (2), said second means (14) intercomparing:
a first value dependent on the maximum load, to which said stabilizer element may be subjected;
and
a second value taking account of the actual load, to which said stabilizer element is subjected when said first deflection order determined by said control unit (4) is applied to said actuator (11),
and said second means (14) transmitting to said actuator (11), as a function of this comparison:
if said second value is less than or equal to said first value, said first deflection order;
and
if said second value is greater than said first value, said second deflection order making it possible to limit the load, to which said stabilizer element is subjected, to said maximum load.

11 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.