Landing Load Monitor for Aircraft Landing Gear
AssigneeAirbus Operations GmbH
InventorsMichael Stuart Yates, Philip Keen
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A landing gear monitor for aircraft landing gear including a plurality of pairs of wheels on a bogie, in which the main strut oil pressure serves to indicate landing load and is monitored in relation to, respectively, the two-wheel mode and the four-wheel mode, the two-wheel mode being the condition when a first of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie contacts the ground and the four-wheel mode being the condition of a first and a second of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie being in full contact with the ground.
Claims21
A landing gear monitor for aircraft landing gear including a plurality of pairs of wheels on a bogie, including:
- a pressure sensor which, in use, is so located in the landing gear main strut as to sense the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the landing gear main strut, the pressure sensor providing an output electrical signal corresponding to the pressure it senses,
- a first landing gear sensor for sensing and signalling that the landing gear is lowered,
- a second landing gear sensor for sensing and signalling the on-set of a first mode of operation of the bogie when the bogie is in the trail position such that the first of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie will contact the ground first,
- a third landing gear sensor for sensing and signalling the on-set of a second mode of operation of the bogie when a second of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie, in addition to the first pair of wheels, are fully engaging with the ground,
- a signal processing unit connected to receive the signals from all of the sensors and, following the receipt of a signal from the first landing gear sensor indicating that the landing gear is lowered, the signal processing unit, in operation, evaluating the signals from the pressure sensor in relation to, respectively, the first mode and the second mode, and providing a main output signal indicating the results of the evaluation and
- an output section connected to receive the main output signal from the signal processing unit, for providing a representation of the output signal from the signal processing unit in relation to, respectively, the first mode and the second mode.
A method of operation of a landing gear monitor for aircraft landing gear including a plurality of pairs of wheels on a bogie, including:
- sensing the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in the landing gear main strut and providing an output electrical signal corresponding to the sensed pressure, sensing and signalling that the landing gear is lowered, sensing and signalling when the bogie is in the trail position, the condition of the bogie being in the trail position being identified hereinafter as the first mode, sensing and signalling when a second of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie, in addition to the first pair of wheels, fully engages with the ground, the condition of a first and a second of the plurality of pairs of wheels on the bogie fully engaging with the ground being identified hereinafter as the second mode, evaluating the signals from the sensing of the pressure of the hydraulic fluid in relation to, respectively, the first mode and the second mode, and providing a main output signal indicating the results of the evaluation and providing a representation of the main output signal in relation to, respectively, the first mode and the second mode.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.