Exhaust Area and Flow Turning Control
AssigneeWhisper Aero Inc.
InventorsMark Douglass Moore, Ian Andreas Villa, Devon Jedamski, Andrew Stephen Hahn, Aaron Timothy Perry, Jonathan Jeffrey Paravano, Xiaofan Fei, Paul Rothhaar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An aircraft may comprise ducted fans. The ducted fans may be an array of ducted fans. An array of ducted fans may be integrated in a wing of the aircraft. A ducted fan may be integrated in a horizontal tail of the aircraft. The wing may include a movable edge, such as a flap, to provide both exhaust area and flow turning control. The movable edge may be articulated by pivoting the movable edge. The movable edge may be extended and retracted.
Claims30
An aircraft comprising:
- a fuselage;
- a wing connected to the fuselage;
- a flap configured to transition between a first position and a second position;
- an array of ducted fans integrated in the wing and configured to propel an airflow across an upper surface of the wing;
- a control assembly configured to cause, via movement of the flap from the first position to the second position:
- modification of an exhaust area of the array of ducted fans;
- and
- modification of a direction of the airflow propelled across the upper surface of the wing;
- and
- a plurality of horizontal tails.
An air-moving device for an aircraft, the air-moving device comprising:
- an array of ducted fans, each comprising a propulsor;
- an upper element located over the array of propulsors, and a lower element located below the array of propulsors, wherein the lower element comprises:
- a forward edge;
- and
- a movable flap opposite the forward edge and aftward of the ducted fan, the movable flap having an upper surface and a lower surface and configured to direct, by moving between a first position and a second position, airflow propelled by the propulsor;
- and
- a control assembly configured to:
- receive a control signal;
- and
- based on the control signal and by moving the movable flap between the first position and the second position:
- modify an exhaust area of the propulsor;
- and
- modify an angle of the airflow turned, via the Coanda effect, over an edge of the movable flap.
A method for controlling an aircraft, comprising:
- propelling, using an array of ducted fans integrated in a wing of an aircraft, an airflow across an upper surface of the wing;
- sending, by a computing device and to a control assembly, an instruction to transition a flap of the wing of the aircraft between a first position and a second position;
- and
- modifying both an exhaust area of at least one ducted fan of the array of ducted fans and a direction of the airflow propelled across the upper surface of the wing at least by moving, using the control assembly and based on the instruction, the flap between the first position and the second position.
An aircraft comprising:
- a wing having a flap movable between a first position and a second position;
- an array of ducted fans integrated in the wing and configured to propel an airflow over the flap, wherein the flap at least partially defines an exhaust area of the array of ducted fans and a direction of the airflow over an edge of the flap;
- and
- a control assembly configured to, based on receiving a control signal and by moving the flap between the first position and the second position:
- modify the exhaust area of the array of ducted fans;
- modify the direction of the airflow such that the airflow turns at 75 degrees over the edge of the flap;
- and
- wherein a lift-to-drag ratio of the aircraft during a cruise mode meets or exceeds 12.2.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.