Adjustable lift modification wingtip
AssigneeTamarack Aerospace Group, Inc.
InventorNicholas R. Guida
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An adjustable lift modification wingtip may be attached to a baseline wing of an aircraft. The adjustable lift modification wingtip may comprise a horizontal portion including a control surface and a vertical portion coupled to the horizontal portion. The vertical portion may move about an axis that may be substantially perpendicular to the horizontal portion. The control surface and the vertical portion may be adjusted in conjunction to increase wing efficiency at a flight condition.
Claims21
(canceled)
An aircraft comprising:
- a fuselage;
- a wing including a first end, a second end, and an aileron disposed at a location between the first end and the second end, the wing coupled to the fuselage at the first end;
- and
- a flow modification device coupled to the second end of the wing, the flow modification device including:
- a horizontal portion having a control surface,
- a first actuator configured to control the control surface,
- a vertical portion operably coupled to the horizontal portion, and
- a second actuator configured to rotate the vertical portion about an axis that is substantially perpendicular to a vertical axis of the aircraft to adjust a toe angle of the flow modification device, wherein the second actuator is configured to rotate the vertical portion independent of the first actuator controlling the control surface.
A flow modification device configured to couple to a wing of an aircraft, the flow modification device comprising:
- a first portion configured to couple to the wing, the first portion including a control surface;
- a first actuator configured to control the control surface;
- a second portion coupled to the first portion;
- and
- a second actuator configured to control the second portion to adjust a toe angle of the flow modification device, the toe angle being defined as an angle of rotation of the second portion about a vertical axis, measured between a chord line of the second portion and a lateral reference line perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the aircraft.
A method comprising:
- receiving a signal indicative of sensor data generated via one or more sensors located onboard an aircraft;
- and
- adjusting, based at least in part on the signal, at least one of:
- a control surface disposed on a first portion of a flow modification device, the first portion coupling to a wing of the aircraft, or
- a second portion of the flow modification device coupled to the first portion, wherein the second portion is at least one of (i) rotatable about a first axis that is substantially perpendicular to the first portion to adjust a toe angle of the flow modification device or (ii) rotatable about a second axis that is disposed between a leading edge and a trailing edge of the second portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.