High-lift system and method for aircraft

A wing of a fixed-wing aircraft, the wing comprising:

• a structure;
• a skin mounted to the structure and defining an internal cavity of the wing;
• a high-lift device movably mounted to the structure and being deployable to increase an amount of lift produced by the wing, the high-lift device having an inboard portion and an outboard portion relative to a centerline of the fixed-wing aircraft;
• an inboard track configured to guide the inboard portion of the high-lift device during a deployment of the high-lift device;
• an outboard track configured to guide the outboard portion of the high-lift device during the deployment of the high-lift device;
• an actuator drivingly connected to the high-lift device to drive the deployment of the high-lift device, the actuator being disposed inside the internal cavity of the wing;
• an inboard bell crank drivingly connecting the actuator to the inboard portion of the high-lift device;
• an outboard bell crank drivingly connecting the actuator to the outboard portion of the high-lift device;
• and
• a linkage drivingly connecting the inboard bell crank to the outboard bell crank, the linkage including a first connecting rod, a second connecting rod and an idler interconnecting the first connecting rod with the second connecting rod.

A method of deploying a high-lift device of a wing of an aircraft, the method comprising:

• generating a driving movement along a driving direction that is different from a deployment direction of the high-lift device;
• converting the driving movement into a first deployment movement for a first portion of the high-lift device;
• applying the first deployment movement to the first portion of the high-lift device;
• transmitting the driving movement toward a second portion of the high-lift device via a linkage including a first connecting rod, a second connecting rod and an idler interconnecting the first connecting rod with the second connecting rod;
• converting movement from the linkage into a second deployment movement for a second portion of the high-lift device;
• and
• applying the second deployment movement to the second portion of the high-lift device.