US 4,804,155 AGranted

VTOL aircraft

OwnerWilliam P. Strumbosinventor

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A VTOL aircraft having a fuselage with fixed ring wings on either side thereof. Each ring wing has a rearwardly extending nacelle associated with it. Each nacelle has a ring tail empennage at its after end and a propulsor fan in its nose operating in the bore of its associated ring wing. The propulsor fans provide propulsion thrust for conventional flight in which the flow created over the lifitng surfaces due to forward velocity of the aircraft generates lift for flight. The propulsor fans operate to induce a flow over the lifting surfaces to generate lift for VTOL flight without a requirement for forward velocity by the aircraft. Aerodynamic control means such as spoilers are provided in the ring wings and empennages for pitch, roll, and yaw control in conventional flight. Thrust reacting and vectoring means are provided in the empennages to vector propulsor fan slipstream in VTOL flight for pitch and yaw control and to react forward travel due to propulsor thrust such that fully controlled vertical flight is produced. A coordinated action of the spoilers in conventional flight and of the wing spoilers and thrust reacting and vectoring means in VTOL flight produces controlled moments transverse to the normal line of flight. In another embodiment, the aircraft has a single ring wing mounted substantially coaxially on the fuselage and a ring tail empennage mounted coaxially on the after end thereof. A propulsor fan operating in the bore of the wing provides propulsion thrust for conventional flight and "blows" the lifting surfaces for VTOl flight. The empennage provides directional control for all phases of flight and also reacts and vectors propulsor thrust to control the aircraft and to regulate forward travel such that fully controlled VTOl flight is obtained. In a further embodiment, a channel wing instead of a ring wing is used.

In a VTOL aircraft having a longitudinally extending load-carrying fuselage with alighting means, said fuselage having a nose and an after end and having controls for the operation of said aircraft, the improvement comprising;

arcuate airfoil surfaces fixedly attached to said fuselage, annular empennage means including fixed airfoil surfaces at said after end of said fuselage, the chords of said airfoil surfaces being substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis of said aircraft, said longitudinal axis and said fixed airfoil surface chords normally being maintained in a substantially horizontal orientation during substantially all phases of VTOL flight and during transition to conventional flight, a power plant driving propulsion means for generating a high-velocity slipstream essentially rearwardly and substantially parallel to said longitudinal axis, said propulsion means having the capability for imparting forward motion to said aircraft, said slipstream passing over said airfoil surfaces to generate lift forces by top surface blowing, said slipstream producing a flow over said empennage airfoil surfaces to generate lift forces thereby, first control means on said arcuate airfoil surfaces for operating on the flow to selectively control the pressure thereover to direct selectively the flow induced radial lift forces generated thereby, second control means on said empennage airfoil surfaces for operating on the flow to selectively control the pressure thereover to direct selectively the flow induced radial lift forces generated thereby, and flow vectoring means in said empennage means for individually and collectively reacting and vectoring selectively the thrust forces generated by said flow;
whereby, for conventional flight, said propulsion means propels said aircraft such that the forward velocity thereof produces a flow over said airfoil surfaces that contributes lift for flight and said first control means on said arcuate airfoil surfaces and second control means on said annular empennage airfoil surfaces vector said lift radially to provide directional control and, whereby, for VTOL flight, said propulsion means produces a high-velocity flow over said arcuate airfoil surfaces to generate lift for flight by top surface blowing and said flow vectoring means in said annular empennage blocks the flow therethrough to react and vector the slipstream from said propulsion means radially to provide directional control in coordination with said first control means and to react selectively said thrust produced by said propulsion means to regulate horizontal travel of said aircraft such that controlled vertical flight results.

Facts

Application

07/020,352Filed 2 Mar 1987 · continuation

Priority

12 Apr 1984

Granted

14 Feb 1989

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

B64C 39/062
Having disc- or ring-shaped wings: having annular wings
B64C 25/423
Arrangement or adaptation of brakes: braking devices acting by reaction of gaseous medium
B64C 29/0025
The lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers: the propellers being fixed relative to the fuselage
B64D 33/04
Arrangement in aircraft of power plant parts or auxiliaries not otherwise provided for: of exhaust outlets or jet pipes

Abstract

Claims19