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US 5,054,717 AGranted
Aircraft capture systems
AssigneeGEC-Marconi Limited
InventorDouglas R. Taylor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An aircraft capture system, e.g. for a radio-controlled pilotless aircraft (19), having at the homing station a boom arrangement (13) mounted for rotation about a vertical hinge axis (A--A) and having appreciable flexibility under forces acting perpendicular to the hinge axis while being substantially inflexible under forces acting parallel to the hinge axis. The flexibility of the boom arrangement cushions the aircraft against shock when an arrester hook (33) deployed from the aircraft engages the boom arrangement via an arrester wire (15) attached to the boom arrangement.
Claims7
An aircraft capture system comprising:
- a homing station at which an aircraft is captured;
- an elongate boom arrangement at the homing station mounted for pivotal movement about a substantially vertical hinge axis;
- a first elongate flexible arrester member connected at one end to said boom arrangement at a position spaced from said hinge axis;
- energy absorber means at the homing station connected to the other end of said first arrester member;
- a second elongate flexible arrester member connected at one end to the aircraft;
- arrester hook means attached to said second arrester member at a position spaced from said one end of said second arrester member;
- and aerodynamic lift means operable when deployed, with the aircraft in flight, to support said second arrester means by aerodynamic lift action;
- said boom arrangement being appreciably flexible under forces applied thereto in a direction substantially perpendicular to the hinge axis whilst being substantially inflexible under forces applied thereto in a direction parallel to the hinge axis.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.