US 5,310,314 AGranted

Directional control system for rotary wing aircraft

AssigneeGyrodyne Company of America, Inc.

InventorsWalter Bastedo, Alex Pappas, Martin L. Stevens

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Abstract

A tip brake unit for installation in tip portions of rotor blades of rotary wing aircraft having a plurality of load-carrying rotors has a frame of a size and shape for installation in a tip portion of a rotor blade. An elongate tip brake member of channel cross sectional shape with a closed outer end is supported and guided by rollers on the frame for movement longitudinally between an inner position in which a closed outer end of the tip brake member is flush with the tip of the rotor blade and an outer position in which the tip brake member projects beyond the tip of the blade. The open side of the channel shaped tip brake member faces forwardly with respect to the direction of movement of the tip portion of the rotor blade in which the tip brake unit is installed. The tip brake member is moved between inner and outer positions by a first pinion engaging a first rack on the tip brake member, an operating member having a second rack engaging a smaller second pinion coaxially rotatable with the first pinion, a first bell crank having a longer arm connecting with the operating member and a shorter arm connected with a longer arm of a second bell crank having a shorter arm connected through a lost motion device with a tip brake operating system of the aircraft.

Claims13

Dependent claims

A tip brake unit for installation in a tip portion of a rotor blade of rotary a rotor of a wing aircraft, said unit comprising:

a frame of a size and shape for installation in a tip portion of a rotor blade;
an elongate tip brake member of channel cross sectional shape having an inner end and an outer end with an end closure closing said outer end of said tip brake member;
supporting and guiding means in said frame for supporting said tip brake member in a position extending longitudinally of a rotor blade in which said unit is installed and for guiding said tip brake member for movement in a longitudinal direction between an inner position in which said outer end of said tip brake member is flush with a tip of a rotor blade in which said unit is installed and an outer position in which said tip brake member extends outwardly beyond said tip of said blade;
and
operating means for moving said tip brake member between said inner position and said outer position, said operating means comprising gear teeth constituting a first rack on said tip brake member, a first pinion rotatably supported by said frame and meshing with said first rack, a second pinion coaxially rotatable with said first pinion, an elongate operating member having a second rack meshing with said second pinion and guided by said frame for movement in a longitudinal direction and connecting means for connecting said operating member with a tip brake control system of said aircraft for movement of said operating member longitudinally by said system and thereby moving said tip brake member between said inner position and said outer position.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.