Aircraft with integrated lift and propulsion system
OwnerAbe Kareminventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vertical take off and landing (VTOL) aircraft is designed to be so efficient that it can be commercially competitive with runway dependent aircraft operating in a range of 100 to 1000 miles. Improvements include a high efficiency tilting rotor and wing design that enable both vertical takeoff and efficient high speed cruising, a high aspect ratio wing, and a variable speed propulsion system that is efficient in both hover and cruise flight. Preferred aircraft use thin inboard and outboard wings, thin rotor blades, and use efficient lightweight design to achieve unusually low empty weight fraction. Inventive methods include utilization of advanced design and analysis techniques, which allow for accurate prediction of an aircraft's physical behavior.
Claims30
A flight operational tilt rotor aircraft, comprising:
- a fuselage;
- a rotor having a diameter of at least 20 feet, with at least first and second radially extending rotor blades, and disc loading of at least 23-30 pounds per square foot at a maximum hover weight;
- a propulsion system that rotates the rotor at variable speed during forward flight to at least as low as 70 -75% of maximum rpm in hover;
- an inboard wing that couples the rotor to the fuselage;
- and
- a tilting outboard wing coupled to the inboard wing.
A flight operational tilt rotor aircraft, comprising:
- a fuselage;
- a rotor having a diameter of at least 20 feet, with at least first and second radially extending rotor blades, wherein the rotor is configured to propel the aircraft in forward cruise speed of at least Mach 0.55;
- a propulsion system that rotates the rotor at variable speed during forward flight to at least as low as 70-75% of maximum rpm in hover;
- an inboard wing that couples the rotor to the fuselage;
- and
- a tilting outboard wing coupled to the inboard wing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.