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US 8,985,504 B2Granted
Elevon control system
OwnerTony Shuo Tao, Nathan Olson +2inventors
InventorsTony Shuo Tao, Nathan Olson, Carlos Thomas Miralles, Robert Nickerson Plumb
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system comprising an aerial vehicle or an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) configured to control pitch, roll, and/or yaw via airfoils having resiliently mounted trailing edges opposed by fuselage-house deflecting actuator horns. Embodiments include one or more rudder elements which may be rotatably attached and actuated by an effector member disposed within the fuselage housing and extendible in part to engage the one or more rudder elements.
Claims39
An aerial vehicle, comprising:
- a fuselage having an exterior surface;
- a first pair of airfoils, a proximal portion of each of the first pair of airfoils rotatably attached at a forward pivot point at the exterior surface;
- and
- a second pair of airfoils, a proximal portion of each of the second pair of airfoils rotatably attached at an aft pivot point on the exterior surface;
- wherein the first pair of airfoils are configured to be rotatable to a retracted position that is aligned with a retracted position of the second pair of airfoils, with wing tips of the first pair of airfoils located adjacent to the aft pivot point when the first pair of airfoils is in its retracted position, and wherein wing tips of the second pair of airfoils are located adjacent to the forward pivot point when the second pair of airfoils is in its retracted position.
2 more elements
A method of operating an aerial vehicle, comprising:
- rotating a first pair of stacked airfoils from a first rotation position to a second rotation position about a forward pivot point on an exterior surface of a fuselage;
- and
- rotating a second pair of stacked airfoils from a third rotation position to a fourth rotation position about an aft pivot point on the exterior surface of the fuselage;
- wherein the first rotation position of the first pair of stacked airfoils is aligned with the third rotation position of the second pair of stacked airfoils, with wing tips of the first pair of stacked airfoils located adjacent to the aft pivot point when the first pair of airfoils is in the first rotation position, and wherein wing tips of the second pair of stacked airfoils are located adjacent to the forward pivot point when the second pair of stacked airfoils is in its third rotation position.
1 more element
An aerial vehicle, comprising:
- a fuselage having an exterior surface;
- a first pair of airfoils, a proximal portion of each of the first pair of airfoils disposed in a stacked arrangement and rotatably attached at a forward pivot point at the exterior surface;
- and
- a second pair of airfoils, a proximal portion of each of the second pair of airfoils disposed in a stacked arrangement and rotatably attached at an aft pivot point at the exterior surface;
- wherein the forward and aft pivot points are disposed collinearly with a fuselage longitudinal axis, and wherein the first pair of airfoils are rotatably disposed about a forward co-axial pivot point and the second pair of airfoils are rotatably disposed about an aft co-axial pivot point, the forward and aft co-axial pivot points disposed collinearly with a center line of the fuselage.
2 more elements
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) comprising:
- a fuselage surface;
- a first airfoil rotatably disposed about a forward pivot region of the fuselage surface;
- a second airfoil rotatably disposed about the forward pivot region of the fuselage surface;
- a third airfoil rotatably disposed about an aft pivot region of the fuselage surface;
- and
- a fourth airfoil rotatably disposed about the aft pivot region of the fuselage surface;
- wherein the forward pivot region of the fuselage surface comprises a forward pivot point and the aft pivot region of the fuselage surface comprises an aft pivot point, the forward and aft pivot points collinear with a fuselage longitudinal axis, and wherein the respective first and second airfoils are rotatably disposed about a forward co-axial pivot point and the third and fourth airfoils are rotatably disposed about an aft co-axial pivot point, the forward and aft co-axial pivot points disposed collinearly with a center line of the fuselage.
4 more elements
An aerial vehicle (UAV), comprising:
- a fuselage having an exterior surface and a maximum fuselage width;
- a first pair of stacked airfoils coaxially and rotatably attached at a forward pivot point at the exterior surface, the first pair of stacked airfoils each having a constant chord along their span that approximates the maximum fuselage width;
- and
- a second pair of stacked airfoils coaxially and rotatably attached at an aft pivot point on the exterior surface, the second pair of airfoils each having a constant chord along their span that approximates the maximum fuselage width and the forward and aft pivot points disposed collinearly with a center line of the fuselage;
- wherein the first pair of stacked airfoils are configured to be rotatable to a retracted position that is aligned with a retracted position of the second pair of airfoils, with wing tips of the first pair of stacked airfoils located adjacent to the aft wing pivot point when the first pair of stacked airfoils is in its retracted position and wherein wing tips of the second pair of stacked airfoils are located adjacent to the forward wing pivot point when the second pair of stacked airfoils is in its retracted position.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.