System and method for vehicle deployment, extraction, and stowage
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
InventorsJeremy P. Gray, James R. Mason, Michael S. Patterson, Matthew W. Skalny
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Abstract
A system and method for deploying, extracting, and storing vehicles. The system and method provide for implementation of at least one primary storage module, and optionally, one or more secondary storage modules. Each module includes a clamp dog and tiltable tray which has a pair of clamping arms. The system and method provide for clamp down and vertical stowage of vehicles. When more than one module is implemented, the modules are serially connected together to provide for vertical stowage of multiple vehicles, with one or no vehicle in each module.
Claims12
A system (1000) for performing extract and store, and deploy operations of at least one vehicle (100), the system comprising:
- a primary module (1102), wherein the primary module comprises a primary base (1220), a primary cover (1208), and a primary module support tray (1230), wherein, the primary module support tray is tiltably mounted to the primary base, and the primary module support tray is tiltable from a vertical position that is under the primary cover to a deployed position where the primary module support tray is outside of the primary cover and is at an angular range that extends to sub-horizontal;
- and
- a system control apparatus (2000) that is electrically coupled to the primary module, wherein the control sub-system comprises an operator control unit (2012) that is operated by a user, wherein,
- when the primary module is empty and the primary module support tray is at the deployed position, in response to a primary extract signal presented from the system control apparatus to the vehicle and the primary module, the vehicle is driven on to the primary module support tray by the user, and the primary module support tray is tilted to the vertical position to store the vehicle;
- and
- when the primary module contains the vehicle and the primary module support tray is at the vertical position, in response to a primary deploy signal presented from the system control apparatus to the vehicle and the primary module, the primary module support tray is tilted to the deployed position, and the vehicle is driven off the primary module support tray by the user.
A method (3000) for a user to manage extracting and storing, and deploying operations of at least one vehicle (100) from a modular handling and stowage system (1000) having (i) a primary module (1102), wherein the primary module comprises a primary base (1220), a primary cover (1208), and a primary module support tray (1230), wherein, the primary module support tray is tiltably mounted to the primary base, and the primary module support tray is tiltable from a vertical position that is under the primary cover to a deployed position where the primary module support tray is outside of the primary cover and is at an angular range that extends to sub-horizontal;
- and (ii) a system control apparatus (2000) that is electrically coupled to the primary module, wherein the system control apparatus comprises an operator control unit (2012) that is operated by the user, wherein,
- the method comprises:
- when the primary module is empty and the primary module support tray is at the deployed position, in response to a primary extract signal presented from the system control apparatus to the vehicle and the primary module;
- driving the vehicle on to the primary module support tray by the user, and
- tilting the primary module support tray to the vertical position to store the vehicle;
- and
- when the primary module contains the vehicle and the primary module support tray is at the vertical position, in response to a first deploy signal presented from the system control apparatus to the vehicle and the primary module;
- tilting the primary module support tray to the deployed position;
- and
- driving the vehicle off the primary module support tray by the user.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.