Aerial delivery system
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorsWilliam Worden Cleary, John A. Skorupa, Ty F. Bonnar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
This disclosure is directed to apparatuses, systems, and methods associated with the aerial delivery of materials in a manner that is inexpensive, accurate, efficient, and effective. More specifically this disclosure teaches deploying an aerial delivery container holding some material from an aircraft and releasing the material from the aerial delivery container, all in a controlled manner, while the aerial delivery container is airborne. With reference to the exemplary embodiments, the apparatuses, systems and methods of the present disclosure are taught within the context of releasing a firefighting suppressant over a fire.
Claims7
An aerial delivery system, comprising:
- a bladder configured to contain material;
- a sleeve positioned around the bladder;
- a stay structure positioned at a first end of the sleeve;
- an end cap positioned at a second end of the sleeve;
- at least one vertical restraint system tie releasably securing the stay structure to the sleeve;
- a vertical restraint system tie severing device comprising a cutting edge and configured to receive and sever the at least one vertical restraint system tie;
- and,
- at least one deployment strap extending from the bladder;
- at least one end cap deployment line, each end cap deployment line connected at a first end to a first deployment strap, extending through a first aperture in the end cap, across a top surface of the end cap, through a second aperture in the end cap, and connected at a second end to a second deployment strap;
- at least one end cap tie, each end cap tie connected at a first end to the stay structure, extending over a first edge of the end cap, across a top surface of the end cap, over a second edge of the end cap, and connected at a second end to the stay structure;
- and
- an end cap tie cutter configured to sever the at least one end cap tie according to a predetermined delay, altitude, or ambient pressure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.