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US 9,359,075 B1Granted
Helicopter-mediated system and method for launching and retrieving an aircraft
AssigneeHood Technology Corporation
InventorsAndreas H. von Flotow, Corydon C. Roeseler, Daniel Reiss
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a helicopter-mediated system and method for launching and retrieving an aircraft capable of long-distance efficient cruising flight from a small space without the use of a long runway.
Claims18
A helicopter-mediated method for retrieving an aircraft from wing-borne flight, said method comprising:
- flying a helicopter above an anchor assembly such that a first portion of a tether connected to both the helicopter and the anchor assembly extends between the helicopter and the anchor assembly;
- station-keeping the helicopter generally above the anchor assembly;
- measuring tension in the first portion of the tether and, when the measured tension in the first portion of the tether is not substantially equal to a designated tension, moving the helicopter relative to the anchor assembly until the measured tension in the first portion of the tether is substantially equal to the designated tension;
- and
- contacting and capturing a part of the first portion of the tether extending between the tether and the anchor assembly with the aircraft, thereby causing the anchor assembly to pay out a second portion of the tether and impose a resistive force opposing movement of the aircraft.
2 more elements
A helicopter-mediated system for retrieving an aircraft, said system comprising:
- a helicopter including a first connector;
- a tether connected to the helicopter via the first connector;
- an anchor assembly connected to the tether such that a first portion of the tether extends between the helicopter and the anchor assembly,
- a helicopter control system, and
- a tension sensor configured to measure and to transmit, to the helicopter control system, a tension in the first portion of the tether extending between the helicopter and the anchor assembly,
- wherein the anchor assembly is configured such that, when the tether is connected to the anchor assembly, imposition of an extending force on the tether in a direction away from the anchor assembly causes the anchor assembly to pay out a second portion of the tether and impose a resistive force opposing the extending force.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.