A stopper and a folding wingtip stop structure

Abstract

The present invention provides a stopper and a folding wingtip stopper structure, which relates to the technical field of aircraft structure design, and can achieve impact load buffering and secondary stop when the folding wingtip is opened to the corresponding position, and can also give an electrical signal to guide the locking action according to the stop situation; the stopper includes a main body structure and a stopper cover, and when stopping, the stopper cover is connected to the main body structure to achieve stop; the main body structure includes an elastic part and a non-elastic part, the elastic part is used to buffer the impact load transmitted by the stopper cover when stopping, and the non-elastic part is used to achieve the final stop positioning; the non-elastic part is an inner hollow structure shell with an opening at one end, and the elastic part is arranged in the shell; the stopper cover includes a contact layer and a stopper layer; the contact layer and the elastic part are contacted and compressed, and the stopper layer is stop-connected to the shell; the elastic part includes a piezoelectric layer, and is connected to an external device with a signal line. The technical solution provided by the present invention is applicable to the process of folding wingtip stop.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of aircraft structure design, and in particular to a stopper and a folding wing tip stopper structure. Background Art

[0002] The use of large aspect ratio wings can further improve the aerodynamic efficiency of civil aircraft, thereby improving the economy and environmental protection of aircraft. At the same time, the excessively long wingspan poses a new challenge to the adaptability of existing airports (Class 4E airports require the wingspan to be below 65m). The use of folding wingtips is an effective way to solve the airport adaptability of large aspect ratio civil aircraft. The folding wingtip structure can realize rotation around the hinge axis, thereby realizing the transition between the flight state and the ground parking state. In the flight state, the folding wingtip is opened and locked to the fixed end of the wing, at which time the wingtip and the fixed end of the wing are in the same plane; in the ground state, the folding wingtip is folded along the hinge axis, so that the wingspan of the aircraft is reduced to below 65m, meeting the requirements of Class 4E airports. In the field of civil aircraft, in order to ensure the reliability of force transmission and connection of the foldable wingtip structure, the folding wingtip structure usually includes: wingtip body, connection structure, hinge axis, power unit, latch and stopper.

[0003] The folding wingtip stop structure is usually used to limit the range of motion of the folding wingtip. Patent CN103786871B "Hinged tilted wingtip" and its family patents describe the arrangement of the hinge axis, the arrangement of the latch position, and the connection form between the foldable end and the fixed end. U.S. Patent No. 16052102 "Stop pads for aircraft folding wingtips" introduces the structure, function and installation position of the folding wingtip stop structure, and the stopper structure introduced therein is connected to the foldable end of the wing and the fixed end of the wing respectively. The foldable end of the wing is composed of two layers (a surface wear-resistant layer and a brittle layer placed under the wear-resistant layer), which is mechanically connected to the "short wing beam" of the foldable end and is a replaceable structure; the stop plate part of the fixed end of the wing is a permanent part. The existing patented technical solution of the folding wingtip will be exposed to the airport environment when the wing is folded, and it is a purely physical structure. The foldable wingtip cannot participate in signal transmission after reaching the unfolded position.

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to study a folding wingtip stop structure and a stopper technical solution to address the deficiencies of the prior art, so as to solve or alleviate one or more of the above problems. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of this, the present invention provides a stopper and a folding wingtip stop structure, which can buffer the impact load and achieve secondary stopping when the folding wingtip is opened to the corresponding position, and can also provide an electrical signal to guide the locking action according to the stopping situation.

[0006] On the one hand, the present invention provides a stopper, characterized in that the stopper comprises a main body structure and a stopper cover, and when stopping, the stopper cover is connected to the main body structure to achieve stopping;

[0007] The main body structure comprises an elastic portion and a non-elastic portion, wherein the elastic portion is used to buffer the impact load transmitted by the stopper cover during stopping, and the non-elastic portion is used to achieve the final stopping positioning.

[0008] According to the above aspects and any possible implementation, there is further provided an implementation, wherein the non-elastic portion is a shell made of a hard material, and the shell as a whole is a hollow structure with one end open.

[0009] According to the above aspects and any possible implementation, there is further provided an implementation, wherein the elastic portion is disposed in an inner hollow position of the shell.

[0010] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation method, an implementation method is further provided, wherein the stop cover includes a contact layer and a stop layer; when stopped, the contact layer contacts and compresses the elastic part, and the stop layer is stop-connected with the shell after the elastic part is compressed.

[0011] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation method, an implementation method is further provided, wherein the elastic part is a layered structure, which includes an outer anti-wear layer, a middle elastic layer and a bottom piezoelectric layer from top to bottom; the bottom piezoelectric layer is connected to an external control system via a signal line.

[0012] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation method, an implementation method is further provided, wherein the shell includes an outer shell and an inner shell which are sleeved together, and the end surface of the inner shell is lower than the end surface of the outer shell; the stop layer of the stop cover is in contact with the end surface of the inner shell to achieve stop positioning.

[0013] According to the above aspects and any possible implementation, an implementation is further provided, wherein the stop cover also includes a mounting layer disposed outside the stop layer for fixing the stop cover, and the mounting layer is connected to the end surface of the outer shell.

[0014] On the other hand, the present invention provides a folding wingtip stop structure, which includes a foldable wingtip, a wing fixed end and a hinge shaft for hingedly connecting the foldable wingtip and the wing fixed end, and is characterized in that a main body structure or a stop cover as described above is provided on the wing fixed end, and a stop cover or a main body structure as described above is provided on the foldable wingtip, and when the foldable wingtip rotates along the hinge shaft, the stop cover is connected to the main body structure to achieve stopping.

[0015] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation method, an implementation method is further provided, wherein the outer periphery of the hinge shaft is provided with a cover, the cover is provided with a sliding groove, and the sliding groove is provided with a pin structure capable of sliding along the sliding groove; the stop cover and the main body structure are respectively fixedly arranged on the pin structure and one end of the sliding groove; the pin structure is fixedly connected to the foldable wingtip or the fixed end of the wing, and the cover is fixedly connected to the fixed end of the wing or the foldable wingtip.

[0016] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation manner, there is further provided an implementation manner, wherein the stopping structure further includes a latch structure for locking the foldable wing tip and the fixed end of the wing after the foldable wing tip and the fixed end of the wing are stopped.

[0017] According to the above aspects and any possible implementation, there is further provided an implementation, wherein the sliding groove is arranged along the circumferential direction of the hinge axis.

[0018] According to the aspects described above and any possible implementation method, an implementation method is further provided, wherein the foldable wing tip and the fixed end of the wing are meshed and connected, that is, the meshing is achieved by the box-type structure of the foldable wing tip and the fixed end of the wing, and the hinge axis passes through the box-type structures of the two to achieve hinged connection.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, one of the above technical solutions has the following advantages or beneficial effects: the stopper involved is arranged on the hinge shaft and protected by the flap; when the folding wing tip is opened to the corresponding position, the stoppers fixed at the folding end and the fixed end touch to achieve stopping;

[0020] Another technical solution in the above technical solution has the following advantages or beneficial effects: when stopping, the piezoelectric layer gives an electrical signal according to the degree of compression to indicate that the wing tip is in place, thereby achieving locking, which has a certain protective effect on the folding wing tip structure;

[0021] Another technical solution of the above technical solution has the following advantages or beneficial effects: the stopper involved in the present invention is packaged, and after the impact load is relieved and the first stop is achieved, a "second stop" can be performed;

[0022] Another technical solution among the above technical solutions has the following advantages or beneficial effects: when the wing tip reaches the deployed position around the hinge axis, the stopper contacts, the elastic layer absorbs the impact energy, the piezoelectric layer gives a wing tip in place signal, and it is transmitted to the latch device through the flight control system.

[0023] Of course, any product implementing the present invention does not necessarily need to achieve all of the above-mentioned technical effects at the same time. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required for use in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0025] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the folding wing tip structure arrangement provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 2 is a diagram of a stopper arrangement provided by one embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 3 is a layout diagram of a stopper cover provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 4 is a diagram of a package of a stopper provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 5 This is a "three-layer" design diagram of a stopper provided by an embodiment of the present invention (i.e. Figure 4 sectional view of the stopper shown). DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] In order to better understand the technical solution of the present invention, the embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] It should be clear that the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0032] The terms used in the embodiments of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular forms "a", "said" and "the" used in the embodiments of the present invention and the appended claims are also intended to include plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates other meanings.

[0033] In view of the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention provides a folding wing tip stop structure and a stopper body, which are used to limit the movement range of the folding wing tip. At the same time, when the folding wing tip moves from a folded position to an unfolded position, the stopper is used to absorb the contact impact load between the folding wing tip and the fixed end of the wing. In addition, the encapsulated stopper can achieve "secondary stop" of the folding wing tip.

[0034] The folding wing tip stop structure of the present invention is a "key pin" type structure, including a cover connected to the box structure wall of the wing fixed end, a guide rail, a pin arranged on the hinge shaft, and a stopper arranged at the end of the guide rail and the pin. The components are mechanically connected to form an assembly relationship. The hinge shaft passes through the wing fixed end and the folding wing tip box structure wall, and the pin arranged on the hinge shaft can move along the guide rail, which is located inside the cover. The cover can be fixed to the wall of the box structure at the wing fixed end by bolts, and can be disassembled. The cover and the internal guide rail of the wall of the box structure at the wing fixed end can limit the rotational movement range of the hinge shaft, and prevent the hinge shaft from linearly moving along the axial direction through the pin connected to the hinge shaft.

[0035] The folding wingtip stopper of the present invention includes a wear-resistant layer, an elastic layer and a piezoelectric layer, which are packaged by a high-modulus hard metal material. The wear-resistant layer is arranged on the surface of the stopper, and a high-modulus hard metal material similar to the packaging structure can be used. The elastic layer is arranged between the wear-resistant layer and the piezoelectric layer, and is used to absorb the impact load generated by the collision with the fixed end of the wing when the folding wing tip moves around the hinge axis to the unfolded position. The piezoelectric layer is arranged at the bottom layer, and after receiving the pressure transmitted by the elastic layer, it generates an electrical signal through itself and transmits the electrical signal to the flight control system. The signal transmitted by the piezoelectric layer to the flight control system can be output to the latch controller after being analyzed by the flight control system, thereby realizing the opening and closing of the latch. After the stopper structure is packaged by a high-modulus hard metal material, a "step" is designed on the stopper cover, thereby realizing the secondary stop of the stopper.

[0036] In the description of the following embodiments of the present invention, it should be understood that the present embodiments do not involve the arrangement, position or direction of the hinge shaft. The use of a "key pin" type hinge shaft and the arrangement of a stopper is only one possible arrangement, but the installation of the stopper body is not limited to being arranged on the hinge shaft. The specific contents are as follows:

[0037] 1) If Figure 1 As shown, the foldable wing tip structure of a civil aircraft includes a wing fixed end 1 connected to the fuselage, a foldable wing tip 2 hinged to the wing fixed end, a hinge shaft 3 for hingedly connecting the wing fixed end 1 and the foldable wing tip 2, an actuator 7 for realizing the movement of the foldable wing tip 2 between a folded position and an unfolded position, a latch mechanism 5 for locking the foldable wing tip in the unfolded position, and a stopper 9 for limiting the movement range of the foldable wing tip. The latch mechanism 5 is fixed to the foldable wing tip or the wing fixed end through a component 6.

[0038] 2) The fixed end part of the wing connected to the fuselage usually includes a wing front beam 11, a wing rear beam 12, wing ribs 13, an end rib reinforcement beam 14, etc.; wherein the foldable wingtip part hinged to the fixed end of the wing 1 usually includes a wingtip front beam 21, a wingtip rear beam 22, a wingtip rib 23, an end rib reinforcement beam 24, etc.

[0039] 3) The box structure 15 of the wing fixed end 1 and the box structure 25 of the foldable wing tip 2 are connected together through the hinge axis 3, wherein the box structure includes walls 8 distributed along the chord direction. The wing tip is rotated along the hinge axis 3 by the actuator 7, so that the wingspan after folding is less than 65m (such as Figure 1 Number 4 in the figure).

[0040] 4) If Figure 2 As shown, the hinge shaft 3 passes through the wall 8 of the wing fixed end 1 and the foldable wing tip 2. A cover 82 is arranged on the wall of the wing fixed end, and the cover 82 is connected to the wall 8 through a mechanical mounting hole 86. A "key pin" structure is adopted to fix the stopper 9 (such as Figure 4 ) is arranged inside the cover 82, wherein the pin structure 81 is located on the hinge axis 3 (as shown in Figure 3 shown).

[0041] 5) The mechanical connection between the cover 82 and the wall 8 can be bolted. The cover 82 has a groove 85 formed inside at 90° along the hinge axis to form a "guide rail" so that the pin structure 81 on the hinge axis 3 can move in the groove along the hinge axis. The stopper 9 is arranged at one end of the groove 85 and the end of the pin structure 81.

[0042] 6) If Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the stopper 9 is designed in a nested manner and is divided into two parts, including a main body structure 92 and a stopper cover 91. The main body structure 92 is arranged at one end of the groove 85, and the stopper cover 91 is arranged on one end of the pin structure 81 and moves with the circular movement of the pin structure 81. When the pin structure 81 is stopped, it moves to the main body structure 92, and the main body structure 92 and the stopper cover 91 are covered. For the main body structure 92, a protective layer is designed on the outside, and a hard metal material is used. The whole structure is an inner hollow shell structure with an upper opening; the shell structure includes an inner shell and an outer shell. The inner shell and the outer shell can be integrated or separated, and the upper end surface 922 of the inner shell is lower than the upper end surface 923 of the outer shell. The inside of the shell structure is filled with a three-layer structure, which includes an outer anti-wear layer 93, a middle elastic layer 94 and a bottom piezoelectric layer 95 from top to bottom. A hole 921 is opened at the bottom of the main body structure 92, and the signal line is connected to the bottom piezoelectric layer 95 through the hole 921. After the bottom piezoelectric layer is impacted, the electrical signal is transmitted to the flight control system through the signal line. It should be noted that the height restrictions of the internal three-layer structure and the end face of the inner shell need to be met: the total height of the internal three-layer structure is lower than the height of the upper end face of the inner shell when compressed.

[0043] 7) The stopper cover 91 is also made of hard metal material and is divided into three layers from the outside to the inside. The first layer is the installation layer 913, which is installed on Figure 2At the end of the pin structure 81 shown, the second layer is a secondary stop layer 912, and the third layer is a direct contact layer 911. The three-layer structure of the stop cover can be integrally formed, or it can be a separate structure but fixedly connected together in sequence.

[0044] When the foldable wing tip 2 reaches the unfolded position, the direct contact layer 911 comes into contact with the anti-wear layer 93, and then compresses the intermediate elastic layer 94 to deform, while reducing the impact load of the mechanism until the secondary stop layer 912 comes into contact with the upper end surface 922 of the inner shell, thereby achieving secondary stopping.

[0045] 9) The outer anti-wear layer 93 of the stopper 9 is used to prevent wear of the foldable wing tip when it is folded or unfolded during the service of the aircraft; the middle elastic layer 94 is used to buffer the impact load caused by the movement of the folding wing tip; the bottom piezoelectric layer 95 converts the pressure signal of the foldable wing tip 2 into an electrical signal and provides it to the latch mechanism 5, thereby realizing the wing tip locking.

[0046] 10) The stopper structure is not limited to being arranged on a "key pin" type structure, but can also be other movable structures.

[0047] Folding wingtips are a new type of structural form for civil aircraft, but there is currently no mature model application experience. Therefore, this patent proposal is in the conceptual design stage and has strong feasibility.

[0048] The above is a detailed introduction to the technical solution of a stopper and a folding wingtip stop structure provided by the embodiment of the present application. The description of the above embodiment is only used to help understand the method and core idea of ​​the present application; at the same time, for those skilled in the art, according to the idea of ​​the present application, there will be changes in the specific implementation method and application scope. In summary, the content of this specification should not be understood as limiting the present application.

[0049] For example, certain words are used in the specification and claims to refer to specific components. Those skilled in the art should understand that hardware manufacturers may use different nouns to refer to the same component. This specification and claims do not use differences in names as a way to distinguish components, but use differences in the functions of components as the criteria for distinction. As mentioned throughout the specification and claims, "including" and "comprising" are open-ended terms, so they should be interpreted as "including / including but not limited to". "Approximately" means that within an acceptable error range, those skilled in the art can solve the technical problem within a certain error range and basically achieve the technical effect. The subsequent description of the specification is a preferred embodiment of the present application, but the description is for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the present application, and is not used to limit the scope of the present application. The scope of protection of the present application shall be determined by the definition of the attached claims.

[0050] It should also be noted that the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a product or system including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such a product or system. In the absence of more restrictions, the elements defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the product or system including the elements.

[0051] It should be understood that the term "and / or" used in this article is only a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this article generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0052] The above description shows and describes several preferred embodiments of the present application, but as mentioned above, it should be understood that the present application is not limited to the form disclosed herein, and should not be regarded as excluding other embodiments, but can be used in various other combinations, modifications and environments, and can be modified within the scope of the application concept described herein through the above teachings or the technology or knowledge of the relevant field. The changes and modifications made by those skilled in the art do not deviate from the spirit and scope of the present application, and should be within the scope of protection of the claims attached to the present application.

Claims

1. A stopper, characterized in that: The stopper comprises a main body structure and a stopper cover; when stopping, the stopper cover is connected to the main body structure to achieve stopping; The main body structure includes an elastic part and a non-elastic part, wherein the elastic part is used to buffer the impact load transmitted by the stopper cover during the stop, and the non-elastic part is used to achieve the final stop positioning; The non-elastic part is a shell made of hard material, and the shell as a whole is a hollow structure with one end open; the elastic part is arranged in the shell; The elastic part is a layered structure, which includes an outer anti-wear layer, a middle elastic layer and a bottom piezoelectric layer from top to bottom; the bottom piezoelectric layer is connected to an external control system through a signal line.

2. The stopper according to claim 1, characterized in that: The stopper cover comprises a contact layer and a stopper layer; when stopped, the contact layer contacts and compresses the elastic part, and the stopper layer is stopperly connected to the shell after the elastic part is compressed.

3. The stopper according to claim 2, characterized in that: The shell comprises an outer shell and an inner shell which are sleeved together, and the end surface of the inner shell is lower than the end surface of the outer shell; the stop layer of the stop cover is in contact with the end surface of the inner shell to achieve stop positioning.

4. The stopper according to claim 3, characterized in that: The stopper cover also includes a mounting layer which is arranged outside the stopper layer and is used to fix the stopper cover, and the mounting layer is connected to the end surface of the outer shell.

5. A folding wing tip stop structure, the stop structure comprising a foldable wing tip, a wing fixed end and a hinge shaft for hingedly connecting the foldable wing tip and the wing fixed end, characterized in that: The fixed end of the wing is provided with a main body structure or a stop cover of the stopper as described in any one of claims 1-4, and the foldable wingtip is provided with a stop cover or a main body structure of the stopper as described in any one of claims 1-4, and when the foldable wingtip rotates along the hinge axis, the stop cover is connected to the main body structure to achieve stopping.

6. The folding wing tip stop structure according to claim 5, characterized in that: The outer periphery of the hinge shaft is provided with a cover, and the cover arranged on the outer periphery of the hinge shaft is provided with a sliding groove, and the sliding groove is provided with a pin structure that can slide along the sliding groove; the stop cover and the main body structure are respectively fixed on the pin structure and one end of the sliding groove; the pin structure is fixedly connected to the foldable wing tip or the fixed end of the wing, and the cover arranged on the outer periphery of the hinge shaft is fixedly connected to the fixed end of the wing or the foldable wing tip.

7. The folding wing tip stop structure according to claim 5, characterized in that: The stopping structure further comprises a latch structure for locking the foldable wing tip and the wing fixed end after the foldable wing tip and the wing fixed end are stopped.

8. The folding wing tip stop structure according to claim 6, characterized in that: The sliding groove is arranged along the circumferential direction of the hinge axis.

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