Method and system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear of an aircraft

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method and system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear of an aircraft. The method comprises: obtaining parameters required for regulating a current of an excitation coil of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear; generating a profile of the current over time from a current time based on the obtained parameters for regulating the current; and applying the profile of the current to control the current applied to the excitation coil to regulate the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of aircraft landing gear, and in particular to magnetorheological fluid landing gear. Background Technology

[0002] For large fixed-wing aircraft, the loads and overloads caused by ground operations such as landing and taxiing constitute the design envelope of components such as the fuselage and engine. This is one of the important bases for the strength design of the aircraft and also an important factor affecting the passenger comfort of the aircraft.

[0003] In current aircraft design, oil-gas buffer struts are typically used to absorb loads caused by ground operations. The damping of these struts is uncontrolled, making it a passive load mitigation method.

[0004] This disclosure addresses, but is not limited to, the many factors mentioned above. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Therefore, this disclosure proposes a method and system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft. The inventors have discovered that the load transmitted from the magnetorheological fluid landing gear to the aircraft fuselage is approximately equal to the sum of the gas pressure inside the buffer strut and the resistance of the magnetorheological fluid flowing through the orifice plate. Since the damping of the magnetorheological fluid varies under different magnetic field strengths, the resistance when passing through the orifice plate also varies. Therefore, the method and system of this disclosure propose to calculate the required damping most beneficial to mitigating the load distribution of the aircraft based on the excitation of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear wheels by the ground (e.g., the reaction force caused by the wheels contacting the ground) and the changes in the load distribution of the aircraft, and to adjust the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear accordingly, thereby reducing the load and overload borne by the aircraft structure. The method and system disclosed herein can adjust the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear according to the load distribution of the aircraft and runway information, so that the damping characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear are always kept in a state most favorable for reducing the load and overload of the aircraft. This achieves the reduction of the overall load on the aircraft, reduces the design requirements for the structural strength of the aircraft, and improves the ride quality, reduces the structural weight of the aircraft, and extends the service life of the aircraft. Therefore, the method and system disclosed herein achieve the adjustment of the damping of the landing gear (especially its shock absorber struts) without significantly changing the landing gear structure, thereby reducing the load on the aircraft during ground operations such as landing and taxiing.

[0006] According to a first aspect of this disclosure, a method for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological landing gear of an aircraft is provided, comprising: acquiring parameters required for regulating the current of an excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear; generating a time-varying curve of the current for regulating the current based on the acquired parameters; and applying the current-varying curve to control the current applied to the excitation coil to regulate the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

[0007] According to one embodiment, the method further includes determining that the magnetorheological landing gear is in a non-retracted state before acquiring the parameters.

[0008] According to another embodiment, the method is performed when the speed of the aircraft exceeds a predetermined speed threshold and / or the aircraft is on the ground.

[0009] According to another embodiment, the predetermined speed threshold is any value in the range of 0 to 50 km / h, and the aircraft being on the ground is determined based on wheel load information and / or flight altitude information from the aircraft.

[0010] According to another embodiment, the parameters include: the pressure and temperature of the tires and shock struts of the magnetorheological landing gear and the acceleration of the wheel axle; the weight, center of gravity, speed, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, and attitude of the aircraft; and / or runway information.

[0011] According to another embodiment, generating a time-varying curve of the current for regulating the current based on the acquired parameters includes: predicting the change of the load distribution of the aircraft over time based on the acquired parameters; determining the required change of the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time based on the predicted change of the load distribution over time; and generating the time-varying curve of the current based on the required change of the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time.

[0012] According to a second aspect of this disclosure, a system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological landing gear of an aircraft is provided, comprising: a sensing device arranged to sense the state of the magnetorheological landing gear; and a processing device arranged to: acquire parameters required for regulating the current of an excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear, wherein the parameters include the state of the magnetorheological landing gear sensed by the sensing device; generate a time-varying curve for regulating the current based on the acquired parameters; and transmit the current-varying curve to an excitation coil controller; and the excitation coil controller arranged to apply the current-varying curve to control the current applied to the excitation coil to regulate the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

[0013] According to one embodiment, the sensing device includes pressure and temperature sensors disposed within the buffer struts and tires of the magnetorheological landing gear, and an acceleration sensor disposed at the wheel axle.

[0014] According to another embodiment, the parameters also include the aircraft's model, weight, center of gravity, speed, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, attitude, and / or runway information from the aircraft data bus.

[0015] According to a third aspect of this disclosure, an aircraft is provided, including the system described in the aspects of this disclosure.

[0016] The aspects generally include, as substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings and as explained by the drawings, methods, apparatus, systems, computer program products, and processing systems.

[0017] The foregoing has broadly outlined the features and technical advantages of the examples according to this disclosure so that the following detailed description may be better understood. Additional features and advantages will be described thereafter. The disclosed concepts and specific examples can be readily used as the basis for modifying or designing other structures for implementing the same purposes as this disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. The characteristics of the concepts disclosed herein, in both their organization and manner of operation, and their associated advantages, will be better understood by considering the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Each drawing is provided for illustrative and descriptive purposes and does not define any limitation on the claims. Attached Figure Description

[0018] To gain a more detailed understanding of the features described above in this disclosure, reference can be made to various aspects of the above-briefly summarized content, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. However, it should be noted that the drawings illustrate only certain typical aspects of this disclosure and should not be considered as limiting its scope, as other equivalent aspects are permissible in this description. Identical reference numerals in different drawings may identify the same or similar elements.

[0019] Figure 1 A schematic flowchart of a method for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear of an aircraft according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0020] Figure 2 A schematic cross-sectional view of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0021] Figure 3 A schematic variation curve of the load experienced by an aircraft during the landing phase according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0022] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft, according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure, is shown; and

[0023] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example aircraft according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The inventors recognized that for large fixed-wing aircraft, the loads and overloads caused by ground operations such as landing and taxiing constitute the design envelope of components such as the fuselage and engines. This is one of the important bases for the strength design of the aircraft and also an important factor affecting the passenger comfort. However, in current aircraft designs, oleo-pneumatic shock absorbers are usually used to absorb the loads caused by ground operations. The damping of these shock absorbers is uncontrolled, which is a passive load mitigation method.

[0025] The inventors also recognized that in recent years, with the emergence and increasing maturity of magnetorheological fluid buffer struts, it is possible to regulate the damping characteristics of magnetorheological fluid landing gear, thereby reducing the load on aircraft during ground operations such as landing and taxiing.

[0026] Therefore, this disclosure proposes a method and system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft. The inventors have discovered that the load transmitted from the magnetorheological fluid landing gear to the aircraft fuselage is approximately equal to the sum of the gas pressure inside the buffer strut and the resistance of the magnetorheological fluid flowing through the orifice plate. Since the damping of the magnetorheological fluid varies under different magnetic field strengths, the resistance when passing through the orifice plate also varies. Therefore, the method and system of this disclosure propose to calculate the required damping most beneficial to mitigating the load distribution of the aircraft based on the excitation of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear wheels by the ground (e.g., the reaction force caused by the wheels contacting the ground) and the changes in the load distribution of the aircraft, and to adjust the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear accordingly, thereby reducing the load and overload borne by the aircraft structure.

[0027] The method and system disclosed herein can adjust the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear according to the load distribution of the aircraft and runway information, so that the damping characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear are always kept in a state most favorable for reducing the load and overload of the aircraft. This achieves the reduction of the overall load on the aircraft, reduces the design requirements for the structural strength of the aircraft, and improves the ride quality, reduces the structural weight of the aircraft, and extends the service life of the aircraft. Therefore, the method and system disclosed herein achieve the adjustment of the damping of the landing gear (especially its shock absorber struts) without significantly changing the landing gear structure, thereby reducing the load on the aircraft during ground operations such as landing and taxiing.

[0028] The detailed description that follows, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. This detailed description includes specific details to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts can be practiced without these specific details.

[0029] refer to Figure 1 The document shows a flowchart of a method 100 for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] like Figure 1 As shown, method 100 may include, in block 110, obtaining parameters required for regulating the current of the excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear.

[0031] In one embodiment of this disclosure, these parameters may include the pressure and temperature of the tires and struts of the magnetorheological landing gear and the acceleration of the wheel axles; the aircraft type, weight, center of gravity, speed, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, attitude; and / or runway information.

[0032] In this embodiment, various parameters of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear can be acquired from its constituent sensors. For example... Figure 2The diagram shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear 200 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. It can be seen that the magnetorheological fluid landing gear 200 may include a buffer strut 201 and a tire assembly 203. The buffer strut 201 may include a piston, the piston cavity comprising a gas chamber filled with gas and a liquid chamber filled with magnetorheological fluid, the gas chamber and the liquid chamber being separated by a throttling orifice plate. An excitation coil for adjusting the magnetic field applied to the magnetorheological fluid is disposed at the throttling orifice plate. The gas chamber is provided with a temperature sensor and a pressure sensor for measuring the temperature and pressure of the gas, respectively. The tire assembly 203 may include a tire, a hub, and an axle fixedly connected to the piston. An acceleration sensor is disposed on the axle, and a tire temperature sensor and a tire pressure sensor are disposed on the tire. Therefore, the various parameters of the magnetorheological landing gear can include tire temperature and tire pressure measured by tire temperature sensors and tire pressure sensors, gas temperature and gas pressure (i.e., temperature and pressure of the buffer strut) measured by temperature sensors and pressure sensors installed in the air chamber, and acceleration information (especially vertical acceleration) measured by acceleration sensors installed on the wheel axle.

[0033] Further according to this embodiment, the aircraft's model, weight, center of gravity, speed, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, attitude, and / or runway information can be received from the aircraft's data bus, which will not be elaborated further here. It will be understood that these parameters are merely examples, and method 100 can also obtain any other suitable parameters required for regulating the current of the excitation coils of the magnetorheological landing gear, which will not be elaborated further here. It will be understood that the aircraft's speed can include the aircraft's airspeed, wheel speed, etc., and can be obtained through the aircraft's data bus, etc., which will not be elaborated further here.

[0034] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the runway information may include runway roughness, i.e., runway undulations, bumps, etc. In this embodiment, the runway information may be pre-stored in the aircraft's memory and read from the memory in step 110.

[0035] In another embodiment of this disclosure, runway information can be information estimated by the aircraft. In this embodiment, if the aircraft is landing on the runway for the first time, the aircraft can estimate the runway information by any suitable means. For example, the aircraft can take images of the runway using an onboard camera and estimate the runway roughness by performing image analysis on the images. In this embodiment, preferably, the aircraft can collect runway-related information and store it in memory for later use. For example, when the aircraft lands on the runway for the first time, it can collect runway-related information (e.g., roughness) during landing and taxiing and store it in memory. In another embodiment of this disclosure, the aircraft can communicate with airport facilities to obtain runway-related information from the airport facilities.

[0036] Continue to refer to Figure 1 Method 100 may include block 120, which generates a curve of the current change over time from the current moment based on the acquired parameters.

[0037] In one embodiment of this disclosure, generating a curve showing the change of current over time from the current moment based on the acquired parameters may include predicting the change of the load distribution of the aircraft over time based on the acquired parameters; determining the required change of damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time based on the predicted change of load distribution over time; and generating a curve showing the change of current over time from the current moment based on the required change of damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time.

[0038] In this embodiment, predicting the change in the aircraft's load distribution over time based on the acquired parameters is performed using an aircraft load distribution prediction model, and determining the required change in the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time based on the predicted change in load distribution over time is performed using a landing gear damping control model. According to this embodiment, the aircraft load distribution prediction model and the landing gear damping control model are obtained in advance through flight testing, experimentation, and / or simulation, and are stored in the aircraft for future use. In another embodiment of this disclosure, a single model can be used to map the acquired parameters to the required change in the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time; that is, the aircraft load distribution prediction model and the landing gear damping control model can be combined into a single model.

[0039] In this embodiment, the curve of the current change over time generated based on the required change of the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear is based on the curve of the flow characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid in the magnetorheological fluid landing gear as a function of the magnetic field strength (and thus as a function of the current strength in the excitation coil used to generate the magnetic field).

[0040] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the parameters and the time-varying curves of the current are predetermined and stored in association, such as in the form of a lookup table. In this embodiment, the acquired parameters can be used as keywords to look up associated current variation curves.

[0041] Finally, in block 130, method 100 may include applying a current variation curve to control the current applied to the excitation coil to modulate the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

[0042] Therefore, since the load transmitted from the magnetorheological fluid landing gear to the aircraft fuselage is approximately equal to the sum of the gas pressure inside the buffer strut of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear and the resistance of the liquid (i.e., magnetorheological fluid) flowing through the orifice plate, the method 100 of this disclosure adjusts the strength of the magnetic field generated and applied to the magnetorheological fluid by controlling the current applied to the excitation coil of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear, thereby correspondingly adjusting the fluid properties (such as flowability) of the magnetorheological fluid, so that the resistance of the magnetorheological fluid when flowing through the orifice plate is adjusted, and ultimately the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear can be controlled. Thus, method 100 can adjust the loads and overloads borne by the aircraft structure. Figure 3 As shown, it illustrates a schematic variation curve of the load experienced by an aircraft during the landing phase according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. It can be seen that the load experienced by the aircraft is reduced compared to the prior art. Therefore, by implementing method 100, the damping characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear can be adjusted according to the load distribution of the aircraft and the runway's excitation on the landing gear, so that the damping characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear are always maintained in a state most favorable for reducing the aircraft load and overload, thereby achieving a reduction in the overall aircraft load, lowering the design requirements for the aircraft's structural strength, and achieving the effects of improving the aircraft's ride quality, reducing the aircraft's structural weight, and extending the aircraft's service life.

[0043] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, method 100 can be performed only when the magnetorheological landing gear is in a non-retracted state. Thus, method 100 can first determine that the magnetorheological landing gear is in a non-retracted state before obtaining the parameters required for controlling the current of the excitation coils of the magnetorheological landing gear. If the magnetorheological landing gear is not in a non-retracted state, preferably not in a fully deployed state, method 100 may not perform the operations of steps 110-130. In this embodiment, during the landing phase, method 100 may also monitor the pilot's command to lower the landing gear, and perform the operations of steps 110-130 after monitoring the pilot's command to lower the landing gear. Alternatively, during the landing phase, method 100 may also monitor the locking status of the lower landing gear lock, and perform the operations of steps 110-130 after monitoring the locking of the lower landing gear lock (indicating that the landing gear is fully deployed).

[0044] In yet another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, considering that the load experienced by the aircraft during low-speed taxiing is lower and more stable compared to high-speed taxiing, method 100 may also be performed only when the aircraft's speed exceeds a predetermined speed threshold. In this embodiment, the predetermined speed threshold may be any value in the range of 0 to 50 km / h, or any other suitable value.

[0045] In yet another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, since the loads experienced by the aircraft can only be adjusted and controlled by adjusting the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear when the aircraft is on the ground, method 100 can also be performed only when the aircraft is on the ground. In this embodiment, method 100 can determine that the aircraft is on the ground based on wheel load information and / or flight altitude information from the aircraft.

[0046] In another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, method 100 may optionally store the generated current variation curve in association with runway information. In this embodiment, during subsequent taxiing and / or landing of the aircraft on the runway, method 100 may directly use the stored current variation curve without performing the operations of steps 110-130. For example, method 100 may store current variation curves during takeoff taxiing and landing on the corresponding runway, and accordingly use the stored current variation curves to adjust the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear during subsequent takeoff and landing phases on the runway. In this embodiment, the current variation curve may also be stored in association with aircraft weight, speed, etc., for more precise control of the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear. For example, multiple current variation curves associated with the landing phase may be stored, each associated with different landing speeds, aircraft weights, etc. Thus, during the subsequent landing phase on the runway, the best-matching current variation curve can be selected from these current variation curves.

[0047] The following is for reference. Figure 4 The diagram illustrates a system 400 for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft, according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0048] like Figure 4 As shown, the system 400 may include a sensing device 401, a processing device 403, and an excitation coil controller 405.

[0049] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the sensing device 401 is arranged to sense the state of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear. In this embodiment, the sensing device 401 may include pressure and temperature sensors disposed within the buffer struts and tires of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear, and an acceleration sensor disposed at the wheel axle. Thus, the sensed state of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear may include the pressure and temperature of the buffer struts (especially the pressure and temperature of the gas within their air chambers, as described above). Figure 2 (Description) and the pressure and temperature inside the tire, and the acceleration of the wheel axle (especially vertical acceleration).

[0050] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the processing device 403 may be arranged to acquire parameters required for regulating the current of the excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear; generate a time-varying curve of the current for regulating the current based on the acquired parameters; and transmit the current-varying curve to the excitation coil controller 405. In this embodiment, the acquired parameters may include the state of the magnetorheological landing gear sensed by the sensing device 401, such as the pressure and temperature of the buffer struts of the magnetorheological landing gear (especially the pressure and temperature of the gas in its air chamber, as described above). Figure 2 The parameters obtained may include (as described) the pressure and temperature within the tires, and the acceleration of the wheel axle (especially vertical acceleration). Further according to this embodiment, the acquired parameters may also include those from the aircraft data bus (e.g., Figure 4 The aircraft's model, weight, center of gravity, speed, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, attitude (as indicated by the dashed arrow); and / or runway information.

[0051] In one embodiment of this disclosure, the excitation coil controller 405 may be arranged to use a current variation curve to control the current applied to the excitation coil in order to regulate the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

[0052] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, runway information may include runway roughness, i.e., runway undulations, bumps, etc. In this embodiment, the runway information may be pre-stored in the aircraft's memory and read from the memory by the processing device 403.

[0053] In yet another embodiment of this disclosure, the runway information may be information estimated by the aircraft. In this embodiment, if the aircraft is landing on the runway for the first time, the processing device 403 may estimate the runway information by any suitable means. For example, the processing device 403 may receive runway images taken by an airborne camera and estimate the runway roughness by performing image analysis on the images.

[0054] In one embodiment of this disclosure, generating a curve showing the change of current over time from the current moment based on the acquired parameters may include predicting the change of the load distribution of the aircraft over time based on the acquired parameters; determining the required change of damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time based on the predicted change of load distribution over time; and generating a curve showing the change of current over time from the current moment based on the required change of damping of the magnetorheological landing gear over time.

[0055] In this embodiment, predicting the change in the aircraft's load distribution over time based on the acquired parameters is performed using an aircraft load distribution prediction model, and determining the required change in the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time based on the predicted change in load distribution over time is performed using a landing gear damping control model. According to this embodiment, the aircraft load distribution prediction model and the landing gear damping control model are obtained in advance through flight testing, experimentation, and / or simulation, and are stored in the aircraft for future use. In another embodiment of this disclosure, a single model can be used to map the acquired parameters to the required change in the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time; that is, the aircraft load distribution prediction model and the landing gear damping control model can be combined into a single model.

[0056] In this embodiment, the curve of the current change over time generated based on the required change of the damping of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear is based on the curve of the flow characteristics of the magnetorheological fluid in the magnetorheological fluid landing gear as a function of the magnetic field strength (and thus as a function of the current strength in the excitation coil used to generate the magnetic field).

[0057] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the parameters and the time-varying curves of the current are predetermined and stored in association, such as in the form of a lookup table. In this embodiment, the processing device 403 can use the acquired parameters as keywords to look up associated current variation curves.

[0058] In a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the processing device 403 may be configured to perform the above-described operation only when the magnetorheological landing gear is in the non-retracted state. Thus, the processing device 403 can first determine that the magnetorheological landing gear is in the non-retracted state before acquiring the parameters required for regulating the current of the excitation coils of the magnetorheological landing gear. If the magnetorheological landing gear is not in the non-retracted state, preferably not in the fully deployed state, the processing device 403 may not perform the above-described operation. In this embodiment, during the landing phase, the processing device 403 may be configured to monitor the pilot's command to deploy the landing gear, and perform the above-described operation after detecting the pilot's command to deploy the landing gear.

[0059] In yet another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, considering that the load experienced by the aircraft during low-speed taxiing is lower and more stable compared to high-speed taxiing, the processing device 403 may also be arranged to perform the above operation only when the aircraft's speed exceeds a predetermined speed threshold. In this embodiment, the predetermined speed threshold may be any value in the range of 0 to 50 km / h, or any other suitable value.

[0060] In yet another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, since the load experienced by the aircraft can only be adjusted and controlled by adjusting the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear when the aircraft is on the ground, the processing device 403 can also be arranged to perform the above operations only when the aircraft is on the ground. In this embodiment, the processing device 403 can be arranged to determine that the aircraft is on the ground based on wheel load information and / or flight altitude information from the aircraft.

[0061] In another preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the processing device 403 may optionally be arranged to store the generated current change curves in association with runway information. In this embodiment, during subsequent taxiing and / or landing of the aircraft on the runway, the processing device 403 may directly look up the stored current change curves and transmit them to the excitation coil controller 405. For example, the processing device 403 may be arranged to store current change curves during takeoff taxiing and landing on the corresponding runway, and accordingly transmit the stored current change curves to the excitation coil controller 405 during subsequent takeoff and landing phases on the runway for adjusting the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear. In this embodiment, the current change curves may also be stored in association with aircraft weight, speed, etc., for finer control of the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear. For example, multiple current change curves associated with the landing phase may be stored, which may be associated with different landing speeds, aircraft weights, etc. Therefore, during the landing phase on the runway, the best-matching current variation curve can be selected from these current variation curves.

[0062] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example aircraft 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, the aircraft 500 may include, according to... Figure 4 The system 400 shown and described.

[0063] Thus, the method and system disclosed herein provide a damping adjustment process for magnetorheological fluid landing gear, offering a complete technical solution for the corresponding hardware layout and method flow, without focusing on the magnetorheological fluid landing gear structure itself. By implementing the method and system of this disclosure, the damping characteristics of the landing gear can be adjusted according to the load distribution of the aircraft and the excitation of the landing gear by the runway, ensuring that the landing gear damping characteristics are always maintained in a state most favorable for reducing aircraft load and overload, thereby reducing the overall load on the aircraft, lowering the design requirements for the structural strength of the aircraft, and achieving the effects of improving the aircraft's ride quality, reducing the aircraft's structural weight, and extending the aircraft's service life.

[0064] It will be understood that the terms “velocity” and “acceleration” as used in this disclosure refer to the linear velocity and linear acceleration of an aircraft, thus distinguishing them from the terms “angular velocity” and “angular acceleration” as used in this disclosure.

[0065] It will also be understood that although various embodiments are described in conjunction with magnetorheological fluid landing gear in this disclosure, the methods and systems of this disclosure can be implemented in conjunction with any other suitable aircraft landing gear, provided that the damping of that landing gear is adjustable.

[0066] It will also be understood that the terms “load” and “overload” used in this disclosure are used interchangeably and cover forces and / or moments and / or (angular) accelerations experienced by the aircraft as a whole or its components.

[0067] The above detailed description includes references to the accompanying drawings, which form part of the detailed description. The drawings illustrate specific embodiments that can be practiced by way of illustration. These embodiments are also referred to herein as “examples.” Such examples may include elements other than those shown or described. However, examples including the shown or described elements are also contemplated. Furthermore, examples of any combination or arrangement of those elements shown or described are contemplated, or with reference to specific examples (or one or more aspects thereof) shown or described herein, or with reference to other examples (or one or more aspects thereof) shown or described herein.

[0068] In the appended claims, the terms “comprising” and “including” are open-ended, meaning that a system, apparatus, article of manufacture, or process containing elements other than those listed after such terms in a claim is still considered to fall within the scope of that claim. Furthermore, in the appended claims, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third,” etc., are used merely as designations and are not intended to indicate a numerical order of their contents.

[0069] Furthermore, the order of operations described in this specification is exemplary. In alternative embodiments, the operations may be performed in a different order than that shown in the accompanying drawings, and the operations may be combined into a single operation or broken down into more operations.

[0070] The above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. For example, the examples described above (or one or more aspects thereof) may be used in conjunction with other embodiments. Other embodiments may be used by those skilled in the art after reviewing the above description. The abstract allows the reader to quickly determine the nature of this technical disclosure. This abstract is submitted and it is understood that it is not intended to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Furthermore, in the above detailed description, various features may be grouped together to make this disclosure flow smoothly. However, the claims may not state every feature disclosed herein, as embodiments may characterize a subset of said features. Furthermore, embodiments may include fewer features than those disclosed in a particular example. Therefore, the appended claims are thus incorporated into the detailed description, with each claim existing independently as a separate embodiment. The scope of the embodiments disclosed herein should be determined by reference to the full scope of the appended claims and equivalents of such claims.

Claims

1. A method for controlling the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear for an aircraft, comprising: Obtain the parameters required to regulate the current of the excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear; Based on the acquired parameters, a time-varying curve for regulating the current is generated, including: Based on the acquired parameters, predict the change of the aircraft's load distribution over time; The required variation of the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time is determined based on the predicted load distribution over time; and The curve of the current changing with time from the current moment is generated based on the desired change in the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear; and The current applied to the excitation coil is controlled by using the current variation curve, thereby regulating the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes determining that the magnetorheological fluid landing gear is in an unretracted state before acquiring the parameters.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The method is performed when the speed of the aircraft exceeds a predetermined speed threshold and / or when the aircraft is on the ground.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The predetermined speed threshold is any value within the range of 0 to 50 km / h, and the aircraft being on the ground is determined based on wheel load information and / or flight altitude information from the aircraft.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The parameters include: The pressure and temperature of the tires and shock absorbers of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear, as well as the acceleration of the wheel axle; The weight, center of gravity, velocity, angular velocity, acceleration, angular acceleration, engine thrust, and attitude of the aircraft; and / or Runway information.

6. A system for regulating the damping of a magnetorheological fluid landing gear of an aircraft, comprising: A sensing device is arranged to sense the state of the magnetorheological fluid landing gear; Processing apparatus, the processing apparatus being arranged as follows: The parameters required to control the current of the excitation coil of the magnetorheological landing gear are obtained, wherein the parameters include the state of the magnetorheological landing gear sensed by the sensing device. Based on the acquired parameters, a time-varying curve for regulating the current is generated, including: Based on the acquired parameters, predict the change of the aircraft's load distribution over time; The required variation of the magnetorheological landing gear's damping over time is determined based on the predicted load distribution over time; and The curve of the current changing with time from the current moment is generated based on the desired change in the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear; and The current variation curve is transmitted to the excitation coil controller; and The excitation coil controller is configured to use the current variation curve to control the current applied to the excitation coil in order to regulate the damping of the magnetorheological landing gear.

7. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that, The sensing device includes pressure and temperature sensors arranged in the buffer struts and tires of the magnetorheological landing gear, as well as an acceleration sensor arranged at the wheel axle.

8. The system according to claim 6, characterized in that, The parameters also include the aircraft's model, weight, center of gravity, angular velocity, angular acceleration, engine thrust, attitude, and / or runway information from the aircraft data bus.

9. An aircraft comprising the system according to any one of claims 6-8.

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