Aircraft Antenna Cladding With Recessed Adapter Plate Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional antenna fairings for aircraft protrude significantly beyond the fuselage, increasing the risk of bird strikes and requiring substantial weight to ensure structural integrity, while being inflexible for antenna module replacements.
Innovation Solution
An antenna fairing with a fiber composite adapter plate featuring recesses and inserts for connecting fittings that do not protrude beyond the top side, allowing for a lower profile and flexibility in mounting antenna modules, combined with a dimensionally stable radome fairing and optional stiffening elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional antenna fairings are designed with fittings on the underside of the support structure, then the support structure can be attached to aircraft mounting hardware, but the fairing protrudes significantly beyond the fuselage increasing bird strike risk and requiring considerable weight for structural integrity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional arrangement by moving the fittings from the underside to the upper side of the adapter plate. This allows the aircraft-side fittings to pass through the adapter plate, positioning the support structure closer to the outside of the fuselage and reducing protrusion height to minimize bird strike risk while maintaining structural integrity through the inverted configuration
2Object-affected harmful factors
If fittings are arranged on the upper side of the support structure to reduce protrusion height, then bird strike risk is minimized, but the antenna fairing becomes inflexible for antenna module replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the support structure into a separate adapter plate that can be independently configured. The adapter plate with its recesses and inserts provides a standardized interface that maintains reduced protrusion height while allowing flexible mounting of different antenna modules through the recesses, enabling adaptability without increasing bird strike risk
3Device complexity
If the radome fairing is not connected to the support structure at close intervals, then the support structure only needs to support antenna modules, but the radome fairing loses dimensional stability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the radome fairing with the adapter plate by integrating connection elements directly into the adapter plate structure. This unified design allows the radome fairing to be connected at close intervals while the adapter plate simultaneously supports the antenna modules, combining both functions into a single integrated structure rather than separate components
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Reduces the risk of bird strikes and weight, enhances flexibility for antenna module installation, and allows for adaptable mounting points, while maintaining aerodynamic efficiency and electromagnetic permeability.
Implementation Method 1
a radome cover (5) forming a continuous fairing with the radome fuselage fairing (4) and permeable to electromagnetic radiation in a predetermined wavelength range
Implementation Method 2
the support element is an adapter plate (20) made of fiber composite
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an antenna cladding (1) for aircraft, in particular for commercial aircraft, for fastening to fuselage fittings projecting from the outer skin (90) of an aircraft, comprising a carrier element (2) for fastening antenna modules (3) thereto, a radome-fuselage cladding (4) fastened to the carrier element (2) for bearing on the outer skin (90) of the aircraft, and a radome covering (5) which forms a continuous cladding with the radome-fuselage cladding (4) and is permeable to electromagnetic radiation in a predetermined wavelength range. The carrier element (2) is a fibre composite adapter plate (20) which has cutouts (22) provided with inserts (23), wherein connecting fittings (26) designed for connecting to the fuselage fittings are provided in the inserts (23), said connecting fittings being arranged between the upper and lower side of the adapter plate (20) and being designed in such a way that the connecting fittings (26) do not project beyond the upper side of the adapter plate (20), and the fuselage fittings, when connected to the connecting fittings (26), project into the adapter plate (20) but not beyond the upper side thereof.