Aircraft Gripper Parallelogram Guide for Tilting Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing aircraft gripper arrangements are unable to compensate for slight tilting and pitching movements of aircraft, particularly when landing on uneven or moving surfaces, leading to high mechanical loads and alignment requirements.
Innovation Solution
A gripper arrangement that includes a connecting part attached to the aircraft, allowing rotation about an axis perpendicular to the contact plane and movement parallel to the footprint, with additional pivoting capabilities about play axes parallel to the contact plane, utilizing a parallelogram guide and adjustable components to compensate for tilting and pitching movements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the gripper arrangement is designed to be rigid and stable for secure coupling, then coupling reliability is improved, but the ability to compensate for aircraft tilting and pitching movements deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The gripper arrangement incorporates dynamic elements including a parallelogram guide mechanism that allows the gripper to pivot about a first play axis parallel to the contact plane, and rotation about a second play axis also parallel to the contact plane. These dynamic degrees of freedom enable the rigid gripper structure to adapt to aircraft tilting and pitching movements while maintaining secure coupling reliability.
2Manufacturing precision
If the gripper arrangement requires precise aircraft alignment for coupling, then coupling precision is improved, but the ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The parallelogram guide mechanism and play axes provide dynamic alignment compensation, allowing the gripper to automatically adjust to slight misalignments during coupling operations. This eliminates the need for precise pre-alignment of the aircraft while maintaining coupling precision through the self-adjusting mechanical structure.
3Device complexity
If the gripper arrangement uses a fixed structure for simplicity, then device complexity is reduced, but the ability to handle uneven surfaces deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention introduces a parallelogram guide mechanism with pivoting capabilities about two play axes, adding dynamic adaptability to handle uneven surfaces and aircraft movements. Despite these additional components, the overall structure remains relatively simple and maintenance-friendly compared to more complex active control systems.
Data Source
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AI summary
A gripper arrangement is disclosed for coupling an aircraft to an aircraft transfer system, wherein a connecting part (14) which can be connected to a gripper (2) is attached to the aircraft, and wherein the gripper is coupled to a gripper runner (1) which can be moved substantially parallel to a stand plane (10). In this case, the gripper can rotate or pivot about at least one play axis (58, 64) which is arranged parallel to the stand plane.