Composite Skid Members with Varying Cross-Sections

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional skid landing gear for aircraft is heavy due to uniform cross-section design, which increases weight and requires chemical milling with environmental and manufacturing complications, limiting its effectiveness in energy attenuation and ground resonance avoidance.

Innovation Solution

The use of composite skid members with varying cross-sections, manufactured using composite materials like carbon fiber reinforced polymers, which provide increased stiffness and inertia where needed while reducing weight, and metallic cross members for interconnection, avoiding chemical milling processes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If conventional skid members are designed with uniform cross-section to optimize central portion stiffness, then the stiffness of the central portion is improved, but the overall weight of the skid members increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestiffness of central portionVSAvoidoverall weight of skid members

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The skid member is designed with varying cross-section along its length, where the central portion has a larger cross-section to provide the required stiffness for energy attenuation, while the end portions have smaller cross-sections to reduce overall weight. This local differentiation of structural properties optimizes the balance between stiffness requirements and weight reduction.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Weight of moving object

If chemical milling is used to reduce weight of skid members, then the weight is reduced, but environmental complications and manufacturing lead time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveweight of skid membersVSAvoidmanufacturing process complexity and environmental impact

Core Design Contradiction:

Weight of moving objectVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of using chemical milling to modify the cross-section, the invention employs varying cross-sections in the extrusion or forming process itself. This approach achieves weight reduction through geometric parameter variation rather than post-processing material removal, eliminating the need for chemical milling and its associated environmental and manufacturing issues.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Weight of moving object

If skid members are designed with varying cross-sections to reduce weight, then the weight is reduced, but the manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveweight of skid membersVSAvoidstructural complexity of skid members

Core Design Contradiction:

Weight of moving objectVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The skid members are constructed as composite structures with different cross-sectional configurations along their length. This allows the varying cross-section to be integrated into the manufacturing process through modular assembly or progressive forming, managing the structural complexity while achieving weight reduction goals.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

Data Source

PatentUS11299262B2Composite skid member with varying cross-sections

Publication Date: 2022.04.12 TEXTRON INNOVATIONS INC

AI summary

Various implementations directed to composite skid member with varying cross-sections are provided. In one implementation, an aircraft landing gear assembly may include two composite skid members configured to contact the ground, where each composite skid member includes a first cross-section and a second cross-section, and where the first cross-section is different than the second cross-section. The aircraft landing gear assembly may also include two cross members configured to couple to a fuselage of an aircraft and configured to interconnect the two composite skid members.