Aircraft Refueling Pod Drum Orientation for Drag Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current drogue hose refueling pods on aircraft cause aerodynamic interference issues such as local low pressure, increased drag, shock waves, noise, buffeting, and vibration due to their large size, leading to reduced aircraft speed and higher operational and maintenance costs.
Innovation Solution
A compact refueling pod design with a rotating drum aligned parallel to the aircraft's direction of flight, guided by pulleys and rollers to coil the drogue hose in a single layer, reducing the pod's diameter and frontal area, and featuring a cart that moves synchronously with the drum to prevent slack, thereby minimizing aerodynamic interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a traditional refueling pod design is used to store the drogue hose, then the hose can be stored, but the pod causes aerodynamic interference issues such as increased drag, shock waves, noise, buffeting, and vibration due to its large size
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reorients the drum axis from a transverse orientation to a longitudinal orientation (parallel to the direction of flight). This dimensional change allows the drogue hose to be coiled along the length of the pod rather than around a transverse drum, significantly reducing the pod's diameter and frontal area while minimizing aerodynamic interference.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the geometric parameters of the pod by aligning the drum axis with the direction of flight. This parameter change transforms the pod from a bulky transverse configuration to a streamlined longitudinal configuration, reducing drag, shock waves, noise, buffeting, and vibration.
2Volume of moving object
If the drum axis is aligned perpendicular to the direction of flight (traditional design), then the hose can be coiled around the drum, but the pod's diameter and frontal area are large causing aerodynamic issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the orientation of the drum axis from perpendicular to parallel with the direction of flight. This dimensional reorientation allows the hose to be coiled along the longitudinal axis, reducing the pod's cross-sectional diameter while maintaining effective hose storage and retrieval capabilities.
3Shape
If guides are used to move along the drum to guide the hose, then the hose can be coiled in a single layer, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs localized guides positioned at specific points along the drum length to control hose coiling. These guides ensure single-layer winding by preventing the hose from overlapping, while minimizing the overall complexity of the guiding mechanism through strategic placement and simple construction.
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus to store a drogue hose on an aircraft are disclosed herein. An example apparatus includes a pod to be attached to an aircraft to store a drogue hose, a drum disposed in the pod around which the drogue hose is coiled, where an axis of the drum is aligned with a direction of flight of the aircraft, guides to move along a length of the drum to guide the drogue hose as the drogue hose is coiled around the drum, and exit rollers adjacent to a drogue chute cave of the pod, the exit rollers to guide the drogue hose as the drogue hose moves through the drogue chute cave.