Retractable Propeller Blades via Segmented Spinner
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current propeller devices for aircraft, spacecraft, and watercraft lack the ability to deploy or retract blades while in motion, which is necessary for minimizing drag and optimizing thrust in various flight or water conditions.
Innovation Solution
A propeller device with a hub-mounted blade configuration that utilizes a spinner with movable and rotatory portions, featuring slots and slot covers to allow for the deployment and retraction of blades along a longitudinal axis, enabling blades to be efficiently hidden or exposed as needed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If blades are deployed in a propeller device, then thrust is generated, but drag increases when not in use
Solution Approach 1:
The propeller blades are designed to be dynamically deployable and retractable. The mounting arrangement on the hub allows blades to be positioned in a deployed state for thrust generation and retracted into the spinner for drag reduction. This dynamic reconfiguration enables the propeller device to adapt its configuration based on operational requirements, resolving the contradiction between needing thrust when flying and minimizing drag when the propeller is not in use.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If blades are retracted inside the spinner, then drag is minimized, but deployment capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The spinner is divided into multiple segments or portions that can move relative to each other. The mounting arrangement includes movable blade attachments that can be independently deployed from or retracted into the spinner structure. This segmentation allows the blades to be stored compactly within the spinner to minimize drag while maintaining the capability to deploy when needed, thus resolving the contradiction between drag minimization and deployment capability.
3Device complexity
If a fixed propeller structure is used, then structural simplicity is maintained, but aerodynamic efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The propeller device incorporates movable mounting arrangements that allow blades to transition between deployed and retracted positions. While this adds some complexity to the structure, it significantly improves aerodynamic efficiency by enabling the propeller to present a streamlined profile during retraction and an effective blade configuration during deployment. The dynamic capability allows the system to optimize performance for different flight conditions, resolving the contradiction between structural simplicity and aerodynamic efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
A propeller device for aircraft, spacecraft or watercraft comprising two or more blades and a spinner. The blades are arranged on a hub so that they can be in a deployed or a retracted position. The spinner comprises first, second and third movable portions configured for allowing deploying or retracting the blades and for keeping the blades deployed or retracted.