Rotor Blade Control Tube Positive-Locking Interconnection
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Solution Overview
Problem
The production of rotor blades for rotary wing aircraft and helicopters is expensive, and their service life is inadequate due to complex manufacturing processes and potential delamination issues in fiber-reinforced composite designs.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a rotor blade with a fiber-reinforced composite design and a separate sleeve-shaped control tube, where the coupling section and tie section have matching cross-sectional shapes for positive-locking interconnection, allowing for efficient force transmission and reducing the need for additional connections, thereby simplifying production and enhancing stability and service life.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a rotor blade with fiber-reinforced composite design and integrated control tube is used, then manufacturing complexity and production cost increase, but service life and structural integrity improve
Solution Approach 1:
The control tube is designed as a separate component that can be attached to the rotor blade after the blade's primary structure is manufactured. This segmentation allows the rotor blade to be produced using optimized fiber-reinforced composite processes without the complexity of integrating a control tube during manufacturing, while still achieving the desired structural integrity and service life through the separate attachment of the control tube to the coupling section.
2Ease of manufacture
If a separate control tube is attached to the rotor blade, then production cost and assembly complexity decrease, but force transmission efficiency and structural stability may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The control tube is merged with the coupling section through a positive-locking connection that integrates the two components into a unified force transmission path. The matching cross-sectional shapes create an interlocked assembly that efficiently transmits control forces from the control tube to the rotor blade, eliminating the need for additional fasteners or connection elements while maintaining structural stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system combines the fiber-reinforced composite rotor blade with the control tube made of appropriate materials to create a composite structure that leverages the advantages of each material. The coupling section is designed to accommodate both the composite blade structure and the control tube, creating a hybrid assembly that optimizes both manufacturing ease and force transmission efficiency.
3Productivity
If matching cross-sectional shapes are used for positive-locking interconnection, then additional connection elements are eliminated and production is simplified, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The matching cross-sectional shapes are implemented only at the specific interface between the control tube and coupling section, rather than throughout the entire components. This localized application of precise geometry concentrates the manufacturing precision requirements to a small critical area, while the rest of the components can be manufactured with standard tolerances, thereby maintaining production efficiency while achieving the necessary connection accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A system comprising a rotor blade (1), in particular of the tail rotor of a rotary wing aircraft, in a fiber-reinforced composite design, with a blade section (5) and with a coupling section (9) for attaching the rotor blade (1) to the hub of a drive device, and comprising a separate sleeve-shaped control tube (40) with an essentially hollow-cylindrical shaft (41), with an also essentially tubular tie section (56) to tie the control tube (40) to the rotor blade (1) by sliding it onto its coupling section (9), is improved in that the coupling section (9) of the rotor blade (1) and the tie section (56) of the control tube (40) comprise a cross-sectional shape for positive-locking interconnection of the rotor blade (1) and the control tube (40).