Thrust Vectoring Tail Rotor for Aircraft Weight Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Compound helicopters with coaxial, counter-rotating rotors and multiple propellers have a high overall weight, leading to performance degradation such as reduced fuel economy when transporting a given payload.
Innovation Solution
An aircraft design featuring a single main rotor with a tail rotor assembly that includes an articulated propeller with thrust vectoring capability, allowing for independent rotation about a variable axis, and controllable wings for enhanced flight control, enabling reduced weight and improved maneuverability and speed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If compound helicopters use coaxial counter-rotating rotors and multiple propellers, then flight control capability is improved, but overall weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates redundant rotor assemblies from the compound helicopter design. Instead of using multiple heavy rotor assemblies, the invention uses a single main rotor combined with a thrust vectoring tail section that can rotate about a variable axis, providing flight control capability with reduced weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies dynamics by implementing a thrust vectoring tail section with variable rotational axis capability. The tail section can dynamically adjust its rotation axis and thrust vector direction, providing adaptive flight control that replaces the need for multiple fixed rotor assemblies.
2Adaptability or versatility
If compound helicopters use multiple rotors and propellers, then maneuverability is improved, but fuel economy deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the functions of multiple rotors and propellers into a single integrated system. The main rotor provides primary lift while the thrust vectoring tail section provides maneuvering control, combining multiple functions into fewer components to reduce energy consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The thrust vectoring tail section serves multiple functions: it provides yaw control, pitch control, and thrust vectoring capability. This multi-functional component replaces several separate control systems, improving fuel economy while maintaining maneuverability.
3Measurement precision
If compound helicopters use coaxial rotors and multiple propellers, then flight control precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the complex coaxial rotor assembly and multiple propeller systems, replacing them with a simpler single rotor plus thrust vectoring tail configuration. This extraction of unnecessary components reduces device complexity while maintaining control precision through the variable axis rotation capability.
Data Source
AI summary
An aircraft is provided and includes an airframe having an upper section and a tail section, a main rotor assembly operably disposed at the upper section and one or more tail rotor assemblies operably disposed at the tail section. The one or more tail rotor assemblies respectively include one or more articulated propellers with thrust vectoring capability that are each independently rotatable about a respective variable rotational axis.