EP1863706A2 - Embarcation equipee d'un dispositif de propulsion hydraulique rotatif - Google Patents

Embarcation equipee d'un dispositif de propulsion hydraulique rotatif

Info

Publication number
EP1863706A2
EP1863706A2 EP06727164A EP06727164A EP1863706A2 EP 1863706 A2 EP1863706 A2 EP 1863706A2 EP 06727164 A EP06727164 A EP 06727164A EP 06727164 A EP06727164 A EP 06727164A EP 1863706 A2 EP1863706 A2 EP 1863706A2
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
craft
rotor
jet
craft according
canopy
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
EP06727164A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Inventor
Geoffrey Hatton
Simon Mcintosh
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Aesir Ltd
Original Assignee
GFS Projects Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from GBGB0505958.9A external-priority patent/GB0505958D0/en
Application filed by GFS Projects Ltd filed Critical GFS Projects Ltd
Publication of EP1863706A2 publication Critical patent/EP1863706A2/fr
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64C—AEROPLANES; HELICOPTERS
    • B64C17/00—Aircraft stabilisation not otherwise provided for
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
    • B64C—AEROPLANES; HELICOPTERS
    • B64C39/00—Aircraft not otherwise provided for
    • B64C39/06—Aircraft not otherwise provided for having disc- or ring-shaped wings
    • B64C39/062—Aircraft not otherwise provided for having disc- or ring-shaped wings having annular wings
    • B64C39/064—Aircraft not otherwise provided for having disc- or ring-shaped wings having annular wings with radial airflow

Definitions

  • This invention relates to a craft in which a rotor directs a jet of fluid over an aerodynamic surface to create lift or thrust.
  • the invention is potentially applicable to any such craft, for example a fixed wing propeller-driven aircraft, a propeller- driven submarine or water surface craft.
  • the invention arose in connection with the design of a particular type of vertical take-off aircraft where a bladed rotor is used to direct a jet of air over a curved surface so that the jet is turned from a radial direction towards an axial direction thereby creating the required lift or thrust.
  • Stability is a particularly acute problem in craft such as helicopters which are required to hover.
  • Complex control systems are normally needed to achieve the required degree of stability.
  • no satisfactory stabilising system has yet been devised and, probably for that reason, such craft have at least mainly been confined to paper proposals and unsuccessful experimental models.
  • the invention provides a craft in which a rotor directs a jet of fluid over an aerodynamic surface there by creating lift or thrust, characterised in that the rotor and an associated drive unit are such that, in operation at full power, a gyroscopic effect of the rotor gives the vehicle positive stability.
  • positive stability is defined in the definitions section of this specification.
  • the angular velocity of the rotor has an influence on the angular momentum and therefore, to achieve the requirements of the invention, the power, speed and gearing (if any) of the drive unit and any associated power supply will have to be chosen correctly in association with the moment of inertia of the rotating parts.
  • the invention is particularly applicable to a craft of the type in which the rotor directs the jet of air over a dome or canopy shaped to divert the jet from a radial or horizontal direction towards an axial or vertical direction, thereby providing lift.
  • the inventor has discovered that such craft are highly susceptible to certain stability problems.
  • the first of these problem situations arises during lift-off and landing because the integrity of the jet of air, as it separates from a lower edge of the canopy, is spoilt by the presence of the ground surface. If one side of the lower edge of the canopy is lifted from the ground higher than an opposite side (eg by a gust of wind), that first- mentioned side experiences greater lift because the effect of the ground surface there is reduced. Consequently, the vehicle becomes unstable.
  • the positive stability obtained by employing the invention has been found to be capable of controlling the aforementioned problem. Further benefit can be obtained by raising a bottom edge of the canopy from the ground surface using legs or equivalent spacing means thereby reducing the detrimental effect of the ground on lift.
  • a second stability problem arises when the craft is required to fly close to a vertical surface.
  • the jet flow on that side is disturbed, causing reduced lift on that side. Consequently the craft tends to tilt towards the vertical surface, eventually touching it, losing overall lift and dropping to the ground.
  • an above-ambient pressure is produced at the wall surface which translates to an increased static pressure at the canopy surface. This produces a controlled moment towards the wall which tilts the thrust vector, driving the craft closer still to the wall as if it were attracted to it.
  • the craft is preferably controlled using two angular movement or attitude sensors, typically optical or piezoelectric gyroscopes, set at an angle to each other to sense pitch and roll about orthogonal axes. These sensors are used to control respective pitch and roll controls such as vanes positioned on the lower edge of the canopy.
  • angular displacement is easily achieved by varying the axes about which pitch and roll are measured either by physically moving the sensors or by processing signals received from fixed sensors.
  • An alternative technique would be to adjust the angles about which turning moments are applied; or a combination of both techniques could be used.
  • a craft comprising a rotor, means for sensing a difference between a desired attitude and an actual attitude of the craft, and control means for determining a force required to reduce the said difference; characterised by means for producing a variable signal dependant on angular momentum of the rotor and in that the control means is designed to use the said variable signal to correct for a gyroscopic effect of the rotor.
  • Fig 1 is a schematic perspective view of a craft constructed in accordance with the invention.
  • Fig 2 is a vertical axial cross-section through the craft of Fig 1;
  • Fig 3 is a schematic diagram showing the craft from above;
  • Fig 4 is a block diagram of a control system of the craft.
  • Fig 5 is similar to Fig 2 but shows how the craft would tilt when approaching a vertical wall, were it not for a gyroscopic effect of the invention.
  • the illustrated craft comprises a dome- shaped canopy 1 having a vertical axis of symmetry X-X.
  • a radial fan 2 draws in air at 3 along the axis X-X and expels it as a radial jet 4 over the surface of the canopy.
  • the latter has the effect of diverting a jet stream from a radial direction to an axial direction so that it eventually separates from a lower edge 5 of the canopy as an annular stream 6.
  • the action of the canopy in diverting the jet from a radial to an axial direction produces an upward force on the craft, giving it sufficient lift to support its own weight plus any payload.
  • Mounted on the lower edge 5 of the canopy are vanes RVl and RV2 (only one visible in Fig 1) which are used to control roll of the craft, and vanes PVl, PV2 which control pitch.
  • the radial fan 2 and an associated drive mechanism are located in a recess 7 at the top of the canopy 1.
  • An axial shaft 8 carries an upper plate 8A having apertures to define an air intake.
  • the recess 7 receives fixed coils 7A and a rotor 9.
  • the rotor 9 has a boss 9A mounted for rotation on the shaft 8 and a heavy annular ring 9B.
  • the ring 9B defines a permanent magnet and co-operates with the coils 8 to form an electric motor driven, in this particular example, by batteries and an associated drive circuit (not shown).
  • An upper side of the rotor 9 carries radial fan blades 9C positioned at a level so as to impel air over the top of the surface of the canopy.
  • the rotor 9 is designed to have a large angular inertia about its axis X-X by virtue of the weight of the magnet 9B and the blades 9C at the radially outermost periphery of the rotor.
  • the use of a radial fan for impelling the air is particularly effective because radial fans are efficient at producing radial flow and naturally tend to have a high distribution of weight away from the axis of rotation, giving them a high angular inertia.
  • the angular inertia of the rotor and the design of the motor and power supply are such that, at maximum power, the craft has positive stability.
  • Fig 3 shows an axis P, rotation about which is considered, for the purposes of this description, to be "pitch” and an orthogonal vertical axis R, rotation about which is considered to be “roll.”
  • the precession angle of the gyroscopic system is a variable 0 which depends on the angular velocity of the motor.
  • the gyroscopic effect means that an attempt to apply a turning force in one plane results in a reaction in another plane displaced from it by the angle 0.
  • the craft is equipped with two optical gyroscopes Sl and S2 set to sense rotation about orthogonal axes. If the sensor Sl indicates an unwanted turning about an axis Rl, this is corrected by adjusting vanes RVl, RV2 to apply a turning moment about axis R which is translated by the gyroscopic effect into an appropriate correctional force about axis Rl. Likewise, if the sensor S2 indicates an unwanted turning moment about axis Pl, this is corrected by adjusting vanes PVl, PV2. To allow for variations in angle 0 with changing motor speed the sensors Sl, S2 can be physically rotated by an appropriate amount related to the motor speed or their outputs can be processed electronically to achieve an equivalent effect.
  • FIG 4 A system for electronic processing is shown in Fig 4 where blocks 4.1 and 4.2 indicate steering controls which generate signals defining desired pitch angle about axis P and roll angle about axis R. Measured values for these quantities, derived at 4.3 and 4.4 from combined outputs of gyros Sl and S2 (Fig 3), are compared at 4.5, 4.6 with the desired values to give error signals which are fed to a processor 4.7.
  • the processor 4.7 also receives a signal from block 4.8 indicating the current angular velocity of the motor and uses this, together with a known value for the angular inertia of the system, to calculate the vane adjustments required to obtain the desired pitch and roll angles as defined at 4.1 and 4.2. The results of such calculation are used by signal generators 4.9 and 4.10 to produce appropriate drive signals for actuators associated with vanes RVl, RV2, and PVl, PV2.
  • Fig 5 the craft is shown approaching a vertical wall. It can be seen that, in a region 10 between the craft and the wall, the jet stream is disturbed. This results in loss of lift and consequently the axis X-X tends to pitch as shown, further exacerbating the problem.
  • the strong gyroscopic action of the rotor 9 translates the pitching effect into a precessional movement which drives the vehicle laterally, parallel to the vertical surface and entirely avoiding collision of the vehicle with the surface.
  • a similar advantageous effect occurs during lift-off and landing.
  • stability of the craft is threatened by the fact that any tilting of the axis x-x from the vertical will cause one part of the lower edge 5of the canopy to be closer to the ground than other parts.
  • the jet stream will therefore be disturbed by the ground surface more acutely at that side of the craft, this resulting in reduced lift at that part and an accentuation of the initial tilt.
  • the positive stability provided by the gyroscopic effect of the invention, eliminates this problem, allowing stable take-off and landing to take place.
  • “Aerodynamic” is used to refer to the generation of any thrust by the action of any fluid passing over a surface or of a surface passing through any fluid.
  • Pisitive stability is defined as a state in which a body, when displaced from a datum position, will, in response to such displacement, tend to return to that position.
  • Axial and radial refer to directions having respective axial and radial components.
  • raft means any vehicle capable of moving through a fluid or on a surface or interface including air vehicles, water surface vehicles and submarines.

Abstract

L'invention se rapporte à la conception d'une embarcation à décollage vertical dans lequel un rotor à pales dirige sur une surface bombée un jet de fluide dévié d'une direction radiale vers une direction axiale pour créer une portance. Ce type d'embarcation classique pose un problème de stabilité dès qu'on tente d'effectuer un vol stationnaire près du sol ou d'une surface verticale, et c'est la raison pour laquelle il ne dépasse pas l'étape de projet ou de modèle expérimental inopérant. L'embarcation de l'invention est conçue de façon à conférer à son rotor et à ses autres parties mobiles un grand moment angulaire. Un effet gyroscopique est ainsi créé, qui est suffisant pour conférer une stabilité positive à l'embarcation et éliminer le problème signalé plus haut.
EP06727164A 2005-03-23 2006-03-23 Embarcation equipee d'un dispositif de propulsion hydraulique rotatif Ceased EP1863706A2 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB0505958.9A GB0505958D0 (en) 2005-03-23 2005-03-23 A craft having a rotatable fluid propulsion device
GB0508793A GB2424405B (en) 2005-03-23 2005-05-03 A craft having a rotatable fluid propulsion device
PCT/GB2006/050066 WO2006100525A2 (fr) 2005-03-23 2006-03-23 Embarcation equipee d'un dispositif de propulsion hydraulique rotatif

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1863706A2 true EP1863706A2 (fr) 2007-12-12

Family

ID=36617129

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP06727164A Ceased EP1863706A2 (fr) 2005-03-23 2006-03-23 Embarcation equipee d'un dispositif de propulsion hydraulique rotatif

Country Status (2)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1863706A2 (fr)
WO (1) WO2006100525A2 (fr)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN104633445A (zh) * 2015-01-07 2015-05-20 中国航空工业集团公司金城南京机电液压工程研究中心 一种用于流体通过的自由陀螺结构

Families Citing this family (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB0505958D0 (en) 2005-03-23 2005-04-27 Gfs Projects Ltd A craft having a rotatable fluid propulsion device
GB0505956D0 (en) 2005-03-23 2005-04-27 Gfs Projects Ltd Thrust generating apparatus
GB0911667D0 (en) * 2009-07-06 2009-08-12 Aesir Ltd Improvements to controlling spin of an aircraft
GB2472023A (en) 2009-07-21 2011-01-26 Aesir Ltd Steering flying vehicle by control of aerofoil
RU2630876C1 (ru) * 2016-08-15 2017-09-13 Леонид Васильевич Носачев Летательный аппарат с вертикальным взлетом и посадкой

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
AT370049B (de) * 1978-06-30 1983-02-25 Tech Geraete Entwicklung Ges Flugkoerper
EP1370460A1 (fr) * 2001-03-07 2003-12-17 Eric Ronald Walmsley Avion circulaire a decollage et atterrissage verticaux
GB2387158B (en) * 2002-03-01 2005-08-10 Robert John Collins Aerial devices

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO2006100525A2 *

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN104633445A (zh) * 2015-01-07 2015-05-20 中国航空工业集团公司金城南京机电液压工程研究中心 一种用于流体通过的自由陀螺结构
CN104633445B (zh) * 2015-01-07 2017-05-03 中国航空工业集团公司金城南京机电液压工程研究中心 一种用于流体通过的自由陀螺结构

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2006100525A2 (fr) 2006-09-28
WO2006100525A3 (fr) 2006-12-21

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