GB2485537A

GB2485537A - Vehicle for use on land, water and in air

Info

Publication number: GB2485537A
Application number: GB1019319.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Alan Kirtley
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-11-16
Filing date: 2010-11-16
Publication date: 2012-05-23
Anticipated expiration: 2030-11-16
Also published as: GB2485537B; GB2485537B8; GB201019319D0

Abstract

A vehicle which can be used on land, in air and possibly also on water includes a sail type wing 4 which can be folded or demounted. A common drive system may be used and the flight equipment may be retrofitted to the land vehicles body 1. The road wheels 2 can be raised to reduce drag.

Description

9NTEGRAL -SURFACE AND AIR -PERSONAL TRANSPORV' This invention relates to an "Integral -Surface and Air -Personal Transport" Personal transport vehicles/craft, which have a dual function of "fixed wing" powered flight and alternatively the function of an automobile, have a main body enclosure, which may incorporate facilities common for either function. These common facilities refer to a cabin providing for one or more occupants including pilot/driver with instrumentation arid controls, which may be of dual function or specific to either flight or automobile function. Also common to flight and automobile, an engine package with drive-transmission to road-wheels and/or flight propeller, fuel containment, and minimal personal stowage. Externally, lighting arrangements are provided for road use and additional strobes for flight operation.

For flight, these vehicles/craft have rigid "fixed wings", which provide aerodynamic lift and manoeuvring via inputs from the pilot's controls. The wings are additional to the common facilities previously mentioned, and when the vehicle/craft are configured from flight to normal automobile operation, the rigid wings must necessarily be removed and either stored remotely or towed as a trailer behind the vehicle/craft.

According to the present invention titled "Integral -Surface and Air -Personal Transport", and hereon referred to as the vehicle/craft, "fixed wing" powered flight is combined with the alternative function of an automobile. Additional to the facilities common to both functions as previously mentioned, for flight a flexible fabric "sail-wing" held to a delta or swept wing shape by a tubular frame, provides the substantive aerodynamic lift, and two smaller forward mounted "canard" rigid wings are articulated to differentially provide both pitch-lift and roll, as "three-axis" control when including yaw from a rear mounted flight-rudder. "Two-axis" control of pitch-lift only from the "canard" wings and yaw from a flight-rudder also provides satisfactory control where the sail-wing is of the lower aspect-ratio" delta type. For a vehicle/craft utilising a higher "aspect-ratio" swept "sail-wing", turn manoeuvring may be enhanced by incorporating the canting to left or right of the "sail-wing" by an "in and out" reeling system of rigging wires via the flight controls.

When the present invention is configured from flight to automobile function, the flexible fabric "sail-wing" sheet may be removed from its tubular frame, and its individual tubular components aligned as a set of parallel tubes "fore and aft". The set of tubes, together with the flexible fabric "sail-wing" sheet rolled for stowage, may then be carried above the vehicle/craft on a "hinged-geometry" gantry frame of lozenge pantograph arrangement which remains connected to the "sail-wing" central frame tube. Higher aspect-ratio types of swept "sail-wing" if alternatively incorporated, may also include additional thin tubular stiffening ribs, which need to be extricated from sewn pockets within the "sail-wing" and stowed similarly.

The two smaller rigid "canard" wings located at the forward end of the vehicle/craft are then removed and repositioned by securing them to roof saddle mountings, and a flight-rudder centrally positioned under the extreme rear of the "sail-wing" for flight, once removed may then be stowed within the vehicle/craft when in automobile configuration.

The "hinged-geometry" gantry frame of the present invention is connected at the exterior surface of the vehicle/craft body on pivot attachments, and supports the "sail-wing" at the correct rigging angle for flight. The gantry frame may then be hinged backward so as to recline and lower the de-mounted "sail-wing" components to a horizontal position at the roof of the vehicle/craft for automobile configuration.

According to the present invention, although de-mounting the flight components specifically allows and provides for road use without necessitating that flight components be remotely stored away from the vehicle/craft, this does not however preclude the vehicle/craft's user from removing and storing the flight components remotely.

An additional and optional function of the present invention may be the raising or retracting of the front or all of its road-wheels by inclusion of "retro-fit" adaptive components to the suspension system such that aerodynamic drag is reduced for flight.

The retracting of road-wheels similarly reduces hydrodynamic drag if the vehicle/craft were to be used on water. If used on water, the suitably shaped and tapering lower rear body serves as a "ship's hull" such that a small water-rudder may be incorporated into the trailing edge of the vehicle/craft where a blanking fairing reserves accommodation for such. When used on water, the original flight-propeller may be nominated to propel the vehicle/craft via its engine and drive-transmission or alternatively propulsion may be provided by means of an additional retro-fit" small-submerged water-propeller unit with integral extended drive-transmission where a blanking fairing reserves accommodation for such. When operating on water, all flight components would necessarily be removed so as to lower the centre of gravity of the vehicle/craft, as essential for stability on water.

The present invention herein, may utilise conventional moulded and fabricated structures for its body, or pre-manufactured proprietary sandwich sheeting.

A final feature of the present invention is its potential availability in various levels of functional configuration, such that its supply as a lightweight aerodynamic automobile would be the minimum base configuration. All further components may be additional to provide for flight and/or additional "retro-fit" adaptive components for water-born function.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: -Figures 1 & 2 show in diagrammatic top-view and side-view respectively, the vehicle/craft configured for flight fUnction with the "sail-wing" tubular frame of delta shape, and supported at the correct rigging angle for flight by attachment to the hinged-geometry gantry frame, and also with smaller "canard" rigid wings positioned at the forward extreme of the main body. For clarity, the flexible fabric "sail-wing" sheet is omitted inFigure 1.

Figures 3 & 4 show in diagrammatic front-view and under-view respectively, a vehicle/craft with delta "sail-wing" configured for flight and utilising "three-axis" control where rigging wires remain symmetrical and fixed, yet movement of "canard" wings may be a differential mix of both pitch-lift and roll, while yaw is provided by a flight-rudder.

Figures 5 & 6 show in diagrammatic front-view and under-view respectively, a vehicle/craft with delta "sail-wing" configured for flight and utilising "two-axis" control where rigging wires remain symmetrical and fixed, yet movement of "canard" wings operate in unison and provide for lift-pitch only, while yaw is provided by a flight-rudder.

Figures 7 & 8 shows in diagrammatic front-view and under-view respectively, a vehicle/craft with delta "sail-wing" configured for flight and utilising "two-axis-plus" control where "canard" wings provide for lift-pitch only, yet. rigging wires may be reeled "in or out" from the pilot/driver controls such that the "sail-wing" may be canted to the left or right to fUrther enhance turning manoeuvring, while yaw is provided by a flight rudder.

Figures 9 & 10 show in diagrammatic front-view and under-view respectively, a vehicle/craft with delta "sail-wing" configured for flight and utilising "three-axis-plus" control where the "canard" wings may perform a differential mix of pitch-lift and roll, while yaw is provided by a flight-rudder, yet additionally, rigging wires may be reeled "in or out" from the controls such that the "sail-wing" may be canted to the left or right to further enhance turning manoeuvring. Higher "aspect-ratio" swept versions of the "sail-wing" (not shown) may also incorporate this.

Figures 11 & 12 show in diagrammatic side-view and front-view respectively, the vehicle/craft configured for automobile function. The forward "canard" wings are removed from their forward flight control positions and secured to the roof of the vehicle/craft on carrying saddles. The delta shaped flexible fabric "sail-wing" is removed and its flexible sheet roll-stored together with the wing frame tubes shown as a set of de-mounted parallel tubes and stowed above the vehicle/craft as attached to the central frame tube supported by the "hinged-geometry" gantry frame. Higher aspect-ratio swept "sail-wing" types (not shown) include additional sewn pockets within the flexible fabric sheet, where thin tubular stiffening ribs are required to be extricated and stowed similarly. The "hinged-geometry" gantry frame is shown reclined backward, having lowered the de-mounted "sail-wing" components horizontally.

Figure 13 shows in top-view specifically how the main tube lengths of the delta shaped "sailwing" frame are separated and re-assembled in foreshortened telescopic method, and pivoted from the forward bracket such that all tubes lay parallel. For a higher "aspect-ratio" swept "sail-wing", the foreshortening would apply similarly, but possibly requiring additional parallel stowage rather than telescopic stowage.

Figure 14 shows in diagrammatic side-view the vehicle/craft configured for flight with the additional optional function of raised or retractable road-wheels to minimise aerodynamic drag while in flight.

Figure 15 shows in side-view the vehicle/craft configured for use on water, All flight equipment of forward "canard" rigid wings, flexible fabric "sail-wing" and tubular frame members, "hinged-geometry" gantry frame are removed as essential to lower the "centre of gravity" of the vehicle/craft for stability when in use on water. Flight components are shown removed and therefore remotely stored. For this optional and additional configuration reliant on incorporating raised or retracting road-wheels to reduce hydrodynamic drag, the vehicle/craft has the addition of a small water-rudder incorporated into the rear lower body at the foot of the hull shaped trailing edge and controlled by the pilotidriver. In previous figures 2, 11 and 14, side-views show a blanking fairing reserving accommodation for the water-rudder. In this configuration as here referred to in figure 15, the flight propeller may provide forward propulsion.

Figures 16 & 17 shows in side-view and under-view respectively, the vehicle/craft configured for use on water, and with the optional addition of a water-propeller unit driven from an extended drive-transmission and shown as hidden detail.

Referring to the drawings, the vehicle comprises a body-shell 1, and containing all internal facilities (not shown) of a crew cabin, pilotldriver seating controls and instruments, engine and drive transmission, fuel containment, and light stowage facility. Road-wheels 2, and flight-propeller 3 mounted at the rear of the body are selectively engaged to the drive-transmission as appropriate by the pilot/driver.

External to the body-shell are unspecified lighting arrangements for road use and additional strobes for flight operation (not shown). A "sail-wing" sheet 4 is held to a delta or swept shape by frame tubes 5, 6, 7, and 8 with tube extensions 9, 10, and 11.

Extension tubes may be slid into their appropriate tubes 5, 6, and 7 telescopically to foreshorten the de-mounted "sail-wing" frame and swung from bracket 24 so to lay parallel when in automobile configuration. Forward "canard" wings 12 and 13 are removable from their forward flight control position and re-mounted on saddles 14 over body 1 when in automobile configuration. Flight-rudder 15 is removed for automobile function and stowed within the vehicle/craft. Rigging-wires 22 and 23, together with unspecified small items of pivot and securing pins may be stowed within. The "hinged-geometry" gantry frame 16 and 17 which also supports the "sail-wing" central tube 6 in flight and when de-mounted, is reclined when in automobile configuration to lower the de-mounted "sail-wing" and frame tubes 5 to 11 to roof proximity of body I horizontally. The addition of a water-rudder 18 is located at the foot of the rear body trailing edge. The addition of a water-propeller unit 19 may also be located nominally forward of the water-rudder, as shown in hidden-detail. Blanking fairing 20, previously reserving accommodation for the addition of water-rudder and blanking fairing 21, previously re-"--"iodation for the addition of a water-propeller unit are surplus to requir n for conversion back.

Claims

SCLAIMSI An "Integral -Surface and Air -Personal Transport" as hereon referred to as the vehicle/craft, combines the function of "fixed wing" powered flight with the alternative function of an automobile, and optional function as water-born. For flight, a flexible fabric "sail-wing" mounted above the vehicle/craft provides the substantive aerodynamic lift, while two forward mounted smaller rigid "canard" wings are articulated via inputs from the pilot/driver controls to provide for pitch-lift only as "two-axis" control together with yaw from the flight-rudder, or a differential mix of pitch-lift and roll as "three-axis" control together with yaw from the flight-rudder.Aerodynamic control effect for turn manoeuvring may be enhanced by the reeling "in or out" of rigging wires via connection to the pilot/driver controls such that the "sail- wing" may be canted over to left or right. All flight equipment here referred to, are de-mountable and may if required, be carried without undue extension beyond the nonnal length and width of the vehicle/craft when in automobile configuration which is powered by a common engine driving road-wheels, and where steering and conventional automobile control applies.
2 The vehicle/craft as claimed in claim I, having a "sail-wing" held to a delta or swept-wing shape on a tubular frame and supported above the vehicle/craft on a "hinged-geometry" gantry frame, may for automobile configuration have its "sail wing" de-mounted by removal of the fabric "sail wing" sheet and by combination of disconnecting and pivoting of individual main tubes and telescopically foreshortening of extension tubes, the "sail wing" frame may be reduced to a set of parallel tubes not extending unduly beyond the length or width of the vehicle/craft body. The "sail-wing" sheet may be roll-stowed together with its parallel frame tubes as connected to the "hinged-geometry" gantry frame, and hinged backward thereby reclining and lowering the de-mounted "sail-wing" components to a minimum height or horizontally to the vehicle/craft roof Also for automobile configuration, the two smaller rigid "canard" wings mounted at their forward body flight control locations are removed and secured to roof saddle mountings of the vehicle/craft and any additional here unspecified flight components such as rigging wires and pins, including flight-rudder are removed and stowed within the vehicle/craft body.
3 A vehicle/craft as claimed in claim I and specifically in claim 2, wherein for automobile configuration, explanation is given of the de-mountability of its "sail-wing" and "canard" rigid wings, and further to this, by removal of an unspecified quantity of attachment pins or devices, all flight components including "hinged-geometry" gantry frame, and any additional minor unspecified flight components may be separated and stored remotely from the vehicle/craft.
4 A vehicle/craft as claimed in claim I, claim 2, and claim 3, having the function of powered "fixed wing" flight and alternatively the firnction of an automobile, is equipped with road-wheel suspension wherein the suspension is designed to accommodate additional adaptive components as "retro-fit" to allow for raising or retracting of front or all road-wheels, such that aerodynamic drag may be reduced in flight.
A vehicle/craft as claimed in claim 1, claim 2, claim 3 and with specific reference to claim 4, wherein reference is made to the accommodation of additional adaptive components as "retro-fit" to facilitate raising or retracting of road-wheels, the facility is primarily introduced to reduce aerodynamic drag for flight yet is essential for further advancement of the vehicle/craft to operate as water-born. The additional accommodation of a water-rudder provides for water-born configuration where the flight-propeller may continue to provide for forward propulsion if nominated. In this water-born configuration where propulsion is from the flight propeller, the addition of safety guards around the propeller may be introduced.
6 A vehicle/craft as claimed in claim 1, and all preceding claims, and with specific reference to claim 5 wherein reference is made to the addition of a water-rudder, the further addition of a water-propeller unit with necessary extended drive-transmission and mounted immediately forward of the water-rudder, do together, provide a further water-born configuration without the engaged propulsion drive of the flight propeller.
7 The vehicle/craft as claimed in claim 1 and all subsequent claims may utilise for the construction of its body, conventional moulded or fabricated structures, and also structures comprising lightweight pre-manufactured flat sandwich composite material as complete flat material consisting of a honey-comb or open-core with tough but thin outer skins, or as supplied with one skin unattached thereby allowing for roll-forming prior to the bonding attachment of previously unattached skin.
8 A vehicle/craft as claimed in claim 1 and all subsequent claims, and with specific reference to claim 3 wherein reference is made to the possible removal of all flight components from the body of the vehicle/craft, thereby provides for the potential availability of a vehicle/craft in base configuration as required for automobile function, and where the addition of flight components, and/or "retro-fit" adaptive components provides for flight and/or water-born operation, or combinations thereof.