GB921240A - Flying control system for aircraft - Google Patents

Abstract

921,240. Controlling aircraft. POWER JETS (RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT) Ltd. May 18, 1961 [June 16, 1960], No. 21176/60. Class 4. An aircraft having lift control devices, e.g. combined high lift flaps and ailerons, or jet flaps, at the trailing edges of the wings, comprises a pilot's control column 21 connected to a lever 33 pivoted at its mid point on a support and connected at its opposite ends to the lift control devices on opposite wings, so that pivoting of the lever by the control column operates the lift devices in opposite senses, and a further control connected to move the support and lever bodily to operate the lift control devices in the same sense. In the embodiment described, the wings each have an outboard and an inboard jet flap control surface. The control column 21 has a handle 22 pivotable on a pin 23 and fast with a lever 24 connected by cable 25 with a pulley 27 rotatable on a fixed axis 28. Fast with the pulley is a lever 29 connected by link 30 to a parallel lever 31 fast with lever 33, the levers 31 and 33 being pivotally supported in parallel members 32 which are pivotable about axis 28. Displacement of handle 22 pivots lever 33, each end of which is connected by a rod 34, lever 35, and cables 36, 37, to a bell crank lever 42 operating the hydraulic jack 9a of an outboard jet flap control surface (not shown). The two outboard jet flap control surfaces are thus operated in opposite senses. A lift control lever 52 operates a hydraulic jack 50 connected by linkage 49, 48, lever 46, and link 45, to members 32, so that operation of lever 52 swings lever 33 bodily about axis 28, to operate the outboard jet flap control surfaces in the same sense. An arm of lever 46 is connected by cables 56, 57, to bell crank levers 61 operating the hydraulic jacks 9b of the inboard jet flap control surfaces (not shown), the bell crank levers being interconnected by a further cable 62. All four jet flap control surfaces are thus operated together in the same sense by control lever 52. The jack 50 includes a spring box, so that lever 52 can be moved to a desired " flaps down " position, the control surfaces following at a predetermined rate. There may be discrete " flags down " positions. The hydraulic jacks may be duplicated. The control 52 may turn the inboard and outboard surfaces through different angles. The outboard surfaces may be lowerable through 40 degrees by control 52, and may be deflectable by 20 degrees, either side of neutral by the control column.