GB983659A - Aircraft - Google Patents

Abstract

983,659. Vertical take-off aircraft. L. Z. FREELAND. Oct. 23, 1962, No. 40137/62. Headings B7G and B7W. An aircraft has a body provided with an upper wall, a circular side wall and a bottom wall, a circular side wall and a bottom wall, a plurality of ducts within said walls, each duct having an inlet which opens through said upper wall and a plurality of discharge nozzles which open outwardly and downwardly through said side wall and which have discharge axes extending outwardly and downwardly with respect to the vertical axis of the aircraft body, said ducts being arranged to define quadrants, airstream direction changing deflectors, means movably mounting said deflectors on the aircraft body, means connected with said deflectors for propelling said deflectors to a position at which portions of the deflectors are in the airstreams passing from said nozzles to thereby change the direction of flow of air extending through said nozzles and thereby ipmosing reaction forces on the aircraft body to alter the attitude and flight direction of the aircraft body, at least some of said deflectors in opposing quadrants being operative simultaneously and in synchronism, and means for so synchronously and simultaneously actuating some of said deflectors, air compressors in said ducts to induce an airstream therethrough, and control means connected with said air compressors for operating at least some of said air compressors synchronously. The aircraft comprises a domed upper wall 14, supporting a central control cabin 16, which extends through a circular curved side wall to an inwardly curved lower wall 18 terminating in a stem-like lower part 22. The upper wall is apertured to communicate with four ducts 56-59 which extend downwardly and outwardly into substantially horizontal ducts 64 which terminate in downwardly inclined nozzles 66 so arranged that air delivered by a fan 45 is discharged along the axis 63. To vary the lift or achieve directional control of the aircraft curved shutters 70 may be extended collectively or differentially. Each shutter comprises a rack 88 mounted on guide rollers 72 and driven through spur and worm gearing from an electric motor 78, though the drive may be hydraulic. Oppositely directed jet control nozzles 170, 172 are provided to control the aircraft about its vertical or yaw axis. Power plants for the air compressors and the control nozzles are described. A tricycle undercarriage is attached to the base of the body, each element including a wheel 26, scissors bracing linkage 27, 28 pivoted to the frame 32 of the aircraft, and fairing members 31. An oleo strut is connected to the intersection of the scissors links.