US1201348A - Flying-machine. - Google Patents

Description

T. D. ROBINSON.

FLYlNG MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY14,1915- Patented Oct. 17, 1916.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

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T. D. ROBINSON FLYING MACHINE? APPLICATION FILED MAY 14, l9l5.

Patented Oct. 17, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Teodorel K0 Mine in ear aa 'rc;

THEODORE 1). ROBINSON, or LocKPoar, NEW YORK.

FLYING-MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THEODORE D. ROBIN- soN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lockport, in the county of Niagara and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flying- Machines, of which the following is a speci- My invention relates to flying machines, and the primary object of the same is to provide means whereby the equilibrium of the machine will be automatically maintained under all conditions. I

A further object is to provide a flying machine with planes connected to a carrying member or chassis in such a manner that the latter may be maintained in vertical position, while the planes are permitted to assume inclined positions relative thereto'to a limited degree; and to equip the machine with equalizing or balancing means controlled automatically by the movement of the planes relative to the carrying member or chassis. r

A further object is to provide simple and effective equalizing or balancing means ca pable of being manually actuated but arranged so that it will be brought into actuation automatically under air or windpressure against a certain part or parts of the machine.

Further objects are to provide equalizing or balancing means for flying machines arranged in two parts operatively connected together so that they act in reverse order to cause the air currents to apply pressure thercagainst in opposite directions; and to otherwise improve on flying machines noW. in use. j i

The invention consists in the. novel features of construction and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the subjoined claims.

Figure 1 is a front elevation of thatpor tion is directly applied, the propelling and steering mechanisms, also the usual supporting wheels being omitted. Fig. 2 is a plan view with a portion of one of the-planes broken away to better disclose parts directly beneath; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section taken on line 3-3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a. de-

Specification of Letters Patent.

tached perspective view'of a portionof one of the equallzing or balancing devices, the

wingor plane forming a portion of said equalizing orbalancmg device and the sustaining plane to which it is attached being Fig. 5 is'an enlarged.

shown in dotted lines. section taken on line 55, Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the outer portion of one of the planes equipped with a modified form of equalizing or balancing device.

Referring now to the drawingslike numerals of reference refer to like parts in the several figures. i

The reference numeral 10 designates the chassis or carrying member of the machine which is usually provided with supporting wheels (not shown). This carrying member is constructed of any suitable light but strong material such as will aid in reducing the weight of the craft to the minimum, yet

ed in any practicable manner. The carrylng member herein shown 1s merely illustra- Patented Oct. 17, ieic.

Application filed May 14, 1915. Serial No. 28,030: V l l tive of one of many forms'it may be given v and comprises bars suitably connected to form a rectangular frame.

' Pivotally secured to the upper end 'of the carrying member are the sustaining planes ing constructed of oiled silk or other suit' able material attached to said frame. The

- pivoted connection of the planes to the carrying member-is so arranged that the sustaining planes may have. lnnlted upward and downward movement, and "as these planes are formed at opposite ends ofthe planeframe 12, their movements are respectively in reversed directions; that is,

when one is moving upwardly the other is such movements, loose connections 13 are tionof a flying machine to which my inven- 5 provided between the plane frame 12 and between the frame 12 and the carrying memher, with loose connections at the sides of the carrying member serving as stops to limit the movementof the planes, any other 11, these being arranged to extend a con- 7 moving downwardly. In .order to .limit arrangement whereby the planes may move to a limited extent in the manner described may be employed, and it is desirable that means to prevent movement beyond certain points he installed. This may be accomplished in various ways without departing from the scope of the invention.

WVith the plane frame connected to the carrying member, as described, the latter when in flight is at all times suspended in a vertical position or at least tends to maintain a vertical position with the cross bars substantially horizontal, even though the planes are inclined to the horizontal, and

this tendency of the carrying member to maintain a vertical position is utilized to equalize or balance the machine when in flight. To this end I have provided controlling cords or cables 14, 15, arranged, respectively, at the front and rear of the machine. Each of said cords and cables has one end attached to a low point of the carrying member at one side thereof, as at 16, from which point it is directed upwardly to the extreme outer end of one of the planes where it is passed over a sheave or roller 17, from which it is directed across both planes, as at 18, to the extreme end of the other plane where it passes around the sheave or roller 19 and is thence directed downwardly for connection at its opposite end to a low point of the carrying member at the opposite side thereof, as at 20. Each of these cords or cables is guided in suitable loops or eyes 21 at the top of the planes, and these cords ha ve connection with equalizing devices carried by each of the sustaining planes. If desired, the controlling cordmay be attached to a manually-operated element or may be harnessed directly to the operator whose move ments'will control the actuation of the equalizing'or balancing devices.

The preferred construction of equalizing device is disclosed in Figs. 1 to a in which I employ flat wings or planes 23 extending from the rear edge of the sustaining planes 11. These wings or planes are actuated by mechanism carried by said sustaining planes and interposed between the flat wings or planes 28 and the cord or cable 1a, the mechanism for one sustaining plane being reversed from that of the other so that reverse action of the wings or planes 23 is obtained. Each of the wings or equalizing planes 23 has an upstanding stud or arm 24,

v and a depending stud or arm 25 which may be a continuation of-theupstanding stud or arm, and to these studs or arms actuating wires 26 are secured, one of the wires passing forwardly above the sustaining plane and the other forwardly beneath the-same, the ends thereof being secured to actuating levers 27 and 28 arranged, respectively, above and beneath the sustaining plane. These levers are disposed obliquely inopposite directions, and in order that the wires 26 may have a direct forward pull upon the wings or equalizing planes, sheaves or pulleys 29 are secured above and beneath the plane directly in line with the point of attachment of the wires 26 to said wings or planes, these wires being directed oppositely from said sheaves or pulleys for connection to the inner ends of the levers 27, 28, respec tively. The-forward ends of these levers are connected together by a yoke 30'and to con nect said yoke to the upper lever 27 one of the loops or eyes 21 is employed. The con trolling cord or cable ld-is passed through said last-mentioned loop or eye and has stops or enlargements 31 arranged thereon which lie on opposite sides of said loop or eye and in contact therewith. The levers 27, 28 are pivotally attached between their ends to the sustaining plane by means of pivots 32 fixed into the sustaining plane and passed through longitudinally-disposed slots 33 in said levers. As clearly shown in the drawings, the upper levers 27 are inclined inwardly from their points of connection to the yoke 30, while the lower levers are inclined out wardly, thus causing one of the actuating wires 26 to'bedrawn upon while the other is slackened or paid out. In order to stiffen the equalizing planes, cords or guy wires 3% connect the extreme ends of the same at their rear edges with the upper ends of the studs or arms 2land the lower ends of the studs or arms 2 thus keeping the said wings or planes in a flat condition so that they cannot warp or flex, which would defeat the purpose of my invention and cause the equalizing device at one side of the machine to act improperly with respect to that at the other side of the machine.

InFig. 6 the equalizing devices are shown in modified form, each comprising an open ended shell Said shells are preferably made tapering or conical and secured to rock shafts 86 journaled in arms 87 extending rearwardly from the sustaining planes 11. Each rock shaft 36 has secured thereto a double armed actuating lever 38 to which the actuating wires 39 are secured, said wires passing around sheaves or pulleys 40 secured to the sustaining plane and having connection with the. actuating levers 2T, 28. In ad dition to the equalizing devices 35 at the rear of the sustaining plane I also provide a horizontally pivoted open ended shell 41 at the end of each of the sustaining planes. These shells may be tapered and each has an upwardly extending arm 42 and a depending arm 4:3,one of said arms being connected to one of the actuating levers 27 by an actuating. wire 44: and the other being connected to the actuating lever 28 by a wire 1 said wires passing over, suit-able sheaves or pulleys 16 secured to the sustaining planes at suitable points so that the action of said levers is imparted to the shells 41 to swing the same on their pivots. Like the equalizing devices disclosed in F igs l to a, these shells are actuated in reverse Order at opposite sides of the vertical center of the ma chine. j

In Fig. 6 I have shown stops e7 secured to the sustaining plane which are arranged at opposite sides of the yoke 30 so as to limit the movement of said yoke and thereby limit the upward and downward movements of the sustaining planes and consequently the 'movement of the equalizing devices. In the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2 the links 13 serve as stops to limit the movement of the planes, but in a construction in which these links are omitted I find it of advantage to provide the stops 47. In some instances the links 13 may be employed in connection with the stops 47, but in such cases the links are used as safety devices in the event of the pivotal connection of the sustaining plane or planes and the carrying member becoming broken, inwhich case the links serve to support the carrying member while the stops 47 limit the movements of the plane or planes relative to said carrying member. Suitable means for locking the )lanes in horizontal aosition ma be )ro vided so that when the machine is resting on the ground and prepared for flight, it may travel forwardly and rise in the air with all parts tied rigidly together and the equalizing devices in normal position. Any suitable means for locking the planes may be employed, such as provided in my Patent 1,155,861, granted August 3, 1915, or otherwise. Attention is invited to the fact that when the sustaining planes are locked in horizontal position, movement of the equalizing devices is prevented, and as the plane is not subjected to any strong air currents when at a low altitude, such arrangement offers a decided advantage. This is also true when descending and approaching the ground, at which time it will be found desirable to lock the planes against movement. When, however, the machine is in flight at a height to which it may be subjected to strong air currents, the locking device is actuated to permit the sustaining planes free limited movement, as shown by dotted lines, Fig. 1. This enables the carrying member to maintain a perfectly vertical position, while the planes, if subjected to air currents, are caused to swing on their pivot, and

in doing so draw upon the cords or cables 14, so as to move one of the yokes 30 toward the vertical center of the machine and the other away from the same, thereby operating the actuating levers and causing the equalizing devices at opposite sides of the center of the machine to swing in opposite directions, the one attached to the lowered plane swing ing downwardly while the one attached to ,mal or horizontal position.

It is apparent that various changes may be made in the construction and arrange ment of parts without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof.

Havmg thus descrlbed my 1nvent1on,'what I claim is,

1. A flying machine comprising a carrymg member, a plane-frame ly ng across the top of sald carrying member and extending a. considerable distance beyond opposite sides of said carrying member, planes carried by said plane-frame at opposite sides of said carrying member, a controlling cord passing lengthwise along said plane-frame from end to end thereof, said cord being extended from said ends" downwardly'and inwardly for connection to said carrying member, equalizing devices attached to said plane-frame on opposite sides of the vertical center of said carrying member, actuating levers connected to said controllingcord, and actuating wires connecting said levers with said equalizing devices, said levers being arranged in pairs and those of each pair being oppositely disposed to cause one of said wires to be drawn upon while the other is paid out. V

2. A flying machine having a plane or planes, a carrying member suspended from said plane or planes to permit opposite movement of said plane or planes at opposite sides of the carrying member, said plane or planes being normally held in horizontal position and having guide loops thereon, a controlling cord passing through said loops lengthwise along said plane or planes and being extended from the outer ends of said planes downwardly and inwardly for connection to said carryingmember, a pair of levers pivotally connected to said plane or planes at points at opposite sides of the vertical center of machine and to which said controlling cord is attachedto operate the same, equalizing devices at the rear edge of said plane or planes, and actuating wires connecting said equalizing devices with said actuating levers. I v r v 3. A flying machine comprising a carrying-member, sustaining planes in a plane above said carrying member and extending beyond opposite sides of the latter, said planes being connected to permit one to swing upwardly with respect to said carrying member when the other swings down wardly, an equalizing meanson each of sald" planes comprising an equalizer mounted for swinging movement on a horizontalpivot, a pair of levers pivotally secured at points between their ends to each plane, one lever of each pair being inclined rearwardly and outwardly and the other belng inclined rearwardly and inwardly, said levers being connected together at their front ends, actuating Cords connecting the equallzers wlth said levers, and a controlling cord disposed transversely across both planes and con- In testimony whereof I my signature,

THEODORE D. ROBINSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

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