US3744429A - Ground-effect guide facility for a machine moving along a track - Google Patents

Ground-effect guide facility for a machine moving along a track Download PDF

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Publication number
US3744429A
US3744429A US00144131A US3744429DA US3744429A US 3744429 A US3744429 A US 3744429A US 00144131 A US00144131 A US 00144131A US 3744429D A US3744429D A US 3744429DA US 3744429 A US3744429 A US 3744429A
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
balloon
cushion
cushions
orifice
row
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.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US00144131A
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English (en)
Inventor
J Bertin
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.)
Bertin Technologies SAS
Original Assignee
Bertin et Cie SA
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
Application filed by Bertin et Cie SA filed Critical Bertin et Cie SA
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3744429A publication Critical patent/US3744429A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60V—AIR-CUSHION VEHICLES
    • B60V3/00—Land vehicles, waterborne vessels, or aircraft, adapted or modified to travel on air cushions
    • B60V3/02—Land vehicles, e.g. road vehicles
    • B60V3/04—Land vehicles, e.g. road vehicles co-operating with rails or other guiding means, e.g. with air cushion between rail and vehicle
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H03—ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY
    • H03F—AMPLIFIERS
    • H03F3/00—Amplifiers with only discharge tubes or only semiconductor devices as amplifying elements
    • H03F3/54—Amplifiers using transit-time effect in tubes or semiconductor devices

Definitions

  • the cushions are so devised that the forces transmitted to the structure decrease with effect from a pivot cushion.
  • the resilient connecting assemblies between the cushions and the machine structure are balloons supplied with fluid through calibrated entry orifices, the balloons being formed with calibrated outlet orifices so that the pressure in any balloon'is at a predetermined mean value.
  • This facility is of use for tracked ground effect machines.
  • Each 'facility comprises at least two cushions cooperating with the two guiding surfaces of the track.
  • the resilient connecting assemblies between the cushions and the machine structure are balloons supplies with fluid through calibrated entry orifices, the balloons being formed with calibrated outlet orifices so that the pressure in any balloon is at a predete'rmined mean value.
  • the force transmitted to the structure bythe front cushion is limited by the compression of the associated balloon; also, more forces are transmitted by the'other cushions because of the pressure increase in the various balloons.
  • the guiding force is therefore not all concentrated on just one cushion, so that the object of this invention is achieved.
  • FIG. 1 is a partial view in horizontal section of a guiding facility according to the invention disposed opposite plane guiding surfaces of the track;
  • FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the position which the facility takes up in association with curved guiding surfaces;
  • FIG. 3 is a diagram showing pressures cushions
  • FIG. 4 is a sectional view similar to FIG. constructional variant.
  • a vertical track extension 7 has opposite guiding surfaces 8, 9. Disposed on each side of extension 7 are cushions of known kind; there are cushions 1-6 and 10 on one side and cushions 11-17 on the other. Interposed between the cushions and machine structure 18 are resilient members, e.g. balloons or like deformable chambers 21-26 and 30 associated with the cushions 1-6 and 10 respectively, and balloons 19, 20, 27-32 associated with the cushions 11-17 respectively.
  • resilient members e.g. balloons or like deformable chambers 21-26 and 30 associated with the cushions 1-6 and 10 respectively, and balloons 19, 20, 27-32 associated with the cushions 11-17 respectively.
  • the cushions are supplied with fluid from a source (not shown) through lines 34 branching off a main supply line 33 and through lines 36 branching off a main supply line 35.
  • the supply pressure P is the same for all cushions.
  • the balloon 21 of the pivot cushion l is supplied with fluid via a line'37 and the balloon 19 of the like pivot 11 on the other side is supplied through a line 38.
  • the supply pressure Pa of the balloons 2 1, 19 is at the most the same as'the supply pressure P of the cushions and the source is, with advantage, the same as the source for the cushions.
  • Balloon 22 is supplied with fluid from balloon 21 through a line 39
  • balloon 23 is supplied with fluid from balloon 22 through a line 40
  • balloon 25 is supplied from balloon 23 through a line 41.
  • Balloon 25 is formed with an'outlet orifice 42 which communicates with atmosphere.
  • Balloon-24 is supplied lbutofa' through 54 from balloon 21, balloon 26 is supplied through 55 from balloon 24, and balloon 30 is supplied through 56 from balloon 26; balloon 30 is formed with an orifice 43 which communicates with atmosphere.
  • the lines between the various balloons can be of different dimensions.
  • the front cushion 5 is the first to move towards the guiding surface 8.
  • the gap between the containing skirts 44 of cushion 5 and the surface 8 decreases, so that the pressure of the cushion 5 increases and the forces applied thereby to its associated balloon 25 increases, such balloon flattening all the more readily because its pressure is low; because of this flattening, the skirts 44 do not contact the surface 8.
  • the same phenomenon occurs when the next cushion 3 enters the curve, followed by the cushion 2 and so on.
  • FIG. 3 is a balloon pressure diagram
  • P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6 and P10 being the pressures in the cushions 1-6 and 10 respectively.
  • the differential pressures APl, AP2 and AP3 can be of different values and depend upon the daylight clearance of the cushions and on the size of the ducts 39-41, 54-56.
  • ion 46 is less than the force which balloon 47 opposes to cushion 45.
  • the pressure in cushion 46 must be lower than the pressure in cushion 45; this is achieved by the gap between the surface 8 and the skirts 50 of cushion 46 being larger than the gap between surface 8 and the skirts 51 of cushion 45
  • the pressures in the balloons 47, 48 may also of course differ from one another. For instance, to control the value of the force transmitted by a balloon to the structure 18, action can be taken on the common superficial area of the cushion and associated balloon and on the balloon pressure.
  • a balloon such as the balloon 25 of FIG. 1, instead of being connected to the adjacent balloon 23, is connected to some other ballon, for instance, the balloon 22.
  • the balloon 23 would be similarly connected to the balloon 21.
  • a number of systems of aligned balloons such as those shown in the previous drawings can be placed one above the other and thus work in parallel.
  • the characteristics of two systems placed one above another may, if required, differ from one another in cushion and balloon dimensions, pressures and pivot siting.
  • FIGS. 5 and 6 show diagrammatically a cushion systern co-operating with the guiding surfaces of the track extension 7. There are two rows of cushions and associated balloons placed one above the other.
  • the pivots 52, 53 placed one above another are at the same pressure as one another and the pressure stepping of the other cushions and associated balloons is the same for each row.
  • the pressures of the pivots 52, 53 differ from one another and the pressure .stepping is different in each row.
  • each balloon having a calibrated pressure fluid inlet orifice and a calibrated pressure fluid outlet orifice, the inlet orifices of all the balloons except the master cushion balloon on the one hand and the outlet orifices of all the balloons except the balloon remotest from said master cushion balloon in said row on the other hand being mutually interconnected,

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
  • Transportation (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Power Engineering (AREA)
  • Toys (AREA)
US00144131A 1970-05-20 1971-05-17 Ground-effect guide facility for a machine moving along a track Expired - Lifetime US3744429A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
FR7018357A FR2096672B1 (de) 1970-05-20 1970-05-20

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3744429A true US3744429A (en) 1973-07-10

Family

ID=9055797

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US00144131A Expired - Lifetime US3744429A (en) 1970-05-20 1971-05-17 Ground-effect guide facility for a machine moving along a track

Country Status (4)

Country Link
US (1) US3744429A (de)
FR (1) FR2096672B1 (de)
GB (1) GB1337633A (de)
SE (1) SE377678B (de)

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3854403A (en) * 1972-07-03 1974-12-17 Bliss Pendair Ltd Tracked air cushion vehicles
WO1999008918A1 (en) * 1997-08-15 1999-02-25 Cummins Richard D Air-levitated train
US20040244633A1 (en) * 2003-05-08 2004-12-09 Witmer Warner H. Cats-constrained airplane transportation system

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3854403A (en) * 1972-07-03 1974-12-17 Bliss Pendair Ltd Tracked air cushion vehicles
WO1999008918A1 (en) * 1997-08-15 1999-02-25 Cummins Richard D Air-levitated train
US5909710A (en) * 1997-08-15 1999-06-08 Cummins; Richard D. Air-levitated train
US20040244633A1 (en) * 2003-05-08 2004-12-09 Witmer Warner H. Cats-constrained airplane transportation system

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
FR2096672B1 (de) 1973-11-16
GB1337633A (en) 1973-11-14
SE377678B (de) 1975-07-21
FR2096672A1 (de) 1972-02-25

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