Device for controlling the speed of a spaceplane during the transition from a phase of space flight to a phase of aeronautical flight and associated transition method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10046868-B2
Application number	US-201414781938-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 28, 2014
Priority date	Apr 5, 2013
Publication date	Aug 14, 2018
Grant date	Aug 14, 2018

Abstract

A spaceplane suitable for aeronautical flight comprising a body and a wing defining a lower airfoil surface in addition to attitude control means that comprise one or a plurality of shutters disposed under the lower airfoil surface of same and maneuverable between a stowed position and an inclined extended position for aerodynamic braking during the transition from a phase of space flight to a phase of aeronautical flight of the aircraft.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A space aircraft suited to aeronautical flight, comprising a body and a first wing structure defining a lift-generating surface and attitude-control means, where said control means comprise one or more flaps positioned under the lift-generating surface and that can be maneuvered between a retracted position and an inclined, deployed, aerodynamic-braking position during the transition of the craft from a phase of space flight to a phase of aeronautical flight, and wherein the one or more flaps comprise a first axis of maneuvering for opening the one or more flaps against incoming airstream, and a second axis of maneuvering for opening the flap or flaps parallel to incoming airstream.

2. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the flap or flaps are suited to deployment at controllable variable inclinations.

3. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 1 , comprising at least one pair of flaps which are positioned on either side of a longitudinal axis of the craft.

4. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the flaps are suited to being controlled independently of one another so as to control the descent of the craft.

5. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 1 , wherein all or some of the flaps are airbrake devices or landing gear doors.

6. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the flaps can be maneuvered according to the phases of flight independently of landing gears or in conjunction with landing gears.

7. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the airbrake flaps or landing gear doors are maneuvered by actuators rated to allow the airbrakes to be opened partially during the transition between space descent and aeronautical descent and to allow the landing gear doors to be opened fully for landing, the actuators being suited to opening the flaps in a way that can be altered according to the phase of flight.

8. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the attitude-control means comprises pitch-attitude control surfaces.

9. The space aircraft as claimed in claim 8 , wherein a second wing structure comprises pitch-attitude control surfaces.

10. A method for controlling the speed of an aircraft as claimed in claim 1 , during a descent phase of the aircraft with transition of the aircraft from a phase of space flight to a phase of aeronautical flight, this descent phase comprising:
a first step of parabolical descent of the aircraft, the aircraft being in a position of high incidence;
a second step of bringing the craft into a nose-down position; and
a third step of the aircraft flattening out in aerodynamic flight at low incidence;
wherein control of the speed of the aircraft is achieved in the second step by means of the opening of said flaps.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the high-incidence position is defined by an angle greater than 40° between the longitudinal axis and the speed axis of the craft.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the control of the speed of the aircraft by the opening of said flaps is begun during the first step.

13. The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein, with the means of controlling the attitude of the aircraft comprising pitch-attitude control surfaces, these are angled so as to apply a nose-up moment to the aircraft during the first step.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the transition from the first to the second step occurs through the straightening of the pitch-attitude control surfaces, the opening of the flaps controlling the speed of the aircraft.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14 , wherein, with the aircraft having created lift at the end of the second step, the flattening-out step is performed by angling the pitch-attitude control surfaces in such a way as to apply a nose-up moment to the aircraft, the flaps then being closed again.

16. The method as claimed in claim 10 , for controlling the speed of an aircraft of the space plane type, comprising landing gear doors suited to operating as airbrakes, from a phase of suborbital space flight to a phase of aeronautical flight, characterized in that the transition from the space domain to the aeronautical domain involves:
a first step of angling the pitch-attitude control surfaces in such a way as to apply a nose-up moment to the space plane, the space plane having a speed V that is practically vertical with high incidence I, the space plane being kept substantially horizontal;
a second step of opening the landing gear doors and of straightening the pitch-attitude control surface, the space plane thus being brought into a nose-down configuration, the speed V of the space plane being practically vertical with low incidence I;

a third step of angling the pitch-attitude control surfaces in such a way as to apply a nose-up moment to the space plane and of closing the landing gear doors, for which step the space plane reverts to aeronautical operation, the space plane and the speed V being returned to the horizontal, the aircraft being at a low incidence I.

Assignees

• Airbus Defence & Space Sas

Inventors

• Ferreira Eugénio
• Santerre Angélique
• Faure Benjamin
• Chevrollier Samuel
• Parpaite Pierre
• Favre Christophe

Classifications

• B64C9/323 Primary

  associated with wings · CPC title

• B64G1/14

  Space shuttles {(reusable launch rockets B64G1/006)} · CPC title

• B64C25/16

  Fairings movable in conjunction with undercarriage elements · CPC title

• B64C25/10

  retractable, foldable, or the like · CPC title

• B64G1/62 Primary

  Systems for re-entry into the earth's atmosphere; Retarding or landing devices · CPC title