Temperature compensated landing gear shock strut

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12291325-B2
Application number	US-202318460173-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 1, 2023
Priority date	Jul 18, 2023
Publication date	May 6, 2025
Grant date	May 6, 2025

Abstract

A landing gear assembly is provided. The landing gear assembly includes a shock strut. The shock strut includes a shock strut cylinder and a shock strut piston slidably disposed within the shock strut cylinder. The landing gear assembly further includes a temperature control unit assembly disposed within the shock strut cylinder. The temperature control unit assembly is configured to, responsive to a temperature within the shock strut cylinder falling below a predetermined temperature, circulate heated fluid into a chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat gas within the shock strut cylinder.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A landing gear assembly, comprising:
a shock strut comprising:
a shock strut cylinder; and
a shock strut piston slidably disposed within the shock strut cylinder; and

a temperature control unit assembly disposed within the shock strut cylinder, wherein the temperature control unit assembly is configured to:
responsive to a temperature within the shock strut cylinder falling below a predetermined temperature, circulate heated fluid into a chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat gas within the shock strut cylinder; and
responsive to the temperature within the shock strut cylinder rising up to or above the predetermined temperature, stop the circulation of the heated fluid into the chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat the gas within the shock strut cylinder.

2. The landing gear assembly of claim 1 , wherein the temperature control unit assembly comprises:
a temperature regulator;
a temperature sensor electrically coupled to the temperature regulator; and
a heat exchanger fluidly coupled to the temperature regulator.

3. The landing gear assembly of claim 2 , wherein the temperature regulator is configured to receive signals from the temperature sensor and circulate the heated fluid from a heated fluid chamber fluidly coupled to the temperature regulator to the heat exchanger in the chamber of the shock strut cylinder.

4. The landing gear assembly of claim 3 , wherein the heated fluid chamber is configured to heat the heated fluid up to the predetermined temperature associated with a design of the shock strut.

5. The landing gear assembly of claim 2 , wherein the temperature sensor is configured to sense the temperature within the shock strut cylinder.

6. The landing gear assembly of claim 2 , wherein the heat exchanger is configured to heat the gas within the shock strut cylinder.

7. The landing gear assembly of claim 6 , wherein the heat exchanger is a recirculating coil.

8. An aircraft, comprising:
a landing gear assembly, the landing gear assembly comprising:
a shock strut comprising:
a shock strut cylinder; and
a shock strut piston slidably disposed within the shock strut cylinder; and

a temperature control unit assembly disposed within the shock strut cylinder, wherein the temperature control unit assembly is configured to:
responsive to a temperature within the shock strut cylinder falling below a predetermined temperature, circulate heated fluid into a chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat gas within the shock strut cylinder; and
responsive to the temperature within the shock strut cylinder rising up to or above the predetermined temperature, stop the circulation of the heated fluid into the chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat the gas within the shock strut cylinder.

9. The aircraft of claim 8 , wherein the temperature control unit assembly comprises:
a temperature regulator;
a temperature sensor electrically coupled to the temperature regulator; and
a heat exchanger fluidly coupled to the temperature regulator.

10. The aircraft of claim 9 , wherein the temperature regulator is configured to receive signals from the temperature sensor and circulate the heated fluid from a heated fluid chamber fluidly coupled to the temperature regulator to the heat exchanger in the chamber of the shock strut cylinder.

11. The aircraft of claim 10 , wherein the heated fluid chamber is configured to heat the heated fluid to the predetermined temperature associated with a design of the shock strut.

12. The aircraft of claim 9 , wherein the temperature sensor is configured to sense the temperature within the shock strut cylinder.

13. The aircraft of claim 9 , wherein the heat exchanger is configured to heat the gas within the shock strut cylinder.

14. The aircraft of claim 13 , wherein the heat exchanger is a recirculating coil.

15. A method of maintaining a compressibility factor of gas in a shock strut of a landing gear assembly of an aircraft, comprising:
receiving, by a temperature regulator, a temperature sensed by a temperature sensor; and
responsive to the temperature sensed by the temperature sensor being below a predetermined temperature, circulating, by the temperature regulator, heated fluid from a heated fluid chamber into a heat exchanger within a chamber of a shock strut cylinder to heat gas within the shock strut cylinder.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
responsive to the temperature sensed by the temperature sensor rising to or above the predetermined temperature, stopping, by the temperature regulator, circulation of the heated fluid into the heat exchanger within the chamber of the shock strut cylinder to heat the gas within the shock strut cylinder.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the heat exchanger is a recirculating coil.

18. The aircraft of claim 15 , wherein the heated fluid chamber is configured to heat the heated fluid up to the predetermined temperature associated with a design of the shock strut.

Assignees

• Goodrich Corp

Inventors

• M N Hemanth
• Bodki Basavaraj

Classifications

• F16F2222/02

  temperature-related (F16F2228/002 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F16F2230/16

  used in a strut, basically rigid · CPC title

• F16F2230/18

  Control arrangements · CPC title

• F16F2230/08

  Sensor arrangement · CPC title

• F16F2222/12

  Fluid damping · CPC title