Rotary wing rotorcraft having a plurality of propellers

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9284059-B2
Application number	US-201414291993-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 30, 2014
Priority date	May 30, 2013
Publication date	Mar 15, 2016
Grant date	Mar 15, 2016

Abstract

A hybrid aircraft ( 1 ) having a fuselage ( 2 ) extending longitudinally along an anteroposterior plane of symmetry (PSYM) from the rear ( 4 ) of the aircraft ( 1 ) towards the front ( 3 ) of the aircraft ( 1 ). The aircraft ( 1 ) has a rotary wing ( 6 ) carried by the fuselage ( 2 ) of a lift surface ( 10 ) fastened to the fuselage ( 2 ) and constituted by a first half-wing ( 11 ) and a second half-wing ( 12 ). The aircraft ( 1 ) has a first propulsion unit ( 30 ) carried by the first half-wing ( 11 ) and a second propulsion unit ( 40 ) carried by the second half-wing ( 12 ). Each propulsion unit ( 30, 40 ) includes at least one tractor propeller ( 31, 32, 41, 42 ), and at least one propulsion unit has two propellers ( 31 - 32, 41 - 42 ) on the same axis, each of said propellers rotating about an axis of rotation (AX) that is offset transversely from said anteroposterior plane of symmetry (PSYM).

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A hybrid aircraft having a fuselage extending longitudinally along an anteroposterior plane of symmetry (PSYM) from the rear of the aircraft towards the front of the aircraft, the aircraft having a rotary wing carried by the fuselage, the aircraft being provided with a lift surface fastened to the fuselage and constituted by a first half-wing and a second half-wing situated on either side of the fuselage, the aircraft having a first propulsion unit carried by the first half-wing and a second propulsion unit carried by the second half-wing, wherein each respective propulsion unit includes both a respective first propeller and a respective second propeller on a respective common axis that is offset transversely from the anteroposterior plane of symmetry, each generating thrust directed towards the front of the aircraft in a normal thrust mode of operation and thrust that is directed towards the rear of the aircraft in a reverse thrust mode of operation, the aircraft including propeller control means that act:
during hovering flight, to cause the first propeller and the second propeller of the first propulsion unit to operate in the reverse thrust mode of operation, and to cause the first propeller and the second propeller of the second propulsion unit to operate in the normal thrust mode of operation; and
during forward flight, to cause the first propeller and the second propeller in each of the propulsion units to operate in the normal thrust mode of operation.

2. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are arranged to be contrarotating.

3. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are arranged to rotate in the same direction.

4. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are situated on the same side of a of the respective half-wing.

5. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are situated on opposite sides of the same half-wing.

6. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the rotary wing has a lift rotor that rotates in the clockwise direction when seen from above, and the first propulsion unit is situated on the right of the fuselage when seen from above, the second propulsion unit being situated on the left of the fuselage when seen from above.

7. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the rotary wing has a lift rotor rotating counterclockwise as seen from above, and the first propulsion unit is situated on the left of the fuselage as seen from above, the second propulsion unit being situated on the right of the fuselage as seen from above.

8. A method of optimizing the ground clearance (GS 2 ) of a hybrid aircraft provided with a fuselage extending longitudinally along an anteroposterior plane of symmetry (PSYM) from the rear of the aircraft towards the front of the aircraft, the aircraft having a rotary wing carried by the fuselage, the aircraft being provided with a lift surface fastened to the fuselage and constituted by a first half-wing and a second half-wing situated on either side of the fuselage, the aircraft having a first propulsion unit carried by the first half-wing and a second propulsion unit carried by the second half-wing, the method being characterized by the following steps:
fitting each respective propulsion unit with a first propeller and a second propeller on a respective common axis, which propellers each generate thrust directed towards the front of the aircraft in a normal thrust mode of operation, and thrust that is directed towards the rear of the aircraft in a reverse thrust mode of operation;
during hovering flight, causing the first propeller and the second propeller of the first propulsion unit to operate in the reverse thrust mode of operation, and causing the first propeller and the second propeller of the second propulsion unit to operate in the normal thrust mode of operation; and
during forward flight, causing the first propeller and the second propeller in each of the propulsion units to operate in the normal thrust mode of operation.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are arranged to be contrarotating.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are arranged to rotate in the same direction.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are situated on the same side of a respective half-wing.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of one of the single respective propulsion units are situated on opposite sides of the same half-wing.

13. The aircraft of claim 4 , wherein the respective first and second propellers of the single respective propulsion unit are arranged either upstream from the leading edge of the respective half-wing, or downstream from the trailing edge of the respective half-wing.

14. A hybrid aircraft comprising:
a fuselage having a front, a rear, and a plane of symmetry extending from the front to the rear defining a first side and a second side;
a vertical main rotor carried by the fuselage;
a first half-wing coupled to the fuselage on the first side;
a second half-wing coupled to the fuselage on the second side;
a first propulsion unit carried by the first half-wing on the first side, the first propulsion unit including a first front propeller and a first rear propeller;
a second propulsion unit carried by the second half-wing on the second side, the second propulsion unit including a second front propeller and a second rear propeller; and
a controller configured to, during hovering flight, control the first front propeller and first rear propeller to provide a reverse thrust and to control the second front propeller and second rear propeller to provide a forward thrust, and to, during forward flight, control the first front propeller, first rear propeller, second front propeller, and second rear propeller to provide forward thrust.

15. The hybrid aircraft of claim 14 , wherein each respective propeller is driven by an associated engine.

16. The hybrid aircraft of claim 14 , wherein the main rotor includes a plurality of rotor blades that, during rotation, advance on the second side and retreat on the first side.

17. The hybrid aircraft of claim 14 , wherein the first front propeller and the first rear propeller have a first common axis of rotation and the second front propeller and the second rear propeller have a second common axis of rotation.

18. The hybrid aircraft of claim 17 , wherein the first front propeller and the first rear propeller are driven in contrarotation about the first common axis of rotation.

19. The hybrid aircraft of claim 17 , wherein the first front propeller and the first rear propeller are driven to rotate in a same direction about the first common axis of rotation.

20. The hybrid aircraft of claim 17 , wherein the first half-wing has a leading edge and a trailing edge, and wherein the first front propeller is arranged upstream of the leading edge and the first rear propeller is arranged downstream of the trailing edge.

Assignees

• Airbus Helicopters

Inventors

• Prud Homme-Lacroix Pierre

Classifications

• B64D27/02

  Aircraft characterised by the type or position of power plants · CPC title

• B64C27/22 Primary

  Compound rotorcraft, i.e. aircraft using in flight the features of both aeroplane and rotorcraft · CPC title

• B64D31/00 Primary

  Power plant control systems; Arrangement of power plant control systems in aircraft · CPC title

• B64C27/26

  characterised by provision of fixed wings · CPC title

• B64C27/82

  characterised by the provision of an auxiliary rotor or fluid-jet device for counter-balancing lifting rotor torque or changing direction of rotorcraft · CPC title