Patent ID: 6688098
Filing Date: 2004-02-10
Classification: F02K

Abstract:
A backup locking system for a door of a thrust reverser, which system is intended to hold said door in the event of failure of its main locking means, said system comprising:a catch mounted so that it can pivot about a first pivot pin on a fixed structure of said thrust reverser between a closed position and an open position, said catch having a free end provided with a hook arranged in a plane perpendicular to said first pivot pin and adapted to cooperate, when said door is in a closed position, with a locking interface secured to said door, and said catch further having a heel at its end remote from said hook, said heel having a lateral face and a part-cylindrical surface centered on the axis of said first pivot pin; retaining means for keeping said catch against said locking interface when said door is in its closed position; means for effecting opening of said catch; and means for automatically closing said catch, said means being actuated by said door as it moves toward its closed position; said retaining means comprising a cylinder secured to said fixed structure, a piston slidably mounted in said cylinder, a piston rod secured to said piston and having an end facing said heel of said catch, and resilient means acting on said piston to urge the end of said piston rod against said lateral face of said heel when said catch is in its closed position; and said means for effecting opening of said catch comprise: means for permitting the supply of a pressurized fluid to said cylinder to act on said piston in opposition to said resilient means so as to retract said end of said piston rod away from said heel; and means for causing said catch to pivot through at least a minimum opening angle when said piston rod is retracted away from said heel so as to allow the opening of said door, the end of said piston rod facing said part-cylindrical surface of said heel when said catch reaches said minimum opening angle.