Patent ID: 6276294
Filing Date: 2001-08-21
Classification: B63C,B63G

Abstract:
A submersible vehicle, comprising:a hull having a pair of outwardly projecting at least partially arcuate wings;a wing steering flap hingeably attached to each wing, each wing steering flap being adjustably positionable to provide at least partial control of the movement of the vehicle;at least one wing flap actuator coupled to the hull and to the wing steering flaps to controllably adjust the position of the wing steering flaps;a tail steering flap hingeably attached to the hull, the tail steering flap being adjustably positionable to provide at least partial control of the movement of the vehicle;at least one tail flap actuator coupled to the hull and to the tail steering flap to controllably adjust the position of the tail steering flap;wherein each arcuate wing has a rearwardly swept leading edge and a forwardly swept trailing edge that joins with the leading edge at a wing tip, and wherein a ratio of a wingspan over a maximum distance from the leading edge to the trailing edge is approximately 3/2.