Abstract:
A deflector for an aircraft engine comprises a screen attached to a base, a connector connecting the base and the engine, a mechanism to limit the movement of the connector and base, a spring that has two ends, one end being attached to the base inside surface, the spring extending past the base, and the spring&#39;s other end is positioned proximate the screen; and a shock absorbing means attached to the base, and connects the base with the engine, whereby when a foreign object contacts the deflector with a force sufficient force to move the spring and the shock absorbing means, the screen, the spring and the shock absorbing means are urged towards the engine, the movement of the screen and the spring being controlled by the shock absorbing means and the limiting mechanism, preventing the foreign object, such as a bird, from entering the engine.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention relate to a foreign object deflector for use in conjunction with aircraft engines. An embodiment is designed to prevent the entry of foreign objects, such as birds, into the jet engine of an aircraft, particularly during flight. These embodiments could be used on fixed wing aircraft, such as jet planes, and other embodiments could be adapted for use on rotor craft (also referred to as rotary-wing aircraft), such as helicopters, and other airframes that are capable of vertical take-offs and landings. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In January 2009, a twin engine jet aircraft that had recently taken off from a New York City area airport had a collision with a flock of geese. Numerous geese were sucked into the engines and caused both engines to fail, but the pilot was able to maneuver the aircraft into a safe landing on the Hudson River. Everybody survived this crash, and there were no serious injuries; government agencies concluded that this crash was caused by the intake of birds into the engines. In the few months since this incident, there have been an increasing number of news reports about birds striking aircraft, and that overall, the number of bird strikes has been increasing over the past few years. Some of this increase is due, in part to additional protections for wildlife, and the location of many airports near bodies of water where birds are resident. 
     However, the incidence of bird strikes and resultant airplane crashes are far from recent occurrences. For example, in the prior art U.S. Pat. No. 3,121,545 (Meletiou) refers to a plane crash near Boston in the early 1960&#39;s that was caused by the ingestion of a flock of starlings, and discloses a rotary deflector for aircraft engine intakes. 
     King (U.S. Pat. No. 3,400,902) discloses a moveable anti-ingestion screen mounted within an engine&#39;s intake. 
     McDonald (U.S. Pat. No. 4,149,689) discloses a protective screen for a jet-engine intake. 
     Wooding (U.S. Pat. No. 4,354,346) discloses an air intake that will allow a bird to enter, and to become smaller pieces that will fit in the engine. The Abstract states that to minimize damage to the engine, the surface region is formed such that the bird is retarded by it, and eviscerated so as to produce bird debris of a sufficiently low density to be safely ingested by the engine. 
     Ray et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,617,028) disclose an aircraft engine air intake including a foreign object separator in which relatively large foreign objects, such as medium size birds that enter the inlet aperture, will be unable to navigate the first bend in the intermediate portion of the intake and thus not be able to enter the engine. 
     Dearman et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,224) discloses a conically shaped guard apparatus for the intake of a jet engine. 
     In U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,259 Herlik discloses use of a deflector fitted over the engine intakes and designed to deflect large birds away from the engine. 
     Barnett et al. (U.S. Pat. App. No. 2007/0059169 A1) focuses on making engine components that are resistant to impact damage. 
     Pavlatos (U.S. Pat. No. 7,494,522 B2) discloses a number of different embodiments of devices that can be used as either a guard, a cap, or a screen for use on the air intakes of jet engines. 
     But none of the prior art references utilize the combination of a screen and shock absorbing mechanism employed in embodiments of the present invention. As will be shown in other sections of this specification, these embodiments could be used on aircraft used for civilian and/or military purposes. In addition to their use on fixed wing aircraft, such as jet planes, embodiments of the present invention could be adapted for use on rotor craft (also referred to as rotary-wing aircraft), such as helicopters, and other airframes that are capable of vertical take-offs and landings. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     As will be seen in the detailed description section, embodiments of the present invention offer numerous advantages, such as the following:
         Ability to save lives;   Reduction of aircraft maintenance costs;   Applicability to both civilian and military aircraft; and   Ability to stimulate the economy by the creation of jobs, either through the installation of units on existing jet engines, as well as their installation on newly manufactured engines.       

     Embodiments of the present invention can be mounted onto engines having cowlings, and whose cowlings may or may not contain a collar. Embodiments of the present invention can be mounted onto engines which are being tested while on the ground but are not attached to an aircraft. 
     In one embodiment, a deflector for an aircraft engine comprises a screen attached to a base, a connector connecting the base and the engine, a mechanism to limit the movement of the connector and base, a spring that has two ends, one end being attached to the base inside surface, the spring extending past the base, and the spring&#39;s other end is positioned proximate the screen; and a shock absorbing means attached to the base, and connects the base with the engine, whereby when a foreign object contacts the deflector with a force sufficient force to move the spring and the shock absorbing means, the screen, the spring and the shock absorbing means are urged towards the engine, the movement of the screen and the spring being controlled by the shock absorbing means and the limiting mechanism, preventing the foreign object, such as a bird, from entering the engine. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
         FIG. 1  is a plan view of an embodiment of the present invention; fairings are not illustrated. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates an aircraft equipped with embodiments of the present invention on each jet engine. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates the embodiment of  FIG. 3  in the “impact” mode. 
       The arrows A shown on mounting base  40  indicate the direction of movement of the deflector upon impact with a foreign object, such as a bird. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a molded baffle screen. 
         FIG. 5  illustrates a second embodiment of a baffle screen. 
         FIG. 6  illustrates an embodiment of the spring. 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the embodiment of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 8  is a top view of the embodiment of  FIG. 7 . 
         FIG. 9  illustrates an alternative embodiment of the foreign object deflector. The arrows A shown on mounting base  40  indicate the direction of movement of the deflector upon impact with a foreign object. 
         FIG. 10  shows a plan view of an alternate aircraft engine embodiment. 
         FIG. 11  illustrates the collar from the engine shown in  FIG. 10 . 
         FIG. 12  illustrates another alternative embodiment of the foreign object deflector, on the engine embodiment from  FIG. 10 . The arrows A shown on mounting base  40  indicate the direction of movement of the deflector upon impact with a foreign object. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention are designed to be used in conjunction with aircraft engines, and primarily in conjunction with jet aircraft engines. These embodiments are intended to be used when the engine is in an off condition, at idling speed, or running at various levels of power output, including levels of high thrust needed for takeoff. These embodiments could be used on aircraft used for civilian and/or military purposes. In addition to their use on fixed wing aircraft, such as jet planes, embodiments of the present invention could be adapted for use on rotor craft (also referred to as rotary-wing aircraft), such as helicopters, and other airframes that are capable of vertical take-offs and landings. 
     An embodiment of the foreign object deflector  10  is shown attached to an engine  100  ( FIG. 1 ). In one embodiment, deflector  10  is shown mounted on an aircraft  150  which has its engines  100  mounted beneath the aircraft wing  152 . Although not shown in the drawings, foreign object deflector  10  could also be mounted on an aircraft whose engines are mounted elsewhere, such as between the tail and fuselage (for example, as on the Boeing 727 aircraft), mounted external to the fuselage (for example, as in the A-10 Thunderbolt aircraft), or other aircraft whose engines are mounted within the fuselage, for example, fighter aircraft. 
     Foreign object deflector  10  comprises a baffle screen  20 , a mounting base  40 , and a fastening means  80  to fasten the deflector  10  to the engine  100 . The deflector  10  shown in  FIG. 1  is illustrated in its “normal” position, i.e., at it would be while the engine is off, or operating, but without having made contact with any external object, such as a bird  300  ( FIG. 3 ). 
     The engine  100  can be any jet engine, currently used or to be developed in the future, which can be used to power an airframe, such as a fixed-wing aircraft, rotor craft such as helicopters, and other airframes that are capable of vertical take-offs and landings. Some details concerning aircraft engine components will be provided and shown herein for illustrative purposes; other details that are common knowledge to those skilled in the art will be omitted. 
     The baffle screen  20  includes a plurality of openings  22 , the openings  22  being of a size sufficient to allow adequate airflow into the engine  100 , yet small enough to prevent a foreign object from entering the engine. The baffle screen  20  can be manufactured from any suitable material, and materials such as rubber, plastic, carbon fiber, aluminum, titanium or other materials could be used. The baffle screen  20  needs to be sufficiently hard to withstand the impact of a foreign object while the aircraft is traveling at subsonic or supersonic speeds, yet be sufficiently flexible to allow some deformation thereof when an impact occurs. The configuration and number of the openings  22  in the baffle screen  20  will vary based upon manufacturing parameters. 
     Baffle screen  20  is fastened to the baffle screen mounting base  40  using a plurality of fasteners  24 . The fasteners  24  can be any type of fastener used in the industry, and could include the use of adhesives or welding or other means for joining materials known to those skilled in the art. In one embodiment, the fasteners  24  are rivets; alternatively, and for example only, other fasteners such as screws, bolts and nuts, and the like could also be utilized. 
     The baffle screen  20  is not fastened to the spring first end  72 , bur rather nests near the end of the spring  70 . If the baffle screen  20  employed is manufactured of a metal, spring first end  72  should be coated with a rubber compound or the like to prevent any sparking or other adverse events that could occur because of metal to metal contact during operation of the foreign object deflector  10 . 
     A second embodiment of the baffle screen  200  ( FIG. 5 ) has a different configuration than baffle screen  20 , the first embodiment  20  being a molded rubber, while the second embodiment  200  is manufactured from a metal, such as, for example only, stainless steel or titanium. It is believed that the second embodiment  200  will offer less drag and facilitate better airflow into the engine  100  than the molded embodiment  20 . Baffle screen  200  further includes a plurality of openings  220 , the openings  220  being of a size sufficient to allow adequate airflow into the engine  100 , yet small enough to prevent a foreign object from entering the engine. The configuration and number of the openings  220  in the baffle screen  200  will vary with manufacturing and design considerations. 
     The mounting base  40  comprises a housing  42 , an inner surface  44 , an outer surface  46 , and a connector  48  to connect the housing to the engine  100 . The connector  48  may be formed as an extension of, but integral component of, the housing  42 , or may be a separate component that is fastened within housing  42 . The housing  42  has a generally hollow configuration ( FIGS. 7-8 ). Outer surface  46  has a plurality of attachment means  50 , and a plurality of fairings  52 . The attachment means  50  each receive a shock absorber  60 , and each shock absorber  60  is covered by a fairing  52 . The embodiment shown in  FIG. 1  has four shock absorbers  60  and four fairings  52 . However, it is to be understood that the number of shock absorbers  60  and fairings  52  is not limited to either the number or arrangement shown herein; there should be an equal number of shock absorbers and fairings. The shock absorbers  60  function to absorb and distribute the force of impact from the foreign object, with the impact being distributed as equally as possible from the baffle screen and housing towards the engine. Thus, the actual number of shock absorbers and fairings can vary from the number illustrated herein, depending upon manufacturing and design considerations. The fairings are mounted such that they are easily removable by maintenance personnel for servicing the shock absorbing mechanism  60 . The fairings are not shown in detail, as their structure is known to those skilled in the art. 
     Connector  48  is slidably positioned away from engine  100 , and the movement of connector  48  is limited by means of a limiting means  54 , which, as shown in the drawings, is a gasket  54 , such as, but not limited to, one or more O-rings. A strip of rubber, plastic, or other material which can limit the movement of the connector could also be utilized. To facilitate the movement of the connector  48  within the engine cowling, the outside surface of the connector  48  is coated with a lubricant or lubricating coating. In the embodiment described herein, the lubricant can be a silicone lubricant. Depending upon manufacturing conditions, and the particular combination of engine  100  and bird deflector  10 , gasket  54  may need to be altered, either in thickness or in number, such as by utilizing one or more O-rings, as appropriate. 
     The baffle screen mounting base  40  can be manufactured from any suitable material; in general, this will be aircraft aluminum, but materials utilized in aircraft manufacture, such as but not limited to carbon fiber composites, titanium, or other materials, could also be substituted therefor, depending upon the ultimate purpose of the aircraft and manufacturing and design constraints. 
     A representative shock absorbing mechanism  60  ( FIG. 1 ) comprises a shock absorber  62  and a helper spring  64 . An example of a shock absorber is the hydraulic type of shock absorber commonly found on many types of vehicles. Shock absorber  62  includes a first end  66  and a second end  68 . First end is retained by fastening means  80 , and second end retained by fastening means  108 , the latter being attached to the engine cowling  102  and the former being attached to the baffle screen mounting base  40 . The shock absorber ends  66  and  68  are attached using fasteners (not shown) known to those skilled in the art, and can include, for example only, screws, nuts and bolts, pivot pins, rods, cotter pins and the like. 
     The components of the shock absorbing mechanism  60  need to be of sufficient strength to override the suction of the engine In one embodiment, the helper spring  64  can be manufactured from a material such as stainless steel, although other materials commonly used in the manufacture of springs, such as steel, titanium or other metals could also be utilized. The helper spring  64  may be further coated with a protective material, to protect against corrosion by water or other environmental substances. The protective material could be a water-repellant spray, such as, for example, a silicone-based agent, or the protective material could be a coating of paint, a rubber or rubberized material, or other suitable agents. The dimensions of the spring  64 , the gauge of the material used to manufacture it, the length of the spring, and the thickness of any coating that will be applied thereto are parameters that can be determined by those skilled in the art based upon manufacturing and design considerations, and will not be described further 
     The engine  100  includes a cowling  102  that has an inner surface  104  and an outer surface  106 , and a plurality of fastening mean  108  on the outer surface to receive an end of shock absorber  60 . The engine  100  also includes an exhaust means  110 . 
       FIGS. 5-6  show the presence and arrangement of a spring  70  within deflector  10 . Spring  70  has a first end  72  and a second end  74 , and the spring is retained within housing  42 . Under normal operating conditions, the spring  70  is in an uncompressed state, and first end  72  extends past housing  42  to where first end  72  is positioned beneath baffle screen  20 . First end  72  generally will be in direct contact with baffle screen  20 , but a gap  1100  may develop between the first end  72  and the baffle screen  20 , particularly as the deflector  10  and its components, such as the baffle screen  20  and spring  70  age. It is anticipated that a gap  1100 , not exceeding 2 inches, would not adversely affect the performance of the deflector, and the widening of the gap would indicate that the deflector  10  requires maintenance 
     Second end  74  of spring  70  is retained within housing  42  by means of fasteners  76  that attach to inside surface  44 . The fasteners  76  used in one embodiment are “U”-bolts that are attached to the inside surface, in a manner known to those skilled in the art. Other types of fastening means, known to those skilled in the art, for attachment of a spring to a surface can also be utilized, provided that the spring is able to be compressed upon impact of the deflector  10  with a foreign object. To minimize any sparking or other adverse events that result from metal to metal contact, the fasteners  76  could be covered with either an anticorrosion and/or antifriction coating, for example, a rubber coating, such as by dipping the fastener into a coating material, or coated with another type of fire-resistant or fire-proof coating. The spring  70  could be covered with a similar type of anticorrosion or antifriction coating, for example, a rubber coating, such as by dipping the spring into a coating material, or coated with another type of resilient, fire-resistant or fireproof coating, such as those commonly used in aircraft or other types of construction. Another alternative is to employ a baffle screen  20  manufactured from rubber or a similar material, or to use a metal baffle screen that is coated with a material similar to that used to coat the spring. 
       FIGS. 7-8  show a side and a top view, respectively, of the baffle screen base assembly; the first end  72  of spring  70  is shown near baffle screen  20 , while the remainder of spring  70  is shown in phantom within baffle screen mounting assembly  40 . For ease of viewing, the fairings  52  are not shown in these figures. 
     During normal flight conditions, the foreign object deflector  10  appears as is shown in  FIG. 1 . When a foreign object, such as a bird, impacts the deflector  10  and the baffle screen  20 , the lower portion of the mounting base housing  42  will slide into the engine cowling  102 . The baffle screen  20  becomes compressed, the spring  70  becomes compressed, and the shock absorbers  60  become compressed, such that the mounting base housing  42  slides into the cowling  102 . The gaskets  54  limit the movement of the mounting base  40  within the engine, and the gaskets  54  also absorb some of the shock caused by the impact of the foreign body on the deflector device  10 . The severity of the impact will determine the extent of movement of the baffle screen mounting base in relation to the engine cowling. 
     After impact, the baffle mounting base should return to the “Normal Mode” ( FIG. 1 ) with the aid of the shock absorbers and helper springs. Depending upon the impact, the foreign object may or not be retained on the baffle screen, but the foreign object is prevented from entering the engine. 
     The baffle screen  20  can be manufactured from any suitable material, and materials such as rubber, plastic, carbon fiber, aluminum, titanium, KEVLAR®, aramid, or other materials could be used. The baffle screen  20  needs to be sufficiently hard to withstand the impact of a foreign object while the aircraft is traveling at subsonic or supersonic speeds, yet be sufficiently flexible to allow some deformation thereof when an impact occurs. The baffle screen  20  further includes a plurality of openings  22 , the openings  22  being of a size sufficient to allow adequate airflow into the engine  100 , yet small enough to prevent the foreign object from entering the engine. The configuration and number of the openings  22  in the baffle screen  20  will vary with manufacturing parameters. 
     Another embodiment of foreign object deflector  400  comprises a baffle screen  20 , a mounting base  40 , and a fastening means  1080  to fasten the deflector  400  to the engine  100 . The deflector  400  shown ( FIG. 9 ) is in the “Normal Mode”. 
     Most components of this alternate deflector embodiment  400  are identical to those of the first deflector embodiment  10 , and in general, where the components are identical the same reference numerals will be used. 
     A difference between this alternate deflector embodiment  400  and the first deflector embodiment  10  is the addition of a stabilizer  490  to the shock absorbing mechanism  60  ( FIG. 9 ). 
     The housing  42  has a generally hollow configuration, and outer surface  46  has a plurality of attachment means  450 , and a plurality of fairings (not shown). The attachment means  450  each receive a shock absorbing means  60  and a stabilizer  490 ; and each shock absorbing means  60 -stabilizer  490  combination is covered by a fairing (not shown). The ends  492  and  494  of stabilizer  490  are threaded, and first end  492  (also referred to as the deflector end) is received through opening  452 , and retained thereon by a fastener  496 . The fastener  496  can be a threaded fastener, such as a nut, a cap nut, or combination of other fasteners. In the embodiment illustrated, one fastener  496  is a nut and a second fastener  496  is a cap nut, the nut  496  on one side of the attachment means  450 , and the cap nut  496  on the deflector side of the attachment means  450 . In the embodiment illustrated, the fastener  496  is a cap nut, which because of its&#39; shape also improves the airflow over the stabilizer. The fastener can be further modified to have other configurations that will further improve the aerodynamics of this component of the present invention. 
     The stabilizer  490  can be manufactured from materials commonly used for aircraft construction, and can include, for example only, metals such as stainless steel, aluminum, titanium, or combinations thereof, or combinations of metal with other materials such as carbon fiber or other types of composite materials. 
     The other end  494  (also referred to as the engine end) of stabilizer  490  is slidably retained within a bushing  1082  (shown in phantom) mounted within the retaining bar  1080  that extends from engine  100 . The second end  494  is retained by a fastener  496 . The fastener  496  can be a threaded fastener, such as a nut, a cap nut, or combination of other fasteners. In the embodiment illustrated, the fastener  496  is a cap nut. 
     The bushing can be manufactured from materials commonly used for this purpose, and can include, for example only, silicone, nylon, rubber, plastic, carbon fiber, or combinations thereof, or other types of composite materials. 
     Shock absorber  62  includes a first end  66  and a second end  68 . First end is retained in fastening means  950 , and second end retained by fastening means  1080 , the latter being attached to the engine cowling  102  and the former being attached to the baffle screen mounting base  40 . The helper spring  64 , in an uncompressed state, is positioned between the fastening means  950  and  1080 , and the helper spring&#39;s ends can also be attached thereto. The shock absorber ends  66  and  68  are attached using fasteners (not shown) known to those skilled in the art, and can include, for example only, screws, nuts and bolts, pivot pins, cotter pins and the like. 
     The portion of the connector that slides into the cowling should have an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the cowling, in order to avoid any metal-to-metal contact. In one embodiment, there can be a gap  1100  between the two ranging from about ⅛ to about 1 inch. In another embodiment, the gap can range from about ¼ to about ¾ of an inch. In yet another embodiment, the gap can range from about ¼ to about ⅝ of an inch. In still another embodiment, the gap can range from about ⅜ to about ⅝ of an inch. To minimize friction between the components, the inside surface  504  of the cowling should be coated with a lubricant, such as a rubberized material. The connector  48  has an inner surface  86 , and an outer surface  88  that should be coated with the same lubricant. 
     This alternate deflector embodiment  400  is illustrated with four (4) shock absorbers and stabilizers, and four (4) fairings. It is to be understood that the number of shock absorbers  60 , stabilizers  490  and fairings is not limited either the number or arrangement shown herein; there should be an equal number of shock absorbers, stabilizers and fairings. The shock absorbers  60  function to absorb and distribute the force of impact from the foreign object, with the impact being distributed as equally as possible from the baffle and housing towards the engine. Thus, the actual number of shock absorbers and fairings can vary from the number illustrated herein, depending upon manufacturing and design considerations. The fairings are mounted such that they are easily removable by maintenance personnel for servicing the shock absorbing mechanism  60 . The fairings are not shown in detail, as there structure is known to those skilled in the art. 
     An alternate embodiment of a jet engine in shown in  FIGS. 10-11 . In this embodiment, engine  500  includes a cowling  502  that has an inner surface  504  and an outer surface  506 , and a plurality of fastening mean  508  on the outer surface to receive an end of shock absorber  60 . The engine  500 , partially shown in phantom in  FIG. 10 , includes an exhaust means  520 . This embodiment also employs a collar  510  (shown in  FIG. 10  in phantom) comprising an annular ring  512  connected to an annular body  514 , the body  514  being sized to receive and slidably receives foreign object deflector  10  or  400 . The collar  510  is fastened to the cowling  502  by means known to those skilled in the art, such as by rivets, screws, nuts and bolts, and the like. The inner surface of collar  510  can be coated with a lubricant to facilitate movement of the foreign object deflector  10  or  400 , and minimize friction and/or any fire risk that may be attributable to metal-to-metal contact. An alternative lubricant can be a rubberized coating on the inner surface of the collar  510 , and a similar coating on the cooperating surfaces of the connector. The collar  510  could be used to stabilize the movement of foreign object deflector  10  or  400  once it has been mounted on the engine  500 . 
       FIG. 12  illustrates the mounting of an alternate embodiment of deflector  400  attached to an alternate embodiment of engine  500  which contains a collar  510 . 
     Embodiments of the present invention can be used either to retrofit jet engines currently used on aircraft, or could be built onto newer engines during the manufacturing process. 
     Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made only by the way of illustration, and that numerous changes in construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.