Patent GB-944010-A (GB)
Title: Aircraft
Inventor: CHEESEMAN IAN CLIFFORD
IPC: B64C27/26
Filed: 1960-01-07
Abstract: 944,010. Combined aeroplane and helicopter. POWER JETS (RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT) Ltd. Dec. 15, 1960 [Jan. 7, 1960: Aug. 10, 1960], Nos. 609/60 and 27691/60. Headings B7G and B7W. [Also in Division F2] An aircraft comprises a fixed structure including wings 2 capable of supporting the aircraft by aerodynamic lift and a helicopter rotor which is at least partly retractable into the structure, the rotor blades 9 being rigidly locked at a fixed coning angle in the operative position and are of substantially circular cross-section and formed with spanwise-extending apertures arranged to discharge fluid streams as thin layers over the blade outer surfaces in such a direction as to induce lift. As shown in Fig. 8, on top of the fuselage 1 is mounted a rotor head 7, enclosed by a dome 90 and having a pair of circular-section rotor blades 9 pivotally attached thereto. Rotor blades 9 may be raised and lowered between an inoperative position, in which they lie generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft and are partly housed in recesses in fuselage 1, and an operative position (shown in broken lines), by means of pairs of jacks 91 and linkage 92. Each rotor blade 9 (see Figs. 12 and 13) comprises an outer shell 21 and an inner liner 22, the annular duct 23 communictaing with the apertures from which air is discharged over the blade surface, and duct 28 being used to lead propulsive gases to the tip jet unit 10. Propulsive gases for the tip jet units and for forward propulsion and the air streams for discharge over blades 9 are derived from four gas turbine jet propulsion engines of the bypass type mounted in pairs in pod 5 under the wings 2. Referring to Fig. 6, there is provided at the junction of jet pipe 42 and branch pipe 44 two linked valves 46, 47 which, when in the position shown in full lines, prevent the entry of gases into pipe 44 and permit the exhaust gases to be discharged from nozzle 43 to produce forward thrust on the aircraft, and which, when in the position shown in broken lines, divert the exhaust gases into pipe 44. In the latter position, the exhaust gases then pass through ducts in wings 2 to the bottom of a vertical inlet duct 97 (see Figs. 8 and 11). Air for discharge over the rotor blades is bled from the by-pass compressors of engines 41 and passes through pipes 48, 98 to the rotor head. As shown in Fig. 11, the rotor head comprises a tubular member 121 rotatably supported by upper and lower bearing assemblies 122, 123 carried in a supporting structure 124 which is fixed to the fuselage. A diaphragm 125 and a cover 126 are secured to the top of member 121. An annular space 128 is defined by tubular members 121 and 127 and the top of the fixed inlet duct 97 engages rotatably with the inner surface of member 121. With reference to Figs. 12 and 13, each rotor blade 9 has at its root end a pair of hollow bosses 131 secured to brackets 132 which are pivotally attached at 133 to lugs 134 formed on the flange 121a of member 121. The blade 9 is retained in its operative position, as in Figs. 12, 13, by catches 136 which engage with lugs 132a on brackets 132. In this position, duct 28 is in communication through the interior of branch duct 135 with the interior of member 121 and so the gases diverted from the engines and supplied to duct 97 can be led to the tip jet units 10 to drive the rotor. Ducts 98 for the boundary layer control air, are connected to inlet apertures 151, which lie one on each side of the supporting structure 124, and which communicate with a pair of outlet apertures 154 via the annular space 128. A horn like duct 155 (see Figs. 11 and 13) is connected to each outlet aperture 154 and carries at its end a pod 155a which is formed with an outlet orifice which registers when the blades are raised with a common inlet opening 156 in the bracket 132. The control air is thus passed from ducts 98 through space 128, ducts 155 and bosses 131 to the annular spaces 23 of the rotor blades, from which it is discharged through slots, one located at the top of each blade and facing rearwardly and another angularly spaced by about 60 degrees from the former and facing rearwardly and downwardly. In order to vary both cyclically and collectively the supply of air to the slots, each outlet aperture 154 is provided with a valve 161, carried by a rod 162 and controlled by a gimbal ring mechanism in the top of the rotor head. Slidably mounted on a stationary pillar 172, mounted in bearings 173, 174, is a sleeve member 171 which is connected by a cross rod 177 extending through slots 178 in pillar 172, to the operating rod 176a of an hydraulic jack 176. Sleeve member 171 is provided at diametrically opposite positions with brackets 171a, which carry on pivots 179 the support members 180 for an inner gimbal ring 181. At right angles to brackets 171a the sleeve is provided with diametrically opposite pairs of arms 171b, each pair carrying on pivots 182 an hydraulic jack 183, the operating rod 183a of which is connected through links 184 to gimbal ring 181, which can, therefore, be tilted about pivots 179. The operating rods 187a of hydraulic jacks 187, carried on pivots 188 between side plates 180a of support members 180, are connected through links 189 to an outer gimbal ring 185, which is carried by inner gimbal ring 181 on pivots 186 at right angles to pivots 179 and which has a track 185a on which run rollers 163 connected to the upper ends of rods 162. Variation of the supply of fluid to jack 176 will raise or lower sleeve 171 and both gimbal rings so that the air supply to the discharge slots through valves 161 will be varied in unison, and is thus equivalent the conventional collective pitch control of a helicopter. Differential variation of the supply to jacks 183, 187 will tilt the gimbal rings about axes at right angles to one another and so vary the supply to opposite rotor blades in an appropriately phased relationship and is thus equivalent to the conventional cyclic pitch control of a helicopter. In another embodiment, the rotor is retractable completely into a bay, thus improving air flow over the upper part of the fuselage surface. In addition, radial partitions are inserted in the annular ducts in the rotor blades and the supply to each of the four slots is kept separate in the following manner. Four pipes from a common manifold supplied, as before, with air from the by-pass compressors of the engines, communicate respectively with four circumferentially and vertically spaced segmental apertures at the lower end of the rotor head pillar and the four separate streams are led up the pillar, at the upper end of which are four corresponding sectors of an annular galleryeaeh of which communicate by means of a hornlike duct with one each of the semi-annular passages in the rotor blade. Valves are provided in the four supply pipes from the common manifold and the opening of these valves is varied cyclically and/or collectively by means of-a swash plate mechanism so that the aircraft when in flight as a helicopter may be controlled by variation in the supply of air to the boundary layer control slots.