Abstract:
A method of operating a rotor aircraft involves measuring an airspeed of the aircraft and a rotational speed of the rotor. A controller determines a Mu of the rotor based on the airspeed of the aircraft and the rotational speed of the rotor. The controller varies the collective pitch of the rotor blades in relationship to the Mu, from an inertia powered jump takeoff, through high speed high advance ratio flight, through a low speed landing approach, to a zero or short roll flare landing. In addition as the rotor is unloaded and the rotor slows down, the controller maintains a minimum rotor RPM with the use of a tilting mast.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
   This application claims priority to provisional application Ser. No. 60/628,265, filed Nov. 16, 2004. 

   FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention relates in general to rotor aircraft, and in particular to an apparatus for automatically controlling the collective pitch of rotor blades throughout the flight, from an inertia powered jump takeoff, through high speed high advance ratio (Mu greater than about 0.7) flight, through a low speed landing approach, to a zero or short roll flare landing. The invention also relates to controlling the rotor RPM with the use of a tilting mast as the rotor is unloaded and the rotor slows down. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   One type of rotor aircraft has wings, a rotor and a means of forward thrust other than the rotor. The rotor provides most of the lift during short or vertical takeoffs, slow speed flight, and landings, and the wings provide most of the lift during cruise conditions. For a short or zero roll takeoff, the pilot pre-rotates the rotor to a selected speed. While pre-rotating, the pilot maintains the collective pitch near zero. The collective pitch refers to the angle of attack of the blades relative to the plane of rotation. At zero collective pitch, the leading and trailing edges of the blades are in a common plane with the plane of rotation. 
   When ready for liftoff, the operator releases the clutch driving the rotor so it freewheels and increases the collective pitch, which tilts the leading edge of each blade upward relative to the trailing edge. The rotor has tip weights to provide high inertia, and the inertia drives the rotor, which causes the aircraft to lift while a thrust means propels the aircraft forward. The operator gradually reduces the collective pitch as the aircraft picks up speed. The operator also decreases the aft tilt of the rotor, which reduces the air stream flowing through the rotor, thus decreasing the rotational speed. At cruising speeds and at an advance ratio greater than about 0.7, the collective pitch is generally between 1.5 and minus 0.5 degrees, and the rotor provides very little of the lift. The air stream flowing through the rotor causes the rotor to auto-rotate at a selected slow rotational speed. When landing, the operator tilts the rotor aft, which causes the rotor to speed up. The operator also increases the collective pitch when landing, causing the rotor to assume more of the lift required for the aircraft. 
   At high aircraft velocities, the rotor speed must be limited so that the tip velocity of the advancing rotor does not exceed the speed of sound. Because of this problem, the ratio of aircraft forward speed to rotor tip speed relative to the aircraft, known as the “advance ratio” or Mu, is limited to about 0.5 in helicopters and autogyros. A gyroplane as described above is able to achieve higher aircraft speeds by unloading the rotor and auto-rotating the rotor at a slow rotational speed, thus allowing the Mu to increase beyond that of conventional helicopters and autogryos. 
   Even though the rotor provides very little lift at cruising speeds, the advancing and retreating blades must provide equal lift moments about the rotor head. The advancing blade can only provide as much lift moment as the retreating blade. Once the rotor has been sufficiently unloaded by providing lift with the wings and propulsion by a source such as a propeller, the rotor blades continue to maintain lift moment equilibrium about the hub with rotor flapping. Rotor flapping is a mechanism by which the advancing and retreating blades can produce the same lift moments. In order to work, the blades must be free to pivot up and down relative to the hub. This free flapping allows the advancing blade, which if it has more lift due to a higher velocity across it than the retreating blade, to rise or flap up. As the advancing blade rises, the resultant flow angle across the blade drops and reduces its lift. The opposite occurs on the retreating blade. As the advancing blade goes up, the retreating blade drops since the blades are tied together and because the retreating blade is not producing as much lift as the advancing blade. As the retreating blade drops, the resulting angle of airflow across the blade goes up and increases its lift. The rotor will automatically increase flapping until the lift moments on the advancing and retreating blades are the same. This characteristic whereby the lift on the retreating blade increases as the blade drops works whether the air flows from the leading edge to the trailing edge or from the trailing edge to the leading edge And what allows the rotor to operate at advance ratios greater than 1. 
   Nevertheless, for stability, the rotor flapping must be kept within a selected range, such as about 1 to 4 degrees. U.S. Pat. No. 6,435,453 discloses that varying the collective pitch can control flapping. Decreasing the collective pitch decreases flapping. However, measuring flapping during flight is difficult because the rotor plane of rotation changes in a banked turn and because of rapid changes in air speed or gusts. 
   As the rotor RPM slows, the centrifugal force decreases until at some point there would not be enough centrifugal force to keep the relatively flexible rotor blades stable. Weight is added to the blade tips to allow the rotor to be slowed down as much as practical. U.S. Pat. No. 5,627,754 discloses that rotor RPM can be varied by tilting the rotor plane of rotation relative to the air stream and used a cyclic mixing arrangement whereby the length of the links controlling the rotor fore and aft movement could be varied. Instead of a cyclic mixing arrangement used in the previous patent to tilt the rotor, a tilting mast can be used once the rotor has been unloaded for high Mu flight. 
   Flying a gyroplane as described requires the operator to adjust the collective pitch from near zero, during pre-rotation, to a high level for takeoff and landing, and again to between 1.5 and minus 0.5 degrees at cruising speeds. Some skill must be acquired in order to properly adjust the collective pitch, and the operator must remain aware of the necessity of making the pitch changes. Also the operator must keep the rotor RPM from going too low whereby there would not be enough centrifugal force to the keep the rotor stable. In order to reduce the pilot workload and make the aircraft easier to fly, both the rotor flapping and RPM can and should be controlled automatically. 
   SUMMARY 
   In this invention, a controller is utilized for automatic control of the collective pitch at all airspeeds and rotor RPM once the rotor has been significantly unloaded by using a wing for lift and a jet or propeller for forward thrust. The true air speed of the aircraft is measured as well as the rotational speed of the rotor. These speeds are input to the controller, which then determines a Mu of the rotor and varies the collective pitch in relation to the Mu. And once the rotor RPM drops to its minimum RPM, the controller holds this rotor RPM by tilting the rotor mast fore and aft. 
   Up to a selected Mu level, such as 0.75, the controller decreases the collective pitch along a predetermined relation or curve as the Mu increases. After the selected level of Mu has been reached and Mu continues to increase, the controller maintains the collective pitch generally constant within a range from about 1.5 and minus 0.5 degrees The controller also varies the tilt of the rotor while above the selected Mu level to maintain a minimum rotational speed. By maintaining the proper rotational speed and controlling the collective pitch, the controller limits flapping within an acceptable degree. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a gyroplane constructed in accordance with this invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic sectional illustration of the blades of the gyroplane of  FIG. 1 , one of the blades being shown in solid lines and the other blade shown in dotted lines, and the blades being illustrated at a positive collective pitch. 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic view of the tilt mechanism and the controller of the aircraft of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic view of the collective mechanism. 
       FIG. 5  is a schematic view as seen from above of the aircraft of  FIG. 1 , and illustrating a Mu greater than 1.0. 
       FIG. 6  is a schematic view as seen from one side of the rotor of the aircraft of  FIG. 1 , with the aircraft not being shown. 
       FIG. 7  is a graph of Pitch vs Mu 
       FIG. 8  is a notional graph showing the relationship between airspeed and rotor blade pitch, rotor RPM and Mu. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   Referring to  FIG. 1 , aircraft  11  is a gyroplane having a fuselage  13  with tail booms  15  in this example. A vertical stabilizer  17  is located at the end of each tail boom  15 . A rudder  19  is mounted to the aft end of each vertical stabilizer  17 . A movable stabilator  20  extends between the aft ends of tail booms  15 . 
   Fuselage  13  has a pair of wings  21  that provide lift during forward flight. Each wing  21  has an aileron  23  in this embodiment. A rotor  25  is mounted above fuselage  13  on a mast  27 . Rotor  25  is shown with two blades  29 , but it could have more than two. During each revolution, one blade  29   a  becomes the advancing blade while the other blade  29   b  becomes the retreating blade. Blades  29  have tip weights  31  at their tips for providing inertia during take-off and stiffness during slow rotation at cruise speeds. Preferably tip weights  31  are forward of the leading edge  33  of each blade  29 . Blades  29  join each other at a hub  35  at the upper end of mast  27 . Preferably hub  35  is split into two halves movable relative to each other, with the shell of each blade  29  being integrally joined to one of the halves of hub  35 . 
   Aircraft  11  has an engine (not shown) that powers rotor  25  for pre-rotation prior to takeoff. The engine also powers a propeller  37 , which is shown as a pusher propeller but could also be a tractor type. Alternately, forward propulsion and rotation of rotor  25  could be provided by a jet engine. Aircraft  11  has a true airspeed sensor  38 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 2 , blades  29  are movable relative to each other about a pitch axis  39  to vary the collective pitch. In the position shown in  FIG. 2 , each leading edge  33  of each blade  29  tilts upward or twists about pitch axis  39  to increase the collective pitch. An increase in collective pitch increases the angle of attack. If rotated or twisted about pitch axis  39  in the opposite direction, leading edge  33  will move downward to the plane of rotation. Rotor  25  produces greater lift when the pitch is at a high level, as shown in  FIG. 2 , than when the collective pitch is at a lesser level or zero. 
   Aircraft  11  ( FIG. 1 ) is designed so that at short or vertical takeoffs and landings and slow speed flight, rotor  25  will produce a substantial part of the lift. At cruise flight speeds, rotor  25  will produce very little of the lift, rather the lift will be provided by wings  21 . The collective pitch is adjusted from the high positive level shown in  FIG. 2  to between 1.5 and minus 0.5 degrees at cruise speeds. 
     FIG. 3  illustrates the components of the tilting mast  67 . The mast pivot axis  57  is generally located above and aft of the aircraft CG (center of gravity). A lever arm  54  is pivotally mounted to mast  67  for cyclic pitch control, which refers to tilting the rotor plane of rotation relative to mast  67  in fore and aft and lateral directions. In this example, the rotor plane of rotation is tilted relative to mast  67  by a tilting spindle, which has an axis  52  spaced from a spindle arm  58  and is connected to lever arm  54 . Mast  67  can be tilted as much as 25 degrees, but only in fore and aft directions. When mast  67  is tilted, spindle axis  52  and the rotor center of lift relative to the aircraft center of gravity (CG) remain essentially constant. This arrangement basically keeps the aircraft pitch from changing as mast  67  is tilted fore and aft. This arrangement also allows the rotor cyclic pitch relative to the airstream to change, which can control the rotor RPM once the rotor is unloaded and the rotor RPM has dropped to its minimum level. Mast  67  is driven in the fore and aft direction with a cylinder  71 , which is mounted to fuselage  13  ( FIG. 1 ). 
     FIG. 4  illustrates the components of one embodiment of the collective pitch assembly. Each blade is integrally joined to one of the hub half portions  35  ( FIG. 1 ). A pitch horn  43  is secured to each blade  29 . Each pitch horn  43  can be located either forward or aft of pitch axis  39 . When moved up and down, each pitch horn  43  will rotate blade  29  about a twistable I beam type spar (not shown) and about pitch axis  39 . 
   Each pitch horn  43  is pivotally connected to a push rod  45 , which in turn is connected to a collective arm  47 . Collective arm  47  is pivotally mounted to a collective tee  49 . Collective tee  49  is able to reciprocate up and down relative to spindle (not shown). Links  53  are mounted to the spindle (not shown) at a point along each collective arm  47 . When collective tee  49  moves downward, links  53  serve as fulcrums to cause push rods  45  and pitch horns  43  to move upward in unison. Similarly, when collective tee  49  moves upward relative to the spindle, pitch horns  43  move downward in unison. 
   The spindle is mounted to a rotatably driven shaft (not shown) through which extends an upper collective shaft  55 . Collective tee  49  is mounted to the upper end of upper collective shaft  55  for upward and downward movement therewith. The spindle and cyclic pitch control mechanism is not shown, however it tilts the rotor in the fore and aft and lateral directions. A hydraulic cylinder  65  is located below the spindle and is non-rotating, but transfers its up and down movement through a thrust bearing  56 . 
   In this embodiment, an automatic controller ( FIG. 3 ), which is a computer, controls the collective pitch. Also, the controller will control fore and aft tilt of rotor  25  automatically to hold the minimum desired rotor RPM. A true air speed sensor  38  ( FIG. 1 ) provides an input to the controller. A conventional rotor RPM sensor or tachometer also provides an input signal to the controller. The controller is programmed to provide outputs to collective pitch control hydraulic cylinder  65  and mast tilt cylinder  71 . 
   As discussed in the background of the invention above and schematically illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , flapping is a means by which the advancing and retreating blades  29   a ,  29   b  can achieve lift moment equilibrium, and is in general a function of Mu and lift. Mu is defined as the forward speed of the aircraft divided by the rotational tip speed of the rotor relative to the aircraft. Lift, with a resulting upward force, can be greatly altered by rotor pitch. For a given Mu, there is a range of blade pitches that will allow the rotor to auto-rotate while still providing the lift required without excessive flapping. These collective pitches can be calculated as well as determined empirically by test flights. In general, the controller varies the blade collective pitch as a function of Mu, such that at some Mu associated with a minimum straight and level forward speed such as 30 mph, Mu equals the highest blade pitch that will allow auto-rotation, such as 9 degrees. At a Mu greater than a selected amount, such as 0.75, the collective pitch will be low, such as 1.5 degrees positive to about minus 0.5 degree. Varying the collective blade pitch in accordance with this function will restrain blade flapping within a desired amount, such as approximately 1 to 4 degrees.  FIG. 6  illustrates schematically the flapping angle  75 .  FIG. 7  illustrates an example of a curve or relationship between collective pitch and Mu that if utilized, will maintain flapping within the desired amount. Although termed “curve”, the curve of  FIG. 7  could be straight or curved.  FIG. 8  shows the relationship between Mu and pitch in a different and more detailed manner, with the right side of the graph being both collective pitch and Mu. The units on the right side refer to degrees or to ten times Mu. For example, the unit  4  would be 0.4 Mu. 
     FIG. 5  illustrates aircraft  11  when flying at a Mu greater than 1. Rotor  25  is auto-rotating at a low rate of speed due to a shallow angle of attack relative to the air stream. Rotor  25  is rotating only at a high enough speed to produce enough centrifugal force to keep blades  29  stiff and stable, corresponding to a rotor tip speed between 150 and 250 ft/sec. The rotational speed is typically less than one-third the rotational speed employed at jump take-off, which may be at an RPM corresponding to a rotor tip speed of Mach 0.8 or more. At the slow tip speeds, with the rotor only producing a small percentage of lift, both the advancing blade  29   a  and retreating blade  29   b  can produce the same lift moments without stalling. At a Mu greater than 1.0, the entire air flow over retreating blade  29   b  is in reverse due to the high aircraft speed A and the slow speed of rotation. The rotational speed of rotor  25  results in a linear component B at the tip of each blade  29 . The advancing blade will have a tip velocity D, which is the sum of aircraft velocity A and the rotational velocity component B. The velocity C of retreating blade  29   b  is equal to the aircraft velocity A less the rotational velocity component B. As a result, the entire flow over the retreating blade  29   b  is from the trailing edge to the leading edge when Mu is greater than 1.0. 
   In operation, referring to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , prior to pre-rotating rotor  25 , the pilot preferably selects a take-off collective pitch for the controller to employ once the rotor clutch (not shown) is disengaged and the pilot is ready to take off. During a jump takeoff, the pilot rotates rotor  25  at near 0 degree collective pitch up to a higher than normal rotor  25  speed, such as a tip speed of Mach 0.8. Regardless of what the pilot selected, the controller holds rotor blades  29  at a zero or near zero collective pitch during pre-rotation to reduce the required horsepower. After the clutch is released, the controller increases the collective pitch to the pre-selected take-off pitch. [ FIG. 7  shows the notional relationship between airspeed and rotor pitch, rotor RPM, and Mu. At any point on the Mu landing curve, one can determine the desired blade pitch by traveling vertically on the graph until one crosses the pitch vs airspeed curve. At that point travel to the right and read the corresponding blade pitch.] 
   The freewheeling rotor  25  lifts the aircraft until propeller  37  ( FIG. 1 ) can provide sufficient forward speed to maintain flight. The combination of tip weights  31 , blades  29  and the high pre-rotational speed for rotor  25  provides an adequate amount of stored energy to drive rotor  25  a sufficient amount after liftoff. 
   The pilot can select how aggressive a take-off is desired by the level of over speed of rotor  25  and the selection of take-off collective pitch. For example, if the pilot were to prefer a short rolling takeoff because he does not need to make a jump takeoff and he does not wish to take the time for the rotor to spin up to its maximum RPM, then the pilot may input an initial collective pitch between 5 and 9 degrees and pre-rotate rotor  25  to a lesser amount than maximum. For a maximum performance jump takeoff, rotor  25  RPM is increased to its maximum and collective pitch  23  is set to its maximum takeoff setting, between 9 and 12 degrees. 
   The controller causes blades  29  to move to the selected or optimized take-off pitch immediately upon lift-off. However if an initial pitch setting would cause the rotor blade to see “critical Mach” (higher than normal drag) or the takeoff “g” forces to be excessive, then the controller could reduce the pitch to a lower value and then as the RPM decreased, increase the pitch as required to optimize the takeoff performance. Otherwise the controller will hold blades  29  at the desired take-off collective pitch or pitches, even if it is below the pitch vs Mu curve of  FIG. 7 . The selected pitch corresponds to a particular Mu on the Mu vs pitch curve of  FIG. 7 . When the actual Mu of the aircraft reaches the particular Mu, the controller will thereafter follow the pitch vs Mu curve until the aircraft has landed and the rotor clutch is engaged to prerotate the rotor for another take-off. 
   For example, if the pilot selects a take-off collective pitch of 6 degrees, the particular Mu corresponding to that take-off collective pitch on the curve of  FIG. 7  is 0.2 At liftoff, the controller will thus hold the collective pitch at 6 degrees until Mu equals 0.2, then the controller will begin decreasing the collective pitch as Mu increases to follow the slope of the curve. For example when the actual Mu is about 0.4, the controller will move the collective pitch to approximately 3.5 degrees. The controller will actuate cylinder  65  ( FIG. 3 ) to move collective tee  49  upward and downward relative to spindle axis  51  to maintain the pitch according to the curve of  FIG. 7 . As collective tee  49  moves upward, it causes push rods  45  and pitch horns  43  to move downward, decreasing the collective pitch. 
   If rotorcraft  11  has wings, such as wings  21  that produce lift, rotor  25  can be unloaded as wings  21  produce more lift after take-off. To reduce rotor lift and keep the net lift constant, the pilot pushes forward on the control stick (not shown), causing rotor  25  to tilt forward relative to the rotor mast or shaft  67 . Moving the control stick forward also moves horizontal stabilizer  20  ( FIG. 1 ) to pitch the aircraft  11  down. The control stick normally does not cause mast  67  to tilt, rather this is accomplished by the controller, unless overridden by the pilot. While rotor  25  is still producing some of the lift, the controller may move tilting mast  67  with tilt cylinder  71  ( FIG. 3 ) as required to keep wings  21  ( FIG. 1 ) operating at their best L/D (lift over drag) angle of attack until the minimum rotor RPM is reached. When rotor  25  is substantially unloaded and all of the required lift is supplied by wings  21 , the controller causes cylinder  71  to tilt mast  67  to maintain this minimum RPM. Note the pilot could manually increase this minimum RPM of rotor  25  by cyclic pitch control if improved control response is desired, such as might occur during a military action to avoid harm. 
   As rotor  25  is tilted forward, there is less air flowing through rotor  25  to drive it, causing it to slow down. This lower RPM of rotor  25  and/or an increase in airspeed of aircraft  11  causes a corresponding increase in Mu, which may cause the controller to decrease collective blade pitch if the Mu is still below the upper region, which begins approximately 0.7 as indicated in  FIG. 7 . Likewise if Mu drops below the upper region, then the controller will increase collective pitch to maintain the relationship on the curve of  FIG. 7 . By programming the Mu versus collective pitch curve of  FIG. 7  into the controller, flapping angle  75 , illustrated in  FIG. 6 , is maintained within a safe operating range of preferably between 1 and 4 degrees. 
   The relationship between the tilt of rotor  25  and horizontal stabilizer  20  ( FIG. 1 ) can be set so that when Mu is at a selected upper level, such as about 0.75, the airspeed will be such that wings  21  provide most of the lift. Preferably, as Mu increases above this upper level point, the rotor blade collective pitch remains substantially constant in the 1.5 degree to minus 0.5 degree range, as illustrated in  FIG. 7 . As the aircraft air speed increases and the pilot pushes the control stick forward to keep from climbing, the tilt of rotor  25  relative to the airstream will decrease, causing the rotor RPM to continue to drop. The relationship between airspeed and rotor RPM can be observed in  FIG. 8 . 
   In the preferred embodiment, as mentioned, the controller also operates to trim rotor  25  in the fore and aft directions by tilting mast  67  to maintain the rotor RPM at a selected minimum value regardless of the Mu. The controller will provide input to cylinder  71  to increase and decrease the rotor tilt (mast tilt) and thus the rotational speed of rotor  25  to keep the rotor speed at its minimum level during high speed forward flight. 
   As the aircraft slows down for landing, the pilot tilts rotor  25  aft as required to maintain lift, which increases the speed of rotor  25 . Both decreasing speed and increasing rotor RPM decreases Mu. As previously mentioned, there is an upper Mu level of about 0.75 above which the controller maintains the collective pitch generally constant. When operating below this upper level of Mu, the controller will increase the collective pitch in response to a decrease in Mu according to the curve of  FIG. 7  until the aircraft lands. 
   In summary, Mu is the ratio of the forward speed of the aircraft divided by the tip speed of the rotor relative to the aircraft. In general changes in airspeed or rotor RPM effects the value of Mu. Collective pitch refers to twisting of the rotor blades, each about its pitch axis. The controller operates on a collective pitch vs Mu curve to control flapping within safe desired limits. Above a Mu of approximately 0.75, the controller maintains the collective pitch generally constant between approximately 1.5 and −0.5 degrees, which still keep the flapping within safe limits. 
   Cyclic pitch changes refer to tilting the rotor relative to the mast by manual movement of the pilot control stick. The rotor can also be tilted by tilting the entire mast, and the tilting is normally performed by the controller. The tilting mast has dual purposes. First the controller controls the tilting mast to maintain the wings at the best angle of attack when the rotor is providing sufficient lift. Afterward, when the rotor is substantially unloaded, which is at Mu values greater than about 0.75, the controller maintains the rotor at its desired minimum RPM by varying the mast tilt. Rotor RPM is thus controlled at all airspeeds by varying the rotor tilt relative to the airstream, first with cyclic pitch control controlling the fore and aft tilt and then with mast tilt. 
   Should the pilot wish to increase the minimum rotor RPM, then the pilot could change the controller to maintain a higher minimum rotor RPM through more mast tilt, which takes priority over the controller&#39;s responsibility to hold the wing at its best L/D angle. Increasing the minimum rotor RPM increases rotor lift and drag, but might be needed to increase the aircraft control response, such as during a military action. 
   The invention has significant advantages. By automatically controlling the rotor pitch in relation to Mu, the pilot is freed of the need for blade pitch adjustments during takeoffs, slow and high speed cruise and landings. Also, the pilot is freed of having to control the tilt of the mast at lower speeds to control aircraft pitch and keep the wing operating at its best L/D angle of attack, and at higher aircraft speeds to control the minimum rotor RPM. Making the controller control the collective pitch in relation to Mu is easily performed as it does not require any actual measurement of flapping. The Mu versus collective pitch curve can be set for various aircraft by calculations and/or testing. 
   While the invention has been shown in only one of its forms, it should be apparent that it is not so limited but susceptible to various changes without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, although shown to be a gyroplane, the invention could also be applicable to a helicopter, gyroplane or a heliplane with hovering capabilities. Additionally, the collective mechanism is shown for a tilting spindle cyclic control that is not driven during flight, but it could be changed for a swash plate cyclic control, which would allow the rotor to be driven during flight.