Patent ID: 7338011

Claim:
A method for preventing vibration of a rudder of an aircraft flying without sideslip, said rudder being connected to a fixed vertical stabilizer by an articulation section that forms an articulation axis, being able to rotate about said articulation axis under the action of a controllable actuator, and comprising two lateral aerodynamic surfaces meeting at the rear end of the aircraft in order to form a trailing edge, said vibration resulting from mechanical plays in said articulation section or in a transmission section that connects said controllable actuator and said rudder, wherein said method comprises the steps of: fixing a protruding aerodynamic element on one of said lateral aerodynamic surfaces of the rudder, said protruding aerodynamic element being capable of generating an aerodynamic effect tending to rotate said rudder about said articulation axis; and controlling said actuator for countering said aerodynamic effect of said protruding aerodynamic element for imposing on said rudder a position of equilibrium in aerodynamic extension of said fixed vertical stabilizer, wherein: said control for imposing on said rudder the position of equilibrium prevents said rudder vibrations resulting from said mechanical plays, and said protruding aerodynamic element is fixed in a temporary manner onto said rudder when said mechanical plays are at a first level and is removed from said rudder when said mechanical plays are below said first level.