Patent ID: 7510150

Claim:
An energy recovery apparatus for recovering energy from a flight control element, and assisting in moving said flight control element through the use of the recovered energy, comprising: a single-acting, ram-like system having a piston operably associated with the flight control element and movable in response to movement of said flight control element; a compressible medium in communication with the ram-like system, the compressible medium able to store energy acting on the piston when the flight control element is moved in a first direction, thus causing the piston to be moved in said first direction, said stored energy being usable by the ram-like system to assist in moving the flight control element in a second direction, wherein the flight control element is extended aft in a longitudinal direction; and wherein said piston is moved in said first direction into a retracted position solely by a force exerted by said flight control element as said flight control element moves in said first direction.