公开(公告)号：US12234024B2

公开(公告)日：2025-02-25

申请号：US18226526

申请日：2023-07-26

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Brennan Stults ,  Keith David Weaver ,  Richard Lee Thackway

IPC: B64D33/02 ,  B64D29/00

Abstract: An aircraft nacelle includes a forward cruise inlet, a forward-cruise-inlet conduit coupled to the forward cruise inlet and operable to supply air from the forward cruise inlet to an engine housed by the aircraft nacelle, an inlet barrier filter, an inlet-barrier-filter compartment coupled to the inlet barrier filter, a plurality of gills coupled between the inlet-barrier-filter compartment and the engine and operable to be in an open state and a closed state, a filter-purge door coupled to the inlet-barrier-filter compartment and operable to be in a closed state and an open state. When the plurality of gills are in the closed state and the filter-purge door is in the open state, air from the filter-purge door flows from the inlet-barrier-filter compartment through the inlet barrier filter.

公开(公告)号：US11630467B2

公开(公告)日：2023-04-18

申请号：US17133229

申请日：2020-12-23

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Russell C. Peters ,  Aaron Hitchcock ,  William Ben Johns ,  Levi Charles Hefner ,  Andrew Vincent Louis

IPC: G05D1/00 ,  B64C39/02 ,  G01S13/00 ,  B64C29/00 ,  G06V20/13 ,  G05D1/06 ,  G01S13/91 ,  B64U101/30

Abstract: An aircraft includes an airframe with a thrust array attached thereto. The thrust array includes a plurality of propulsion assemblies that are independently controlled by a flight control system. A landing gear assembly is coupled to the airframe and includes a plurality of landing feet. An altitude sensor array includes a plurality of altitude sensors each of which is disposed within one of the landing feet such that when the aircraft is in the VTOL orientation, the altitude sensor array is configured to obtain multifocal altitude data relative to a landing surface. The flight control system is configured to generate a three-dimensional terrain map of the surface based upon the multifocal altitude data.

公开(公告)号：US11970277B2

公开(公告)日：2024-04-30

申请号：US18342997

申请日：2023-06-28

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： Carlos Alexander Fenny ,  John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Mike John Ryan ,  Joseph Scott Drennan

IPC: B64D27/24 ,  B64C29/00 ,  B64D27/02 ,  F01D15/10

CPC classification number: B64D27/24 ,  B64C29/0033 ,  F01D15/10 ,  B64D27/026 ,  F05D2220/328 ,  F05D2220/76 ,  Y02T50/60

Abstract: The present invention includes a hybrid propulsion system for an aircraft comprising: an engine disposed within a fuselage of the aircraft, two electrical generators disposed within the fuselage and connected to the engine, and two nacelles. Each nacelle comprises a proprotor, and each nacelle houses two electric motors connected to the proprotor. Each electrical generator is connected to the two electric motors in each nacelle. The proprotors provide lift for vertical takeoff and landing in a helicopter mode. A fan is coupled to the fuselage and connected to two additional electric motors. Each additional electric motor is connected to one of the two electric generators. The fan provides thrust for forward flight during an airplane mode. The airplane mode includes increasing power to the fan while decreasing power to the proprotors to zero.

公开(公告)号：US11319064B1

公开(公告)日：2022-05-03

申请号：US17089048

申请日：2020-11-04

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Joshua Allan Edler ,  Eric Christopher Terry ,  Joseph Daniel Leachman

IPC: B64C29/02 ,  B64C39/08 ,  B64C3/32 ,  G05D1/10 ,  B64C1/14 ,  B64D9/00 ,  B64D1/12 ,  B64D1/10

Abstract: An aircraft operable to transition between thrust-borne lift in a VTOL orientation and wing-borne lift in a biplane orientation. The aircraft has an airframe including first and second wings with first and second pylons coupled therebetween. A distributed thrust array is coupled to the airframe including a plurality of propulsion assemblies coupled to the first wing and a plurality of propulsion assemblies coupled to the second wing. A cargo pod is coupled between the first and second pylons. The cargo pod is rotatable between a loading configuration, substantially perpendicular to the wings and a transportation and deployment configuration, substantially parallel to the wings. A flight control system is configured to independently control each of the propulsion assemblies and to autonomously deploy a payload from the cargo pod at a desired location.

公开(公告)号：US11987351B2

公开(公告)日：2024-05-21

申请号：US17885053

申请日：2022-08-10

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： Russell C. Peters ,  John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Alyssa Berta Armendariz ,  Christopher John Stroncek

IPC: B64C29/00 ,  B64C29/02 ,  B64D1/22 ,  B64D3/00 ,  B64U10/14 ,  B64U10/20 ,  B64U10/60

CPC classification number: B64C29/0091 ,  B64C29/02 ,  B64D1/22 ,  B64D3/00 ,  B64U10/14 ,  B64U10/20 ,  B64U10/60

Abstract: A tailsitter aircraft for deploying a tow line includes an airframe having wings with pylons extending therebetween and a thrust array attached to the airframe, the thrust array including propulsion assemblies configured to transition the airframe between a forward flight orientation and a VTOL orientation. The tailsitter aircraft includes an attenuation spool coupled to the airframe and an attenuation cable having a first end coupled to the attenuation spool and a second end coupled to the tow line, the attenuation cable partially or fully wound around the attenuation spool. The tailsitter aircraft also includes a spool sensor to detect movement of the attenuation spool and a flight control system implementing a tow line tension monitoring module in communication with the spool sensor to determine a tow line tension parameter and a tow line tension reaction module to initiate an aircraft response based on the tow line tension parameter.

公开(公告)号：US11932387B2

公开(公告)日：2024-03-19

申请号：US17540539

申请日：2021-12-02

Applicant: Textron Innovations Inc.

Inventor： John Robert Wittmaak, Jr. ,  Russell C. Peters ,  William Alexander Dean ,  Spencer Hancock

IPC: B64C29/02 ,  B64C29/00 ,  B64C39/08 ,  B64D9/00 ,  B64U10/20 ,  B64U30/10 ,  B64U101/60 ,  G05D1/00 ,  B64D27/02 ,  B64D27/24 ,  H01M50/249

CPC classification number: B64C29/02 ,  B64C29/0033 ,  G05D1/0858 ,  G05D1/102 ,  B64C39/08 ,  B64D9/00 ,  B64D27/026 ,  B64D27/24 ,  B64U10/20 ,  B64U30/10 ,  B64U2101/60 ,  H01M50/249 ,  H01M2220/20

Abstract: A tailsitter aircraft includes an airframe, a thrust array attached to the airframe and a flight control system. The thrust array includes propulsion assemblies configured to transition the airframe from a forward flight orientation to a VTOL orientation at a conversion rate for an approach to a target ground location in a forward flight-to-VTOL transition phase. The flight control system implements an adaptive transition system including a transition parameter monitoring module configured to monitor parameters including a ground speed and a distance to the target ground location. The adaptive transition system includes a transition adjustment determination module configured to adjust the conversion rate of the airframe from the forward flight orientation to the VTOL orientation based on the ground speed and the distance to the target ground location such that the airframe is vertically aligned with the target ground location in the VTOL orientation of the forward flight-to-VTOL transition phase.