JPS6364720B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to rockets and missiles, and more particularly to retracted wing structures for such missiles.

Many rockets and missiles use some form of wing or stabilizer structure to stabilize the missile during flight. Missiles are often stored in and launched from tube launchers, and are often deployed from aircraft or other missiles. In such situations, it is often necessary to minimize space for the missile until it is launched. In the past, various types and shapes of folding wings have been used to minimize the space required for missiles.

Since space is at a premium, it is necessary that a folding or retractable airfoil structure be able to be folded or retracted until its space is minimized. Furthermore, the flight characteristics of the missile require optimal reliability and performance of the deployed wing structure. Therefore, it would be desirable for a folding wing structure to have highly efficient flight characteristics, while at the same time being able to be folded to minimize space.

There must be a cavity or wing housing in the fuselage structure that is open to the exterior of the fuselage to accommodate the folded wings and to allow the wings to be extended. A reliable closure must be provided for the opening that acts to eliminate excessive drag, effectively accommodate the wing structure, and allow wing extension without interference.

Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is to provide an improved wing support structure for retracted airfoils.

In the present invention, a nested wing support structure for a retractable and extendable wing structure includes nested inner and outer strut members including a forward strut and an aft strut. These are compressed telescopically into an in-line position within a compact housing attached to the fuselage. The housing is
a releasable cover is provided, including an opening through which the wing can be extended to a fully deployed extended position; It can be thrown away for.

The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the following description of the drawings.

The missile shown in FIG. 1 has a generally cylindrical body 10 having a nose cone 12 and a plurality of radially outwardly extending wings 14. The wings 14 extend outwardly from a plurality of longitudinally extending slots 16 disposed circumferentially in the body 10. Extending radially outward from the tail end of the missile body are a plurality of guides or rudders 18.

The missile may have any suitable type of guidance and propulsion system and any desired shape of warhead.

The missile may be launched in any suitable manner, such as from a ground vehicle or location, an aircraft, or other missile. However, the space-saving aspects of this invention are intended for use with missiles carried by other missiles, where space and reliability are paramount concerns.

Although the wings can be any suitable shape, the illustrated embodiment is generally triangular. The wing fabric covering 66 is constructed from a flexible or pliable material, such as lightweight nylon or Dacron, and is cut and sewn to closely match the support strut assembly in the extended position. It's attached.

The wing assembly is self-contained and fully functional, removably mounted within the rocket body arranged such that the wings can be extended or retracted through slots in the rocket body. It is a modular device that can The airfoil assembly has a channel-shaped housing 20 with elongated slots 22 of varying width extending along the length of the housing to define a chamber or cavity within which the airfoil folds. The profile or curvature of the housing is substantially conformal to the shape of the surface of the missile and includes means (as will be described) for a disposable cover 26 covering the opening to the retracted wing.
including. The housing main body 20 is shown in FIGS.
It includes a substrate 24 as seen in the figure. Substrate 24 is removable from housing 20 and serves as the primary attachment structure to the wing strut. Board 24
also acts to tighten the fabric covering the wing between the board and the housing.

The depth and width of the housing is such that it receives and accommodates the retracted wing strut assembly and its fabric covering, and the housing accommodates the retracted wing pocket as shown in FIGS. It includes a removable cover 26 that covers the section. A wing housing is attached to the opening in the missile skin.

The support strut assembly for the wing fabric is best shown in FIG. 4, with the forward strut assembly pivoted or hinged to a forward hinge bracket 28 attached to the forward end of the base plate 24; a rear post pivotally connected to a rear hinge bracket 30 secured to the rear hinge bracket 30; The front strut includes a lower outer tubular strut member 32 pivotally connected to the bracket 28;
This telescopically receives an inner upper tubular strut member 34 which is pivotally connected to the rear strut on the upper side by a hinge pin 36. A compression spring 38 is mounted within the bore of both the lower and upper tubular members 32, 34 and extends substantially the entire length thereof. Preferably, this spring is sufficiently compressed in its outermost position to maintain the strut in an extended position under normal circumstances.

The rear strut is substantially identical to the front strut and includes a lower tubular strut member 4 hinged to a hinge bracket 30.
0, which nests 42 into the inner or upper tubular strut member. compression spring 4
4 is inserted into the bore of both tubular members, extends over substantially its entire length, and is likewise sufficiently compressed at its outermost position to hold the strut in the extended position. .

The outer end of the inner support member 34 is connected to the inner support member 42
includes a bifurcated hinge bracket member 46 for receiving a hinge member 48 therein.

Each strut has an extension or anti-shrinkage fastening (not shown) that prevents wing loads from compressing the strut. These fixed parts are
The fingers are formed by cutting narrow U-shaped slots into the walls of the upper strut members. Bend the finger outward so that its free end is connected to the upper support post 3.
When biased outward toward the open end of the outer strut member 32 or 40,
so that it engages the outer edge of the

At least one of the struts includes an anti-rotation lock to prevent accidental rotation of the outer strut member when the struts are in the aligned or retracted position. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 6, the anti-rotation locks are both comprised of pins 54 and 56 which, when the strut assembly is fully retracted to the in-line position shown in FIG. It extends outwardly from the upper strut member in a position to engage slots 58, 60 in the outer ends of the side strut members 32,40. Although only two fasteners are shown, one for each post, it is likely that even one fastener will be useful in most cases.

Referring to FIG. 4, a leaf spring 62 is disposed on or attached to the substrate 24 located directly below the strut assembly so that when the strut is collapsed into the retracted position shown in FIG. It engages the strut assembly below the hinge pin 36 and applies a force thereto. This spring 62 provides an initial outward thrust or force on the strut, preventing it from becoming locked in the retracted position.

As previously discussed, the wing fabric covering 66 is shaped to surround the strut structure and has a base or skirt 66.
7 is fixed to the wing housing 20 by fastening between the housing and the base plate 24,
As seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, a peripheral clamping plate 64 is included. This ensures a secure attachment of the wing fabric to the wing housing.

The wing structure described above can be collapsed into a folded position and the fabric covering rolled into the wing housing, as shown in FIG. To this end, the strut fixing portion is compressed to apply a force to the tip of the wing that compresses or contracts the two struts in a telescoping manner. The struts become progressively shorter and pivot around the lower hinge pin until they reach a fully folded or retracted position, when they are in a straight line and are shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. As shown, it contacts the substrate 24. At this point, the compression springs 38, 44 in the two struts are fully compressed to very near their solid height and exert their maximum force in this position. However, when the strut is in this position, the spring force is in a straight line or coaxial direction, and there is no force to open the wings. At the beginning of the wing expansion, it is necessary to bias or force the struts out of this position. For this reason, the leaf spring 62
applies a force that biases the struts outward a short distance, and the compression springs within the struts snap together with a rapid snapping action.
It acts to push the wings outward to their fully extended position. The spring 62 is loaded as shown in FIG. 4 such that it applies an initial force to extend the strut and wing assembly when the strut is in the fully retracted position shown in FIG. Its position and shape are determined as follows.

For example, as best shown in FIGS. 2, 6 and 7, a releasable cover extends over and covers the opening on the folded wing structure. The wing cover 26 is a generally rectangular elongated plate that covers the opening in the housing when the wing is folded into it. The wing cover 26 includes a plurality of hinge lobes 68 extending along one side of the cover, as best shown in FIGS. 7 and 8.
It has a plurality of locking protrusions 70 extending along the opposite side of the cover. The locking protrusion 70 enters under the locking finger 80 of the locking plate 76 and engages therewith. As seen in Figure 7, the top surface of the cover is generally curved to conform to the shape of the missile's housing, minimizing resistance to airflow and eliminating obstructive protrusions. ing.

As best seen in FIG. 3, a plurality of hinge pins 72 are mounted in a plurality of slots or recesses 74 along one side of the wing housing and engage the hinge lugs 68. . A slidable locking plate 76 as shown in FIG. 5 is secured to the opposite side wall of the housing by a plurality of slots 78 and dowel screws 79;
A plurality of locking fingers 80 are biased to a position (locking position) overlapping a plurality of protrusion receiving slots 82 in the side wall of the housing. The locking plate is biased by a compression spring 84 at one end of the plate and housing to a locking position in which the finger 80 overlaps and engages the locking tab 70. A plunger 86 in the cylinder 87 engages the end of the locking plate, chambering it with a small charge 88 and igniting it to move the locking plate into the released position to release the cover 26. move it. This movement of the locking plate allows the wing assembly to extend outward, pivoting the cover outwardly around hinge pin 72 and releasing it from the locked position, allowing airflow along the missile body. Make it look like it's being blown away by. At this time, the wings can be freely extended to the fully extended position using a snap mechanism.

Although specific embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above, it goes without saying that various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a typical missile with self-erecting wings; Figure 2 is a side view of the portion of the missile body that accommodates the wings when the wings are folded and enclosed; 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3; FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 3;
Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 6-6 in Figure 2;
The figure is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 in Figure 2.
The figure is a view similar to FIG. 7, but with the cover released and the wings erected. 9 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 9--9 in FIG. 4, and FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of FIG. 5, showing the release position of the cover locking portion.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a wing housing structure for use in an airframe having a self-erecting wing structure, means having a compartment for accommodating a self-erecting wing in a contracted state and an elongated opening through which said self-erecting wing extends when erected; , a cover releasably mounted on the opening, and releasable locking means for retaining the cover in position over the opening, the locking means being adjacent to the opening on one side of the housing. and a movable locking means extending along an opposite side of the housing adjacent the opening, the movable locking means being normally biased into a locked position. The wing housing structure consists of a movable locking plate.