Patents Assigned to Airbus Operations Limited
  • Controller for an aircraft braking system
    Patent number: 11345466
    Abstract: A controller for a hydraulic braking system for an aircraft is disclosed. The hydraulic braking system includes a first accumulator and a second accumulator, the controller configured to: receive first signals including first pressure data from a first pressure transducer associated with the first accumulator, receive second signals including second pressure data from a second pressure transducer associated with the second accumulator, monitor the received first and second signals to determine whether a predetermined condition has been met, and issue a warning indicating a loss of integrity of the hydraulic braking system in response to a determination that one or more predetermined conditions has been met. A hydraulic braking system for an aircraft and method to determine the integrity of a hydraulic braking system are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventors: Nicholas Crane, Adrian Harrison
  • Seal
    Patent number: 11346446
    Abstract: A seal is disclosed for a wing for providing an aerodynamic seal between a fixed aerofoil and a movable control surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventor: Paul Blades
  • Landing gear controller
    Patent number: 11345464
    Abstract: A landing gear controller (120) to control extension and retraction of a landing gear for an aircraft, the landing gear controller (120) configured to cause, during an aircraft take-off or landing procedure, a landing gear extension and retraction system (110) to perform only a first portion of a landing gear extension or retraction process, on the basis of a status of the aircraft and prior to receiving a command for the landing gear to be extended or retracted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 15, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventor: David Marles
  • Wing tip device
    Patent number: 11345461
    Abstract: A wing tip device for attaching to an aircraft wing comprising a first wing tip device element having a root end and a tip end; a second wing tip device element coupled to the tip end of the first wing tip device element; wherein the second wing tip device element has an inboard portion extending inboard from the tip end of the first wing tip device element and/or an outboard portion extending outboard from the tip end of the first wing tip device element, when viewed in the wing planform direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventor: Ben Commis
  • Hollow fastener for coupling aerospace structures
    Patent number: 11332231
    Abstract: A fastener for holding together two or more structures. The fastener includes a first bush and a second bush. The first bush includes a hollow shaft having a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end of the first bush has a first radially-extending protrusion. The second bush includes a hollow shaft having a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end of the second bush has a second radially-extending protrusion. The second end of the second bush is configured to connect to the second end of the first bush so as to resist separation of the first and second bushes and so as to define an axial hole through the fastener defined by the shaft of the first bush and the shaft of the second bush.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: William Tulloch, Pat Broomfield
  • Valve apparatus
    Patent number: 11326527
    Abstract: A valve apparatus for an aircraft fluid system is disclosed including a valve housing and a valve member. The valve member is configured to move between a first position in which fluid is able to flow along the fluid flow path, and a second position in which the fluid flow path restricted. A valve member drive means is configured to operate the valve member via an actuator external to the housing. The valve apparatus further includes a sensor configured to monitor a feature in the housing to determine the position of the valve member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventor: Michael Crowley
  • Secondary locking mechanism
    Patent number: 11319053
    Abstract: An aircraft having a fixed wing and a wing tip device at the tip thereof is disclosed. The wing tip device is configurable between: (i) a flight configuration for use during flight and (ii) a ground configuration for use during ground-based operations, in which ground configuration the wing tip device is moved away from the flight configuration such that the span of the aircraft wing is reduced. A locking mechanism locks the wing tip device in the flight configuration, and includes a plurality of lugs located on each of the fixed wing and wing tip device. Locking pins are inserted through and lock together corresponding lugs when the wing tip device is in the flight configuration. A secondary locking mechanism of a plurality of blocking members prevents the removal of the locking pins from the corresponding lugs, whereby the plurality of blocking members have a common actuator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventor: Paul Morrell
  • Data centric messaging
    Patent number: 11316814
    Abstract: An avionics system including a first node and a second node wherein the first node is arranged to transmit a data message having: a data identifier, dynamic metadata associated with the data identifier and data content to the second node; wherein the second node is arranged to receive the data message from the first node and to: locate and read the data identifier within the data message; locate and read the dynamic metadata associated with the read data identifier; and retrieve data content from the determined position in the data message, wherein the data message contains multiple data identifiers, each with associated dynamic metadata and associated data content, and the second node is arranged only to locate and read the data identifier and dynamic metadata and retrieve data content in relation to a subset of the plurality of data identifiers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: Kayvon Barad, Anand Pavaskar
  • Wing structure
    Patent number: 11312472
    Abstract: A section of an aircraft wing including a leading edge of the aircraft wing. A leading edge part of the section includes ribs; and a skin fixedly attached to the ribs to form a spanwise series of adjacent cells. Each cell includes an enclosed volume bounded by the skin at the leading edge and a pair of the ribs. At least one cell of the series of adjacent cells is a dry cell include a mounting point for mounting a leading edge high-lift device support apparatus in the dry cell. The skin at the leading edge provides a primary load path for carrying at least some of a spanwise primary load experienced by the section when in use on an aircraft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventor: David Brakes
  • Wing assembly mount
    Patent number: 11305861
    Abstract: A wing assembly mount for mounting a wing to a fuselage of an aircraft. The wing assembly mount includes a spigot arrangement between a wing assembly and a fuselage assembly. The spigot arrangement is able to react a load between the wing assembly and the fuselage assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventor: Henry Edwards
  • Seal plate for an aerodynamic surface
    Patent number: 11299254
    Abstract: A seal plate (201) for maintaining a continuous aerodynamic surface between a fixed part (302) of an aerostructure such as an aerofoil (103) and a movable surface such as a spoiler (304) is provided. The seal plate (201) includes a resilient material such as fiberglass and has an aerodynamic surface (203). It is configured to be mounted to the fixed part (302) of the aerofoil along one edge (205) and to slidably seal with the control surface (304) at a second edge (207). The seal plate (201) is stepped and has a rigid lever (217) to engage behind the control surface (304) to bend the seal plate precisely according to movement of the control surface (304) and maintain the continuous aerodynamic surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventor: Paul Blades
  • Braking energy dissipation
    Patent number: 11304262
    Abstract: An apparatus for dissipating braking energy generated by the operation of a vehicle brake. The apparatus includes a heating element configured to receive electric current generated by operation of the vehicle brake, the heating element arranged in a chamber for containing liquid. The apparatus is configured such that liquid contained in the chamber is heated in response to operation of the vehicle brake.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: Joseph Power, Sebastien Gaud, David Paviour, Bradley Heal, Fraser Wilson
  • Landing gear system operation
    Patent number: 11299261
    Abstract: An aircraft landing gear control system 1000 configured to be operably connected to one or more landing gear systems 30, 40 of an aircraft. The aircraft landing gear control system includes a controller 20 configured to: send at least one output for initiating operation of the one or more landing gear systems; determine whether at least one landing gear system of the one or more landing gear systems has failed to operate correctly in response to the at least one output; and determine at least one remedial action to be taken, when the controller determines that the at least one landing gear system has failed to operate correctly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: Sean Kerr, David Marles
  • Barrel nut
    Patent number: 11300150
    Abstract: A barrel nut for a fastener is disclosed. The barrel nut is configured to prevent axial movement of the fastener relative to a structure on which the fastener is installed. The barrel nut comprises a first part and a second part pivotable relative to the first part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventors: William Tulloch, Pat Broomfield
  • Configuration of landing gear assemblies for an aircraft
    Patent number: 11292447
    Abstract: An aircraft having a retractable landing gear assembly configured to support some of the weight of the aircraft via one or more wheels, and another retractable non-wheeled landing gear assembly or device configured to support some of the weight of the aircraft via one or more “low-friction” supports such as an air cushion is disclosed. The aircraft may have a maximum take-off weight between 100 and 150 tonnes. There may be two main landing gears each carrying two wheels, a nose landing gear, and a central non-wheeled landing gear providing the low friction vertical support when the aircraft is moving on the ground/operating surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventor: Fraser Wilson
  • Aircraft wing assembly
    Patent number: 11286041
    Abstract: An aircraft wing assembly including a main wing portion, a high-lift device with a flow surface including an upper skin portion and a lower skin portion, wherein the flow surface of the high-lift device comprises a first flow surface portion, a second flow surface portion and a third flow surface portion, wherein the first flow surface portion is micro-perforated for an air inflow, wherein the first flow surface portion extends on the upper skin from the leading edge in chordwise direction for 2% or less of the local chord and extends on the lower skin from the leading edge in chordwise direction for 2% or less of the local chord, and wherein the second flow surface portion is not micro-perforated and extends over the rest of the upper skin portion, and wherein the third flow surface portion is not micro-perforated and extends over the rest of the lower skin portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: Ching-Yu Hui, Christopher Bauer
  • Assembly with captive nut
    Patent number: 11286031
    Abstract: An assembly with an aircraft fuel tank is disclosed having a captive nut with an internal thread, a secondary structure, and a fastener which secures the secondary structure to the fuel tank. The fastener has a shaft which passes through the secondary structure and has an external thread coupled to the internal thread of the captive nut. The fuel tank has a fuel tank element with a hole, and the captive nut has a sleeve which is located in the hole with an interference fit between an outer surface of the sleeve and an inner surface of the wall of the hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventors: William Tulloch, Pat Broomfield
  • Support member
    Patent number: 11279498
    Abstract: A support member configured to support a first structure within an aperture of a second structure is disclosed. The support member comprises a bracket for attaching the support member to the second structure; and a funnel part. The diameter of the base of the funnel is less than or equal to the diameter of the aperture, and is substantially equal to the diameter of a part of the first structure to be supported by the support member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventors: David Petit, Eric Bonte, Daniel Peachey
  • Actuator assembly for moving an aircraft wing tip device
    Patent number: 11273904
    Abstract: An actuator assembly for moving an aircraft wing tip device is disclosed. The wing tip device is rotatable about a hinge axis relative to a fixed wing of the aircraft. The hinge axis is orientated non-parallel to a line-of-flight direction of the aircraft. The actuator assembly includes a primary shaft having an axis of rotation orientated substantially parallel to the line-of-flight direction, a motor to cause rotation of the primary shaft, and a secondary shaft orientated substantially parallel to the hinge axis. The secondary shaft is couplable to the primary shaft and is arranged to rotate the wing tip device in response to the rotation of the primary shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2022
    Assignee: AIRBUS OPERATIONS LIMITED
    Inventors: Gaetan Dussart, Ciaran O'Rourke, Thomas Wilson, Mudassir Lone
  • Locking device
    Patent number: 11267554
    Abstract: A locking pin associated with one of a fixed wing and a wing tip device, and a bush associated with the other of the fixed wing and wing tip device, the bush configured to receive the locking pin. The bush is located within a bush housing arranged to allow relative movement of the bush in the direction of a longitudinal axis of the locking pin when the locking pin is received within the bush.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Airbus Operations Limited
    Inventors: David Brakes, Eric Wildman