Abstract: The present invention provides an air flow control nozzle in which a ball, which has air-flow passageways therethrough, is at least partially supported in a housing (or cowl) by an air cushion formed by the pressure of air at the nozzle inlet end, in order to alter the direction of airflow from the nozzle, the orientation of the ball can be changed by simply turning the ball on the air cushion.

Abstract: A trailing edge flap assembly for an aircraft wing includes at its rearward end upper and lower surfaces terminating in a trailing edge portion. The assembly has a flap (15) is located in a stowed position during normal flight. A mounting beam (18) is located to the lower surface (12) of the wing, extending rearwardly thereof and below the flap (15). A carriage (23) is in rolling engagement with longitudinal guideways (53) on the mounting beam (18). To actuate the flap (15), at or about the rearward extremity of the mounting beam (18), there is provided an actuator mounting bracket (21), a rotary actuator (52), and lever arms (27, 28) assocaited with the actuator about a common substantially transverse axis of rotation. The lever arms (27, 28) extend upwardly and terminate adjacent the undersurface of the flap (15), in a pivotal attachment (22) forwardly extending actuator links (25, 26) pivotally interconnecting the lever arms (27, 28) and the carriage (23).

Abstract: A mechanism for supporting and extending a high lift device relative to an aerofoil, comprises one or more support beams (10) connected to the aerofoil, a pair of spaced apart chordwise extending wing ribs (20) bounding the support beam, a set of cylindrical rollers (23) mounted between the wing ribs for supporting the support beam (10) with their rotational axes aligned transversely with respect to the support beam (10), the support beam (10) including a gear rack (12) with gear teeth facing downwardly and a pinion gear (13) lying in meshing engagement with the gear rack (12), and an actuator (14) in driving engagement with the pinion gear (13) to extend and retract the high lift device (2-6) relative to the aerofoil (1). Bearings (45, 47) are provided for rotatably supporting the pinion gear (13) between the wing ribs (20) about a generally transverse axis of rotation, and there are splined engaging means (42, 43) between the actuator (14) and the pinion gear (13).

Abstract: A sampling probe, particularly suitable for use in withdrawing air from a cargo container and leading the withdrawn air towards a mass analyser to check for drugs and explosives, comprises a plurality of hollow interconnected sections. Their internal surfaces, including collars supporting inner tubes co-axially with outer tubes, are of inert plastics material such as PTFE and are substantially continuous through a coupling between each pair of adjacent sections. The couplings each include a pair of spring catches having teeth to be held in an annular groove by a slidable sleeve. Tongues engage in cutouts to permit transmission of torque. The end section has air openings and can have a hook to allow it to be hung over the upper edge of a vehicle side. The termination section has part of a quick release coupling and can have a bend for use in orientation and manipulation.

Abstract: A projectile assembly comprising a carrier and a projectile arranged for insertion in the unmodified breech of a gun, the carrier having a ramming piston which urges the projectile into the barrel of the gun ready for firing whereupon the carrier is ejected and replaced by a propellant cartridge for firing the projectile from the barrel. The assembly is suitable for use in a belt fed automatic gun in which projectile assemblies are alternately interspersed with propellant cartridges such that a projectile is placed in the gun barrel by the projectile carrier, the carrier is ejected and then the next item on the belt, a propellant cartridge is placed in the breech for firing the gun.

Abstract: This invention relates to a collapsible fuel storage tank for storing fuel on an aircraft. According to this invention, there is provided an aircraft including a fuselage portion, a wing portion connected thereto and an expandable fuel storage tank disposed adjacent the intersection of the wing portion and the fuselage portion. The fuel storage tank has an external surface which includes spanwise spaced inner and outer edge regions extending in a generally chordwise direction. The inner edge region of the tank extending alongside the fuselage portion and the outer edge region being attached to the wing portion to allow movement of the external surface between an empty position in which it lies generally flush with the surrounding surface of the wing portion and a fuel storing position in which it lies at an acute angle to said surrounding surface forming a fillet region between the wing portion and the fuselage portion.

Abstract: A thermal image producing device comprising an array of separately addressable thin-film resistors on a substrate with a heat sink at its near face and, so as to render the heat flux flowing through the substrate into the heat sink spatially and temporarily uniform, e.g. to avoid smearing, an array of compensating resistors, each beneath a respective one of the image producing resistors and separated therefrom by an insulating layer. Each compensating resistor is controlled so that, it and its associated image producing resistor together, produce a uniform total heat flux.

Abstract: In a multiple axis ring laser gyroscope in which one or more of the laser cavity corner mirrors is or are shared by different cavities and in which the laser beams in these different cavities operate at the same nominal frequency, scattering of the beam in one cavity into another cavity by the shared mirror(s) may produce disadvantageous lock-in effects. To at least lessen this possibility, the frequencies of the beams in the gyroscope disclosed herein are offset one from another, the offset being sufficient to affect lock in but not so great that the frequency of any beam is overly far from the lasing medium gain curve center. The frequency offsets may be produced by introducing offset bias signals into some channels of the gyroscope path length control servosystem.

Abstract: A Store Carrier 5 for the external carriage of stores adjacent an aircraft body comprises an aircraft body engaging region 11, a store accepting region 12, and a fairing region 14/17 connecting an edge of the aircraft body engaging region with an edge of the store accepting region. The Store Carrier houses store ejection means having a store engaging portion 20 and an elongate portion 21, the elongate portion lying between the fairing region and the aircraft body engaging region.One of the uses of the Store Carrier is to carry a finned missile 1 closely adjacent an aircraft body.

Abstract: In known guidance systems, the missile is guided by a control loop which includes the missile and a ground-based tracker, the tracker determining the relative positions of the missile and target and hence the lateral acceleration to be applied to the missile. However, these systems do not take account of the lateral acceleration generated by the coupling of the missile acceleration along its longitudinal axis and the angle between the body of the missile and the sightline, as in cases where acceleration is small the effect is insignificant. Described herein is a system for modifying the demand component to effect compensation for the lateral acceleration component imparted to the missile by virtue of its angle of incidence. This is accomplished by modifying the demand component in accordance with a stored predetermined time-varying gain term thereby to effect compensation of the lateral acceleration component imparted to the missile by virtue of the angle of incidence of the missile.

Abstract: An annular expulsion motor (14) is secured around the main nozzle casing (12) of a missile by means of shear bolts (28). The expulsion motor expels and spins up the missile prior to ignition of the missile main motor whereupon the expulsion motor is jettisoned from the missile by the efflux of the main motor.

Abstract: A gas turbine powerplant simulator arrangement includes an engine body 2, an intake 13 and exhaust nozzles 3, 4. An air intake flow duct 12 extends from the air intake 13. There is a first primary injector 7, 7a adjacent the intake 13 and includes a primary drive gas inlet 15 connectible to a gas supply source. The flow duct 12 includes an excess flow discharge duct 27 and a balance flow passageway 19a communicating a second primary injector 9 located intermediate the air intake 13 and the adjacent exhaust nozzle 3. The second injector 9 includes its own primary drive gas inlet 28 connectible to an independent gas supply source. The injectors 7, 7a and 9 extend across the full flow cross-section of the duct 12.

Abstract: A fluid flow distribution duct for receiving temperature controlled air from duplicated Environmental Control System units in an aircraft air conditioning system and providing balanced distribution of the respective air flows to port and starboard sides of the aircraft cabin. The invention provides efficient separation and distribution of the respective flows, flow mixing occurring at or about the cabin inlet position. By this arrangement, the need for flow mixing chambers obviated giving a more efficient flow and compact duct arrangement than hitherto.

Abstract: A combined warhead arming and drive motor ignition device for a self-propelled missile having a warhead and a drive motor comprises a first acceleration responsive means (1, 2, 3, 4) to provide an output when the missile achieves a first acceleration, a timer initiated by the output from the first acceleration responsive means and providing a first output (i) after expiry of a first period and before expiry of a second period and a second output (v) after expiry of a third period, and a speed responsive means (5, 6) to provide a speed output (ii) when the missile has attained a predetermined speed and also to provide a first distance indication output (vi) when the missile has travelled a first distance but has not yet travelled a second distance and a second distance indication (vi) output when the missile has travelled a third distance.

Abstract: A missile having a kinetic energy warhead is disclosed comprising a two-tiered cutter element (12) of fragmenting material and a forward cutter ring (16). The arrangement is designed so that the forward cutter ring (16) penetrates the target outer skin while the two-tiered cutter element fragments and passes through the perforation made by the forward cutter ring.

Abstract: The drain-to-source resistance of a field-effect transistor (FET) can be used as a variable resistor controlling say the gain of an AGC amplifier, the AGC signal being applied to the gate of the FET. However, the resistance is dependent not only upon the gate drive but also on the device characteristics which vary even from one sample to another of the same device type. Thus, replacing the FET in say an AGC amplifier may well change the amplifier characteristics. Similarly, it may be difficult to ensure that multiple reproductions of the amplifier operate uniformly. Herein, an FET of which the drain-to-source resistance controls the gain of an amplifier is implemented as one of two matched FET's in a dual FET device. The same drive signal is applied to both FET's and this drive signal is formed by a feedback circuit which sets the drive signal to maintain the current through the second FET dependent upon a received input signal and to maintain the potential across the second FET constant.

Abstract: A flextensional sonar transducer may comprise an elliptical shell which, during manufacture of the transducer, has been distorted to permit insertion of stacks of piezo-electric ceramic plates and then released to grip the stacks and maintain them in compression, even when at design depth. The distortion requires substantial loading and may damage the shell. Herein, the undistorted shell is fitted with the ceramic plate stacks and an adjustable wedge device which is settable to provide the required pre-load. The wedge device may be coupled to an actuator, pressure sensor combination which automatically maintains a desired pre-load for different depths.

Abstract: A missile includes an annular flare element 18 which is housed between the outer skin of the missile and the propulsion nozzle 14. The flare element allows the propulsion efflux to be as fully expanded as possible while still providing a large area of flare.

Abstract: In automatic command to line of sight guidance systems, the missile and target are tracked remotely and a guidance computer processes the tracking data to provide a guidance command for the missile. In such systems, the target and missile must be visible but when the angular subtense of the missile flare is greater than that of the target, the target is totally obscured by the flare when the missile is on sightline leading to the erroneous guidance commands. Described herein is a system in which the obscuration of the target by the missile flare is reduced by guiding the missile along a trajectory displaced from the sightline until the target subtense is the same size as that of the missile.

Abstract: An aircraft wing has a winglet extending from the tip to reduce drag and thereby improve the efficiency of the aircraft. Hitherto such winglets, although they have succeeded in reducing drag, they have also increased the wing bending moment at high coefficients of lift sufficient to require a strengthened and therefore heavier wing. Moreover, they have suffered flow break-away at such high coefficients of lift and have therefore incurred aircraft control problems. A winglet according to the present invention, is of high sweep back and low Aspect Ratio. Its resulting increase in the bending moment on the wing is relatively low even at high lift coefficients and since it changes from conventional attached flow to vortex flow and therefore does not experience random flow break-away at high lift coefficients, it does not harm aircraft control.