Patents Assigned to Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
  • Patent number: 8739942
    Abstract: A controlled-friction device comprising a first element having a second element mounted thereon to slide in a sliding direction, and friction retaining means arranged to exert between the two elements an opposing force against relative movement of the two elements. The friction retaining mechanism comprises a friction member mounted securely to the first element to rub against the second element via a friction surface extending parallel to the sliding direction, a presser member for exerting a thrust force on the friction member, urging the friction member against the second element in a direction normal to the relative movement of the elements, and a linkage linking the friction member to the first element causing the friction member to separate from the second element during movement in either direction of the second element relative to the first element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Arnaud Lafitte, Sabien Verlyck
  • Patent number: 8733847
    Abstract: An asymmetrical electric braking architecture for aircraft, having plural electro-mechanical brake actuators (EBAs) for selectively applying a braking force on friction elements of braked wheels. The architecture comprises (1) a brake control unit (BCU) for acting in normal mode to generate braking setpoint values in response to a braking order, (2) electro-mechanical actuator controllers (EMACs), each including at least one inverter for supplying power to the EBAs in response to the braking setpoint values, (3) at least one emergency brake power and control unit (EBPCU) including at least one inverter for supplying power to some of the EBAs in response to a braking order; and (4) protection means for channeling power supplied by the EMACs or the EBPCU towards the actuators while preventing power from being diverted towards the architecture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 23, 2010
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Julien Thibault, Emmanuel Colin
  • Publication number: 20140137680
    Abstract: The invention relates to an actuator comprising a cylinder (1) in which a rod (2) is mounted to slide, the actuator having a screw (8) extending inside the rod to co-operate with a nut (7) secured to the rod, the screw being driven in rotation by a motor (10), the actuator being characterized in that a hydraulic chamber (CH) filled with hydraulic fluid is arranged inside the actuator by means of a floating piston (20) sliding in sealed manner against the rod inside of the actuator, the hydraulic chamber being in fluid flow communication with an accumulator (21) via a solenoid valve (22) that is controllable between a closed state in which the chamber is isolated from the accumulator, and a fluid-passing state in which the hydraulic chamber and the accumulator are in communication, calibrated resistance being exerted against the passage of fluid from the chamber towards the accumulator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 8, 2013
    Publication date: May 22, 2014
    Applicant: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventor: Ludovic LEGLIZE
  • Patent number: 8727274
    Abstract: A method of managing a ground connection of an aircraft having landing gear with wheels that are subjected to static loads, some of which wheels are fitted with respective braking devices and others are fitted with respective independent drive devices, the method including the step of causing a modification to a distribution of the static loading to which the wheels of the landing gear are subjected in such a manner as to: increase the loading on at least some wheels fitted with respective braking devices, during a braking stage; and increase the loading on at least some wheels fitted with respective independent drive devices, during an independent drive stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventor: Anthony Sorin
  • Publication number: 20140116814
    Abstract: The invention relates to an electromechanical braking method for an aircraft having at least one electromechanical brake 2 fitted to at least one braked wheel 1 of the aircraft, the brake 2 having friction members 3 and a plurality of electromechanical actuators 4, each actuator 4 comprising a pusher 5 suitable for being moved by means of an electric motor 6 to selectively apply a pressing force on the friction members 3. According to the invention, for a given braking operation, a total braking force to be applied against the friction members 3 of the brake is distributed in non-uniform manner amongst the actuators 4 of the brake, such that at least two actuators 4 apply respective different forces.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 24, 2013
    Publication date: May 1, 2014
    Applicant: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Marion LAUR, Thomas LEPAGE, Jean-Frederic DIEBOLD, Philippe CHICO
  • Patent number: 8707669
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of fabricating a metal link rod (6) that is longitudinally reinforced in its thickness by fiber reinforcement (2), the method comprising the following steps: making a metal blank including at least one longitudinal housing (11, 12) leading into an edge face of the blank; inserting fiber reinforcement (2) in the housing; connecting the fiber reinforcement to the blank by metal diffusion around the fibers of the fiber reinforcement (2); and finishing the blank in order to obtain a link rod (6). The invention also provides a link rod having a metal matrix in which reinforcing fibers are embedded that extend on either side of a longitudinal axis (X) of the link rod, the fibers leading into an edge face of the link rod.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Richard Masson, Patrick Dunleavy, Jean-Michel Franchet, Gilles Klein
  • Patent number: 8695195
    Abstract: A process for manufacturing a metal part reinforced with ceramic fibers including machining at least one housing for an insert in a metal body having an upper face. At least one insert formed from ceramic fibers in a metal matrix is placed in the housing. The insert is covered with a cover. A vacuum is created in the interstitial space around the insert and the interstitial space is hermetically sealed under vacuum. The assembly, namely the metal body with the cover, is treated by hot isostatic pressure. The treated assembly is machined in order to obtain the part. The cover includes an element covering the insert in the slot and projecting from the upper face, and a sheet covering the upper face with said element. In particular, the insert is straight and the housing for the insert in the metal body forms a straight slot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2009
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Patrick Dunleavy, Richard Masson
  • Patent number: 8684255
    Abstract: A method of manufacturing an elongate insert configured to be integrated by CIC in a metal container, including coated yarns bonded together, the coated yarns being formed from metal-coated ceramic fibers. The method includes placing the coated yarns side by side in a bundle and pulling the fiber bundle through a shaping element so as to compact the fiber bundle transversely while forming the fiber bundle so as to have a defined cross section. A metal part incorporating a fibrous insert can be manufactured by the CIC technique.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2014
    Assignees: SNECMA, Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Jean-Michel Patrick Maurice Franchet, Gilles Charles Casimir Klein, Richard Masson, Louis Salvat
  • Patent number: 8688341
    Abstract: A braking system for an aircraft with electric brakes comprising plural electromechanical actuators (2). The system comprises a braking control unit (20) delivering a normal braking setpoint (21) for one or more controllers (10) of the actuators, and selection logic (15) for causing the braking system to operate in a plurality of modes. The system includes: a normal braking mode where the control unit generates a normal braking setpoint (21) for the controller(s); an ultimate braking mode, having priority over the normal braking mode, being responsive to a parking control member, and controlling actuators to respond to the actuation of the parking control member; and a parking braking mode, applied in response to the parking control member and only if the aircraft is stationary, in which the actuators are controlled to apply a force in response to the parking control member being actuated and are then blocked in position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Julien Thibault, Emmanuel Colin, Stephane Mudry
  • Patent number: 8666598
    Abstract: A method of controlling a yawing movement of an aircraft running along the ground, the aircraft comprising at least one first landing gear with a steerable bottom part bearing wheels. The method comprises the steps of (1) on the basis of a yaw rate setpoint {dot over (?)}c, determining a wheel-steering prepositioning angle ?p; and (2) using closed-loop control which as its input has the yaw rate setpoint and which generates a command to steer the bottom part in order to steer it through a steering angle ?c equal to the sum of this prepositioning angle ?p and of an angle ?z which is determined taking account of an error between the yaw rate setpoint {dot over (?)}c and the measured yaw rate {dot over (?)}m when the steerable bottom part is steered by the steering angle ?c.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 4, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: David Lemay, David Frank, Michel Basset, Yann Chamaillard
  • Patent number: 8651418
    Abstract: A landing gear of an aircraft, including a strut including two arms forming a rotational axis for retracting the gear, a rotating tube mounted in a mobile manner such that it rotates inside the strut about a pivoting axis, a sliding rod that is mobile in a translatory manner in the rotating tube along the pivoting axis, and carries wheels of the gear at one of its ends, and at least one bearing point that is located on one of the elements of the gear at a distance from the retraction axis and can bear necessary efforts for the retraction, the bearing point being located on the rotating tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 23, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventor: Daniel Moine
  • Patent number: 8640823
    Abstract: In the field of aviation, a device for limiting aerodynamic noise from a deployed aircraft undercarriage during landing and/or takeoff. The device comprises two end plates (4a, 4b) for closing respective ends (2a, 2b) of a hollow pin (1) of the undercarriage, such as a hinge pin between two rods of the undercarriage, together with at least one tie (6) for engaging inside the hollow pin (1) to connect the two end plates (4a, 4b) together so as to hold them pressed against the ends (2a, 2b) of the pin (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2010
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Richard Masson, Thierry Rougier
  • Patent number: 8633665
    Abstract: An independent drive device for an aircraft, the drive device comprising a motor member, a drive mechanism for driving an aircraft wheel, which is adapted to co-operate with the wheel to drive it for rotation, and a coupling mechanism interposed between the motor member and the drive mechanism to selectively couple the wheel to the motor member. The coupling mechanism comprises two coupling members of complementary shape, comprising a first coupling member that rotates with the drive and a second coupling member that rotates with the motor member. The independent drive device includes measurement device for generating information representative of a relative speed of rotation of the second coupling member and the first coupling member. The drive device is associated with a motor controller that causes the motor to rotate so as to cancel the relative speed of rotation between the coupling members prior to coupling them together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 21, 2014
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Hervé Charuel, David Delloue
  • Patent number: 8616495
    Abstract: A hydraulic circuit for actuating an undercarriage, the circuit comprising: a feed line for feeding fluid and a return line; at least one door selector connected to the feed and return lines, the selector feeding door service lines, including an opening line and a closing line for opening and closing the doors; at least one undercarriage selector connected to the feed and return lines, feeding undercarriage service lines including a deployment line and a raising line for deploying and raising the undercarriage; and a door unhooking line and an undercarriage unhooking line. The door unhooking line is connected to at least one undercarriage service line while the undercarriage unhooking line is connected to at least one door service line, the circuit also including means for connecting the door service lines together during a door opening stage, and means for connecting the undercarriage service lines together during an undercarriage deployment stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Sébastien Ernis, Xavier Jubert, David Leutard
  • Publication number: 20130337180
    Abstract: A fiber preform made of carbon fibers is densified with a carbon matrix in a plurality of separate stages. After a first densification stage and before the end of carbon matrix densification, ceramic particles are introduced in order to be dispersed within the composite material part. The introduced particles have a mean size of less than 250 nm and are made at least of a ceramic compound of an element selected from titanium, yttrium, tantalum, and hafnium, the ceramic compound being selected from oxides, nitrides, and mixed oxide, carbide, and/or nitride compounds that do not react with carbon at a temperature of less than 1000° C. and that have a melting point higher than 1800° C.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 10, 2011
    Publication date: December 19, 2013
    Applicant: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Pascale Jacquemard, Sandrine Baud, René Pailler, Florian Fontaine
  • Patent number: 8602505
    Abstract: The invention relates to an architecture for powering aircraft brakes for an aircraft having at least two undercarriages, each having a certain number of wheels, each of the wheels being fitted with brakes, each having a certain number of electromechanical braking actuators, the architecture including controllers for delivering power signals to the actuators in response to a braking order, the wheels on each of the undercarriages being grouped together in first and second complementary groups such that for each group of wheels, a first group of actuators is controlled by one controller that controls those actuators only, and a complementary second group of actuators is controlled by another controller that controls only those actuators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2013
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventor: David Frank
  • Patent number: 8602352
    Abstract: A method of operating an aircraft landing gear between a deployed position and a retracted position. The landing gear comprises a leg hinged to the aircraft, the leg being stabilized in the deployed position by a folding strut comprising two hinged-together links, the strut being held in an aligned position by a stabilizer member comprising two hinged-together links themselves held in alignment by a locking member. The method comprises the steps of arranging the strut (2; 102) and the stabilizer member (4; 104) in such a manner that at least one of the links (4a; 104a) of the stabilizer member moves continuously during a movement of the leg from the deployed position to the retracted position, and of attaching an operating actuator (10; 110) to the link in order to cause the link to pivot against the locking member and to exert thereon a force tending to move the leg.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2013
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: Nicolas Keller, Albert De Pindray, Edouard Campbell, Dominique Ducos, Sebastien Dubois
  • Patent number: 8604733
    Abstract: The invention relates to an actuator including an electrical machine. The electrical actuator (100) comprising: a polyphase machine (101); at least one connection member (143) for powering the actuator from at least one network (146) delivering alternating current; and first and second buses (106, 107) connected in parallel between each connection member (143) and the machine (101) for applying frequency control thereto. Each inverter (111, 131) comprises a plurality of arms each having two controlled switches, each phase of the machine (101) being connected both to the two switches of an arm of the first inverter (111) and also to the two switches of an arm of the second inverter (131). The actuator further comprises controlled connection and disconnection means interposed between each bus (106, 107) and each connection member. The invention is applicable to actuators used in aviation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: December 10, 2013
    Assignees: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, Universite de Lorraine, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
    Inventors: Pierre-Yves Liegeois, François-Noël Leynaert, Farid Meibody-Tabar, Serge Lionel Pierfederici, Babak Nahid Mobarakeh
  • Patent number: 8584989
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of managing movement of an aircraft on the ground, the aircraft including at least one left main undercarriage and at least one right main undercarriage, each comprising wheels associated with torque application members for applying torque to the wheels in response to a general setpoint, the general setpoint comprising a longitudinal acceleration setpoint and an angular speed setpoint, the method including the successive steps of braking down the general setpoint into general torque setpoints for generating by the torque application members associated with each of the wheels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2013
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventors: David Lemay, David Frank, Michel Basset, Yann Chamaillard
  • Patent number: 8579229
    Abstract: The invention relates to a device for braking/driving an aircraft wheel mounted to rotate on an undercarriage axle, the device comprising: a stack of disks comprising disks that are constrained in rotation with the wheel and that alternate with disks that are constrained in rotation with a torsion tube; a support member mounted to rotate on the axle and constrained in rotation with the torsion tube; braking actuators carried by the support member for selectively pressing the disks together; and a drive member for selectively driving the support member in rotation; the support member carrying a secondary of a transformer having a primary arranged facing the support member while being stationary in rotation, the secondary being electrically connected to the actuators and the primary being adapted to being connected to a non-DC voltage source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 12, 2013
    Assignee: Messier-Bugatti-Dowty
    Inventor: Florent Nierlich