Patents Assigned to Sikorsky Aircraft
  • Rotor hub fairing system for a counter-rotating, coaxial rotor system
    Patent number: 7229251
    Abstract: A rotor hub fairing system includes an upper hub fairing, a lower hub fairing and a shaft fairing therebetween. The rotor hub fairing system is sized and configured to reduce the overall drag on a dual, counter-rotating, coaxial rotor system. Preferably, the rotor hub fairing is fully integrated. The shaft fairing preferably includes a minimal thickness at the midsection to reduce drag with an increasing thickness adjacent the upper and lower hub fairings to reduce the flow separation on the hub fairing surfaces without overly excessive drag. Other aerodynamic structures, such as a horizontal splitter and/or a plurality of turning vanes may be mounted to the shaft fairing to facilitate flow around the upper and lower hub fairings to reduce flow separation and drag.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Fabio P. Bertolotti, Mark W. Scott, Brian E. Wake, T. Alan Egolf, Duane C. McCormick
  • Chemically assisted surface finishing process
    Patent number: 7229565
    Abstract: A method of surface refinement for refining a first roughness of a surface of a component to a second roughness. The method includes wetting the first roughness surface with an aqueous mixture that includes solid media. The aqueous mixture chemically alters the surface forming a chemically converted surface. Relative movement between the chemically converted surface and the solid media produces the refined second roughness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2004
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Mark R. Jaworowski, Xia Tang, Clark VanTine Cooper
  • System for computationally efficient active control of tonal sound or vibration
    Patent number: 7224807
    Abstract: A noise or vibration control system reduces a sampling rate and reduces a control rate to improve computation efficiency. The present invention permits the use of a sample frequency (fs) that is less than twice the frequency of interest (fd). The sensed signals are filtered to extract a particular frequency range with a lower bound given by (2n?1)*fs/2 and an upper bound given by (2n+1)*fs/2, where n is an integer chosen so that the frequency of interest (fd) is within the extracted frequency range. The control commands are also calculated at a reduced rate, which is dependent upon the bandwidth of the tone, rather than the absolute frequency of the tone. Rather than updating the control signals directly on the sampled sensor data yk as it enters the computer, the control computations are done on the harmonic components ak and bk, or equivalently on the magnitude and phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2002
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: William Arthur Welsh, Douglas G. MacMartin, Alan M. Finn
  • Methods for replacement of a slotted tail rotor blade pitch horn
    Patent number: 7216429
    Abstract: A tail rotor assembly includes a slotted pitch horn which replaces a production non-replaceable pitch horn. A slot is cut along a leading edge of each pitch control horn and a chordwise cut is made through the upper and lower blade surface skins. The production pitch control horn is removed from the tail rotor assembly by passing the spar through the slot. The slotted pitch horn is assembled over the spar and a collar is located adjacent thereto. The collar is bonded to the slotted pitch horn and the upper and lower blade surface skins at predetermined bond areas. An inner horn plate and an outer horn plate are bonded over the horn slot and a trailing edge doubler is bonded to the blade trailing edge to finish the trailing edge horn area and close the upper and lower skin surfaces.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: James E. Logan, Paul Alesevich, Mark S. Liska, Sebastian DiMauro
  • Compact co-axial rotor system for a rotary wing aircraft and a control system therefor
    Patent number: 7210651
    Abstract: A dual, counter rotating, coaxial rotor system provides an upper and lower rotor system, with a reduced axial rotor separation distance along a common axis by way of rotor tip position sensing and rotor position controls to avoid tip contact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventor: Mark Winfield Scott
  • Energy absorbing airframe for a vertical lift vehicle
    Patent number: 7198224
    Abstract: An airframe includes an energy absorbing structure with a frame, a beam mounted to the frame at a rotational joint and a collapsible member. In response to reaching a predetermined threshold load value during a high sink rate impact event, the collapsible member will collapse under an aft section of the upper deck. The rotational joint operates as a virtual hinge such that a forward section of the upper deck deforms in a predictable manner. As the upper deck supports the high mass systems, the high mass components are less likely to separate from their mounting and penetrate into the crew compartment and the main rotor system will tilt aft away from the crew compartment to minimize the likelihood that the rotor blades may penetrate the crew compartment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 3, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: William Townsend, Bruce Fredric Kay
  • Computationally efficient means for optimal control with control constraints
    Patent number: 7197147
    Abstract: A system and method reduces undesired noise or vibration in a vehicle. The ambient vibration is measured and command signals are generated over time. The command signals are generated based upon the measured vibration and based upon a control weighting. By varying the control weighting over time, the maximum possible performance is always obtained subject to the saturation constraints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Thomas A. Millott, Douglas G. MacMartin, Robert K. Goodman, James W. Fuller
  • Bearing assembly
    Patent number: 7171868
    Abstract: A bearing assembly which spaces bearing elements in an unequal relationship from one bearing element pocket to the next. The spacing minimizes the likelihood that the bearing elements will rest in the exact same location on an inner and outer race to reduce the potential for false brinelling. The net result is a decreased depth of false brinelling in any one location and an increased bearing life.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Kenneth J. Buckman, Michael F. Mullen
  • Braided spar for a rotor blade and method of manufacture thereof
    Patent number: 7165945
    Abstract: A braided rotor blade spar includes a tri-axle braid in which braided bias angled fibers are located non-parallel to a longitudinal axis of the spar. Zero degree fibers are located parallel to the axis and are positioned to be on the upper and lower surfaces of the spar. The bias angle fibers are braided around the zero degree fibers. In a method of manufacture of the braided spar, a braided sleeve is formed dry over a mandrel by a multi-axial braiding machine. Once the braided sleeve is formed upon the mandrel, the mandrel is located within a matched metal mold, resin impregnated, and cured. The mandrel is then removed from the finished braided spar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2003
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2007
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: David A. Kovalsky, Kevin Viola
  • Gearbox mounted force generator
    Patent number: 7118328
    Abstract: An active vibration control (AVC) system includes a shaft-driven gearbox mounted force generator (GMFG) mounted to a main rotor transmission. The GMFGs receive shaft power from an output shaft driven by the main rotor transmission and/or engine-to-transmission gearbox to avoid separate drive motors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: William A. Welsh, Erez Eller, Robert K. Goodman
  • Swashplate and pitch link arrangement for a coaxial counter rotating rotor system
    Patent number: 7118340
    Abstract: A coaxial counter-rotating rotor system for a hybrid aircraft includes an upper swashplate assembly and a lower swashplate assembly with a coaxial transmission system therebetween. Movement of the upper and lower swashplate assembly is reflected about a midplane of the coaxial transmission housing to generate sufficient cyclic and/or collective pitch inputs within a compact structural in which the rotor systems are closely spaced along an axis of rotation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventor: Frank Paul D'Anna
  • Computationally efficient means for optimal control with control constraints
    Patent number: 7107127
    Abstract: A method and system that reduces undesired vibration in a vehicle measures ambient vibration and generates a first command signal based upon the measured vibration. If a first component of the first command signal exceeds a maximum allowable, the first component of the first command signal must be constrained. A residual vibration resulting from the constraint of the first component is then calculated. A second command signal to compensate for the residual vibration is then calculated. Force generators are then activated based upon the constrained first component and the second command signal in order to reduce the vibration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventor: Robert Karl Goodman
  • Technical design concepts to improve helicopter obstacle avoidance and operations in “brownout” conditions
    Patent number: 7106217
    Abstract: A method for flying in a degraded visual environment comprising the steps of collecting environmental data, processing the data and fusing the data together into a combined input output. The output is fed into a head down display, head mounted or heads up display and, preferably to a fly-by-wire vertical take-off and landing capable vehicle wherein the fly-by-wire system makes automatic adjustments to the helicopter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: John H. Judge, John J. Occhiato, Lorren Stiles, Vineet Sahasrabudhe, Margaret A. MacIsaac
  • Split torque gearbox
    Patent number: 7100468
    Abstract: A split torque gearbox having multiple input shafts. Each input shaft is connected to two face gears. Each face gear is connected to two quill shafts, one is coaxially mounted and the second is not coaxially mounted. Of the two quill shafts, one is positioned on a first side of an output stage and a second quill shaft is located on a second side of the output stage and the quill shafts are connected thereto. The output stage is connected to a main shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Yuriy Gmirya, Harsh Vinayak, David Andrew Binney, Lawrence Mark Zunski, Vincent F. Millea
  • Integrated hover display with augmented approach to hover symbology cueing for degraded visual environmental conditions
    Patent number: 7091881
    Abstract: A flight control system includes a primary flight display having a hover display which facilitates operations in DVE conditions. The hover display includes a radar altitude display, heading drift symbology and lateral drift symbology which assists pilots in the detection of drift, which is common in DVE situations and to provide the pilot with a salient cue pertinent to the approach to hover and landing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: John H. Judge, John J. Occhiato, Lorren Stiles, Vineet Sahasrabudhe, Margaret A. MacIsaac
  • Compact co-axial rotor system for a rotary wing aircraft and a control system thereof
    Patent number: 7083142
    Abstract: A dual, counter rotating, coaxial rotor system provides an upper and lower rotor system, with a reduced axial rotor separation distance along a common axis by way of rotor tip position sensing and rotor position controls to avoid tip contact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2004
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventor: Mark Winfield Scott
  • Rigid coaxial rotor unmanned helicopter with auxiliary propulsion
    Patent number: D524227
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Brandon Stille, Michael P. Strauss
  • Rigid coaxial rotor heavy lift helicopter
    Patent number: D524228
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Mark W. Scott, Michael P. Strauss
  • Rigid coaxial rotor helicopter with dual auxiliary propulsion
    Patent number: D524718
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventors: Mark W. Scott, William J. Eadie
  • High speed attack rotorcraft
    Patent number: D526269
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2006
    Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation
    Inventor: William J. Eadie
  • Illumination device
    Patent number: 5144539
    Abstract: An illumination device having a reflecting plate, at least one linear light source arranged on a first side of the reflecting plate, a diffusing plate arranged on a second side of the reflecting plate, and a light quantity adjusting member formed integrally with the reflecting plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 1991
    Date of Patent: September 1, 1992
    Assignee: Dai-Ichi Seiko Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hideaki Katoh, Nobuhisa Noguchi, Yutaka Kikuchi, Isamu Kaneko, Toshiaki Sugimoto, Seiki Kitahara, Teruo Hoshi, Minoru Suzuki, Shuichi Satoh