Retractable aircraft landing gear

Claim 1

AN AIRCRAFT LANDING GEAR ASSEMBLY ADAPTED TO BE ENGAGED TO AN AIRCRAFT STRUCTURE AND TO BE RETRACTIBLE TOWARD AND EXTENSIBLE BEYOND THE STUCTURE, COMPRISING: A STRUT ADAPTED TO MOUNT A WHEEL; A RIGID LINK INTERCONNECTING THE STRUCTURE AND THE STRUT, SAID LINK BEING PIVOTALLY JOINED TO BOTH; A THREADED LEAD SCREW HAVING AN AXIS AND ROTATABLY MOUNTED TO THE AIRCRAFT STRUCTURE; A HINGE BLOCK; THREAD MEANS CARRIED BY SAID HINGE BLOCK, SAID THREAD MEANS BEING ENGAGED TO THE LEAD SCREW, THE STRUT BEING PIVOTALLY MOUNTED TO THE HINGE BLOCK, THE POINTS OF PIVOTAL MOUNTING OF THE STRUT TO THE BLOCK, THE LINK TO THE STRUT, AND THE LINK TO THE STRUCTURE, FORMING THE APICES OF A TRIANGLE; MEANS FOR ROTATING THE LEAD SCREW TO SHIFT THE HING BLOCK TO VARY THE SPACING BETWEEN THE JOINTS OF THE STRUT AND THE HINGE BLOCK, AND THE LINK AND THE STRUCTURE, TO RAISE OR LOWER THE STRUT; A TRACK ATTACHED TO THE STRUCTURE EXTENDING PARALLEL TO THE LEAD SCREW; ABUTMENT MEANS CARRIED BY THE HINGE BLOCK IN SLIDING ABUTMENT WITH THE TRACK TO HOLD THE HINGE BLOCK AGAINST ROTATION; A SOCKET MEMBER ATTACHED TO THE STRUCTURE TO RECEIVE THE HINGE BLOCK WHEN THE STRUT IS IN ITS EXTENDED POSITION, SAID SOCKET MEMBER INCLUDING AN UPPER AND A LOWER PLANAR SURFACE, BOTH PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF THE LEAD SCREW, AND THE HINGE BLOCK INCLUDING AN UPPER AND A LOWER PLANAR SURFACE, BOTH PARALLEL TO THE AXIS OF THE LEAD SCREW, THE UPPER SURFACES BEING ADAPTED TO MAKE SURFACE-TO-SURFACE CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER, AND THE LOWER SURFACES BEING ADAPTED TO MAKE CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER, SAID SOCKET MEMBER HAVING AN OPENING IN ITS SIDE; AND OFFSET HINGE MEANS JOINING THE STRUT TO THE HINGE BLOCK, SAID HINGE MEANS PASSING THROUGH THE OPENING WHEN THE STRUT IS IN ITS EXTENDED POSITION WHEREBY TO LEAVE THE LOWER SURFACES UNIPEDED.