Obstacle clearance system for aircraft

Claim 1

IN AN AIRCRAFT GUIDANCE SYSTEM, APPARATUS COMPRISING RADAR OBSTACLE RANGING MEANS INCLUDING MEANS FOR SCANNING SAID OBSTACLE THROUGH PREDETERMINED ANGLES MEASURED RELATIVE TO THE AIRCRAFT VELOCITY VECTOR, SAID RADAR MEANS PRODUCING FIRST AND SECOND SIGNALS RESPECTIVELY PROPORTIONAL TO THE RANGE OF SAID OBSTACLE AND THE ELEVATION OF SAID OBSTACLE AS MEASURED RELATIVE TO SAID VELOCITY VECTOR, AIRCRAFT AIRSPEED SENSING MEANS FOR PRODUCING A THIRD SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL THERETO, AIRCRAFT FLIGHT PATH ANGLE SENSING MEANS FOR PRODUCING A FOURTH SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL THERETO, MEANS ADAPTED TO RECEIVE SAID FIRST, SECOND, THIRD, AND FOURTH SIGNALS AND OPERATIVE TO COMPUTE THEREFROM THE CONSTANT LOAD FACTOR TO WHICH SAID AIRCRAFT WOULD BE SUBJECTED IN TANGENTIALLY CLEARING SAID OBSTACLE, SAID COMPUTER MEANS PRODUCING A SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO SAID COMPUTED LOAD FACTOR, REFERENCE LOAD FACTOR SIGNAL GENERATING MEANS, AND MEANS FOR COMPARING SAID COMPUTED LOAD FACTOR SIGNAL AND SAID REFERENCE LOAD FACTOR SIGNAL AND FOR PRODUCING A COMMAND SIGNAL UPON EQUALITY THEREBETWEEN, A SIGNAL COMPARATOR HAVING TWO INPUTS AND PRODUCING AN OUTPUT CONTROL SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO INPUT SIGNALS, SWITCHING MEANS FOR APPLYING SAID REFERENCE LOAD FACTOR SIGNAL TO ONE OF SAID INPUTS OF SAID SIGNAL COMPARATOR IN RESPONSE TO SAID COMMAND SIGNAL, MEANS FOR PRODUCING A FIFTH SIGNAL PROPORTIONAL TO THAT COMPONENT OF ARICRAFT ACCELERATION ACTING IN A PLANE NORMAL TO BOTH THE AIRCRAFT LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND THE AIRCRAFT PITCH AXIS, MEANS FOR APPLYING SAID FIFTH SIGNAL TO THE OTHER OF SAID INPUTS OF SAID SIGNAL COMPARATOR, AND MEANS FOR POSITIONING A CONTROL SURFACE OF SAID AIRCRAFT, SAID OUTPUT OF SAID SIGNAL COMPARATOR BEING CONNECTED TO THE INPUT OF SAID LASTNAMED MEANS.