Wing with thrust augmentor

Claim 2

In an aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an airfoil section, the maximum thickness of the airfoil being positioned aft of the 70 percent point of the wing chord, a spanwise extending flap pivotally mounted on the wing at the trailing edge of the airfoil section, the suction surface of said wing being convexly curved downward and rearward from the point of maximum thickness and merging with a concave section smoothly faired into the upper surface of said flap, said wing having a conduit means positioned therein, and adapted to be connected to a source of air under pressure, a plurality of primary air injection nozzles each connected to said conduit means, said primary air injection nozzles being laterally closely spaced spanwise on the wing adjacent the saiD convexly curved portion of the wing aft of the point of maximum thickness and said nozzles injection high velocity jets of air in the form of thin sheets having a vertical extent substantially equal to the vertical height of said convexly curved wing portion, said nozzles injecting high velocity jets of air into the airflow over said airfoil in the zones of low pressure adjacent said convexly curved portion of the wing, said primary jets causing an induced secondary flow of air over the suction surface of the wing to become entrained therein and mixing of the primary and secondary flows taking place in the zones of higher static pressure above the concave section of the suction surface of said wing and over said flap, the acceleration of the flow including the boundary layer over at least the after portion of the wing reducing the wing drag in level flight, augmenting the thrust over the thrust produced solely by the primary jets and permitting the wing to attain higher angles of attack without flow breakdown when the flap is lowered to increase the lift during take off and descent.

Claim 3

The structure as claimed in claim 1, in which the pressure surface of the wing aft of the point of maximum thickness is also convexly and then concavely curved and then faired into the under surface of the flap and the rear portion of the pressure surface of the wing also being provided with primary air injection nozzles laterally spaced to inject air into the low pressure zone adjacent said convexly curved portion of the pressure surface of the wing aft of the point of maximum thickness, the acceleration of the boundary layer on both sides of said flap permitting larger downward flap deflection without flow breakdown and giving an increased total lift with flat deflection.

Claim 4

In a continuously operable aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section with the maximum thickness positioned 70 or more percent of the airfoil chord aft of the leading edge, said airfoil having pressure and suction surfaces, at least one of said surfaces being convexly curved from the point of maximum thickness and then concavely curved extending at least to the airfoil trailing edge, a plurality of spaced spanwise distributed injection nozzles positioned on the wing to inject spaced primary jets of air immediately adjacent the convexly curved portion of the said airfoil surface, said primary jets inducing a secondary flow over said airfoil to accelerate and mix with the primary flow, the mixed flow decelerating and increasing in pressure over the said concave portion of said airfoil surface to produce a thrust reaction greater than the thrust of the primary jets of air alone.

Claim 5

In a continuously operable aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section with the maximum thickness positioned 70 or more percent of the airfoil chord aft of the leading edge, said airfoil having pressure and suction surfaces, at least one of said surfaces being convexly curved from the point of maximum thickness and then concavely curved extending at least to the airfoil trailing edge, a plurality of spaced spanwise distributed injection nozzles positioned on the wing to inject spaced primary jets of air immediately adjacent the convexly curved portion of the said airfoil surface, said primary jets inducing a secondary flow over said airfoil to accelerate and mix with the primary flow, the mixed flow decelerating and increasing in pressure over the said concave portion of said airfoil surface to produce a thrust reaction greater than the thrust of the primary jets of air alone.

Claim 6

In an aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having a laminar flow airfoil section with the point of maximum thickness located in the order of 70 or more percent of the chord aft of the leading edge, said airfoil section having its pressure and suction surfaces each convexly curved from the point of maximum thickness toward each other and then concavely curved to meet at the trailing edge, means supported by said wing providing a pair of spaced spanwise extending guiding surfaces forming a convergent-divergent flow passage therebetween, said flow passage having its convergent entrance extending forward from the said airfoil trailing edge and adapted to receive flow from the suction and pressure surfaces of the wing including the boundary layer flow, said convergent-divergent flow passage having at least the divergent portion thereof extending aft of the trailing edge of said wing airfoil section, a plurality of injection nozzle assemblies positioned above and below the wing airfoil section trailing edge, said nozzle assemblies being closely spaced spanwise for the length of said convergent-divergent flow passage, said injection nozzle assemblies being adapted to be connected to a source of air under pressure, and injecting primary jets of high velocity air inTo the convergent portion of said flow passage, said primary jets entraining a secondary flow into the inlet of said flow passage to mix with the primary flow and the combined flow expanding in and discharging from the divergent portion of said flow passage with a mass flow producing a greater thrust than the thrust produced by said primary jets if acting alone.

Claim 7

In an aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having a laminar flow airfoil section with the point of maximum thickness located in the order of 70 or more percent of the chord aft of the leading edge, said airfoil section having its pressure and suction surfaces each convexly curved from the point of maximum thickness toward each other and then concavely curved to meet at the trailing edge, means supported by said wing providing a pair of spaced spanwise extending guiding surfaces forming a convergent-divergent flow passage therebetween, said flow passage having its convergent entrance extending forward from the said airfoil trailing edge and adapted to receive flow from the suction and pressure surfaces of the wing including the boundary layer flow, said convergent-divergent flow passage having at least the divergent portion thereof extending aft of the trailing edge of said wing airfoil section, a plurality of injection nozzle assemblies positioned above and below the wing airfoil section trailing edge, said nozzle assemblies being closely spaced spanwise for the length of said convergent-divergent flow passage, said injection nozzle assemblies being adapted to be connected to a source of air under pressure, and injecting primary jets of high velocity air inTo the convergent portion of said flow passage, said primary jets entraining a secondary flow into the inlet of said flow passage to mix with the primary flow and the combined flow expanding in and discharging from the divergent portion of said flow passage with a mass flow producing a greater thrust than the thrust produced by said primary jets if acting alone.

Claim 8

The structure as claimed in claim 4, in which at least one of said guiding surfaces has the after portion thereof formed as a pivoted trailing edge flap adapted to be lowered to deflect the ambient airstream therebelow to increase wing lift.

Claim 9

The structure as claimed in claim 4 in which each of said guiding surfaces is provided with a portion thereof forming a trailing edge flap and the flaps when simultaneously downwardly deflected correspondingly deflecting the mass flow discharged from the flow passage and producing a lift component from the thrust.

Claim 10

In a continuously operable aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section, said wing being provided with a spanwise extending flap, the point of maximum thickness of the airfoil section being of the order of 70 or more percent of the airfoil chord exclusive of the chord of the flap aft of the airfoil leading edge, said airfoil having one of the surfaces thereof formed aft of the said point of maximum thickness with a convex curved portion merging with a concave curved portion and faired into the surface of said flap, a set of closely spaced spanwise distributed injection nozzles adapted to be connected to a continuously supplied compressed air conduit within the wing structure, said nozzles being positioned so as to discharge thin high velocity jets of air rearward above the said convexly formed surface of the wing, a streamlined spanwise extending shroud positioned above the after portion of the airfoil section and over at least the forward portion of said flap, said shroud and the airfoil and flap surfaces defining therebetween a convergent-divergent ejector duct, the discharge of said injector nozzles into the entrance of said ejector duct entraining air flowing rearward over at least the airfoil suction surface including the boundary layer, deflection downward of said flap from the normal cruise position increasing the ratio of the discharge area to the inlet of the ejector duct and adapted to deflect the net augmented thrust vector to produce an increase in the lift and the circulation about the wing and said injection nozzles and ejector duct producing an augmented thrust reaction continuously throughout the flight regime.

Claim 11

In a continuously operable aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section, said wing being provided with a spanwise extending flap, the point of maximum thickness of the airfoil section being of the order of 70 or more percent of the airfoil chord exclusive of the chord of the flap aft of the airfoil leading edge, said airfoil having one of the surfaces thereof formed aft of the said point of maximum thickness with a convex curved portion merging with a concave curved portion and faired into the surface of said flap, a set of closely spaced spanwise distributed injection nozzles adapted to be connected to a continuously supplied compressed air conduit within the wing structure, said nozzles being positioned so as to discharge thin high velocity jets of air rearward above the said convexly formed surface of the wing, a streamlined spanwise extending shroud positioned above the after portion of the airfoil section and over at least the forward portion of said flap, said shroud and the airfoil and flap surfaces defining therebetween a convergent-divergent ejector duct, the discharge of said injector nozzles into the entrance of said ejector duct entraining air flowing rearward over at least the airfoil suction surface including the boundary layer, deflection downward of said flap from the normal cruise position increasing the ratio of the discharge area to the inlet of the ejector duct and adapted to deflect the net augmented thrust vector to produce an increase in the lift and the circulation about the wing and said injection nozzles and ejector duct producing an augmented thrust reaction continuously throughout the flight regime.

Claim 12

In an aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section, said wing being provided with a trailing edge spanwise extending flap, the maximum thickness of the airfoil section being positioned in the order of 60 or more percent of the wing chord including the chord of the flap aft of the leading edge, said wing airfoil section having a pressure surface and a suction surface, said suction surface of the wing being convexly curved downward and rearward from the said point of maximum thickness and merging with a concave section and then smoothly faired into the upper surface of said flap, a spanwise extending guiding surface supported by the wing and vertically spaced above the airfoil suction surface adjacent the point of juncture of the convex and concave portions thereof and forming a convergent-divergent flow passage therebetween adapted to act as an ejector duct, a slot extending through the wing and forming a flow passage with the inlet on the airfoil pressure surface forward of the trailing edge flap and the slot having an outlet terminating adjacent the entrance to said ejector duct, means within the wing structure forming a spanwise extending conduit adapted to be connected to a continuous supply of compressed air, a plurality of nozzles each connected to said conduit and distributed spanwise on the wing and aDapted to inject primary jets of air into the entrance of said ejector duct, said primary jets of air by aspirating action inducing an inflow of secondary air from the pressure and suction surfaces of the airfoil into said ejector duct, the expanded mixed flow giving rise to an augmented thrust greater than the thrust of the nozzle discharge alone and deflection of said flap downward vectoring the thrust to give rise to a lift component and increasing overall circulation around the wing and deflection of the flap varying the ratio of discharge area to inlet area of the said ejector duct to match the requirements of the desired flight condition.

Claim 13

In an aircraft sustension and propulsion system, a wing having an extended laminar flow airfoil section, said wing being provided with a trailing edge spanwise extending flap, the maximum thickness of the airfoil section being positioned in the order of 60 or more percent of the wing chord including the chord of the flap aft of the leading edge, said wing airfoil section having a pressure surface and a suction surface, said suction surface of the wing being convexly curved downward and rearward from the said point of maximum thickness and merging with a concave section and then smoothly faired into the upper surface of said flap, a spanwise extending guiding surface supported by the wing and vertically spaced above the airfoil suction surface adjacent the point of juncture of the convex and concave portions thereof and forming a convergent-divergent flow passage therebetween adapted to act as an ejector duct, a slot extending through the wing and forming a flow passage with the inlet on the airfoil pressure surface forward of the trailing edge flap and the slot having an outlet terminating adjacent the entrance to said ejector duct, means within the wing structure forming a spanwise extending conduit adapted to be connected to a continuous supply of compressed air, a plurality of nozzles each connected to said conduit and distributed spanwise on the wing and aDapted to inject primary jets of air into the entrance of said ejector duct, said primary jets of air by aspirating action inducing an inflow of secondary air from the pressure and suction surfaces of the airfoil into said ejector duct, the expanded mixed flow giving rise to an augmented thrust greater than the thrust of the nozzle discharge alone and deflection of said flap downward vectoring the thrust to give rise to a lift component and increasing overall circulation around the wing and deflection of the flap varying the ratio of discharge area to inlet area of the said ejector duct to match the requirements of the desired flight condition.