Vortex valve shock absorber

Claim 2

A fluid damped shock absorber comprising: an outer cylinder; an inner cylinder slidably mounted in the outer cylinder; variable fluid impedance means interposed between the outer and inner cylinders for controlling the main fluid through-flow between the interiors of the outer and inner cylinders; said variable fluid impedance means including a vortex valve having an annular chamber provided with tangential nozzles for injecting high pressure fluid tangentially into the chamber to create a vortex flow in the annular chamber thereby impeding the main fluid through-flow; and said variable fluid impedance means further including means for varying the rate of high pressure fluid flow to the tangential nozzles and thereby varying the impedance to the main fluid through-flow.

Claim 3

The fluid damped shock absorber set forth in claim 1 further including a fluid pressure multiplier means housed within the shock absorber and actuated by the compression of the landing gear shock strut during touch-down for generating a high pressure fluid for injection through the vortex nozzles.

Claim 4

The fluid damped shock absorber set forth in claim 1 wherein said means for varying the rate of high pressure fluid flow to the tangential nozzles comprises a servo valve.

Claim 5

The fluid damped shock absorber set forth in claim 3 further including an automatic sensing system for determining the aircraft''s vertical deceleration rate during landing touch-down and directly controlling The servo valve in response thereto.

Claim 6

In a fluid damped shock absorber comprising, an outer cylinder and an inner cylinder relatively movable within the outer cylinder; a variable fluid impedance means interposed between the outer and inner cylinders for controlling the main fluid through-flow between the interiors of the outer and inner cylinders and fixedly located with respect to said outer cylinder; said variable fluid impedance means comprising: a vortex valve having an annular chamber provided with tangential nozzles for injecting high pressure fluid tangentially into the chamber to create a vortex flow in the annular chamber thereby impeding the main fluid through-flow; and means for varying the rate of high pressure fluid flow to the tangential nozzles to thereby vary the impedance to the main fluid through-flow.

Claim 7

In a fluid damped shock absorber comprising, an outer cylinder and an inner cylinder relatively movable within the outer cylinder; a variable fluid impedance means interposed between the outer and inner cylinders for controlling the main fluid through-flow between the interiors of the outer and inner cylinders and fixedly located with respect to said outer cylinder; said variable fluid impedance means comprising: a vortex valve having an annular chamber provided with tangential nozzles for injecting high pressure fluid tangentially into the chamber to create a vortex flow in the annular chamber thereby impeding the main fluid through-flow; and means for varying the rate of high pressure fluid flow to the tangential nozzles to thereby vary the impedance to the main fluid through-flow.

Claim 8

A fluid damped linear shock absorber for an aircraft landing gear strut comprising: an outer cylinder having a closed end forming a first chamber; an inner cylinder axially movable within the outer cylinder having a closed end outermost from the closed end of the outer cylinder and forming a second chamber; a fluidic vortex valve interposed between the first and second chambers for controlling the fluid flow from one chamber to the other; said vortex valve having an annular chamber with a central opening; nozzles mounted in the periphery of the chamber for injecting fluid tangentially into the chamber to impart a swirling motion to the main fluid through-flow thereby impeding its exit from the central opening of the vortex valve; and a servo valve connected to the shock strut for controlling the fluid injected through the nozzles and thereby controlling the restriction characteristics of the vortex valve for passage of fluid from the second chamber into the first chamber to produce the desired aircraft damping by controlling the compressive strut fluid flow rate.

Claim 9

A fluid damped linear shock absorber for an aircraft landing gear strut comprising: an outer cylinder having a closed end forming a first chamber; an inner cylinder axially movable within the outer cylinder having a closed end outermost from the closed end of the outer cylinder and forming a second chamber; a fluidic vortex valve interposed between the first and second chambers for controlling the fluid flow from one chamber to the other; said vortex valve having an annular chamber with a central opening; nozzles mounted in the periphery of the chamber for injecting fluid tangentially into the chamber to impart a swirling motion to the main fluid through-flow thereby impeding its exit from the central opening of the vortex valve; and a servo valve connected to the shock strut for controlling the fluid injected through the nozzles and thereby controlling the restriction characteristics of the vortex valve for passage of fluid from the second chamber into the first chamber to produce the desired aircraft damping by controlling the compressive strut fluid flow rate.

Claim 10

A landing gear shock strut mechanism for controlling the rate of vertical deceleration of an aircraft at touchdown, comprising: an outer cylinder having a closed end forming a first chamber; an inner cylinder axially movable within the outer cylinder having a closed end outermost from the closed end of the outer cylinder and forming a second chamber; a fluidic vortex valve fixedly attached to the interior of the outer cylinder and interposed between the first and second chambers for controlling the rate of fluid flow from one chamber to the other; said vortex valve having a cylindrical flow chamber with an annular series of ports and a central orifice; nozzles mounted in the periphery of the chamber for injecting fluid tangentially into the chamber to impart a swirling motion to the main fluid through-flow entering through the annular series of ports thereby impeding its exit from the central orifice of the vortex valve when the inner cylinder is pushed into the outer cylinder as the landing gear shock strut is compressed; and a servo valve mounted adjacent to the shock strut for controlling the force of the fluid injected through the nozzles and thereby controlling the strength of the swirling action of the main fluid through-flow for varying the impedance of damping fluid through the orifice.

Claim 11

A landing gear shock strut mechanism for controlling the rate of vertical deceleration of an aircraft at touchdown, comprising: an outer cylinder having a closed end forming a first chamber; an inner cylinder axially movable within the outer cylinder having a closed end outermost from the closed end of the outer cylinder and forming a second chamber; a fluidic vortex valve fixedly attached to the interior of the outer cylinder and interposed between the first and second chambers for controlling the rate of fluid flow from one chamber to the other; said vortex valve having a cylindrical flow chamber with an annular series of ports and a central orifice; nozzles mounted in the periphery of the chamber for injecting fluid tangentially into the chamber to impart a swirling motion to the main fluid through-flow entering through the annular series of ports thereby impeding its exit from the central orifice of the vortex valve when the inner cylinder is pushed into the outer cylinder as the landing gear shock strut is compressed; and a servo valve mounted adjacent to the shock strut for controlling the force of the fluid injected through the nozzles and thereby controlling the strength of the swirling action of the main fluid through-flow for varying the impedance of damping fluid through the orifice.

Claim 12

The fluid damped shock absorber set forth in claim 7 further including means responsive to the vertical acceleration of an aircraft during landing touch-down for directly varying the input signal to the servo valve and thereby varying the fluid flow to the tangential nozzles of the vortex valve.