Combined land and air vehicle

Claim 1

An air vehicle, comprising a body member and having a supply of compressed fluid as a source of power, a hollow support extending vertically upwardly from said body and sealingly connected to said source of fluid, an elongated hollow standard extending upwardly from the upper end of said support, means for journaling the lower end of said standard within said support to permit substantial universal movement about the axis of said support, said journal means sealing said standard in fluid tight relationship with respect to said support, a hollow rotor housing secured on the upper end of said standard to rotate about the axis of said standard and sealed in fluid tight relationship therewith, gimbal means mounted within said rotor housing, a rotor blade secured to said gimbal means and extending outwardly of said rotor housing in fluid sealed arrangement therewith, said blade having a hollow duct communicating with the interior of said housing extending along its length, means for maneuvering said gimbal to cause said blade to pivot about its axis and to tilt with respect to an axis perpendicular to the blade and through the center of standard, and means for moving said standard about its journal to pivot said housing, a jet propulsion nozzle connected to said duct located at the outward end of said blade to expel fluid therefrom tangentially and to the rear of said blade, and conduit means extending directly from the supply of compressed fluid to said tubular support whereby said compressed fluid is fed through said standard housing, duct and said jet propulsion nozzle to rotate said rotor housing, notwithstanding the position or attitude of the housing standard or blade.