US3813657A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Glide slope indicator
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1972-04-24
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Granted: 1974-05-28
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Expires: 1992-04-24
Abstract
Abstract A glide slope indicator consisting of an elevated rectangular light display is combined with two circular lights which are located at a lower elevation and are disposed laterally one at each side of the rectangular light display and are displaced from the rectangular light display in the direction of the landing aircraft along the length of the runway to form a subtended angle to the horizon, so that an aircraft on landing approach, will view the display and the combination of lights will appear colinear when the aircraft is on the proper glide slope approach. The two circular lights will appear above the rectangular light display at too steep a glide slope approach, and the two circular lights will appear below the level of the rectangular light display at too shallow glide slope approaches. The display provides a visual indication to aircraft on landing approaches so that the display at the proper glide slope approach will present the circular and rectangular lights as substantially colinear.
Inventors
- 👤 R Henry
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 18:54
CPC Classifications
G; G08; G08G; G08G5/00; G08G5/50; G08G5/54; G08G5/20; G08G5/22
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
125 words
A wholly ground contained glide slope indicator for aircraft landing comprising a first visual indicator disposed one at each side of the aircraft landing runway and at an elevated position to provide a first shaped sighting target between which the aircraft is guided for landing, a second visual indicator shaped substantially differently from said first visual indicator and disposed at locations laterally offset one at each side of a respective one of said first visual indicators and forming therewith subtended angles to the horizon defining the range of suitable approach angles wherein said indicators appear as differently shaped but collinear objects at the opposite sides of the end of the runway at the correct glide angle and are noncollinear at the incorrect approach glide angles.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
125 words
A wholly ground contained glide slope indicator for aircraft landing comprising a first visual indicator disposed one at each side of the aircraft landing runway and at an elevated position to provide a first shaped sighting target between which the aircraft is guided for landing, a second visual indicator shaped substantially differently from said first visual indicator and disposed at locations laterally offset one at each side of a respective one of said first visual indicators and forming therewith subtended angles to the horizon defining the range of suitable approach angles wherein said indicators appear as differently shaped but collinear objects at the opposite sides of the end of the runway at the correct glide angle and are noncollinear at the incorrect approach glide angles.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
54 words
A glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1, wherein said first indicator appears visually to the approaching aircraft as a rectangular bar of light having a high degree of visibility and each of said second indicator means appears as a circular light disposed one at each side of said rectangular bar of light.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
47 words
A glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 2 wherein said indicator means appear as noncollinear lights with the circular lights appearing above the rectangular light for glide slope approaches which are too steep and appearing below the rectangular light for too shallow glide slope angular approaches.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
43 words
The glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1 including means for adjusting the vertical position of said first and second indicator means relatively to each other and thereby establishing the correct angle of approach for the terrain at a given landing location.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
32 words
The glide slope system in accordance with claim 1 wherein said glide slope indicator is constructed with one indicator means at each side of a runway at which the approach is made.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
40 words
A glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1 wherein said indicator is disposed on an aircraft carrier deck and is movable therewith to provide landing information including both the glide slope and the roll angle for the landing aircraft.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
47 words
The glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1 wherein said second indicator means is disposed laterally in relation to said first indicator means to be hidden at convergence angles of the pilot''s view as the plane approaches terminal landing position and flares out prior to landing.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
48 words
The glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1 wherein the display presented to the pilot is composed of dissimilarly shaped first and second indicator means which are circular and rectangular respectively and are disposed collinearly at the proper glide slope and noncollinearly at the improper glide slope.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
49 words
The glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 8 including means for electrically illuminating both said first and second indicator means to provide an illuminated display readily visible to the pilot of an approaching aircraft and to provide a highly visual image of said first and second indicator means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
37 words
The glide slope indicator in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first means consists of a pair of circular lights and said second indicator means is a rectangular bar of light both of which provide illuminated displays.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1977-05-27 | 1977-11-26 | 1978-05-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-05-27 | 1981-11-26 | 1982-05-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-05-27 | 1985-11-26 | 1986-05-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |