An aircraft includes an airframe having an extending tail, a counter rotating, coaxial main rotor assembly disposed at the airframe including an upper rotor assembly and a lower rotor assembly, and a translational thrust system positioned at the extending tail and providing translational thrust to the airframe, the translational thrust system including a propeller. A gearbox system is operably connected to the main rotor assembly and the propeller to drive rotation of the main rotor assembly and the propeller. The gearbox is configured to maintain a main rotor assembly tip speed below Mach 0.9 and a propeller helical tip speed below Mach 0.88.

To provide a safety device that, when a crosswind is present, allows an aircraft to more safely land on a runway in an airport. This safety device 10 for landing in a crosswind is designed for landing of an aircraft 1 on a runway 3 in a crosswind across the runway 3, and provided with a control unit 14 for controlling, when the nose cone 1T of the fuselage 8 of the aircraft 1 is directed windward, the orientation of the wheels of the aircraft 1 such that the wheels are oriented in the direction of travel of the aircraft 1.

A monitoring system (5, 205) for an aircraft (10) has sensors (20, 30) that are used to sense the air movement around the aircraft. The monitoring system may use information from the sensors to estimate the effects of the air movement on the aircraft and to determine how to control components of the aircraft, such as flight control surfaces and a propulsion system, to compensate for such effects. The monitoring system may also assess aircraft performance based on the air movement information and provide control inputs for improving such performance. It is also possible for the monitoring system to determine more optimal flight paths for avoiding collision threats based on the air movement information.

An aircraft is provided including an airframe, an extending tail, and a counter rotating, coaxial main rotor assembly including an upper rotor assembly composed of a plurality of blades and a lower rotor assembly composed of a plurality of blades. A translational thrust system positioned at the extending tail, the translational thrust system providing translational thrust to the airframe. A flight control system to control the upper rotor assembly and the lower rotor assembly, wherein the flight control system is configured to control lift offset of the upper rotor assembly and the lower rotor assembly.

A flight control method for controlling an aircraft includes obtaining wind information of an operation region during a spread operation performed by the aircraft. The flight control method also includes controlling a flight location of the aircraft based on the wind information and an allowable deviation of the spread region in the spread operation.

A network of automated launch and recovery platforms (LRPs) for at least one aircraft-type aerial vehicle (UAV) which automatically perform cyclic tasks of preparation, launch, and recovery without manual operation is provided. Each LRP includes a stationary foundation in an X-Z plane, a rotatable foundation that can rotate around a Y axis of the stationary foundation, and a rotatable leverage that rotates around the Z axis at a shaft driven by a motor. A first leverage of the UAV is hooked to the rotatable leverage of the LRP such that rotation of the shaft by the motor drives the rotatable leverage and the UAV for take-off and reduces UAV to stop during recovery. The network includes a traffic control subsystem and a launch and recovery subsystem which provides initial UAV speed necessary for launch, and ensures dissipation of kinetic energy of a captured UAV during recovery.

A vehicle may include a sensor and a proactive vehicle controller that is capable of proactively altering one or more vehicle operating parameters in response to detecting a force caused by an environmental event that will be exerted on a chassis of the vehicle. The sensor has a field-of-view that includes the direction of travel of the vehicle. The sensor may detect objects in the field-of-view and, based at least in part on the behavior of the objects in the field-of-view, predicts the force exerted on the object by an environmental event. Based on the predicted force, the proactive vehicle controller proactively adjusts one or more vehicle operating parameters to minimize the effect of the force that will be exerted on the vehicle by the environmental event.

An imaging system that includes a camera mourned on an aerial platform, for example a balloon, allows a user to increase the longevity of the camera's battery by remote control. A user may capture imagery at a time scale of interest and desired power consumption by adjusting parameters for image capture by the camera. A user may adjust a time to capture an image, a time to capture a video, or a number of cycles per time period to capture one or more images as the aerial platform moves in a region of interest to change power consumption for imaging. The system also provides imaging alignment to account for unwanted movement of the aerial platform when moved in the region of interest. Additionally, a mounting device is provided that is simple and inexpensive, and that allows a camera to remain positioned in a desired position relative to the ground.

An aerial vehicle control system includes an aerial vehicle and a computing device. The aerial vehicle includes an altitude controller and a lateral propulsion controller The computing device includes a processor and a memory. The memory stores instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the computing device to obtain location data corresponding to a location of the aerial vehicle; obtain wind data; determine an altitude command, a latitude command, and a longitude command based on at least one of the location data or the wind data; cause the altitude controller to implement at least one of the altitude command, the latitude command, or the longitude command; and cause the lateral propulsion controller to implement at least one of the altitude command, the latitude command, or the longitude command.

An aircraft includes an airframe having an extending tail and a longitudinal axis extending from a nose of the airframe defining a length of the airframe. A counter rotating, coaxial main rotor assembly is located at the airframe and includes an upper rotor assembly and a lower rotor assembly. The upper rotor assembly and the lower rotor assembly rotate about an axis of rotation. The axis of rotation intersects the longitudinal axis forward of a midpoint of the longitudinal axis.