A landing gear system includes a landing gear collar and a strut assembly supported by the landing gear collar. The strut assembly includes a piston that is adjustable between a fully extended position and a fully compress position. The landing gear system further includes a rotary encoder and a controller. The rotary encoder rotates in response adjusting the piston and to outputs a data value in response to its rotation. The controller is in signal communication with the rotary encoder and determines a stroke of the piston based on the data value output from the rotary encoder.

An aircraft includes a frame body that includes an attaching unit on an upper portion thereof, that is formed into a frame-shape structure, and that couples an object to a lower portion thereof, the attaching unit being configured to be capable of adjusting a position in an up-down direction of the attaching unit. A main body including a flying mechanism is positioned on an upper portion of the frame body. A control unit controls a position in the up-down direction of the attaching unit such that a flying posture of the object is controlled in accordance with a posture of the flying mechanism.

Systems and methods for mechanically rotating an aircraft about its center-of-gravity (C.sub.G) are disclosed. The system can enable the rear, or main, landing gear to squat, while the nose landing gear raises to generate a positive pitch angle for the aircraft for takeoff or landing. The system can also enable the nose gear and main gear to return to a relatively level fuselage attitude for ground operations. The system can include one or more hydraulically linked hydraulic cylinders to control the overall height of the nose gear and the main gear. Because the hydraulic cylinders are linked, a change on the length of the nose cylinder generates a proportional, and opposite, change in the length of the main cylinder, and vice-versa. A method and control system for monitoring and controlling the relative positions of the nose gear and main gear is also disclosed.

An aircraft landing gear structure includes a strut assembly and a wheel assembly operatively coupled to the strut assembly. The strut assembly includes an upper tubular housing and a lower tubular housing configured to be longitudinally translated with respect to the upper tubular housing such that the overall length of the strut assembly is transitioned between an extended configuration and a retracted configuration for stowage during flight. The wheel assembly includes a forward link pivotally coupled to the upper tubular housing and a truck beam that is pivotally coupled to the lower tubular housing such that translation of the lower tubular housing with respect to the upper tubular housing causes pivoting of the forward link and the truck beam with respect to one another, thereby tilting and/or raising a wheel of the wheel assembly with respect to the upper tubular housing.

A landing gear for a vehicle includes a strut configured for reciprocating movement between a stowed position and a deployed position. A shock absorber has a first element slidingly disposed within the strut and a second element slidingly coupled to the first element. A trailing arm is rotatably coupled to the second element. A first linkage is coupled to the first element, wherein the first linkage drives the first element between a raised position when the strut is in the stowed position and a lowered position when the strut is in the deployed position. The landing gear further includes a second linkage coupled to the trailing arm. The second linkage rotates the trailing arm between a first trailing arm position when the strut is in the stowed position and a second trailing arm position when the strut is in the deployed position.

An electrically powered STOL aircraft having dedicated motors energized to deploy movable landing gear driven to propel short takeoffs and to actively rotate downwardly to engage the runway surface as the aircraft approaches touchdown on landing. The front and rear landing gear, or both, may be powered and actuated in the landing process with braking to shorten the landing distance, each driven landing gear wheel having a dedicated electric motor and coaxial brake.

An electrically powered STOL aircraft having dedicated motors energized to deploy movable landing gear driven to propel short takeoffs and to actively rotate downwardly to engage the runway surface as the aircraft approaches touchdown on landing. The front and rear landing gear, or both, may be powered and actuated in the landing process with braking to shorten the landing distance, each driven landing gear wheel having a dedicated electric motor and coaxial brake. The landing gear modules are configured and controllable to differentially deploy downwardly so as to enable countersteering during taxi maneuvers and turns.

A landing gear for a vehicle includes a strut configured for reciprocating movement between a stowed position and a deployed position. A shock absorber has a first element slidingly disposed within the strut and a second element slidingly coupled to the first element. A trailing arm is rotatably coupled to the second element. A first linkage is coupled to the first element, wherein the first linkage drives the first element between a raised position when the strut is in the stowed position and a lowered position when the strut is in the deployed position. The landing gear further includes a second linkage coupled to the trailing arm. The second linkage rotates the trailing arm between a first trailing arm position when the strut is in the stowed position and a second trailing arm position when the strut is in the deployed position.

A base attachment module (BAM) of a small aerial vehicle (SAV) for attaching the SAV to an unprepared work surface has a surface meeting docking assembly (DA) with contact points for contacting the work surface, and a contracting suction cup (CSC) in a position surrounded by the contact points such that it extends beyond a plane (or other surface contour) of the points in a fully extended operating position, and is retracted below the plane in a retracted position. Actuation of the CSC when in contact with the surface, allows for the DA to be brought into contact with the contact points in a controlled manner, for a high stiffness attachment, as is needed for deployment of robotic tasks from a SAV.

A system for shrinking landing gear includes a shock strut having a cylinder and a piston to be received by the cylinder. The system further includes a collar coupled to a brace linkage and the piston, a torque arm configured to resist rotation between the collar and the piston, and a shrink linkage coupled between the torque arm and the cylinder. The collar rotates relative to the cylinder in response to retraction of the landing gear. Rotation of the collar rotates the piston and the torque arm relative to the cylinder. The rotation of the collar relative to the cylinder forces, via the shrink linkage, the piston towards the aircraft attachment within the cylinder.