Whether an internal defect is present in an inspection target is readily judged. Provided is an inspection method for an inspection target that is a layered structure including an FRP material and/or a structure made of resin, the method including the steps of: tapping, with a tapping tool, an inspection target area on a surface of the inspection target; detecting, by an accelerometer mounted to the tapping tool, an acceleration signal corresponding to acceleration of the tapping tool due to reaction force against the tapping; recording waveform data about the detected acceleration signal; creating a contour map corresponding to the inspection target area, based on the recorded waveform data; displaying the contour map on a display unit; and judging whether an internal defect is present in the inspection target, based on the contour map displayed on the display unit.

A disc-type vertical take-off and landing aircraft includes the following. A skirt widens toward the bottom. A disc-shaped rotor is positioned on a lower side of the skirt and rotates with relation to the skirt. A plurality of blades are provided standing on an upper surface of the rotor and are positioned radially from a center of the rotor. A cutout is formed in each of the plurality of blades. When the rotor rotates, centrifugal force causes an airflow along the blade rotating with the rotor, the airflow swirls in a spiral by a flow of air flowing over the cutout of the blade in a direction substantially orthogonal to the blade, the airflow flows in a radial direction of the rotor along the blade while swirling in the spiral, and the airflow ejected downward by the skirt causes ascending.

The invention describes a Vacuum Shell Airfoil which includes: (1) a circular shell, and (2) multiple fins where each of the multiple fins includes a bottom, a top, a front, a back, a first side and a second side wherein at least a portion of the bottom of each of the multiple fins is attached to the circular shell. The Vacuum Shell Airfoil can also include: a stabilization ring positioned above the circular shell where at least a portion of at least two fins are attached to the stabilization ring, a stabilization ring that is positioned above the circular shell where at least a portion of each of the multiple fins is attached to the stabilization ring, multiple fins which are radially positioned along the circular shell, which may further include a cylindrical guard rail positioned around the Vacuum Shell Airfoil. The circular shell of the Vacuum Shell Airfoil may be constructed of carbon fiber and the multiple fins may also be constructed of carbon fibers. The Vacuum Shell Airfoil can be used to more efficiently produce the lift that is necessary to propel and suspend aircraft such as Vertical Take Off and Land (VTOL) aerospace vehicles.

The present disclosure relates to a flying vehicle comprising an annular hollow outer body having an outer circumferential open portion and an inner circumferential open portion; a blade system disposed in the outer body and configured to allow air flow from the outer circumferential open portion to the inner circumferential open portion; a first magnetic system configured to enable the blade system to be kept to have a clearance with the annular hollow outer body and to be kept in a floated state using a first magnetic force; a second magnetic system configured to allow the blade system to rotate using a second magnetic force; and a steering system configured to allow air discharged from the inner circumferential open portion via the blade system to flow upwardly or downwardly.

This disclosure describes a configuration of an aerial vehicle, such as an unmanned aerial vehicle, in which one or more of the propellers are positioned within a duct that includes an active airflow channel within the interior of the duct. The active airflow channel actively moves within the duct so that it remains aligned with the tips of the blades of the propeller within the duct. As the propeller and the active airflow channel rotate, at least some of the airflow structures (e.g., vortices) shed from the blades of the propeller are collected by the active airflow channel and channeled away from the propeller so that a following blade of the propeller does not pass through the collected airflow structures.

A rotary aircraft includes a cylindrical enclosure configured to form an open housing with a top opening and a bottom opening; a hover disc disposed within the open housing of the cylindrical enclosure and configured to direct airflow entering through the top opening, the hover disc forming a center opening; and a fan extending through the center opening of the hover disc and configured to direct airflow through the hover disc.

A vehicle includes a propulsion system using one or more impellers as opposed to propellers. The impellers impart circumferential and radial velocity components to the working fluid, which may be air or water. The air is deflected by counter-vortex chambers in a shroud to convert the circumferential and radial velocity to an axial velocity aligned with the axis of rotation of the impeller.

A ring-shaped airfoil aircraft capable of taking off and landing vertically, and hovering, comprising: a fuselage, a cockpit; a passenger cabin, a power bay, a tapered tail rudder, a ring-shaped airfoil; a flight controller. The ring-shaped airfoil aircraft has the flying abilities for vertical takeoff and landing and hovering at a fixed altitude of multiaxial rotary wing powered aircraft, but compared with multiaxial rotary wing powered aircraft, its flight attitude is hardly in by air side flow, the flight attitude is more reliable. In addition, it can implement the airspeed of fixed wing ducted aircraft, and the flight energy consumption is much less than the existing fixed wing ducted aircraft, and its takeoff and landing are free of runways. The ring-shaped airfoil aircraft can obtain the lift for aircraft, reduce the drag to aircraft and enhance its flight safety performance.

The invention relates to an aircraft (1). Said aircraft (1) is characterized by a wing (2) which, viewed in section, is delimited on one side by a first profiled surface (4), which is at the bottom when the aircraft (1) is operated as intended, and on the other side by an upper second profiled surface (5), which merges at an aerofoil transition point (6) with the first profiled surface (4), wherein the first profiled surface (4) surrounds at least one air inlet opening (7), and the second profiled surface (5) surrounds at least one air outlet opening (8), and the aircraft (1) comprises a drive apparatus (12) with an air delivery apparatus (1), which is provided and designed for sucking air through the at least one air inlet opening (7) and for discharging the intake air through the at least one air outlet opening (8), wherein the at least one air outlet opening (8) is overlapped at least in part by a deflecting element (15) which, together with the second profiled surface (5), delimits an air outlet gap (16) which is flow-connected to the air outlet opening (8). The invention also relates to a method for operating an aircraft (1).

An unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention may comprise: a rotor-blade for providing thrust according to generation of main stream; and a safety guard disposed to surround the rotor-blade. The safety guard may comprise: a guide member which is disposed coaxially with the rotor-blade while having a gap between the guard member and the end of the rotor-blade, so as to stabilize, when the rotor-blade rotates, a flow field suctioned by a negative pressure, and stably boost a discharge flow when the pressure is changed to a positive pressure; and a diffuser which is disposed coaxially with and radially spaced apart from the guide member, and generates a secondary flow toward the main stream to increase a flow rate.