AIRCRAFT UNDERCARRIAGE WITH BRAKED AND MOTOR-DRIVEN WHEELS

Abstract

The invention relates to an aircraft undercarriage provided at its bottom end with a rocker arm (2) carrying at least two axles (4, 5), including one in front of a hinge between the rocker arm and the undercarriage and the other behind said hinge. According to the invention, one of the axles is fitted with one or more braked wheels (6) and the other axle is fitted with one or more motor-driven wheels (8).

Claims

1. An aircraft undercarriage provided at its bottom end with a rocker arm (2) carrying at least two axles (4, 5), including one in front of a hinge between the rocker arm and the undercarriage and the other behind said hinge, the undercarriage being characterized in that one of the axles is fitted with one or more braked wheels (6) and the other axle is fitted with one or more motor-driven wheels (8).

2. An undercarriage according to claim 1, wherein the braked wheels (6) are carried by the front axle (4) and the motor-driven wheels (8) are carried by the rear axle (5).

3. An undercarriage according to claim 1, including a rocking shock absorber (10) acting on the rocker arm to exert at least one of the following actions: controlling the angle between the rocker arm (2) and the leg (1) during a stage of raising the undercarriage; damping oscillatory movements of the rocker arm (2) about the pivot (3); and distributing the vertical load taken up by the wheels by exerting a controlled thrust force on the rocker arm (2).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The undercarriage of the invention shown herein has a leg 1 that is secured to the structure of the aircraft and that carries, at its bottom end, a rocker arm 2 that is hinged to the leg at a pivot 3. The rocker arm carries a front axle 4 lying in front of the pivot 3 and a rear axle 5 lying behind the pivot 3. The arrow to the left in the FIGURE indicates the usual direction of forward travel of the aircraft.

[0008] According to the invention, the front axle 4 carries two wheels 6 that are provided with brakes 7 (referred to herein as braked wheels, with only one braked wheel being visible in the FIGURE), while the rear axle 5 carries two wheels 8 that are provided with drive motors 9 (referred to herein as motor-driven wheels, with only one motor-driven wheel being visible in the FIGURE). Thus, while landing, the braked wheels 6 and the motor-driven wheels 8 touch the ground and together contribute to transmitting the weight of the aircraft to the ground. Only the braked wheels 6 contribute to slowing down the aircraft. Once the aircraft has landed on the ground, it is then possible to move the aircraft by means of the motor-driven wheels 8. The sequence for maneuvering the undercarriages is strictly identical to that of a conventional aircraft.

[0009] Since the braked wheels and the motor-driven wheels do not have the same functions, it is possible to give them different functional characteristics (diameter, size, tire inflation pressure, . . . ) in order to optimize their respective functions. Thus, in the example shown, the braked wheels 6 and their tires are greater in diameter than the motor-driven wheels 8. Likewise, the pivot 3 is not necessarily located in the middle of the rocker arm 2, but may be offset so as to cause more weight to be carried by the wheels of one or the other of the axles. Specifically, in this example, the pivot 3 is closer to the front axle 4 than to the rear axle 5, such that the braked wheels 6 are more heavily loaded than the motor-driven wheels 8.

[0010] In a particular aspect of the invention, a rocking shock absorber 10 is coupled between the leg 1 and the rocker arm 2 in order to exert at least one of the following actions: [0011] control the angle between the rocker arm 2 and the leg 1 while the undercarriage is being raised; [0012] damp oscillating movements of the rocker arm about the pivot 3; and [0013] distribute the vertical load taken up by the front and rear wheels by exerting a controlled thrust force on the rocker arm 2.

[0014] To this end, the rocking shock absorber 10 includes adjustment means that are controlled to vary its length, its stiffness, and/or its ability to absorb shocks. In particular, the shock absorber 10 is preferably controlled so as to apply a force on the rocker arm 2 that tends to press the motor-driven wheels 8 against the ground while their motors are being operated to cause the aircraft to advance, thereby having the effect of increasing the load on said wheels and thus increasing their effectiveness in driving the aircraft. In addition, such a force can assist the aircraft in taking off by artificially lengthening the leg by pivoting the rocker arm once the braked wheels leave the ground. The invention is not limited to the above description, but on the contrary covers any variant coming within the ambit defined by the claims. In particular, although each axle in this example carries two wheels, the invention may be applied to an undercarriage in which each axle carries only one wheel, or on the contrary carries more than two wheels, providing each axle carries wheels of only one type (braked wheels or motor-driven wheels).

[0015] In addition, although the distribution of load on the wheels of the front axle and the wheels of the rear axle can be modified by controlling the rocking shock absorber so that it exerts a force on the rocker arm, it is possible to use other means for distributing load, such as for example making provision for the pivot 3 of the rocker arm 2 to move longitudinally.