Propellers and propeller related vehicles
US7178758B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 10, 2004 |
| Grant date | Feb 20, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 26, 2025 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB64C27/52
- WIPO fieldTransport
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A propeller related vehicle in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention is described as a helicopter having an airframe housing a motor mechanism for powering a main propeller attached to a main drive shaft that extends vertically through the airframe and for powering a tail rotor. The helicopter further includes a horizontal stabilizing mechanism attached between the main propeller and the main drive shaft, which permits the main propeller to freely pivot about the main drive shaft independently from the airframe. As such when the main propeller is rotating and the main propeller begins to pitch, the rotating main propeller has a centrifugal force created by the rotation thereof and will tend to pivot about the horizontal stabilizing mechanism in a manner that offsets the pitch such that the helicopter remains in a substantially horizontal position. In addition various main propeller configurations may be employed that provide additional self-stabilization.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.