Patent Application
20060097111
This invention relates to aircraft design, and, more specifically, to rain removal and de-icing methods and systems for aircraft windshields.
A limiting factor in producing an aerodynamic forward fuselage is the planar cockpit windshield. The current window technology includes laminated windows that cannot be shaped with optimal aerodynamic curvature. The current glass ply laminates are planar and include windshield wipers for rain removal and integral heating plies for ice removal. The windshield wipers further reduce the aerodynamic efficiency of the forward fuselage.
Injection molded polycarbonate windshields can be shaped to enable the aerodynamic reshaping of the forward fuselage. This reshaping results in drag reduction unachievable with current glass-laminated flat windows. Injection molded aerodynamically shaped windshields include double curved surfaces that are not ideally shaped to accommodate typical windshield wipers that rely on a planar surface for intimate contact. Additionally, the very nature of reshaping the forward fuselage is to reduce drag. Windshield wipers disrupt clean airflow over the nose and induce drag and noise. Also, the injection-molded windshields are monolithic and do not include built-in laminated heating plies, therefore, they do not have ice removal capability that the current laminated glass windshields possess.
Therefore, there exists a need for aerodynamically-shaped fuselages with rain removal and de-icing capabilities that don't hinder aerodynamic properties.
The present invention provides systems and methods for providing rain and ice removal on a windshield. The system may be implemented on a vehicle, such as an aircraft. In one embodiment, a system includes one or more injection molded windshields and a frame coupled to the one or more injection-molded windshields and to the vehicle. The frame includes a channel that directs at least one of air or fluid onto an exterior surface of the one or more windshields.
In accordance with further aspects of the invention, the frame includes one or more one-way check valves.
In accordance with other aspects of the invention, a fluid pump is provided for pumping fluid through the channel and onto the one or more windshields.
In accordance with still further aspects of the invention, a reservoir is provided for storing de-icing fluid that is retrieved by the fluid pump.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, air sources are provided for pumping air through the channel and onto the one or more windshields.
In accordance with still another aspect of the invention, a controlling device is provided for controlling one or more of the fluid pump or the one or more air sources.
Preferred and alternate embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings.
The present invention relates to advanced forward fuselage construction. Many specific details of certain embodiments of the invention are set forth in the following description and in
As shown in
As further shown in
The pump 32 retrieves de-icing fluid stored in the de-ice fluid reservoir 38 and pumps it through the flow devices 26, the check valves 28, and the plenums 24 and onto the windshield 20. The heated air source 34 transmits high pressure heated air through the flow devices 26, the check valves 28, the plenums 24 and onto the windshield 20. The ambient air source 36 transmits unheated, high pressure air through the flow devices 26, the check valves 28, the plenums 24 and onto the windshield 20. Hot air generation can be from various sources, such as passive Vortex tubes, ducted engine bleed air, or active in-line electric heating elements, such as HOTWATT Air Process Heaters. In one embodiment, air flow velocity may be approx 40,000 feet per minute (FPM).
As shown in
In another embodiment, the frame 22 receives a single flow device 26. The single flow device 26 supplies received high pressure air from the sources 34 or 36 or de-icing fluid from the pump 32 onto the windshield 20 through a single plenum 24. The single plenum 24 runs along the frame 22 below most or all of the bottom edge of the windshield 20.
The controller 40 is in signal communication with the supply pump 32, the heated air source 34, and the ambient air source 36 for controlling operation of each of those devices. The controller 40 might include a de-icing switch or a rain removal switch in the cockpit. The controller 40 may also include sensors for sensing when a condition exists that would require rain or ice removal, and a switch component for automatically controlling the supply pump 32, the heated air source 34, and the ambient air source 36 based on output of the sensors.
Those skilled in the art will also readily recognize that the foregoing embodiments may be incorporated into a wide variety of different systems. Referring now in particular to
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The aircraft 300 shown in
While preferred and alternate embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the plenum 24 may be located around the windshield 20 along any of the edges of the frame 22 in order to supply high pressure air or de-icing fluid onto the surface of the windshield 20. Furthermore, a single flow device 26 may be used to provide flow to a plurality of plenums 24, or a plurality of flow devices 26 may be used to provide flow to a single plenum 24. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of these preferred and alternate embodiments. Instead, the invention should be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow.
