The Boeing Company

Garrett M Billman

Patrick J O'Neil

Ahmed A Hassan

Casey Lyn Madsen

An air vehicle includes an airfoil designed for transonic flight. The airfoil has a region of supersonic flow during transonic flight. A surface of the airfoil has upstream and downstream orifices at or within the region. The air vehicle further includes an active flow control system for controlling air vehicle motion during transonic flight by controlling flow through the orifices to alter strength and location of a shock wave in the region. The system creates an aerodynamic imbalance to move the shock wave.

Active flow control for transonic flight

A forebody for an aeronautical vehicle is provided. The forebody includes an exterior wall having a first half and a second half . The first half has a first porous section and the second half has a second porous section . The first half and the second half also have a first exterior side experiencing a first fluidic pressure and a second exterior side experiencing a second fluidic pressure, respectively. A hollow inner cavity is fluidically coupled to the first exterior side and the second exterior side and allows fluid passage between the first exterior side and the second exterior side through the first porous section , the inner cavity , and the second porous section . The exterior wall equalizes the first fluidic pressure with the second fluidic pressure. Additional forebodies and methods for performing the same are also provided.

Forebody vortex alleviation device

A passive porosity management device and process for an airfoil which provides a mechanism and method for controlling and modifying the lift, drag and flow field characteristics on an airfoil through the controlled seepage and transference of air utilizing passive porosity through one or more regions of an airfoil and into, and out of, one or more plenum cavities disposed in the interior portion of the airfoil.

Growing community of inventors

Troy, MO, United States of America

Garrett M Billman