The Boeing Company

Justin D Cottet

James E Cusworth

George Sonnenburg

Mitchell Mellor

Mark Nicholas Simpson

Mitchell Loren Ray Mellor

Michael L Drake

Leanne M Campbell

Gregory J Vering

Aaron P Knock

Michael P Huested

Gabriela K Defrancisci

Michael Allan Long

Malcolm Scott Bryant

Richard Kevin Johnson

Christopher Mark Alley

David W Foutch

David Brian Christman

David S Chambers

Michael J Meneghetti

Brett D Whitmer

Gregory M Schmidt

Roger S Kepner

Mark Lomen Sandstrom

Christopher M Newton

Christopher M Alley

James Cusworth

A wheeled support structure is presented and may include a shock absorber strut assembly comprising a wheel, a truss structure, a drag brace, and a pivot joint. The pivot joint may connect the truss structure to the drag brace. The drag brace may have an upper drag brace that may be pivotingly attached to a vehicle, and may be pivotingly attached to a lower drag brace. The lower drag brace may be pivotingly attached to the upper drag brace, and may be pivotingly attached to the truss structure. The drag brace may be configured to move between a deployed position and a stowed position. The truss structure may be configured to pivotably attach to the vehicle.

Aircraft landing gear with compression drag brace and fixed truss structure

An aircraft includes: a wing landing gear; and a body landing gear which includes a shock absorber strut assembly comprising a wheel, a fixed truss structure and an aircraft structure connection point, a drag brace, and a pivot joint that connects the fixed truss structure to the drag brace; and a body landing gear wheel well configured to store the body landing gear in a stowed position. The drag brace includes an upper drag brace, and a lower drag brace pivotingly attached to the upper drag brace. In a stowed position, the shock absorber strut assembly, the fixed strut structure, the upper drag brace and the lower drag brace may be positioned outside of a swing path of a wing landing gear of the aircraft. In the deployed position, the lower drag brace may be positioned in the swing path of the wing landing gear of the aircraft.

Aircraft landing gear with tension drag brace

A landing gear including an outer cylinder, a shock strut assembly, and a passive shrink mechanism. The outer cylinder is coupled to a frame of an aircraft about a trunnion axis of rotation. The shock strut assembly is coupled to the outer cylinder for reciprocation along a longitudinal axis of the outer cylinder. The passive shrink mechanism includes: a first shrink link member coupled to the outer cylinder, a second shrink link member coupling the first shrink link member to the shock strut assembly, a crank member coupled to the outer cylinder, a first connecting link coupling the crank member to a walking beam of a landing gear retract mechanism, and a second connecting link coupling the crank member to the first shrink link member. The passive shrink mechanism is passively extended and shortened through actuation of the landing gear retract mechanism with deployment and retraction of the landing gear.

Landing gear shrink link mechanism

A shrink mechanism for use with a landing gear of an aircraft. The landing gear includes an outer cylinder rotatably coupled to a frame of an aircraft about a trunnion axis of rotation and a shock strut assembly movably coupled to the outer cylinder so as to reciprocate along a longitudinal axis of the outer cylinder. The shrink mechanism incudes a first shrink link member pivotally coupled to the outer cylinder, a second shrink link member coupling the first shrink link member to the shock strut assembly, a crank member pivotally coupled to the outer cylinder, a drive member coupling the crank member to a walking beam of a landing gear retract mechanism, and a driven member coupling the crank member to the first shrink link member.

An aircraft tail skid energy absorption indicator including a crushable indicator cartridge disposed within the an outer shock absorber canister of the aircraft tail skid, and an indicator rod coupled to the crushable indicator cartridge so as to move with a portion of the crushable indicator cartridge as a unit, where the indicator rod extends through an aperture in a wall of the outer shock absorber canister, where the indicator rod includes at least one graduation that indicates an amount of remaining energy absorption of the aircraft tail skid energy absorption indicator.

Tail skid shock absorber and indicator

A truck assembly for aircraft landing gear is provided. The truck assembly includes a hinge connecting a truck beam to a strut of the landing gear. The hinge is configured to allow the truck beam to rotate about the hinge relative to the strut transversely with respect to the length of the truck beam to thereby pivot the truck assembly relative to the strut between a landing position and a stowing position.

Hinged truck assembly for aircraft landing gear

An aircraft landing gear structure includes a strut assembly and a wheel assembly operatively coupled to the strut assembly. The strut assembly includes an upper tubular housing and a lower tubular housing configured to be longitudinally translated with respect to the upper tubular housing such that the overall length of the strut assembly is transitioned between an extended configuration and a retracted configuration for stowage during flight. The wheel assembly includes a forward link pivotally coupled to the upper tubular housing and a truck beam that is pivotally coupled to the lower tubular housing such that translation of the lower tubular housing with respect to the upper tubular housing causes pivoting of the forward link and the truck beam with respect to one another, thereby tilting and/or raising a wheel of the wheel assembly with respect to the upper tubular housing.

Aircraft landing gear having a lever assembly, aircraft including the same, and related methods

Systems and methods for pivoting main landing gear of a cargo aircraft. One embodiment is a main landing gear of an aircraft that includes a shock strut coupled to a truck with one or more wheels, and a trunnion coupled to a bulkhead and configured to pivotally couple the shock strut with the bulkhead. The main landing gear also includes a folding brace extending from the shock strut in a forward direction toward a nose of the aircraft and configured to stabilize the shock strut. The main landing gear further includes a retraction actuator configured to pivot the shock strut about the trunnion to retract the one or more wheels in the forward direction toward the nose and up toward a fuselage of the aircraft.

Pivoting main landing gear for cargo aircraft

Systems and methods for bipedal nose landing gear of an aircraft. One embodiment is a nose landing gear of an aircraft. The nose landing gear includes a shock strut coupled to an axle with a nose wheel, and a folding side brace extending from the shock strut inboard toward a belly of the aircraft and configured to stabilize the shock strut. The nose landing gear also includes a trunnion configured to pivot the shock strut forward toward a nose and inboard toward the belly of the aircraft to retract the nose wheel.

Bipedal nose landing gear for cargo aircraft

Systems and methods for wide set retracting landing gear of a cargo aircraft. One embodiment is an aircraft that includes a fuselage including a nose, and a pair of main landing gears comprising a pair of main posts disposed across the fuselage, each main post having a main wheel and configured to pivot forward toward the nose to retract the main wheel. The aircraft also includes a pair of nose landing gears comprising a pair of nose posts disposed across the fuselage, each nose post having a nose wheel and configured to pivot inboard to retract the nose wheel.

Landing gear for cargo aircraft

Systems and methods for folding landing gear of a cargo aircraft. One embodiment is a main landing gear of an aircraft that includes a shock strut coupled to a truck with one or more wheels, and a yoke pivotally coupled with the shock strut via a lower trunnion, and pivotally coupled with an aircraft structure via an upper trunnion. The yoke is configured to pivot about the upper trunnion in a direction back toward a tail of the aircraft and up toward a fuselage of the aircraft, and the shock strut is configured to pivot about the lower trunnion in a direction forward toward a nose of the aircraft and up toward the fuselage of the aircraft to retract the one or more wheels.

Folding main landing gear for cargo aircraft

A tail skid shock absorber including an outer shock absorber canister, a crushable indicator cartridge disposed within the outer shock absorber canister, and an indicator rod coupled to the crushable indicator cartridge so as to move with a portion of the crushable indicator cartridge as a unit.

Methods of retracting a strut assembly for stowing aircraft landing gear comprise longitudinally translating an upper bulkhead within an upper tubular housing from a lower position to an upper position by pressurizing an upper bulkhead space between an upper plate of the upper bulkhead and an upper bulkhead restriction structure that is fixed to the upper tubular housing. Other methods of retracting a strut assembly for stowing aircraft landing gear comprise flowing liquid from an upper liquid chamber positioned above an upper bulkhead within an upper tubular housing to a recoil chamber, wherein during the flowing, the liquid is prevented from passing from the recoil chamber to a pressure chamber that is defined between the upper bulkhead and a lower bulkhead, thereby longitudinally translating a lower tubular housing upward.

Aircraft landing gear, aircraft, and related methods

A landing gear including a shock strut assembly including an outer cylinder coupled to an airframe, a wheel movably coupled to the outer cylinder so as to reciprocate substantially along a longitudinal axis of the outer cylinder, and a shrink mechanism including a pivot arm pivotally coupled to the shock strut assembly, a drive member coupling the pivot arm to a landing gear retract mechanism, a driven member coupled to the pivot arm, a first shrink link member coupled to the pivot arm by the driven member, and a second shrink link member coupled to the first shrink link member and to the shock strut assembly. Rotation of the pivot arm by the drive member, effects a folding movement between the first shrink link member and the second shrink link member, and the folding movement effects at least a retraction of the wheel relative to the outer cylinder.

Single axle, semi-levered landing gear with shortening mechanism

A landing gear including an outer cylinder rotatably coupled to a frame of an aircraft about a trunnion axis of rotation, a shock strut assembly movably coupled to the outer cylinder so as to reciprocate along a longitudinal axis of the outer cylinder, and a shrink mechanism including a first shrink link member pivotally coupled to the outer cylinder, a second shrink link member coupling the first shrink link member to the shock strut assembly, a crank member pivotally coupled to the outer cylinder, a drive member coupling the crank member to a walking beam (a.k.a. retract actuator beam) of a landing gear retract mechanism, and a driven member coupling the crank member to the first shrink link member.

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Snohomish, WA, United States of America

Justin D Cottet