The Boeing Company

Robert D Gregg, Iii

John Charles Vassberg

Aaron Jonathan Kutzmann

Arvin Shmilovich

Yoram Yadlin

Roger W Clark

David J Manley

Max Urban Kismarton

Neal A Harrison

Allan J Cameron

David M Pitera

James Long-Lerno

A rowing oar is described. The rowing oar can have a plurality of flow disrupters arranged on a shaft of the oar. In one embodiment, the flow disrupters can be circular bumps arranged in lines along the shaft of the oar. The flow disrupters can cause the air flow over the oar to be more turbulent so that the flow separation on a backside of the oar is reduced. The reduction in flow separation can reduce aerodynamic drag on the oar when it travels through the air. Thus, a rower can expend less energy during rowing using the oar.

Aerodynamic rowing oars

Apparatus and methods provide for a swept-wing powered-lift aircraft. Aspects of the disclosure provide a powered-lift aircraft that utilizes the engine exhaust flow over upper surface blown flaps to increase lift during various flight operations. The powered-lift aircraft has wings with inboard portions and outboard portions. The adjacent inboard and outboard portions share a swept leading edge. The leading edge is swept to a degree that shifts the outboard portion rearward to a position in which the aircraft center of lift has little to no variance upon the activation or deactivation of a powered-lift system.

Swept-wing powered-lift aircraft

A propulsion system for an aircraft includes an airfoil, an engine having an engine cowling carried by the airfoil and configured to produce exhaust gases that are predominantly directed toward an aft end of the airfoil by the engine cowling as engine exhaust, a propulsion flap carried by the airfoil and disposed aft of the engine cowling and a plurality of exhaust ejection orifices provided in the propulsion flap and adapted to receive at least a portion of the exhaust gases from the engine cowling.

Propulsion system and method for efficient lift generation

Lift produced by an airfoil of an aircraft is increased by suppressing fluid detachment from the surface of the airfoil. An engine cowling extends outwardly from the surface of the airfoil that has an exit plane configured for directing exhaust gases toward a rear of the aircraft. Fences extending outwardly from the surface and proximate to the exit plane of the engine cowling are configured to guide the exhaust gases along at least a portion of the airfoil surface, thereby restricting spanwise movement of the gases and increasing the Coanda Effect exhibited by the gases, thereby increasing the amount of lift produced along the surface of the airfoil. Such techniques may be used in short take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft.

Method and apparatus for enhancing engine-powered lift in an aircraft

Coanda Effect and lift produced along a surface of an airfoil are increased by ducting compressed fluid from the engine to the surface of the airfoil. An engine produces exhaust gases that are predominantly directed toward an aft end of the aircraft by a cowling or other structure as an exhaust plume. One or more internal ducts extend from the engine to the surface of the airfoil to thereby transmit a compressed fluid from the engine to the surface in order to suppress flow separation along the surface, thereby causing the engine exhaust flow to remain attached to the surface over a wider span. Such structures and techniques may find particular use in aircraft designed to exploit upper surface blowing (USB) techniques and structures for short takeoff and landing (STOL) performance.

Systems and methods for control of engine exhaust flow

Cargo aircraft

A mobile platform lift increasing system includes at least one wing-shaped structure having a leading edge, a trailing edge and a chord length perpendicularly measurable between the leading and trailing edges. A rotatable control surface is located near a trailing edge undersurface. The control surface length is approximately one to five percent of the chord length. A deployment device is positioned between the wing shaped structure and the control surface. The deployment device operably rotates the control surface through a plurality of positions ranging between an initial position and a fully deployed position. Wing lift is increased at speeds up to approximately transonic speed by continuously rotating the control surface to accommodate variables including mobile platform weight change from fuel usage.

Variable trailing edge geometry and spanload control

A method for forming a transonic wing that segregates a baseline transonic wing into a plurality of airfoil segments that are collectively modified an optimized so as to tailor a spanwise variation of the baseline transonic wing in a manner that includes the optimized airfoil segments. An improved wing is also provided.

Growing community of inventors

Fullerton, CA, United States of America

Robert D Gregg, Iii