The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 10, 1998
Filed:
Oct. 13, 1995
Duane Lowell Jensen, Byron, CA (US);
Lockheed Missiles & Space Co., Inc., Sunnyvale, CA (US);
Abstract
The invention discloses a method for fabricating a deployable, inflatable aerodynamic control structure for aerospace vehicles which has a desired noncircular or noncylindrical cross-section. In a preferred embodiment, the control structure is configured as an inflatable airfoil and includes a flexible skin and a plurality of internally disposed airfoil-shaped bulkheads or integral rib members that are arranged, spaced apart, in cross-wise fashion along the axial length of the airfoil shaped control structure. The flexible skin is fabricated as a lay up, in ordered sequence, of plural layers of elastomeric rubber material and plural ply layers of resin-impregnated yarns or fabric. The result is a fiber-reinforced pressure membrane that is flexible and compactly foldable. Rib-to-skin cloth attachments are provided to secure the airfoil-shaped integral rib members to the flexible skin whereby one end of each rib-to-skin cloth attachment penetrates the flexible skin being cured in place between elastomeric layers of the filament-reinforced pressure membrane to provide a seamless airtight sealed connection. The number and spacing of the integral rib members determine the amount of deviation from a perfect airfoil structure that is allowed, since the flexible skin will have a tendency to bulge outwardly at regions between adjacent airfoil-shaped integral rib members.