US1299395A - Flying-machine. - Google Patents

Description

H. H. CLAYTON.-

FLYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2l. l9l0. RENIIWED 00T'. 17.1918. f

' Patented Apr. 1,1919.

A 2 SHEETs-SHEx-:T1-

H. H. CLAYTON.

y FLYING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED 58.21.1910. RENEWED OCT. 17.1918. 1,299,395.

Patented Apr. 14,1919.`

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 W w e Z m, c m

HENRY HELM CLAYTON, OF CNTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

FLYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 1, 1919.

Application led February 21, 1910, Serial No. 545,113. Renewed October 17, 1916. Serial 11o. 258,617.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that`I, HENRY HELM Gnar- ToN, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Canton, in the county of- Norfolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Flying-Machines, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, .is a specification, like letters on the drawmgs representing like parts.

My invention relates to that class of machines maintained-in the air by the pressure of the air against supporting surfaces when the machine is driven through the air by gravity, or by motor-driven propellers, or is held against a stream of air by a retaining cord as a kite, but my invention has its greatest field of usefulness in its application to flying machines. It is understood that a machine driven through the air induces the same eect as an air current moving in the opposite direction, and this effect is referred to inwhat follows as that of an air current, irrespective of which way it is produced.

The object of my invention is to provide means for maintaining or restoring the equilibrium,both longitudinal and lateral, of the apparatus, and to provide means for guiding the machine both vertically and horizontally through the air. This purpose is accomplished in my invention b introducing resisting or retarding sur aces on different sides of a center of pressure of the supporting surface or the center of the apparatus, and can be made more effective by 4suitably varying the amount of the resisting surface or varying its distance from the center of pressure above mentioned. I contemplate various means and arrangements of accomplishing the end sought, but the invention may be broadly stated as consisting of providing a stop-plane or planes or resisting surface or surfaces atthe side of the axis passing through'the center of pressure in the direction of'movement of the machine, whereby the machine is retarded at whatever point said stop device is rendered effective, said retardation being in proportionto the extent to which said stop device is rendered effective, i. e. the extent or area of the effective opposing surface exposed in direct opposition to the air current. These stop planes are located here and there in proper positions out of the line, i. e. at one side of theline, passing through the center of air pressure in the direction of ,to one form of aeroplane;

movement of the machine, so that by varying the exposed area (the area which opposes a stop to the air current) of one or more of the stop planes at various points, the machine may be controlled absolutely by the principle of retardation, as distinguished from the rudder principle, all as will be fully apparent from the following description.

In the drawings, a

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of my invention applied further modification.

Before entering upon a more detailed description of the apparatus in its preferred embodiment, the principle involved inrmy invention will be best understoodv by reference first to the diagrammatic view, Fig. 2. Let 1 represent a vertical cross-sectional or rear edge view of anaeroplane, gliding machine, or kite of the kind having superposed surfaces 2, 3 one above the other, in the form of a rectangle (such for instance as shown in my Patent No. 605,596 of June 14, 1898), in which P indicates the center of pressure on the supporting surfaces and W the center of gravity. At the corners are fiat surfaces 4, 5, 6, 7, of any desired outline, arranged to turn or be turned on or with their axes 8. If now the surfaces' 6, 7 be turned cdgewise to the air current, c', e. to the forward motion of the machine, while the surfaces 4 and 5 are placed at right angles to the air current passing through the machine, there will be an unbalanced pressure above the point P and the machine will consequently tend to tip upward because of the of the machine ywill be retarded and the machine will turn toward that side. From the above it follows that, if a side gust of `wind should strike the machine while in the air, tending to tip it over by turning it about P as an axis, this effect could be counteracted by the proper manipulation of the surfaces 4, 7 and 5, 6. If a side gust of wind should tend to lift one side, the right side, for instance, of the machine, and at the same time retard its motion so that the machine tended to turn toward said right side while at the Same time that side tipped upward, this effect could be counteracted by turning the surfaces 4, 5 and 7 edgewise to the air current and turning the surface 6 at right angles to the current. The resistance of 6 acting in conjunction with the weight W below7 the center of pressure would quickly restore the equilibrium. From the foregoing, it will be evident that a flying machine moving through the air can be directed, controlled, and maintained in 'equilibrium by the manipulation of the surfaces 4, 5, 6 and 7, provided they be'of sufcient size or at a sufficient distance from the center of pressure P,

because. moving the resisting surfaces farther from P increases their effectiveness the same as by increasing their size. Hence it would be possible to produce all the effects described above by keeping the surfaces at right angles (instead of turning them as above mentioned) to the air current and moving them nearer to or farther from P as needed, provided the motion is at right angles to the motion of the machine. Moving them in toward P corresponds to turning them edgewise to the current, and moving them farther away from P corresponds toturning them at right angles to the air current in the foregoing description.

Referring now more particularly .to the embodiments of my invention herein shown, in order to meetl all conditions, if the resisting surfaces remain fixed in position, it is l desirable to have them arranged in such a Way as to exert a variable amount of resistance to forward motion or to the air currents passing through the machine. The preferred construction 1s shown in Fig. 1. In

this figure, a front cell 9, which may be of any usual or preferred kind known in this art, preferably having a curved upper surface 10 and curved lower surface 11 and plane end surfaces 12, is shown connected by suitable truss-work and connectors 13, 14 to a rear balancing or steadying cell 15. At a convenient place, preferablyadjacent the rear portion of the front cell or ying cell 9, I mount transverse surfaces 16, 17, 18, and 19, herein shown in the form of curtains normally rolled on vertically extending rods 20, belng retracted by springs 21 and dra wn out toward the center of the machine in a transverse plane by any suitable means, as by cords 22, 23, 24, 25, which pass over guide pulleys or any other suitable guiding means and are operated by levers 27, 28, 29, 30 respectively. Preferably the levers 27, 29 for operating the surfaces 16, 18 at the left hand are mounted at the left hand side of the operators seat 31, and the levers 28, 30 which operate respectively the upper and lower surfaces 17 and 19 at the right hand of the? machine, as viewed in Fig. 1, are mounted at the right hand side of the operator, it being understood that the member 31 represents the usual machinery, etc., contained in this kind of apparatus for accommodating the operator and enabling him to manage the machine, which may be propelled by any suitable means, as by a rotary propeller, a portion of which is visible at 32. y I have herein purposely omitted most of the details of the machine in general, the same being common and well known in the art. It is evident that by pulling on any one of the cords or actuators 22-25, its curtain will be caused thereby to offer a larger resisting surface at that side or corner of the aeroplane, this resistance or resisting area of the surface being capable of the most exact regulation and under the immediate and exact control of the operator. The upper curtains 16, 17 act on the current of air above lthe cell 9, Whereas the curtains 1S and 19 are shown as acting upon the current of air which passes below said cell, although I wish it understood that the preferred location need not always obtain. For instance, I have shown in Fig. 5 the resisting surface as provided above and below the cell about midway from the front to the rear, while in Fig. 6 said surfaces are shown in the same relative position on the rear cell.

In Fig. 5, I have shown another embodiment of my invention, in which rectangular resisting surfaces or keels 33, 34, 35, 36 are pivoted on posts 37, 38 and operated by cords 39, 40, 41, 42, a further arrangement being shown midway between these members where curtains or resisting surfaces 43,

44 operated by cords 45, 46 and preferably made of slats, like the roll portion of a roll top desk, are mounted to be pulled over the front edges 47, 48 of the ends of the cell, being retracted by springs 49. Preferably when thus constructed the resisting surfaces 43, 44 will be mounted soas to operate adjacent the upper corners of the cell. I-n Fig. 6, rectangular resisting surfaces 50, 51 are pivoted on posts to be operated by cords 53, and in Fig. 7 I have shown similar resisting surfaces 54, 55 mounted on transversely extending horizontal posts or axes 56, 57 operated by cords 58, 59. From the preceding description, it

`is believed the operation of these various 36, Fig. 5, by pulling on the cords 39, 42, the machine will be directed upward, then freeing these cords and pulling on the cords 40, 41, the machine can be directed downward. y pulling on the cords 39,40 or 41, 42, the machine can be directed 4to the right sideor the left side horizontally. If the lateral equilibrium is upset by side gust of wind, it can be restored by pulling on the cords 40, 41, singly or combined, or pulling oii the cords 39, 42, singly or combined, as the case may be. v

The action of these resisting surfaces should not be confused with that of a rudder, which acts on a different principle. A rudder is usually placed directly in"l front of, or in the rear of, the center of pressure P of the supporting surfaces, the front and rear being considered along the line of motion of the machine. For example, in the diagrams shown in Figs. 3 and 4, let Gi represent side views of an aeroplane provided With a horizontal rudder 61 and a vertical rdder 62, 2'. c. the former arranged t'o revolve" around a horizontal axis 63 and the latter around a vertical axis 64. In Fig. 3 both rudders are set edgewise to the direction of the air current, while in Fig. 4 they are both turned at an angle tothe air current, so that the air, impinging against 61, is deflected downward (as indicated by the arrows) and hence, by reaction,.forces the rudder, and with it the machine, in a direction to produce a turning movement, the rudder 61 forcing the machine upward, while therudder 62, by the same reaction of the air current, acts to turn the machine horizontally to the right or to the left accordin F 4to the inclination of the rudder.

That t is does not involve the principle of the resisting surfaces of my invention, will be evident'when it is considered that the projected area of the rudder 61, Fig. 4, viewed from the direction toward which the machine is moving, is-equally distributed vabout'the point P, which therefore would be in the center of the projected area of 61, supposing the latter to be a perfect rudder. To make the rudder act as a resisting" surface instead of a rudder and cease to function as a rudder, it would have to beturned at right angles to the air current, but, be-

ing in the position shown to constitute a perfect rudder, it would then, even though turned at right angles to the air current, fail to have any operative effect for directing the machine and would operate simply to retard the machine. In other words, when in the position where it best func# tions as a rudder, that is. directly in front of P, its resistance, when turned at right 'angles to the air current, would act merely to retard the motion of the machine, without controlling or directing` it. As soon, however, as a plane is placed at any of the points Where I have shown my resisting surfaces as being mounted,and then turned on its axis as in Figs. 5-7, said plane becomes at once a resisting surface, and when turned at an angle to the air current, whether to the right or to the left, or whether up or down, it acts as a resisting surface to turn the machine toward it. In the case of the pivoted resisting surfaces, I prefer, whenever it is desired to operate them in pairs, that they should turn at their rear ends away from each other. It is sufficient also to have them operated simply by a cord at one end, the function of the cord being merely to withstand the resistance or direct air pressure on the plane, being entirely different in this respect from that of a rudder. it is desirable to place a rudder away from a line drawn through P in the direction of the motion of the machine (as in the Wright machine), it is necessary to put an equivalent rudder on the opposite side of the machine so as to balance the resistance of the two, which then become vequivalent to a single rudder located as in Figs. 3 and 4.

As' already stated, all that is necessary, viewing mfy invention from its generic standpoints, is so to place the independent planes or resistance surfaces, that they may become effective on various sides of a line drawn through P in the direction of motion of the machine through the air, but it is preferable that they be placed behind P, because, in that position, air deflected by the resisting surfaces and escaping outward from the supporting surfaces would aid by its reaction in the control of the machine. I have stated. that, to obviate the duplicate rudder effect, the resisting surfaces are preferably turned in opposite directions on the two sides of the machine, but it will be understood that I do not limit my invention to this means of overcoming said rudder effect. Also, while I have shown various kinds of resisting surfaces, and have shown the pivoted planes as mounted on vertical aXes and horizontal axes, it will be understood that the main purpose is to provide an opposing surface or air-stop device at a point outside ofthe. line passing through P in the direction of the movement of the machine, irrespective of the direction of the axis around which the plane turns, provided said axis does not lie parallel to the line of motion of the machine.

It will also be understood that this prin ciple of controlling an aeroplane is not confined to biplanes or multiplanes, but is equally applicable to monoplanes, and in or der to make this clear, I have illustrated in Fig. 8 my invention applied to a typical monoplane. In said figure I have indicated a Santos-Dumont monoplane having supporting surfaces 65 guyed to a trussed rec- For instance, wheneverV iso tangular framework 66 provided with vertically pivoted resisting surfaces 67, 68, 69, 70 according to my invention, which act in the same manner as described above for a biplane.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: f

l. Ina flying apparatus, the combination of a main supporting surface with relatively small stabilizing retarding surfaces located on opposite sides of the center of the apparatus and adjustable relative to said center, said retarding surfaces being maintained substantially normal to the line of flight, and means for adjusting one of said surfaces to produce a different retardation from another.

2. In a flying apparatus, the combination of a main supporting surface with relatively small stabilizing retarding surfaces located on opposite sides of the center of the apparatus, said retarding surfaces being maintained substantially normal to the line of flight, and means for varying the area of one of said surfaces to produce a different retardation from another.

3. In a flying apparatus, the combination of a main supporting surface with relatively small stabilizing retarding surfaces located on opposite sides of the center of the ap- .paratus 'and`adjustable relatively to said center, said retarding surfacesbeing maintained substantially normal to the line of flight, and means for adjusting one to produce a 'different retardation from another,

said plane and adjustable relatively to said center, said retarding surfaces having fixed angular relationship to the line of flight, and means for adjusting one to produce a different retardation from another.

5. In a flying machine, a plurality of superposed supporting surfaces, and a plurality of resisting surfaces maintained substantially normal to the line of flight, at least one of which is located adjacent the upper supporting surface at one side of a line passing through the center of pressure in the direction of movement of the machine, at least another of which is located adjacent the lower supporting plane on the same side of said line, at least another thereof being located adjacent the upper supporting surface at the opposite side of said line, and atleast another thereof being located adjacent the lower supporting surface also at the opposite side of said line.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.`

HENRY HELM CLAYTON. Witnesses:

M. J. SPALDING,

vWM. J. PIKE.

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