Flight Control Augmentation System And Method For High Aspect Ratio Aircraft Including Motorglider Aircraft, Optionally Piloted Vehicles (OPVs) and Unpiloted Air Vehicles (UAVs)

摘要

A control augmentation system for high aspect ratio aircraft has aileron/flaperon and throttle position sensors; spoiler and flap controls; a mode switch with manual, and landing modes; and a controller driving left and right spoiler and flap servos, the controller including at least one processor with memory containing firmware configured to: when the mode switch is in manual mode, drive both spoiler servos to a symmetrical position according to the spoiler control; when the mode switch is in landing mode, drive the left spoiler to a position dependent on aileron and throttle position, and the right spoiler to a position dependent on aileron and throttle position, the left and right spoiler positions differing whenever ailerons are not centered, and an average of spoiler positions is more fully deployed when the throttle position is at a low-power setting than when the throttle position is at a high-power setting.

主权项

1. A control augmentation system adapted for use in high aspect ratio aircraft comprising:
left spoiler, right spoiler, and flap or flaperon, servo drivers; aileron and throttle position sensors; a spoiler control input and a flap control input; a mode switch having at least a manual mode and an auto-landing mode; a controller coupled to control the spoiler and flap servo drivers, the controller coupled to the aileron and throttle position sensors and the mode switch, and comprising at least one processor having a memory, the memory containing firmware comprising machine readable instructions configured to:
read the mode switch;when the mode switch is in the manual mode, sense a position of a spoiler control through the spoiler control input and configure the left and right spoiler servo drivers to drive both left and right spoilers to a symmetrical position determined by the spoiler control;when the mode switch is in the auto-landing mode, configure the spoiler drivers to drive the left spoiler servo to a left spoiler position dependent on aileron and throttle position, and the right spoiler servo to a right spoiler position dependent on aileron and throttle position, the left and right spoiler positions differing whenever the aileron position is not centered, and an average of the spoiler positions being more fully deployed when the throttle position is at a low-power setting than when the throttle position is at a high-power setting.