METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR INHIBITING FORMATION OF AND/OR REMOVING ICE FROM AIRCRAFT COMPONENTS

摘要

Methods and systems are generally described that inhibit debris (such as ice) accretions and/or remove debris (such as ice) accretions from the exterior surface of an aircraft. In some embodiments, the invention is a system (100) for an aircraft comprising: a component (120) of the aircraft having a surface; a plurality of piezo-kinetic actuators (114, 116, 118) each positioned proximate to a portion of the surface; and a control unit (102) coupled to the plurality of actuators, the control unit configured to actuate one or more of the actuators at one or more frequencies between about 1 Hz and about 1 kHz; wherein the actuators are each configured to introduce a displacement of the surface in three dimensions to inhibit a formation of ice on at least the portion of the surface and to break up existing ice formations on at least the portion of the surface.