Aerodynamic sealing member for aircraft

摘要

A sealing member for forming a seal in an aircraft, the sealing member comprising: a sealing material; and a stiffening element which provides structural support to the sealing material and comprises a material with a glass transition temperature below +50° C. The stiffening element is relatively flexible when the aircraft is at low altitude (high temperature) but becomes relatively stiff (increasing resistance to seal flutter) when the aircraft is at cruise altitude (low temperature).

主权项

1. An aircraft comprising first and second components; and a sealing member forming an aerodynamic seal between the first and the second components and is exposed to a flow of air over the aircraft during flight, the sealing member comprising:
a sealing material; and a stiffening element which provides structural support to the sealing material and which will stiffen to a greater degree than the sealing material in response to a decrease in temperature when the aircraft climbs from ground level to cruise altitude, wherein the sealing member is secured to the first component and the sealing material is compressed against the second component to form the aerodynamic seal between the components, wherein the stiffening element forms an external aerodynamic surface of the aerodynamic seal.