US1316280A - Glenn h - Google Patents

Description

G. H. CURTISS.

FOLDING WING AIRPLANE.

APPLICATION FILED NDV. 8. I918.

1,316,280. PatentedSept. 16,1919.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GLENN H. GURTISS, OF GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO CURTISS ENGINEERING CORPORATION, OF GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

FOLDING-WING AIRPLANE.

Application filed November 8, 1918.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GLENN H. CURTISs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Garden City, in the county of Nassau and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding-Wing Airplanes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to airplanes and more particularly to airplanes of the folding wing type.

Airplanes of the folding wing type are broadly old. Patent No. 1,223,317 issued to me April 7th, 1917, may be cited by way of example. This patent, like a number of other patents, discloses the idea of folding wings backwardly substantially in the plane of the fuselage or body. Such an arrangement, while advantageous from one point of view, is more or less objectionable in that interference between either the wings or the ailerons and the enipennage of the craft is bound to exist. This interference is especially objectionable where the ailerons, mounted at the wing tips, are of the trailing edge type, i. 6., a type in which the ailerons continue the wings rearwardly to an edge. For this reason more than any other, the vast majority of airplanes now in use are provided with fixed or non-foldable wings.

The machine of the present invention unlike existing machines, is provided with wings which fold forwardly. Such an arrangement is of particular applicability to small machines wherein the stagger of the wings and the size of the tail surfaces (empennage) and their proximity to the wings is such that the wings cannot be folded back close to the body without interference between it (the body) and either the ailerons or the wings. WVhen forwardly folded, the ailerons, carried by the wings, will extend outwardly or away from the body rather than inwardly and toward it as heretofore. Moreover, the relative arrangement of the wing posts and the span or spread of both the tail surfaces and the supporting sur faces as well as the distance between the supporting surfaces and the tail surfaces are immaterial. When folded forwardly the arrangement of the wings is such that the empennage occupies a position remote from the wings while the propeller or propellers (assuming that the machine is of the tractor type) occupy the space between the folded Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 16, 1919.

Serial N0. 261,594.

wings. The wings, when folded, should preferably occupy positions substantially parallel with the fore and aft axis of the craft. Other advantages will be hereinafter disclosed. The invention per 86, however, is pointed out in the claims.

Of the drawings, wherein like characters of reference designate like or corresponding parts,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a biplane airplane, the dotted lines indicating the positions which the wings occupy when folded, and

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1, the dotted lines again indicating the folded position of the Wings.

A folding wing airplane is advantageous in that it may be housed in a very small space when not used, may be rendered ready for use quickly and with little trouble, and when in use may be, upon landing, rendered almost instantly storm proof by the substantial reduction in the lifting efliciency of its wings. If used in connection with a hydro machine, the wings may be folded and the machine operated as a Water craft or hydroplane. The big advantage, however, is the relative compactness of the machine when not in use.

In the selected embodiment of the invention a biplane airplane is disclosed. The invention, however, is applicable to any and all types of machines, both land and water, and regardless of whether the machine is of the pusher or tractor type. In the machine disclosed, however, the fuselage or bodyis designated as 10, the supporting surfaces as 11-11, the landing gear as 12, the empennage as 13 and the power plant as 14. The supporting surfaces 1111 are preferably of the panel type and include outer panels 11 and engine section panels 15, only the outer panels 1 1 being foldable as hereinafter pointed out. The empennage 13 comprises the usual vertical stabilizer 16, vertical rudder 17 horizontal stabilizer 18 and elevator fiaps 19. The power plant includes in addition to the motor (preferably inclosed in the body of the craft) a propeller 20 of the tractor type.

The outer panels 14: of the supporting surfaces are hingedly connected as at 21 and 22 to the engine section panels 15, preferably in the plane of the wing beams (not shown) of the Wings. The hinges 21, i. 6.,

the rear hinges are preferably of a construction such that the connection between the outer panels and the engine section panels may be quickly broken and the panels 14; folded forwardly about the hinges 22. The construction of the hinges 2:2 is such that the axes about which the wings fold forwardly extend substantially vertically so that the wings, when folded, will occupy positions at opposite sides of the fore and aft axis of the machine preferably parallel therewith.

By folding the wings or panels 14: forwardly rather than backwardly as heretofore, all possibility of interference between the wings and the tail surfaces is avoided. This arrangement, while applicable to all types of machines, is especially applicable to scout machines wherein the distance between the wings and the empennage is small. The wings, when folded, occupy positions at opposite sides of the propeller 20 and the latter, to avoid interference with the wings, should occupy a vertical or substantially vertical position.

As indicated hereinbefore, much trouble has been encountered in designing folding wing airplanes to avoid interference between the ailerons of the machine and the empennage when the wings are folded back. It is either necessary to dispense with the trailing edge type of aileron (which are decidedly the best) or so relate the wings to the body of the machine as to enable the former to be folded backward without interference. Indeed, if the wings are staggered, as they are in many instances, a backward folding of the wings into positions in close proximity to the sides of the fuselage is next to impossible. The stagger or angular relation of the wings is such that one of the wings interferes. On the other hand, by folding the wings forwardly all possibility of interference is avoided. Ailerons of the desired trailing edge type may be used for the ailerons herein designated as 23 will occupy positions, when the wings are folded, remote from the empennage rather than in close proximity thereto as heretofore. The relative arrangement of the ailerons with respect to the fuselage or body, when the wings are folded, is brought out in Fig. 2. Furthermore, the wings, when folded forwardly, offer a protection for the propeller which, as is well known, if exposed upon all sides, is often accidentally broken or mutilated due to extraneous cause.

Still another important advantage in folding the wings forwardly rather than backwardly is that no consideration need be given the span or spread of the wings or the relative arrangement of the wing posts other than such considerations as are given in the design of a machine having non-foldable wings. The empennage may be located as desired for it is not necessary that the distance between the wings and the empennage be greater than the span of the wings. These advantages, together with the advantages above pointed out, render the folding wing airplane in which the wings are forwardly folded a big improvement over existing types wherein the wings are foldable backwardly.

lVhile I have described my invention in detail in its present prefer :d embodiment, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art after understanding my invention, that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit or scope thereof. I aim in the append ed claims to cover all such modifications and changes.

That is claimed is:

1. In an aeroplane, the combination of a fuselage, an empennage, and forwardly foldable wings extended laterally out from the fuselage at points nearer its forward end than its rear end, the arrangement of the wings when folded, being such that they (the wings) extend forwardly beyond the nose end of the fuselage to occupy positions remote from the empennage.

2. In an airplane, the combination of a fuselage, an empennage carried by the fuselage, a propelling power plant including a tractor propeller, and forwardly foldable wings extended laterally out from the fuselage, the arrangement of the wings, when folded, being such that the empennage occupies a position remote therefrom while the propeller occupies the space between the folded wlngs.

3. In an airplane, the combination of a fuselage, an empennage carried by the fuselage, forwardly foldable wings extended latorally out from the fuselage, trailing edge ailerons mounted at or near the wing tips, the relative arrangement of the ailerons and empennage, when the wings are folded, being such that the empennage occupies a position remote therefrom.

4:. In an aeroplane, the combination of a fuselage, a propelling power plant including a tractor propeller, and forwardly foldable wings extend laterally out from the fuselage, the arrangement of the wings, when folded, being such that the propeller occupies the space between the folded wings.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature.

GLENN H. CURTISS.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. c."

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