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DE-102024132959-A1 - Actuating mechanism for a high-lift system, associated high-lift system, aircraft and method for actuating a high-lift system

DE102024132959A1DE 102024132959 A1DE102024132959 A1DE 102024132959A1DE-102024132959-A1

Abstract

Actuating mechanism for a high-lift system, associated high-lift system, aircraft and method for actuating a high-lift system This actuation mechanism (24) is designed to move a high-lift surface (22) relative to a wing body (20) and comprises: - a guide linkage (26) designed to guide a displacement of the high-lift surface (22) relative to the wing body (20), - a rocker arm (28) designed to be rotatable relative to the wing body (20); - a rotary actuator (30) comprising a housing (38) and an actuating element (40), wherein the housing (38) is attached to the rocker arm (28) and the actuating element (40) is rotatable relative to the housing (38); and - an actuating linkage (32) designed to displace the rocker arm (28) and the high-lift surface (22) relative to the housing (38) and relative to the wing body (20) when the actuating element (40) is rotated.

Inventors

  • Bernhard Schlipf
  • Markus Gibbert

Assignees

  • AIRBUS OPERATIONS GMBH

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20241112

Claims (15)

  1. Actuating mechanism (24) for a high-lift system (12) configured to move a high-lift surface (22) relative to a wing body (20), the actuating mechanism (24) comprising: - a guide linkage (26) configured to be connected to the high-lift surface (22) and to guide a displacement of the high-lift surface (22) relative to the wing body (20), - a rocker arm (28) configured to be connected to the wing body (20) and rotatable relative to the wing body (20); - a rotary actuator (30) comprising a housing (38) and an actuating element (40), the housing (38) being attached to the rocker arm (28) and the actuating element (40) being rotatable relative to the housing (38); and - an actuating linkage (32) connected to the actuating element (40) and configured to be connected to the high-lift surface (22) and to the wing body (20), wherein the actuating linkage (32) is configured to displace the rocker arm (28) and the high-lift surface (22) relative to the wing body (20) when the actuating element (40) is rotated relative to the housing (38).
  2. Actuating mechanism (24) according to Claim 1 , wherein the guide linkage (26) is designed to be connected to the wing body (20) and to guide the displacement of the high-lift surface (22) in rotation relative to the wing body (20).
  3. Actuating mechanism (24) according to Claim 1 , wherein the guide linkage (26) is connected to the rocker arm (28) and is designed to guide the displacement of the high-lift surface (22) in rotation relative to the rocker arm (28).
  4. Actuating mechanism (24) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the guide linkage (26) is designed to be attached to the high-buoyancy surface (22), wherein the guide linkage (26) extends substantially along an L-shape.
  5. Actuating mechanism (24) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the actuating linkage (32) comprises a proximal link element (42), an actuating element (44) and a distal link element (46), wherein the actuating element (44) is attached to the actuating element (40), wherein the proximal link element (42) is connected to the actuating element (44) and is rotatable relative to the actuating element (44), wherein the proximal link element (42) is further configured to be connected to the wing body (20) and rotatable relative to the wing body (20), wherein the distal link element (46) is connected to the actuating element (44) and is rotatable relative to the actuating element (44), wherein the distal link element (46) is further configured to be connected to the high-buoyancy surface (22) and rotatable relative to the high-buoyancy surface (22).
  6. Actuating mechanism (24) according to Claim 5 , wherein the actuating element (44) comprises two non-aligned actuating arms (44A, 44B).
  7. Actuating mechanism (24) according to Claim 6 , wherein an angle (α) between the two non-aligned actuating arms (44A, 44B) is between 5° and 30°.
  8. Actuating mechanism (24) according to one of the Claims 5 until 7 , wherein the proximal member element (42) is shorter than the distal limb element (46).
  9. Actuating mechanism (24) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the rocker arm (28) comprises a main body (34) and a connecting section (36), wherein the housing (38) of the rotary actuator (30) is attached to the main body (34) and the connecting section (36) is configured to be connected to the wing body (20) so that the rocker arm (28) is rotatable relative to the wing body (20).
  10. High-lift system (12) comprising a wing body (20), a high-lift surface (22) and an actuation mechanism (24) according to one of the Claims 1 until 9 , wherein the guide linkage (26) of the actuating mechanism (24) is connected to the high-lift surface (22), the rocker arm (28) of the actuating mechanism (24) is connected to the wing body (20) and the actuating linkage (32) of the actuating mechanism (24) is connected to the high-lift surface (22) and the wing body (20).
  11. High-buoyancy system (12) according to Claim 10 , wherein the high-buoyancy surface (22) forms a Krueger flap.
  12. aircraft (10) comprising a high-lift system (12) according to Claim 10 or 11 .
  13. Method for actuating a high-buoyancy system (12) according to Claim 10 or 11 , wherein the method comprises: - actuating the rotary actuator (30) to move the actuating element (40) relative to the housing (38) of the rotary actuator (30); - displacing the high-lift surface (22) relative to the wing body (20) by means of the actuating linkage (32); - guiding the displacement of the high-lift surface (22) relative to the wing body (20) by means of the guide linkage (26); and - rotating the rocker arm (28) relative to the wing body (20).
  14. Method for actuating a high-buoyancy system (12) according to Claim 13 , wherein the high-lift system (12) is actuated between a retracted position and an extended position, the actuating between the retracted and extended positions comprising: - a first phase in which the rocker arm (28) rotates in a first direction relative to the wing body (20), and - a second phase in which the rocker arm (28) rotates in a second direction relative to the wing body (20), the second direction being opposite to the first direction.
  15. Method for actuating a high-buoyancy system (12) according to Claim 14 , wherein the rocker arm (28) is arranged in an internal volume (V) defined by the wing body (20) when the high-lift system (12) is in its retracted position and in its extended position.

Description

The present disclosure relates to an actuation mechanism for a high-lift system. The disclosure also relates to a high-lift system comprising such an actuation mechanism. The disclosure further relates to an aircraft comprising such a high-lift system and a method for actuating such a high-lift system. In the field of actuation mechanisms for high-lift systems, for example for Krueger flaps, the use of rotary actuators, such as geared rotary actuators (often abbreviated as GRA), for extending and retracting the high-lift surfaces is known. The rotary actuator of such a known mechanism is generally attached to a wing body and moves linkages connected to the high-lift surface to move the high-lift surface relative to the wing body. To limit the space required for such actuation mechanisms within the wing body, it is known, for example, to use linkage elements whose shape is adapted to accommodate the rotary actuator when the high-lift wing is retracted. Such linkages are often referred to as "swan neck" or "goose neck" due to their specific shape. However, such mechanisms are not entirely satisfactory. In fact, these mechanisms require the rotary actuator to be located near the leading edge of the wing body. With high-performance wings, such as laminar flow wings, the wing thickness near the leading edge is limited, making the integration of known mechanisms particularly challenging. One objective of the present invention is therefore to provide an actuation mechanism for a high-lift system, the integration of which into a high-performance wing is improved. For this purpose, the invention relates to an actuating mechanism for a high-lift system, which is configured to move a high-lift surface relative to a wing body, wherein the actuating mechanism comprises: - a guide linkage designed to be connected to the high-lift surface and to guide a displacement of the high-lift surface relative to the wing body, - a rocker arm designed to be connected to the wing body and rotatable relative to the wing body; - a rotary actuator comprising a housing and an actuating element, wherein the housing is attached to the rocker arm and the actuating element is rotatable relative to the housing; and - an actuating linkage connected to the actuating element and configured to be connected to the high-lift surface and to the wing body, wherein the actuating linkage is configured to displace the rocker arm and the high-lift surface relative to the wing body when the actuating element is rotated relative to the housing. The use of an actuation mechanism with a rotary actuator mounted on a rocker arm, as shown above, is particularly relevant because it allows the actuator to be distanced from the leading edge of the wing body while ensuring proper actuation of the high-lift surface. According to further advantageous aspects of the invention, the actuating mechanism comprises one or more of the following features, individually or in all technically possible combinations: - the guide linkage is designed to be connected to the wing body and to guide the displacement of the high-lift surface in rotation relative to the wing body; - the guide linkage is connected to the rocker arm and is designed to guide the displacement of the high-lift surface in rotation relative to the rocker arm; - the guide linkage is designed to be attached to the high-buoyancy surface, with the guide linkage extending essentially along an L-shape; - the actuating linkage comprises a proximal link element, an actuating link element and a distal link element, wherein the actuating element is attached to the actuating element, wherein the proximal link element is connected to the actuating link element and rotatable relative to the actuating link element, wherein the proximal link element is further configured to be connected to the wing body and rotatable relative to the wing body, wherein the distal link element is connected to the actuating link element and rotatable relative to the actuating link element, wherein the distal link element is further configured to be connected to the high-buoyancy surface and rotatable relative to the high-buoyancy surface; - the actuating element comprises two non-aligned actuating arms; - the angle between the two non-aligned actuating arms is between 5° and 30°; - the proximal limb element is shorter than the distal limb element; and - the rocker arm comprises a main body and a connecting section, wherein the housing of the rotary actuator is attached to the main body and the connecting section is designed to be connected to the wing body so that the rocker arm can rotate relative to the wing body. The invention further relates to a high-lift system comprising a wing body, a high-lift surface and an actuating mechanism as shown above, wherein the guide linkage of the actuating mechanism is connected to the high-lift surface, the rocker arm of the actuating mechanism is connected to the wing body and the actuating linkage of the