CPC B64C 29/0033 (2013.01) [B64C 3/38 (2013.01); B64C 11/18 (2013.01); B64C 11/28 (2013.01); B64C 27/51 (2013.01)] | 19 Claims |
1. An aircraft, comprising:
a fuselage;
a wing attached to the fuselage;
a proprotor assembly having a plurality of rotor blades and mounted on a first end of the wing;
a controller configured to, when the proprotor assembly is not rotating and the aircraft is in flight:
maintain, using a blade actuator, a first of the plurality of rotor blades in an extended position perpendicular to a direction of the flight;
adjust, using the blade actuator, a pitch of the first rotor blade to provide a flight control surface for controlling the direction of the flight of the aircraft, wherein the pitch is adjusted to the exclusion of the other rotor blades;
rotate, using one or more other actuators, the other rotor blades to a folded position parallel to the direction of the flight; and
decouple the other rotor blades from the other actuators so that the other rotor blades do not move while in the folded position.
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