US 12,269,712 B2
Human and/or non-human cargo attachment device for use with a rotorcraft
Christoph Heider, Rain Am Lech (DE); Dominik Vogel, Langweid (DE); Stefan Salzburger, Augsburg (DE); and Alexandru Dinca, Donauworth (DE)
Assigned to AIRBUS HELICOPTERS DEUTSCHLAND GMBH, Donauworth (DE)
Filed by AIRBUS HELICOPTERS DEUTSCHLAND GMBH, Donauworth (DE)
Filed on Nov. 16, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/987,943.
Claims priority of application No. 21400024 (EP), filed on Dec. 15, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0183044 A1, Jun. 15, 2023
Int. Cl. B66C 1/36 (2006.01); B64D 1/22 (2006.01); B64C 27/00 (2006.01)
CPC B66C 1/36 (2013.01) [B64D 1/22 (2013.01); B64C 27/00 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A human and/or non-human cargo attachment device for use with a rotorcraft, comprising:
a mounting interface with a carrier device and an attachment that is rigidly mounted to the carrier device for attachment to a rotorcraft rope or cable; and
a device body that is mounted to the carrier device and that comprises a stationary body section and a movable body section,
wherein the stationary body section is stationarily arranged on the carrier device and comprises a plurality of rotatable attachment hooks for attachment of human or non-human external cargo, and wherein attached human or non-human external cargo is locked on the device body in a closed state of the plurality of rotatable attachment hooks and releasable from the device body in an opened state of the plurality of rotatable attachment hooks, and
wherein the movable body section is movably arranged on the carrier device for enabling movements of the movable body section relative to the stationary body section between a locking position and a release position, wherein the plurality of rotatable attachment hooks is rotatable from the closed state to the opened state via movement of the movable body section from the locking position to the release position, wherein the plurality of rotatable attachment hooks is rotatable from the opened state to the closed state via movement of the movable body section from the release position to the locking position;
wherein the movable body section comprises a plurality of lateral blocking arms, and wherein each lateral blocking arm of the plurality of lateral blocking arms is provided for blocking an associated rotatable attachment hook of the plurality of rotatable attachment hooks in the closed state; and
wherein the movable body section comprises at least one slidable carrier sleeve which is slidably supported on the carrier device, and wherein the slidable carrier sleeve and the lateral blocking arms of the plurality of lateral blocking arms form a star-shaped arrangement in radial direction of the device body.