US 11,999,500 B2
Deployable inlet assembly for aerial vehicle
Vladimir Balepin, Manorville, NY (US); Fabian Chacon, Ronkonkoma, NY (US); Dean P. Modroukas, Scarsdale, NY (US); Neal Rosenblum, Wilton Manors, FL (US); William Henderson, Plainview, NY (US); Samuel G. Cavas, New York, NY (US); and Patrick M. Drennan, Babylon, NY (US)
Assigned to GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Schenectady, NY (US)
Filed by GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Schenectady, NY (US)
Filed on Oct. 20, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/506,107.
Prior Publication US 2023/0123752 A1, Apr. 20, 2023
Int. Cl. B64D 33/02 (2006.01)
CPC B64D 33/02 (2013.01) 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
19. A method for operating an inlet assembly of an aerial vehicle having a housing supporting an air-breathing propulsion system, the housing defining a longitudinal axis, the inlet assembly having a scoop and a flap each pivotably coupled to the housing and movable between a stowed position and a deployed position, the scoop having an upstream end, and the flap having a downstream end disposed upstream of, and longitudinally spaced from, the upstream end of the scoop when the scoop is disposed in the stowed and deployed positions, the method comprising:
maintaining the scoop and the flap in the stowed position wherein the scoop and the flap are aligned with the housing to prevent air from entering the propulsion system;
enabling, via an inlet actuator, the scoop and the flap to transition to the deployed position;
transitioning the scoop and the flap from the stowed position to the deployed position wherein the scoop and the flap project from the outer surface of the housing; and
directing air over the flap and through the scoop into a fluid channel in fluid communication with the scoop and the air-breathing propulsion system.