Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
'`` 2~37~'7~
- 3 -
No~ate~h GmbH
"Air~ip o~ th~ Tran~por~ation o~ ~a~go and Passengers"
~he inve~t.lon applies to an airship for the transporta~on of
cargo and passengers, engi~eered as a composite ~igid air~h~p
~nd which, th~n~s to it~ design, is ~uitable ~or use as a la~ge~ .
cra*~ to transport ~pecial car~o a~d loads whiah can ~e mo~ed
only wi~h di~ficulty or not ~t all with othe~ ~y~es of convey-
ance. Moreover, such a~ air~hip is sui~a~le for ~t~e irl gene~al
cargo ~nd passenger tra~f~, in ~der to transport such ~argo
and/or pa~s~nge~s ~o remote areas without infrast~uctur~.
Airehip~ ~a~ricated a rigid airship.c exhibit a tattice ~trus-
tur~ comprisin~ guyed struc~u~al r~ngs, a c?rg~ area in ~e ~-
l~wer sectlon of the la~ti~e s~ruGture, a flight de~k ~n th~
a~ea o~ ~he bow with all the ~qu~pment, sys~ems and de~ic~s
re~ui~ed ~o~ opera~ion ~nd ~he ~hru8t sy~tem lo ated iA the :~
~icinity o~ the tern.
Rigid a~rships ~itted ~ith a la~tice -~tructure o~ this ty~e we~e
originally manu~c~ured from r~v~d aluminum p~ofiles, where~n
the circum~eren~ial ~nd lo~gi~ud~al ~mbers ~e~e i~ th~ ~m o~
_ ... _ . _ . _ . .. ..
y ~
- ~ .
-~ 2137278
tr~a~gul~r la~ice tsu~es. The fi~lds ~ormed ~etween the
june~ions of th~ circumferenti 1 and longitu~inal ~embe~, and
the plane~ o the majo~ s~ruc~ur~l r~ng~, were quyed with wir~s
t n order to achieve ~ la~ ce ~uctu~e which wa~ as r~sistan~
~s po~ble to l~teral ~rc~, a~ well, and to ts~ns~er ~he
buoyant l~t ~orces o~ the ga~ bag~ ~nd the load exer~d ~y ~he
payloa~ as ~nifo~l~ as pos~i~le into the lattice ~ruc~ure and
to distribute the same ove~ the entire leng~h. ~he fab~ication
o$ such a latti~e s~ructu~e ~g extsemely i~ol~ed and re~ui~es
great ~anual skills ~nd experience, ~o tha~ e~onomical man~ac-
ture of a large ai~ship $o~ c rgo transp~rtation with a lattice
~ructu~e such as this would ~e i~possible now~days.
An ai~ship s desGribed in German publi~hed une~a~ined pa~ent
speaifica~ion 2~ 5g 401; its la~tice s~ruc~u~e, made ~p o~ ~
junc~on co~nectors a~d o~ tub~la~ longitud~nal member~ loca~ed ~-
in an e~sentially rhombold pa~tern bet~een structu~al ring-~ at a - :
dis~nce one from ano~hex, is ~ai~ ~o do without ~y wires in
~he thi~d dim2nsion. At tha most, guy wireR could extend be~
twe~n the rhcmb~d el~ment~ of the lat ice s~uctu~e along the .
di~ec~ion of the airship ~xi~. Located at ~th sldes of the
làttics ~t~ucture a~e ai~ cham~sr~ ru~i~g along the longitudi~
n~1 dl~e¢tion ~rhi¢h ac~ like a me~rane and wh ch ar~ ~o
t~ibu~e ~he loads ac~08~ go area o~ the ai~hip~ ~he
ten-~ile force~ ~ne~ted in th~ ext~rn~l e~velope a~ a re~ult o~
~nfla~n~ the a~x ~ha~b~r~ as well as ~h~ ~or~e~ ec~lv~ on
~he out~ide are to b~ tran~err~d d~r~ctlY and indire~tly ~o ~he ~`
junction areas of the l~tticÆ t~uc~uro by ~pe~ially shap~d -~:
7 .~1 7 ~ -
connector strips at the points where these strips a2~e attached
'co the la~tic~s s~ructu~e and a~e to pass thenc3 by mçans o
straps to the inte~nal envel~pe, whe~e th~y a~ to be a~scrbed
by ten-~ion ~ s ar~ fur~her -~trip~ and nlem~ranes ~hich ~unction
a~ ~enslon rings ~n~ where these ~lements present re~istanc~ to
Qaid ~rceg. ~he co~nec~or strips ~re ~o ac~ a~ s~iffenlng
r~ngs for the airship and furthermore a~e to ~e~v~ t~ distribute
the loz~ding to the membrane ~nvrelope. Most of ~he for~es to
which the ai~ship is exposed a~e ther~fo~e 'co be a~sor~ed by ~he
membrane e~velope ins~ead of by the latti~e strUctu~e. The
re~ult is that this know~ ai~sh~p cou~d be char~cterized in the
best case as sem~ri~id, implying considerable limitations as ~o
the ove~all ~ize whi~h can be ach~ved~
~ore~ver, the junction ~onnecto~s are made of individual ele-
men~s of complex chape ~hich ara bolted ~nd riveted toge~her, s~
that the assembly of ~he lattl~e structu~e ~r this ~own air-
ship pre~on~ the same p~oblems as those ~or the rigid ai~hip
mentioned at the ou~et. ~ :
~ift ls gene~ated ~y ~uoya~t g~s, namely hyd~ogen or ~efer~ly
non-flamm~ helium, contained in gas bag~. The magni~ude o~ -
the li~t ra~ul~s ~om Archimed~s' prlnciple, ~c.cordlng t~ which
the buoyant li~t is oqual to th~ weight o~ the ~olume o~ a~
dls~lac~d. ~i~ ha~in~ a ~poci~ac weight ~ 1.~9~ ~ pe~ mB ~t
~ta~dard ~e~pera~e and the corre~pon~in~ 3pe~ific we~gh~ of
hel~um being 0.178 kg per m3j ~he ~uoyant lif~ ~ith th~ ~s bags
~illed w~th heliu~ ~s ~out one kilog~a~ per cu~i~ meter o~ ~a~
: ,
~. '
2137~r~8
~olume. ~he decrea~e in ai~ pres-~ure at g~e~te~ altitude mak~s
it nece~-~ary i~ con~entlonal airships ~o val~e off buoyant gas
at highe~ altitudes to ~o~pe~sate for the incre~se i~ b~oyancy
~nd t~ avoid o~er-~n~latian and po~sl~le bursting o~ ~h~ ga~
bag~. Te~perature fluctu~tions al50 cause change~ ~ the li~t,
~or which compensation must be mad~. Finally, fuel GOnsumptiOn
du~ng a flight ~auses a ~han~e in the li~t, ~o~ which co~pensa-
tion can be m~d~ in a number o~ ways. It has already been
pso~sed, ~or example, to recover condensate ~rom the d~ive
en~ine exhau~ gases. It is also poæsible ~o use as ~he fuel a
gas exhibiting approximately the same specifi~ weight as ai~ and
which wil~ not c~use any ~hange in li~ when deple~ed. E~pe~
q~ally dif~icult ~o ~op~ with are t~e changes in the loads
exer~ed on the airship when di~charging an~ loa~ing, con~idering
that load-~ of up to 200 t ~an be transpor~ed with modern-design
airships.
. ..-. :'`::
For engineesing ~easons i~ is a~vantageous in airs~ips o~ this --
type to distribute th~ ma~s ~S ~ni~ormly as possible alo~g the
entir~ keel ~f the hull. Ac~ordi~gly, starting in ~he bow, the
~ligh~ dec~ with all the equipment, 5ys~ems and devices re~ui~ed ;~
for ~peration may ~e located alon~ ~he keel, followed i~me~iate ~-
ly ~y the cargo areas. Only the ~hrus~ ~ni~s m~st be located a~
the storn ~r in na~elles late~l to the hull, th~ b~ing dictat~
e~ by en~inee~in-~ consideratlon ! ~ .
'''.',"',.'~,~"''
The object of t~e invention is to i~rove a~ ai~ship of the type
mentioned a~ the outse~ to .he e~ea~ th~ using a simple shape .
7 ~ -
which nonetheless exhibit l~w dra~ it ¢an be fabricatea with
l~w ef~ort from a ~ew, lar~ely ~t~nd~rdized components and tha~
~t ca~ a~om~odate a large payload a~ low net weight and at ~he
ame ~ime exh~it a sufi~1ently ~ f st~cture. Further, ~t
is to be ~os~ible to adjust ~he ~uoy~n~ lif~ in a ~imple fa~hion
to ~d~ust t~ the ~a~omet~ic alt~tu~e, ~he tæmperature, the ~uel
cons~mption and the loadin~ s~-tuation and the airshlp i~ to be
enginee~ed ~or easy and con~enient loading and discharge ~ter
landing ~
sa-~ed on this objectiv~ is proposed by way o~ i~ven~i~n that
the aî~s~ip exhibit a lattice stsu~tt~re comp~ised of junction
conneators and circuwfe~ential an~ longit-l~dinal mem~e~s att~ched
in or on moun~s at the junc~n connecto~s ~nd which, together
with ~he guy wi~e~ which keep ~he ai~cumferential ~nd lo~gitudi-
nal mem~e~s un~er ten-~ion by en~agin~ the ~unc~ion connecto~s,
~orm a three-dimensi~nal framework.
~esigning the la~tice structure ,~o tha~ it is ~roken dow~ i~to a
~ew, 1a~g~ly ~tandardlzed constr~¢~i~n components suc~ a~ ~he
~unction conne¢~rs, the circumf~rential membe~s, the long~tudi-
nal member~ and ~he guy w~re~, which can 4e m ~s-produced at
~avo~able qosts in la~e n~m~e~s, makes it possible to assemble
the lat~ice structu~e qulc~ly ana ~imply at any desired ~ize.
~he leng~h~ o~ the clrcumfe~e~tial and th~ longitud~n~l melmberg
and ~f t~e ~uy wires can ~e determined in ~dv~nce and advanta-
geous~y cu~ exactly to these len~h$ with low tolerance~ so ~ha~
.. . .
~ . . " .. . . .
137;'78
~he re~uired pr~-tenslon is pr~duced when the guy wi~e~ are
h40ked in pl~ce.
The circumfe~e~tial and longitudinal mem~ers can advantageously
be ~ecigned as ~losed tri ngular hollow p~ofiles which ase
atta~hed in or on ~tching mounts run~ing along ~he longit~d~nal
and circum~erential d$r~ct~on o~ the lat~ice structurg, wher~in
in each ~ase on~ ba~e o~ the triangular hollow profile ~aGes the
outside of ~he lattice s~ructure~
~ '
This a~rang~ment of~e~s the opt~on to provide ~he corners of th~
base of the t~iangular longi~udinal membe~s ~ac~ng the Qutside ~ ~;
~ the lattice ~ructu~e with ~lot~ which w~den towa~d the
,: ,". . ~.,
in~ide and which align with matching slots at the o~t~ide ~ce -:~
~ the junction ~onnect~s ~nd wAich allow the web~, provided ;~
wit-h bead~ at ~he edges and fo~ming ~h~ airsh~p envelope, to be
threaded into these slo~s.
~ his way the we~ for the airship envelope are in~egrated
into the struc ural design ~f the lattice ~ ctur~, imp~o~e the
se~bility o~ the lattice structure ~nd ~orm a p~rf~ctly 8mooth, :~
low-drag exte~nal surface which with the exception o~ the bow
an~ ~te~n sectl~n i~ ~u~ed in ~wo dimensions only, and w~ch
thus can ~ ~anufact~r~ and a~-~em~led si~ply and at ~arable
cost~. ~hese web6 with ~heir e~ga beads c~n ~ily be ~led ~n -
th~ ~lots s~ that the enti~e ~s~ship envelope can be des~gn~d 30
~s to be lar~ely ~ ht and can be p~ac~ unde~ sli~ht p~
tive p~essure. This pro~des additional suppor~ ~or the ~amen~
... . .. ........ _ _. , _ ,. .. .
-~` 21~7~7~
sional ~tabili~y of th~ airship }~dy and prevents the air~hi p
envelope f~lut~e::ihg ~n the air flow.
This design o~ 'che los~gi~lnal membe2~s and the webs whi~h ~o~m
~he air3hi~ envelope ca~ al~o b~ used ~or other a~rships with a
la~t~ce 3t cucturo .
The junctlon ~onnectors can prefe~ably be fabric:ated as a ~3ingle
pieae comp~sing mounts for the triangular hollow profiles,
arrz~nged in ~ single pl~ ~nd at right ~ngles one to ~he othe~,
the inwardly di~ec ed ribs p~otruding beyond the inwardly ~i-
rected corners having attachm~nt eyele~s for the guy wire.c,
along with ea~s wi~h attAchmen~ eyelets for the guy wire~ lyin~
approxi~ately in the plane of the e~elope and ~oinin~ the areas
at ~he outwa~dly ~cing co~ne~s of the base of the mounts ~or
the trian~ular hollow pro~ s. These ~u~ction connector3 are
enti~ely identical along almoet the enti~e len~th of the latt~c:e
struc~u~e and can be manu~c~red in a simple fashion as cast,
in~ection moulded or pressed parts, wherein ~he structure and
t~e st~eng~h of the mate2~ial used m~s~ be in accordance wi~ the
~oads encou~t~sea~ q~he ~unction connsctor3 can there~ore ~e
pref~ably i~abricated fI~om ~ib~r-reinfo~ced plast~, whe~in th~:
re~in~orcing fiber may be one c~ the va~iety of well-knc~wn, high~
~t~eng~h f ~ ber~ . ~n th~s way ~he att~chment ~3yelRts ~o;e the guy
wi~e~ c~n be mould~d directly in~o the junc~ion ~:onne¢tc~rs.
The ~ction connec~ors can pre~erably ~e guyed with the circum-
~erent~ al members~ and ~he guy wire~ rming polygonal ~tru~:tural
. _ . . ... .
. . .
-- ~0 ~
~ings, wh~rein the ~y wi~es i~ ~h~ plane of the structural ~ing
are r~uted between junc~ions in such a way that a networ~ of
~nte~secting guy wis~ osmed which ~ovess a~out the ou~er
thl~d o ~h~ su~a¢e a~e~ ~escsi~ed by the rin~, leaving the . ~-:
i~ne~ twc-th~ds of ~he ring d~amete~ open~ T~is .rrang~m~n~
sa~es weight, en~res suf~ 2nt ~lex~bili~y and a~oids individ- ;
~al ~Uy wir~s bein~ ov~rloa~ed by laad~ concen~ated at a si~gle
point.
The fieldæ ~ormed in ~he lat~ice structure be~-ween ~roups of ~ ;
four junction connectors accepting two ci~cun~erential me~ er~
and two longitudinal mem~ers are stabilized by twa guy wire~
~ning diagonally a¢ro~s the ~ield~
The ent-ire l~ttiCF~ stsuc~lre can thus be ~seml~led ~?y inses~ing
~he circum~erent~al and longitudinal mem~er~ and the junct~ on
conneators, wherei~ the retention an~ the exact alignment of the .-.~
parts thus assembl~d are ensured ~y the guy wires which ~an :-
pref~ra~ly be of high-strength plastic ~iber cables ~ut b
machine and under computer co~rol exactly to the len~h needed
~o~ ~he r~quired pre-tensian and ~itted wi~h hoo~ o~ attaah~
m~n~ at the a~tachmsnt eyelets. U~i~g ~hese ele~en~ ttic~
~tructures ca~ ~e as~embled ~or ex~ernally ~m~la~ Pi~ship o~
~asio~s s~zes.
'
~n the l~we~ seat~on o~ the lattic~ ~tructure may be loc~d a
cargo area desi~ned as 2 aelf-3upporti~g lattice st~uc~ure wh~h
~ ~ ~ 7 h 7 ~ -
ex~end~ along the g~ea~est pa~t o~ the length of the ai~hip ~nd
which co~ribu~e~ add~$oQal ~tabili y to the lattice ~tructur~.
The latti¢~ structure p~e~era~ly comp~ises thr~e ~imple geom~t-
ric comp~nents, namely a parabolic bow 3ection extendin~ al~ng
about 15% of the o~rall leng~h o~ ~he airship, a centq~ ~ection
in the ~orm o~ a ~runcated c~ne, ad~oining ~he forme~ wtth a
~mooth ~ransiti~n and w~dening toward the stern at a~ angle o~
~ro~ 1 to 8, i~s length ~presenting about GO% of the overall
le~g~h of the a$rship, a~d ~ stern section in the ~orm o~ a
truncated ~one tapering toward the rear ~t an angle o~ ~rom 12
to 28 and cov~ring about 25~ of the overall length, ~oined ~o
ths cen~er section by means of a ~low-dis~up~iQn edge, which can
be ~abr~cated without difficulty and nonetheles~ r~ult~ in a
~ery favo~ble dra~ coe~icien~. ~xamination~ have shown that
u~ing section~ in the shape of truncated ~one~ co~bined at a
~low-di-~ruptio~ ~dge in c~n~unct~on with a pair o~ s~ern prop~l~
lers ~ot~ing in opposing directions, ~ conslderable reduc~on
in drag ~an be achieved in comparison w~h earlier Gi~ shaped
~nd later ~e~odynamic,- drop-shaped airship hulls~
~here may be located at ~he at~rn a ~air of coaxial ~tern pro-
peller~, rotating ~n oppo5in~ ectiqns and generating the
p~imary ~orward t~an~la~i~nal ~h~us~ while t~e~e ~ay ~e locàt~d
at the f~on~ and the rear of ~hB c~ntRr s~tion two pa~s o~
lateral, ~lewable propelle~ ~celles whic~ due their piv~t-
ability imp~ove cons~d~r~ly the m~ne~erab~ f th~ air~hip.
21372 78
- 12 ~
Retractable La~ding ge~ struts and tethesin~ cables may ~so be
l~cated in the vici~i~y o~ the slew ble propeller nacelles.
~o be.able ~o t~ns~er wi~hout di~iculty the ~orc~s o the
propeller nacelle~, the lanaing gear and the tether4ng ca~les ~:
into the la~tic~ stru~ture, reinforced, dou~le structu~al rings ~: :
may be located in the plane o~ ~he propeller nacellq~
J~st a~ i the caæe for the junction connectors and ~he guy
wire~, the circumfe~en~ial and longitudin~l member~ ca~ als~ ~e
made of ~ibes-reinforced plastic ~nd may possi~ly be punched to ;;:
~educe w~ight.
The web~ forming the ~irship en~lope may also be ~ab~iGa~ed of :~
plastic with reinforcement fibers being e~bedded a~ leas~ in the
edge beads. The edge bead~ can be welded to ~he plastic we~
Depend~ng on the spacing botwee~ the st~uctur~l ring~ in the
la~ e ~tructure, cou~li~gs can be lo~ate~ ln the area alo~g
the longitud~nal mem~ers bet~een the Rtructural rin~s allowin~
~or the ~nsertion of tubular sections fo~in~ auxiliary rin~ ~
which tabilize the long~t~din~l me~bers and the ga~ ~ags.~ ~-
S~ce the guy wires, as pse~ou~ly men~ianed, togeth~r with
their hooks al~eady ~xhibl~ ~he len~th needed to produce ~he
re~uired ~re-tension, th~re must ~e a way provided to attach
~he~ under te~sion in the a~chm~nt eyelets. For this pu~pose
the guy wire~ can be attached to ~he hooks by mean~ o~ c~ rs
~` 213727~
and the5e collars can exhibi~ trans~er~e f1~ngec ~or the enqage-
ment o~ a tens~oning ~e~ice~ The tensioning de~ice engagi~g the
tran3~e~se fl~nges can advanta~eou~l~ be manuf~ctured fro~ a
hous~ n~ with paralle~ si~e plates a~d ~ posit~oning loop ~x~end-
~ng ~ro~ ~he si~ plat~s and whlch can be inserted in the ey~let
at ~h~ j~ncttan conne~tor, ~l~ng wi~h an actuattn~ le~es which
can ~e swung towa~d the hou~in~ with guides pos~tioned ~y means
o~ st~ds riding i~ guide slot~ in the side pla~es, wherein the
3tuds reach ~ehi~d the trans~er~e ~lan~ at a hoo~ The ten-
~ioning device is in~erted thu~ly in an eyelet b~ means o the
positi~nin~ 140p ~0 that a hoo~ can ~e moved by operating the
aGtuating lever into the vicinity of ~he e~-elet and ~e attached
the~e. The tensionin~ device i8 then remo~ed.
The gulde slo~ can be U-sha~ed, ~y way ~f whi~-h the hook would
be moved into the vscinity of the eyelet when ~he actuating
lever ~s pi~oted and then inserted ~n the eyelet when the actu-
ating le~er is pivoted furthe~. To achle~e this, the gu~des at
t~ .ctuating Le~er can be mounted $n slots which allow ~ ~ear-
ward m~ment o~ the studs ~eaching around th~ transve~e fla~ge
of the hooks and o~ the ~des during the insertion ~ov~ment for
the hook in the eyelet.
Since ~he des~ree of ~3~0yant lif ~ is equ~l tG the weisbt of the ~-
~olume o air aisplace~ by the g~s bag~, the 1~ ft w~ll ch~nge
~her~ ~he volume o~ the gas bagg is ch~nged. ~he ~ol~ne o~ tho
ç~as bags can be modif~ed }:~y ret~ctt n~ c:ontractios~ aable con~ig-
u~ations located inside ~he ga ~ags.
-` 2~ 3727~ -
- ~4
~he ~essure in ~he gas bag~ do~s increa3e a~ ~ result of the :~
~eduction in volume, ~u~ ~hi3 ha~ a ~uppo~ti~g e~ect on the -~-
~ed~c~ion o ~u~yant lift, since the Ypes~fic weigh~ o~ the
buoy~t g~ ri~es aæ pr~ssure rise~, which ~esul~s in an addi~
tional ~eductio~ i~ t~
If one assumes for the pu~poees q~ approximation that a~ airship
:.. :..
with a load-carr~ing c~p~a~ty of ~00 t will r~quire a volume of
4~0,000 m3 of ~as, this m~ans that total buoy~nt l~t of 400 t
i5 present, si~ce one ean ~igure on 1 t of lift for e~e~y tOO m3
o~ ~s content. ~he net wei~h~ of the airship is thus o~ tho
samo ~er of magnitude ~s the p~yload. If compen~ation is to
be mad~ ~or the en~-re pa~load by reducing th~ volume o~ ~he gas
bags, this ~eans that the volume would have to be reduced by not
quite the half~ ~his ~ppear~ to be te hnically possible witho~
difficulty, si~e the intern~l pres~-.re in ~he ga~ bag will ri~e
to less than twice the ~r~ginal p~e~su~e when reducl~g v~lu~e b~
not quito tha hal~ since th~ gas ~ags are filled on the grou~d
at a~o~pheric pressure to achie~e a li~ factor of 1 t pe~ 1000
m3 of ga~ bag volu~e~ ~hiS means ~h~ e~uc~ion o~ the ~olume
~o slishtly mo~e than the h~lf o~ the o~ al v~Lume w~ mply
an inc~ease in pressure to les~ than 2 bar, which can ~e
achie~ed w~thout dif~culty u~ing the mat~rials avai~ble tod~y
which may be ~tilized ~or ~a. ~a~. It is to be noted in pa~-
in~ that th~ e~ e ea~yln~ cap~city will ~eve~ ha~e to be
compensa~ed suddenly and qui~kly, ~ince one will always ~t~e~pt
to load an~ di~charge a 5hip ~imult~ne~usly to achie~e c~ntinu-
ous counterbalancing.
. _ _ . . _. ... _ .. __ . ._.. .__. .. ~_ .. _. ._ ...... _ .. ._
2~7278
- 15 -
~he ~olu~e ~f the gas ba~ c~n ~e modi~ied ~uickly ~d si~ply by
m~ of cont~action ca~ls co~$i~u~tion~ runn~ng i~ide the gaR
ba~ e~enti~lly in radial and axi~l di~ection~ and to which
winch d~i~eæ ar~ attached, by~ short ning ths cont~action ~able
~onfiguration ~o reduc~ the gas ba~ volu~ ~nd lengthen$ny ~he
con~igurat~cn to i~csease the ~as ~a$ volume. These contract~on
c~ble conf iguraticns absorb ~he qreatest part of the p~ess~re
forces ~ising due to the reductio~ in volu~e, so that the ga~
bag~ env~lop~s and the c~ble~ in ~he qontract~ on ca~le c:on~igu~a-
~ion will not ~e sub~ec~ed tc~ exceC:sive s~rain.
~f i~ is not necessary to c4~pensa~e ccnnpletely ~or the entire
lifting capaci~y of the air hip, then not all the ~a-Q bagæ will
have to be fit~ed with the buoyant lift compen~tion de~ice
ac:cording to the inven~ion; ra~her it w ~11 be æu~icient to
equ~ p only a numbes o~ g~s bags with this buoyant li:~t aompen~-
t~ on device a~ i~ necessary to achieve the de3ir3d degree o*
compensation.
q~o ~c~hieve un~ ~orm loading o~ the cable:s ~n the ccn~raction
c~ble coni~ uratlon, }1~ w~ nch dr~ v4 can be attached tc:~ the
c~13~ via ~ev~sin~ ~olle~s.
q!he ga~ ba~ c~r~ 3dv~n~ sly ~e susl?ende~ ~o~ ~e st~otuxal
rin~s by means ~ te~h~ing ca~s loc ~ad at ~gular i~te~al3
alc~n~ the~ erence oi~ the ~s b~ envelo~e ~a oxie~ed
es:3enti~11y ~ad~ allly to ~he ts~an~ver~e ~en~er plan~ ol~ he qa~
l~gæ; ~ethe~in~ cables attachad to ad~ace:nt rin~s alons a lorlgi-
~` 21 3727'~
~udin~l plane of the a~rship can ~e connected with each ~ther
pa~rwi~e by means o~ ~ aable in~id~ the ~as bag ~o ~hat the~e
~a~les in-~ide the ~2S bag can be tighten~d r~aially ~y compe~sa~
t~on roll~r~ engaging with each o~ the cable~. ~hese tethering
c~bles w~ll en~u~e ~ha~ the buoyant lift o~ces ~enerated by the
gas b~gs will be txans~erred uniformly a~ound the entire ci~cum~
~erence o ~he ~truc~ural rings. ~hu~ the gas ~ags wtll not
C ~loat in the upper hal~ o~ the s~u~tural rings, but ins~e~d : ;
will be kept ~uspended by these tether~ng ~able~r at uniform
di~t~n~e to the structural rings.
~he compensation roller~ for the tethe~in~ cables can be tight- -
ened at a ten~ioning ~in~ lo~ated inside the gas bag along the
transverse ce~te~ plane o~ ~he gas bag or by means of a ring~
shaped tensioning cable located along the tran-~exse center ~;
plAne o~ the gag bag. Re~ersing rollers aan be located at ~hi~
tensioning ~in~ or ring-shape~ tensioning cable, over whlch th~
~bles 3f the contraction cable con~iguration used to adjust ~he
gas bag volume are passed on their way to the winch. ~e~e the
wiAch ~an be mounte~ cen~ally in the tensioning ~ o~ ~he -`-
~g-shaped ~ens~onin~ cablo so as to re~ist ~ota~ion, wher~n
c~ s taken to ens~re ~hat all the c~ble~ ~n the cont~a¢tion
cablR configu~ation a~e ~oaded uni~ormly during tak~-up ~n o~do~
to avo-'d 4verloading lnd~vidual ~able~. The win~h drlve ~an
ex~ibit multi-speed gearlng so as to be able to effec~ ~inor
ch~n~os in ~ift quickly ~nd larger changeg ~n li~t, suc~ a~ ~h~t
neces~ ted by dischar~in~ cargo, mc~e ~lowly. ~he ad~tmen~
~ 2137278
- 17 -
o~ ~h~ lift ~y ~hangin~ the volume of the ~as ba~s can be used
~n any rigid a~sship with a lat~lce structu~e.
The lat~ice s~ucture ~omprising guyed st~uct~ral rings and
exhi~iting a ~a~go area in the lowex sec~ion of the la~tice
structu~e can exhi~ t le~st one i~t2~in8iqzlly s'ciff,
~rriageable cargo platform~ ached at th~ lattice structure
so as to be lowerable, ~o~ming the flaor of the cargo area ~nd
closing off the c~go areaL
~n its raised position the ca~go plat$onm forms the floor of the
c~rgo area a~d çloses o~ the same. The cargo pla~orm s~rves
at the sa~e time to stif~en the car~o area and,the lattice
~ructure, whereby the structural strength o~ the airsh~p iB
incr~ased and the weight of the load resti~ on the c~r~o plat-
f~ s tran~ferred uniformly i~to the lattice stru~ture.
h~ cargo area may adv~ntage~usly ~e engineer~d as a 8el~-~up-
porting lat~ice-~ype struqture wh~ch i8 suspended a-~ an addi-
~ional e~ement on the guying for the rings in the ~ at~ice struc-
tuse ~r which may be in~eg~ted into the lower sec~ion of the
lattice -~truct~e. In b~th ~ases the ~argo area ~erv6~s to
stifen ~he lattic~ ~truCture~ parti~ularly wh~n po itiv~-aC~ion
l~cking elements a~e adv~ntageous~y used ~etween the ~ndivi~ual
cargo plat~orm3 whe~e ~e~eral are present and/or b~twee~ tho
c~r~o Rl~tfor~ and the ~loor opening of the cargo area.
.-, -
~~,: ?
`- ~1372~
- 18 -
::
The 100r o~ the car~o area can prefe~ably ~e formed ~y ~everal - :~
car~o platfo~ms which c~ be lowered ~ndependent one o~ the
other, the wid~h ~orrespondin~ to that of th~ car~o ~rea and the
lengt~ corresponding ~o ~he di~tan~e ~etween two ad~acent ~ing~
in the lat~i~e ~tructur~. If each cargo plat~onm is ~hen sus-
pe~ded ~rom a Gable at e~ch o~ its fou~ ~rners and the ~ou~
cable~ can be ~aised and lowesed qynchronously by d~ive mean~,
the ~es~1~ is tha~ ~he ~ranefer of the load ~om each cargo
platform ~o the lattice 4tructure o~ ~he ¢argo area and to ~he
lattice st~uature is co~gruent w~th the distances ~etween the
~ng~ in the 1 attic~ ~tructure, whereby uniorm loadin~ o~ the
airship is achieved.
T~e ~ir~t and~o~ l~st car~o platfor~s along ~he lon~itudin21
axiR o~ the airship may advantageo~ly be designed as entry and
exit ramps, making possible loading and di~chargin~ in ~he
lo~git~dinal direction u~in~ mo~or ~ehicle~ or ~o~klift trucki.
~ - ~
~oading and discha~ging can however also be ef~ccted transverse-
ly to the ~irship longitudinal axi~, whe~ein ~h~ cargo plat~o~ms
may be fitted wi~h ~olles m~ts ~r other facili~ating ~ean~,
allowing ~or quick di~charging at one side of ~he ai~sh~p and ~-
alm~t simult~Reo~s ba¢kloading at the oth~r slae o~ the alr-
ship.
';, ' ~
sy loadi~s ~nd discharging loads of app~oximately equ~l we~ght,
~he air~hip will alway~ be uniformly loa~e~, 50 that the on- :
board compensation system need not be utillzed. -
-` ~137278
-- lg
al-eo po-~3i~1e to p~ovide anchc~in~ element$ botween one
cargo platform in e~ah c~se ~nd the airship l~nding ~i~ld, :30
that the loading s~atus o~ the ~is~hip will not chanS~e, even i~
thRre i~ no loa~ on the ca~go pl~tfo~n.
The invention is desc~bed in detail be~ow o~ ~he ba~is of an
~mbodimen~ illu~;~rated in the d~:~wi~g. In ~h~ drawing~
'C
Fig. 1 shows a perspective vie~ of ar~ airqhip ln aacordance
with the invention, in ~ligh~,
Fi~. 2 show~ ~ sche~natic longi~udinal deta~l section throu~h
the lattice structure ~f t}se airsh$p,
Fig. 3 shows an enlarged detail of ~ struc:tu~l rin~ in the
l~t~¢e stru~:tu~e, ~-
F~g. 4 shc~w~ a sche~atic det~il view ol~ two junction areaC ~n
the lattice stn~c~ux~ een f~om the iT~side o~ the
hu7 1,
.
Fig. ~ 'co
Fig. 9 show varsous view~ o~ a junc~ion aonnector u~ed ~ n
a~aembling th~ lattice st~ucture,
F~ g. 10 show~ a par'cial view o~ the interior of the: lattice
s~3:uctuse irl pe~specti~e,
~,
-"~ 213727~
-- 20 --
Fig. 11 shows an ext~:~ior riew ~i~ th~ ai~hip hull in perSpec-
tive wi 'ch the pl3~tic w~:b pa~tlally cUt aw~y,
F~ g. 12 shows an eJ.e~ation of a ~ensioning device to attac~ a
guy wire,
Fig. 13 showc a plan vi~w oi~ the tensioni~g~ device ~S per
C Fig. 1~,
Fig. 14 shows a schematic, partial lo~gitudinal sec~on
through the lattice structure o ~he airship, $11us-
t~a~ing a gas ~ag and the cont~action c~le co~fi~u
t~on u~e~ to modify the volum~ of th~ gas bag,
~g. 15 ~hows the correspon~i~g ~ross section through the
la~tce struc~re of the airship, and .
'~ ~ Fig. lG shows an enlarged, perspec~ive view of the d~scha~ging
~nd bac~l~ad~g proc~u~e ~o~ an a~rship. ~ .
~n a~ rship gene~ally. deaigslate~ wit~ re~e~en~e num~ral 1 exhib- ~ ~
..
its ~ l~t~ e ~t~ucture compr~s~ng guyed structural ringæ 2.
the s~ern o ~he alrahip 1 there a~e con~ol ~u~ac~3 3 and a
pair o thrlsst propellers 4 ~otat~n~ in opposi'ce direct~ons and :
gene~at~n~ th~ p~i~a~y ~o~wa~d tran~lational th~u ~ ~or the
a~rship 1. ~ocat~d la~erally along the hull o~ the ~$r-~hip 1
ars -~lewable propelle~ n~cell~æ 5, whiCh ~n be pivoted in sue~
a way that ~he airchlp can th~r~y be maneuvesed in all d~r~c-
--` 21~727~
- 21 -
tlons and can hover. ~ocated at the bow ~ ~he ai~Jhip 1 alon~
the ~eel is a flight de~ 6 cont~ ng all ~he equ~pment, sys-
~em~ and device-c requi~ed for o~ratlon. ~ocat~d i~mediatoly
behin~ the fllght d~c~ 6 ~ a ca~go a~ea 7 whi~h c~nt~nue~ at
uni~c~m a~os~ ~c~i~n alon~ ne~rl~ the enti~e length o~ the
aenter section 9 of ~he air~hip. The ~loor of th~ c~g~ ~rea 7
is form~d by sepa~a~e, ~el-supporting, low~rable ca~go plat-
C ~o~m5 60, descri~ed ~n de~ail in refere~oe ~o Fi~ure 16. Loca~-
ed in the ~ cini~y o the slewable prop~ller nacell~s 5 ara
retractable l~nding ~ear strut~ and retractable tethering ca-
41es, not illustrated.
.;. .
~he airship hull co~prises a para~olic bo~ section 8 extendin~
along about lS~ o the overall leng~h of ~hg air~hip. A~oinin~
thl~ bow se~tion 8 at a smoo~h t~ansition is ~ conical center
sec~ 9 whi~h widens toward the ste~n at an an~le o from 1
~o 8~. Its length rep~esents a~o~t 60~ of the o~erall leng~h o~
the air~hip 1. A s~ern se~tio~ 10 in th~ form of a tru~cated
~one tape~ing t~ward ~he rc~ at an angle of fro~ 12 to 28 ~nd
co~ering abo~t 25~ of the oYer~l leng~h i~ ioin~d to t~e ¢e~ts~
8eotion 9 by ~aans of a ~low-disruption ~dg~ 11. This hull
sh~pe with t}~e cent~2~ section 9 widen~ng to r~psesen~ a trun~a~-
ed eone, t~ low-dis~:up~ion edgR 11 and the ~runca'c~d, ~ape~in~
starn sectic~n give~ re~uc~d drag since the ai~ a~ the ~ounda~y
layer ~5 ~ccelerated continuou~ly through to the ~low-dl3~uptio~
edge 11 and t~uæ ~e~ains u~iformly ~is~cribu~ed aro~nd the a~r-
~h~p hull. ~hi~ boundarY ~ayer will with ~ertainty ~eak up at
the ~low-aisruption ed~e 11. ~Ue to ~e shoulder-like r~duc~ion
--; 21~727~ -
ln dia~etes at the ~low-di~rup~ion e~ge the ~xternal ~ur~ent
w~ll penetrate into the sepa~ats~ or sev~rely decelerated bo~nd-
ar~r layer, which wi~l thus ~e ac~elerated a~d become thinsler.
~hus there is no haza~d of b~rblinq along the ~er~ section with
the assoalated increase ln dra~
~he cro~s seG~ion th~ough the lattice structure ~hown in Fl~
~ndlcates th~ j~nctian co~nector~ 12 which are connected ~y way
of circum~re~tial members 13. Guy ~lres ~4 are s~retched f~om
each juncti~n connecto~ 12 to a junction connector 12 some
distance awa~, ro~ed in ~uch a w~y that a network cove~ing
approxima~ely the ~utor ~hird of the r~ng surface area i~ creat
ed by the in~ersecting guy wi~es 14. Integrated along th~ keel :: -
o~ ~he s~ructural ring 2 is a car~o area 7 in ~he fo~m o~ a .
self-supporti~g lattice ~tructure, not shown in de~ail~ The
struc~ural ~ings 2 made of fhe jun~tion conne~tors 1~ and the ;
ciraum~e~ential members 13 a~e jo~ned with ~ne ancther in paral~
lel by means of longitud~nal members 1~ and result i~ ~ lattice
struct~e o$ g~eater or lesser size depending on the number ~nd
dia~eter o~ ~he -~t~uctural ring~ and the length o~ th~ longitu-
dlnal ~e~ber~ 15, wherein lattice str~ctures of ~aryin~ ~izes :~
~an be assem~led from si~ila~ element~. ~etween the s~ructural
rings ~ auxiliary rings may be l~ated which ar~ formed ~y
~ouplings 1~ ~ttached to the longitudinal mem~er~ 1~ and into
which tubul~ sections ~7 a~e inserted.
Two guy wi~es 14, preve~ting de~ormation o~ the~e fields 18, are
located d~agon~lly ln qach ~ield 18 betwe~ eAch group o~ ~ou~
2~3727~
- 23 -
junction conn~ctor~ 12, acaeptin~ two circumferential mem~e~s 13
~d two longitudinal members 1S.
The circum~erential ~embe~s 13 and long'tudinal me~ber~ 15
~abricated ~rom hollow trian~ular ~ubing ~y be punched on al~
sides or only on the sides ~aoing towa~d the lnside o~ the
lattice ~tructure in or~er to a¢hle~e a red~t~on in weight.
~he lon~itudinal ~embers 15 are ~itted a~ the corne~s ~f the
outw~rdly fa~ base o~ the t~langle with slots ~6 which w~den
towa~d thé inside, which are continued in and aligned with
correcpo~ding slotc at the outside face of the ~un~tion co~nec-
to~s 12. Edge beads 20 o~ plastic webs 19 ~2n be threaded into
these slot~ ~ where~y t~e fields 18 are aove~ed and the airship
hul~ en~elope is ~orm~d~
.
As can be seen in Fig. 11, these weba lg span with a smooth
su~ace the space between the lon~itudinal m~ber~ 15, ~hich
exh~bit elevation~ only in the are~ of ~he slotg 26 ~nd only in
the longitudinal direotlon, ~o thai- th~ a~r~hip en~elope ~s a
whole i~ smooth alGng the t~anslational direc~ion, ~unnin~
without t~an~versely pro~ruaing edges ~hrough to the flow-dis-
ruption edge 11.
$he web~ 14 pre~a~ly aomp~s~ high-strength plastic which ~y
be ~ibe~ rein~orced, 'co the edges o~ which 'ch~ be~ds 20, i`n
which rein~orcement fi~ers may ~lso ~e embed~ed~ can be w~lded.
~he pla~tic webs 19 can also be manufactured in a s~nsl~ piece
with inte~ted ed~ beads 20.
...... _ .
, . . . . . . . . . .
213727~
The edge beads ~0 make it pQssibl~ to ach~eve ln a simplç fash-
i~n and with~ut ~u~ther sealin~ an ade~ua~e ~e~l o~ the ~lasti~
webs 1~ in the longi~udinal mombe~5 15. If ~ll C~O~Q seam-~ and
co~nection points at the iunction connecto~s 12 are se~led in
add~tion, the ai~hip hull as a whole c~n be made essentially
a~ti~ht and the interior can b~ ~ressurized slightly. This
positiv~ pressu~e keeps th~ plas~ic webs 19 ~om fluttering
d~r~ng fligh~ and ~a~e~ an add~tional ¢ont~ibution to the st~-
~ y of the ai~ship hull.
:: ,.
Just a~ is the case with the çtrcum~erentiAl ~embe~ 13 and the
long~d~nal members 15, the junction conne¢tor~ ay be
abricated ~om plastic. ~he ju~ctlon connec~ors 12 will pre~
e~a~ly be m~de o~ P~ber-rein$o~ced plasti¢ so that all ~he
~lementg i~ the junction connecto~S will have su~icien~
stren~h. Each ~unction co~ector 12 exh~itQ ~ou~ mounts
arranged at angles of 90 one to another to accept the circum-
fere~tial mem~e~s 13 and the longitudi~al ~embers 1~. ~hese
moun~ 21 comprise ~ub~l~r exten-~ions with a c~o~s sectisn
cor~esponding ~o the inside c~ ection o~ the ci~um~Rren~
membe~s 13 and-longitu~inal me~ber 15 w~ich are 3haped as
holl~w tri~n~ular ~ubes~ To sti~fen ~he ~ntersectlng mounts ~
ther~ ~e located on the i~terior slde ri~s 22 whi~h also i~er- -
æect and which exhi~it atta~hment eye~ 23. ~n addition, in ~h~
plane o~ ~he exterior surface o~ ~he junction connecto~s ~2
ther~ ~re ~rthe~ eass ~4 which also exhibit attach~en~ eye~ Z5.
Fu~her ribs ~8 projecting ~t riqht an~les fr~ the ears ~4 fo~m
an additional box-shaped rein~orc~ment.
... _ ., .... , .. . _ ......... ..... ._ . . .................. . .
.. . . , , . . . . ~, . . .
---` 2137~78
- ~5 -
~he moun~s ~1 or the circumferentia~ me~bers t3 are ~n~ledslightly in re~orence to the pl~ne of the mounts 21 ~or the
longitudinal membe~s 1~ and indeed at an angle co~r~p~nding to
that fo~m~d between ~he circum~rentia~ mombe~ 13 and the
particula~ r~dius of the st~uc~ural ring ~ wh~ch in fact ~ep~-
sen~s a polygon. ~ach junction connecto~ 12 exhibits a ~otal of
eight a~tachment ~yelets 23, 2~, 48, of which the attachment
eyelets 23 are used to guy adj~cen~ st~uctural rings 2, att~ch-
men~ eyelet~ 25 to guy the fields 18 and the eyelets 48 to guy
the structu~al rings 2 within thelr plane.
The ~uy wires 14 used for s~ab~lization are pre~erably made of
high-strength cynthetic fibers ~ of plastic~ inorced w~th
hi~h-~ren~h ~iber-~ and exhibit at each of the end-~ a per~a-
nently atta~hed hook 30, attached by means of a collar 31 to the
end o~ the guy ~i~e.
<
The ci~c~m~erential member~ 1~, the longitudinal member~ 15 and
t~e guy wlres 14 are cut by machine~ un~er c~mputer ~ontrol to
the exac~ lsn~ths which ~hey must exhibit at the location at
which they are to be installed. When ~aking ue the guy wi~e~
the rsqu~red ~e-ten~l~n will be taken into account to deter~in~
the len~th of the guy wire 14 in~ludi~g the'hook 30. W~e~ the
hoo~s 30 ar~ att~hed at th~ appropriate eyelets ~3, 25, 48, the
latt~ce strUçture will be y~n the ~e~ul~e~ dimen~ion~l ~ta~
ity and the ci~cum~erential and longitudlnal ~e~bex~ 13, 15 will
be ~ecu~ed under tension i~eparably with th~ junctis~ conn~c-
~rs 12.
........ ... .''~'~ ~
--~ 213727~ -
- 26 -
.
A tensioning de~ice 34 i$ used ~ attach a hook ~0 at the end of
a guy wi~e 14 in ~n eyele~ 23, 25, 48. The ten~ionin~ de~icP 34
compr~C a housing 3g with pa~allel ~ia~ pla~e~ 36. Attached
to these siae plates 3~ is a ~pecially shape~ positioning loop
37 ~hich cas~ be in~e2~ted in th~ eyelet Z3, 25, 48 wi~hout inte~-
~eri~g with ~he h~o~ing of the hook 30.
Att~ched to the housin~ 35 in ~ pivot ~earing 34 is an actua~ing
lever 38 which ~an be 3wung toward the ~ou-qing 35 either manual-
ly or mechanically. When this is done tensi~ning claw~ 40 ~ ~-
attached to the ac~ating le~e~ 3~ are moved in the dire~tion of
the eyelet 23, 2$, 48. At the end of the tensioning alaws 40
which reach around ~he side plate~ 3~ ~re 3l0ts 41 in ~hich
parallel g~ides 42 ar~ bo~ne 4y means o~ ~tuds 43. ~he ~reo
ends of these g~ideB 4~ are guided in U-shaped guide sl~ts 45 in
~he s~de plates 3~ by means ~f studs 44. ~he stud~ 44 re~
through the side plates 36 and p~sitio~ them~elYes behind semi~
~i~cular notches 33 in a t~ansve~e ~lange 32 at the coll~r 31
on t~e guy wi~e ~4.
a~ter inserting the positioning loop 37 in the eyelst 23, ~-5,
48 and posi~ioning the trans~erse ~lan~e 32 on tho studs 44, the
a~tuating l~v~r 38 i~ 8wu~ i~ the di~ec~ion ind~ca~d by ~ho
ar~ow, ~he hook 30 wlll b~ moved tow~rd th~ ~ysl~t 23, 2~, ~8
while the tension~n~ ~evice 34 ~s ~uppo~t~d in the ~yslet 2~,
25, 48 by means of the pQs~tiO~in~ la~p 37. ~n æ~ doing the ~uy
w~e 14 is pre-tensioned to the required degr~e~ 4~ce ~h~ hook
30 ha~ ~eached the pos~tion lndicated by the dotted line ~he
.
~'''"'' ''' ' ~,
~ 2137278
stuas 44 backing agains~ the t~an~ers~ ~la~e 32 ~o~ in~o ~he
reve~sing ~ec~ion o~ the guide 81~S 45 while the ~lots 41 ~OV8
into the ~s~ion ~hown with dotted line~. Thi~ c u8e3 the hook
30 to e~ocute ~ downwasd ~o~ement behind the eyele~ 23, 2~, 48,
while the s~uds 44 to~ether with the parallel guides 4~ are
moved ~ndes the ef~eat of ~ tension sp~in~ 46 attached pivotally
to ~h~ 5ide plates 36 ~y means of stud~ 4~, ~earwa~d, rele~s~n~
the hook 30. Thus the guy wire t4 i-~ at~ached to the eyelet 23,
25, 48 at ~he req~ired p~e-tens~on leYel.
To be found ~t those seations of the lattice ~t~u~ture sub~ected
to particular lo~s, ~ the plane of the slewabl~ p~opelle~
n~lle~ 5l are speci~lly reinforced double st~uctur~l rings ~,
whi~h are not shown ~eparately. The control su~ es 3 are
engineered in the ~on~entional way using ~o~mers and ~xhibit
spars whi~h pass through ~he stern ~ection 10. The structu~al
rings located in this section are app~op~iatel~F enginee~ed and
~e~ nforced and serve at the sa~e tin~e as the mounting locat~ ~n
for the n~a~ n drive engine lo~ate~l here ~nd acting orl ~he Pai~ ~f
fitern propellers ~ota~lng in oppo~ed directior s .
~he ~sem~aly of the ~ hi~ can be ef;eected in su~h a way tha~
~he ~W~CtiOIl eonne¢~or~ t 2, th~ circumf~rential mo~nbe~ 13 and
the longitudinal r~embe~e 15 ~e a~seml~led to ~c~rm a ro~ of
~e~auential ~1elds 18 ru~ning along the l~ngth o~ t~e ~ir~hip and
: .
the d~agonal suy wires 1~ are ~ached ln eaqh ~eld. ~he unit
~ hen ~otated around th~ lon~itudinal axis o. the airship ~n
order to mount the ~e~t ~ow wi~ the ~ields 18 ~unning along the
21372~3
longitudina~ axis of the ~ir~hip, until fina~ the assembly of
the flight dea~ ~ and the ~ar~o ~rea 7 conclude~ the ope~a~on.
The quy w~res 14 along the plan~ o the ~truc~uxa} rin~s 2 and
the guy wi~es 14 ~unnin~ diason~ a~d ~hree-~imensionally
b~tween neighbori~g stru~ural ~n~s 2 are inserte~ afte~ the
lat~ic~ s~ucture, including the plastic we~ l9, ha~ been
aomple~ely assem~led.
c
Xn this ~shion the entire aarship hull a~n be as~mbled from
~imple individu~l eleme~ts at savings in time and ~oat and
o~e~s great va~iation po$sibilities in regard to the airships
o~ dif~erinq size~ which can be f~brica~ed from identical con-
~ts~tion elemen~s.
The ~a~-tight g~s ~ags 29 located between pairs o~ ~d~a~ent
stru~ural rings 2 are ~uspe~ded on tethering cables ~9 running
approxim~te}y ra~ial to the transverse cen~er plane S0 o~ the
gaR bag3 29. In the expa~ded ~epresentation the gas bag 29
exhibit-~ app~ox~mately its ma~imum ~rolllme ~nd thu~ its ~e~est
lift o~pacity. ~ ~s apparent th~t due to the l~ge number Q~
angularly oriented te~hering c~bles ~9 the buoyant 1~ t of each
ga3 be~g 2g is trans~e~red uni~ormly in~o ad~oining ~tructu~al
rin~ 2 ~o tha~ ~ no point will the gas b~g en~el~pe be ~n
contact with ~he structur~1 r~ng3 7 or th~ external enYelope o~
the airshlp a~d so that no~ only the upper hali~ o~ the a~.rsh~p
will h~ve to a~sorb the li:Et ~orc:es, bu~ ~hat tll~ low~ ha~l~ of
the lat~ice ~txuc~lre ~n particular will also co~t~ t~ ~o
dis~s~ but~ ng the lift ~or~es . Front the ~astening po~ ~t:3 fo~ th~
2137~78
- 29 -
tethesing ~les 49 at th~ g~s bag envelope, these tetherin~
ca~les 4~ are ~oined one with another pairwi~e insiae the ~as
bag en~lope in a radi~l longi~dlnal plan~ ~y mea~ of a ca~le
~2 which c~n be tighte~ed r~dially. This ~adial tightening ~
ef~ected ~n t~e-em~odiment s~own by ~eans o~ a tensionin~ ring
54 located along th~ t~ nsverse center plane 50 of the ~as b~g
2g. ~hi~ may be a ~igid tensioning ring 54.
c
It is also pos~ible t~ tighten t~e ca~les ~2 by ~eans o~ a ring-
shaped tensi~ning ca~le l~cated in t~e transve~se center plane
50 o~ the g~s bag 29, in which it will be s~~icient to shorten
the l~ngth by ~eans o~ a turnbuckle in order to e~ec~ radial
pre-lo~ in the cables 52.
~ocated at regular ~ntervals along the tensioning ri~g ~4 are
reversin~ roller!~ 55 o~e~ which th~ axi~lly oriented cables 57
are reversed an~ route~ as radially or~ented cables S~ to a
winch drive 58 mounted cent~all~ ~n the tension~ng ring S4 cO as
to be re~istant ~o ~o~at~on. Addi~io~l radially o~iented
cables 56 are ~o~te~ d~rec~ly Erom the wlnch driv~ ~ to the
axea of the gas bag enve~opes along the transverse ~ent~ pl~ne
50 and ~ached there. If ~he radial c~les 56 and the ax~al
c~ 57 a~e shortened by ~eans of the winch d~ive S8, the g~
bag ~g will contsact ~n ~ w2y indicated b~ the br~ken line. ~he
volume of ~he ga~ ba~ 29 i-~ r~duced and i~s buoyant li~t i~
reduced. The p~es~ur~ in the g28 bag 29 doe~ in~e~ in~rease .
when th~ volume ~ reduced, ~ut the ~tr~in~ e~er~e~ the~eby on
the envelope o~ the ga~ b~ a~e not so great that the~ ~or~
., . , . ~ , .. , , . . , . . ,,, ." .
`x "~
21~.~27g
- 30 - :
could no~ be absorbed ~y su-~table materi~ls ma~e o~ hi~h~
stren~th ~ibers. ~he ca~les in the con~raction cable ¢~n~i~ura-
t~n S6, $7 m y be sele~t~d 1~ rega~d to nu~bex and strength in
such ~ way th~t the ~orces ~ising will certainly ~e ab~or~ed.
All th~ gas ~ags 2~ o~ the alr~hi~ 1 or o~ly a ¢ertaln number
the~eof may itted wi~h t~e li~ adjustment features in ~ccor-
da~c~ with the inve~tlon and with ~he winch drives 58 re~ui~ed
~or this p~rpose. The drive can comprise, by way o~ example, an
el~c~ric moto~ which can be controlled ~rom the ~light de~k 6
fo~ ~he purpo~e o~ enlarging or reduaing the volume of th~ gas
~ag. An automati~ con~rol deviçe will preferably be utili~ed
for thiC control fu~ctio~ which will automaticallY adj~st the
vol~e of tho gas ba~s 29 in dependency on ~e loading sit~a- :
tion, flight st~us and atmosphe~c conditions. ~he ~earin~ of
th~ winch ~rive 58 can be o~ a mu~ti-speed design to ~ah the
te~si e for~e to the volume and thus the internal pressure o~ ,
the ~a~ ~ag~ 2g. -
The li~t con~rol which is the sub~ect of the invcntion ob~iat29
the need ~o carry ballast, to valv~ off buoyant gas under q~r-
ta~n ~ight condit~ons, or to provide compl~x conden~at~ recov-
err plants, since all the ch~n~es ~ which may appear in
~ ht or on th~ ~ou~d can be aompen~a~ed or by adiusting the
ga-~ bag volume,
In ref~ence to Fig. 16 it is shown that the w~dth o~ the ~a~go
plat~orms 60 ~o~responds to the width o~ ~ho cdrgo area 1 while
..... . .
l ~
l ~
13727X
- 31 -
the len~th corresponds to the distance 4etwe~n adjacent struc-
tu~al rings ~ in the l~ e ætrunture.
0~ the car~o a~ea 7 enginee~ea a~ a self-suppor~ing grid-type
structure only those long~tudinal me~ers 61 are illust~ed to
wh~ch the cargo platfon~ 50 c n be locked posl~i~ely by mean~
o loc~lng elemen~s 64, ~5 so that the cargo plat~onm~ 60 m~ke a
¢~nsiderable ~ntr~ution to the stability and the ~tiX~nesg o~
the carg~ area 7 as well as o~ ~he airship I as a whole.
The car~o pla~orms 60 can also be joi~ed one with another with
~uitable loc~n~ devi~es in a ~a~hion not illu~t~ted, ~hi~h
add~tionally i~c~eases st~ffness in ~he longi~udinal direction.
~hen the ~ar~o plat~orm3 60 are low~red, the locking elements ~4
could ser~e to engage ~ith ancho~ng elements, not illustsated,
on the landing field for the airship 1 so t~at ~he hover~ng
a~titude ~ ~he airship t would not be affe~ted ~y d~scharging
and backloa~ing the cargo platf~ms G0 ! - '
'~
Attached ~o ~he ~ur corne~s o~ eaah ~ar~o platform S0 are;~
cable~ 14 attached to driv~ mean~ not illu~trated here. In this
W~y each cargo pl~tform 60 can be raised and lowe~ed indepe~de~t ~ -
o~ other eargo ~lat~orm~ ~0, --
~ all ~argo platforms 50 a~e lo~e~ed at the sam~ t~m~, it ~s
pos-~ible for motor vehicles or ~orkli~t truck~ to dri~e acro-~-C
them in ~he longitudina1 dlrectiQn~ Guide r~ils ~2 ~e lo~a~ed
., .
on the Gargo pl~t~mS ~0 ~or thi3 purpo~e.
.,.,: ~,:
3727~
- 32
~r~ acili~at2 a vehicle driv~ng onto and of ~ of ~} ~ load su~-
ie~ce, the ~ rst and/or las~ of ~e ca:r~o plat~orms ~0 alon~ the
longi'c~dinal di~ection could~ be ~lop~d in a ~a~hion not illus~
tr~ted t4 ~e~re as e~nJc~f a~d exit l:'amp5.
Since the 5ide~ of the c~go plati~orms 60 are coTnplet~ly unoh-
str~Gted, they can be loaded and discharge~ late~ally, as shown. -:
Sta~dard con~ain.e~s 67 are prefera~ly utilized which can be
e~sily mo~red by means o~ roll mats ~1 in~egrated into the carS~o
plat~os~ms 60 and wh$oh a~e then la~;hed down gec~2~el~ on ~he
cargo plat~orms 60 in p~eparation ~or tranSportatiOn in the
ai:rshiR 1.
When handlin~ sm~ reak-bulk ~oods ~ences cc)uld ~e inserted
in the ~arso platfo~n~ 60 and loading ~ould be by means of
con~reyo~ belts . When handling heavy piece good and con~-a~ ners
in part~ cular, handling would l~e with ~or~c~iPt tru~k~ c~r other
loading ~quipment.
I:~uring simult~neous loadis~ a~ ~he one~ ~ide o~ the airship and
co~e~p~ndi~ d$scharging on the othe~ slde af the ~ix~h~ with
containers 67 exhibi~ng approximately equal w2ightg, i i~ ~o~
~e¢essa~y t~ ie ~ho cargo plat~oxm4 60 to the land~ng ~eld;
~either will the on-~oard load compensa~ion 3y8tem ~0 UtiliZea~ -
I~ there ls no o~ only little ~etuxn ~reight on hand ~ heai~ship, containers lo~de~ with ballast ~ay be kept r~dy ~or
this pu~pose and loaded suic~ly so that in such a ca~e, to~,
. - . .
'"'
~Q ' ' , .... .
~ 213 7 2 7 ~
- 3~
utilizinq the on-~oard load comp~n~ation system is o~vi~ed,
~hereby ene~gy ~avings ~hich ~e no~ inconB~ de~able will be
~esl~2~a.,
h the ir~hip which is the ~bject a~ th~Zs in~en~ n a wide
~ariety o~ cargo can- be t2~an~p~r~ed, not ~nly such cargo a~ i~
suitable for tranæportation by ro~d, by r~ 1 and l:~y ai~plane,
bu~ al-~o p~rti~ularly loa~g and bulky ~7ood~. A~ter removing ~he
cargo E;~la~orm:~, such c~go can ~ u~per~ded dlrec:tly ~m the
longitudi~al member~ 61 o~ th~ c:argo ar~a 7.
-' '' "''' ' ~"~
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'~";~'.."~
' ~ "'~'' `" ~
