阅读说明：本技术 调平设备 (Leveling device ) 是由 蒂莫西·A·巴戈 詹姆斯·珀杜 帕特里克·伦纳德 于 2021-07-02 设计创作，主要内容包括：本文公开了调平设备。调平设备包括主体,其具有前表面、底表面、侧表面和后部安装支撑件,侧表面具有被配置为接收水平仪的孔,并且前表面在其中具有用于观察主体中的水平仪的孔,并且后部安装支撑件具有被配置为相对于底表面的平面成角度的第一安装表面,以及与第一安装表面正交的第二安装表面,第一安装表面和第二安装表面中的每一个具有形成在其中的至少一个孔以接收磁性耦合元件,由此,包含水平仪的主体可以磁性耦合到交通工具以指示交通工具在顶起操作期间是否保持水平。(Leveling apparatuses are disclosed herein. The leveling device includes a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, and the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element, whereby the body containing the level can be magnetically coupled to the vehicle to indicate whether the vehicle remains level during a jack-up operation.)

1. A leveling apparatus, comprising:

a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, side surfaces, and a rear mounting support;

the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body;

the rear mounting support has a first mounting surface configured to be angled relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element;

thus, the body containing the level can be magnetically coupled to a vehicle to indicate whether the vehicle remains level during a jacking operation.

2. The leveling device of claim 1, wherein the body is formed by fused deposition modeling of a thermoplastic material.

3. The leveling device of claim 1, wherein the level comprises a model 48-22-5102 level manufactured by MILWALKEE TOOL.

4. The leveling device of claim 3, wherein the level includes a releasable fastener for calibrating the level in the body.

5. The leveling apparatus of claim 1, wherein the angle of the first mounting surface is approximately 30 degrees.

6. The leveling device of claim 5, wherein the magnetic coupling element comprises a rare earth magnet.

7. The leveling device of claim 6, wherein each of the rare earth magnets comprises a neodymium magnet.

8. The leveling device of claim 7, wherein each of the neodymium magnets has a magnetic attraction of approximately 20 pounds.

9. The leveling device of claim 1, wherein the body includes a protrusion formed within the aperture of the side surface to retain the level.

10. The leveling device of claim 9, wherein the level is further retained in the body by an adhesive.

11. The leveling device of claim 1, further comprising a lanyard attached to the body.

12. The leveling device of claim 11, further comprising a magnetic field warning tag coupled to the lanyard.

13. The leveling device of claim 11, further comprising a "remove before fly" tag coupled to the lanyard.

14. A leveling apparatus, comprising:

a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, side surfaces, and a rear mounting support;

the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body;

the rear mounting support has a first mounting surface configured at an angle of approximately 30 degrees relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one hole formed therein to receive a neodymium magnetic coupling element;

thus, the body containing the level can be magnetically coupled to a vehicle to indicate whether the vehicle remains level during a jacking operation.

15. The leveling device of claim 14, wherein the level comprises a model 48-22-5102 level manufactured by MILWALKEE TOOL.

16. The leveling device of claim 14, wherein the level is further retained in the body by an adhesive.

17. The leveling device of claim 14, further comprising a lanyard attached to the body.

18. The leveling device of claim 17, further comprising a magnetic field warning tag coupled to the lanyard.

19. The leveling device of claim 17, further comprising a "remove before fly" tag coupled to the lanyard.

20. A non-transitory computer readable medium for producing a body of a leveling device, the non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause a three-dimensional fused deposition modeling printer to perform the steps of:

sequentially depositing thermoplastic material to produce the body, the body having:

a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, and the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle of approximately 30 degrees relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element.

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to leveling devices (leveling devices) used in connection with ensuring that objects are level relative to a surface, and more particularly to leveling devices that facilitate aircraft maintenance.

Background

Modern commercial aircraft require regular maintenance in order to maintain flight certification. During some aircraft maintenance operations (e.g., landing gear servicing), the aircraft must be raised (often referred to as jacking) from the service facility floor in order to access, remove, or otherwise service the aircraft. Typically, hydraulic jacks are installed in the floor of a maintenance facility for raising an aircraft. There are usually three lifting points on a typical commercial aircraft; one under each wing and the third just aft of the nose landing gear. When raising (or jacking) the aircraft, the aircraft wings should remain substantially level with the service facility floor so that the aircraft does not slide off the wing jacks and possibly damage the aircraft. In a typical jacking operation, the level of an aircraft wing is measured manually (i.e., by eye) using a plurality of service technicians, which may be prone to human error.

Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a more objective way to measure the level of an aircraft during a jacking operation. It is also desirable that reliable leveling apparatus be easily attached, used, and removed from the aircraft at the end of service. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.

Disclosure of Invention

Exemplary embodiments of a leveling apparatus are disclosed herein. In a first non-limiting embodiment, the leveling device includes, but is not limited to, a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, and the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element, whereby the body containing the level can be magnetically coupled to the vehicle to indicate whether the vehicle remains level during a jack-up operation.

In a second non-limiting embodiment, the leveling device includes, but is not limited to, a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle of about 30 degrees relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a neodymium magnetic coupling element, whereby the body containing the level can be magnetically coupled to a vehicle to indicate whether the vehicle remains level during a jack-up operation.

In a third non-limiting embodiment, a method for forming a body of a leveling apparatus is provided. The method includes, but is not limited to, sequentially depositing thermoplastic material to produce a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, and the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle of about 30 degrees relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element.

Drawings

The present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements, and:

fig. 1A and 1B are illustrations of an aircraft elevated for maintenance operations according to the teachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a leveling apparatus coupled to a jack pad according to the teachings of the present disclosure;

figures 3A and 3B are perspective views of the leveling device of figure 2 according to the teachings of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a leveling apparatus according to the teachings of the present disclosure;

fig. 5A-5E are line drawings illustrating a body of a leveling apparatus according to the teachings of the present disclosure; and

fig. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method according to the teachings of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

As used herein, the word "exemplary" means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration. The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit application and uses. Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. All of the embodiments described in this detailed description are exemplary embodiments provided to enable persons skilled in the art to make or use the embodiments and not to limit the scope defined by the claims. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description.

Leveling apparatus for use in elevating (or jacking) a vehicle is described herein. While the leveling device of the present disclosure is described as providing advantages in aircraft maintenance applications, it will be understood that the present disclosure may be advantageously used in other applications, including but not limited to maintenance operations for ground-based vehicles, ships, and spacecraft, without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the use of the leveling device of the present disclosure is not limited to use in servicing vehicles, but may be employed in any process where it is desired to level an object.

A better understanding of the leveling devices described above may be obtained through a review of the illustrations accompanying this application and a review of the detailed description that follows.

Fig. 1A and 1B show an aircraft 10 elevated above a service center floor 12 via hydraulic jacks 14. As is known, the hydraulic jack 14 is typically built into the floor 12 of a service center, as shown in phantom in fig. 1A and 1B. As shown, each hydraulic jack 14 interfaces with a jack pad 18, which jack pad 18 is coupled by a service technician to the wing 16 and the fuselage of the aircraft just aft of the nose landing gear (such as landing gear 20) prior to a lifting (jacking) operation to service the aircraft. Typically, each hydraulic jack 14 is independently operated (i.e., raised or lowered) by a service technician who must maintain the aircraft in a substantially horizontal position so that the aircraft 10 does not slide off the hydraulic jacks 14.

Referring now to fig. 2, a non-limiting embodiment of a leveling device 100 is illustrated as being coupled to a jack pad 18, the jack pad 18 having been secured to the wing 16 of the aircraft via removable fasteners 22. As will be explained in more detail below, the leveling apparatus 100 of the present disclosure includes a rear mounting support that positions the front surface of the leveling apparatus at an angle of approximately 30 degrees relative to the jack pad 18 for easy viewing by a service technician. As will be appreciated, other viewing angles may be provided for any particular embodiment as desired.

Referring now to fig. 3A and 3B, perspective front and back views of a non-limiting embodiment of a leveling apparatus 100 are shown. The leveling apparatus 100 includes a body 102, the body 102 having a front surface 104, side surfaces 106, a bottom surface 108, and a rear mounting support 110. In some embodiments, the body 102 is made of a thermoplastic material, which is produced by 3D printing using Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) as known in the art. In other embodiments, the body 102 may be formed by conventional injection molding techniques. The rear mounting support 110 includes a first mounting surface 112 configured to be angled (best seen in fig. 5D) relative to the bottom surface 108, and a second mounting surface 114 substantially orthogonal to the first mounting surface. Each of the first and second mounting surfaces includes an aperture (128 in fig. 5B and 5D) formed therein to receive the magnetic coupling element 116. The magnetic coupling element 116 allows the leveling apparatus 100 to be magnetically coupled to the jack pad 18 and then easily removed after servicing the aircraft 10 (see fig. 2). In some non-limiting embodiments, the magnetic coupling element comprises a rare earth magnet, such as, for example, a neodymium magnet. As will be appreciated, the magnet may have a variety of magnetic attraction forces, and in some embodiments, a 20 pound magnetic attraction force is preferred for each magnetic coupling element 116.

In a non-limiting embodiment, the side surface 106 of the body 102 includes an aperture for receiving the level 200. As used herein, "level" or "bubble level" refers to an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is level (level) or vertical (plumb). In a basic embodiment, the level 200 comprises a tube spirit level, such as, for example, a pocket level model 48-22-5102 available from MILWAUKEE TOOL. In operation, after magnetically coupling the leveling device 100 to the jack pad 18 (see fig. 2), the releasable fastener 202 is loosened to allow the tubular bubble element 204 to rotate within the level 200 (as indicated by reference arrow 118 on the body 102) to calibrate (commonly referred to as "zeroing" or "leveling") the tubular bubble element 204, after which the releasable fastener 202 is tightened. Then, when the aircraft 10 is lifted by a service technician, an objective determination of whether the aircraft wing 16 remains level during the jacking operation can be readily made.

With continued reference to fig. 3A and 3B, fig. 4 is an exploded view of the leveling device 100 to further illustrate an exemplary embodiment. In fig. 4, it can be seen that the side surface 106 of the body 102 includes an aperture for receiving the level 200. In some embodiments, the body 102 includes a protrusion 120 to facilitate a friction fit of the level 200 within the body 102. In other embodiments, the level 200 may be secured within the body 102 by an adhesive (e.g., epoxy) to secure the level within the body 102. In some embodiments, leveling apparatus 100 includes a lanyard (lanyard)122 coupled to body 102. A lanyard may be used to couple a tool or tag to the leveling device 100, such as, for example, a magnetic field warning tag 124, to inform a service technician, who may have an implanted pacemaker, defibrillator, or other medical device, that care should be taken when approaching the leveling device 100. As another example, a "remove before flight" tag 126 may be attached to the leveling apparatus 100 by a lanyard 122 to alert a service technician to remove the leveling apparatus at the end of a service operation. Of course, other labels are possible as desired for any particular implementation of the illustrated exemplary embodiments.

Fig. 5A-5E are line drawings (some with example dimensions) of a body 102 according to a non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 5A is a perspective top front view, and fig. 5B is a top view. As described above, the rear mounting support 110 includes the holes 128 formed in the first and second mounting surfaces 112, 114, as can best be seen in fig. 5B and 5D. These holes 128 receive the magnetic coupling elements 116, and the magnetic coupling elements 116 may be held in place by an adhesive (e.g., epoxy). Fig. 5C is a front view, showing section line a-a, the section plane being shown in fig. 5D. As described above and shown in fig. 5D, the first mounting surface 112 is configured at an angle (μ) relative to the plane 130 of the bottom surface 108. In some embodiments, the angle (μ) is about 30 degrees, however, other angles are possible as will be understood from the implemented embodiments. The angle (μ) enables the leveling device 100 to present the front surface 104 at an angle of approximately 30 degrees for viewing (see fig. 2) (and thus enables a technician to view the level 200). The second mounting surface 114 is configured to be orthogonal to the first mounting surface 112 (as can be seen in fig. 5D and 5E), thereby allowing the square corners of the rear mounting support 110 to be securely magnetically coupled to the jack pad 18.

As described above, the present disclosure contemplates that the leveling device body 102 may be formed by three-dimensional printing. Accordingly, the present disclosure contemplates a non-transitory computer readable medium that may contain instructions that, when executed by a processor of a three-dimensional printer, cause the printer to successively (succinively) deposit material in any particular shape or size required for any particular application in a manner that forms the body 102 of the leveling device 100. As a non-limiting example, fig. 6 illustrates one embodiment of a method 300 of the present disclosure, wherein a non-transitory computer readable medium contains instructions that, when loaded (block 302) and executed (block 304) by a processor, cause Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) to create a body having a front surface, a bottom surface, a side surface, and a rear mounting support, the side surface having an aperture configured to receive a level, and the front surface having an aperture therein for viewing the level in the body, and the rear mounting support having a first mounting surface configured at an angle of about 30 degrees relative to a plane of the bottom surface, and a second mounting surface orthogonal to the first mounting surface, each of the first and second mounting surfaces having at least one aperture formed therein to receive a magnetic coupling element.

It will be understood that the skilled person may form the levelling device in different ways for each specific application, but such implementation variants should not be construed as resulting in a departure from the scope set forth in the claims.

In this document, relational terms such as first and second, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. Numerical ordinals such as first, second, third, etc. merely indicate different singles of a plural and do not imply any order or sequence unless specifically defined by the claim language. The order of text in any claims does not imply that the process steps must be performed in a temporal or logical order according to such order unless it is explicitly defined by the language of the claim. The process steps may be interchanged in any order without departing from the scope of the invention as long as such an interchange does not contradict the claim language and is not logically nonsensical.

Furthermore, words such as connecting or coupling used to describe the relationship between different elements do not imply that a direct physical connection must be made between the elements, depending on the context. For example, two elements may be connected to each other physically, electronically, logically, or in any other manner, through one or more additional elements.

While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description of the disclosure, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing an exemplary embodiment of the invention. It being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in an exemplary embodiment without departing from the scope of the disclosure as set forth in the appended claims.