Patent attributes
An aircraft can include a wing. The wing can include a tip. A winglet can be pivotably connected to the wing proximate the tip. A connecting member can be operatively connected to the wing and the winglet. The connecting member can include a flexible material with a super elastic material member operatively connected to the flexible material. Thus, the connecting member can allow passive movement of the winglet responsive to real-time operational forces acting upon the aircraft. In some arrangements, the flexible material can be a fabric, and the super elastic material member can be a wire. In some arrangements, the super elastic material member can be configured to exhibit a non-linear stiffness profile. The non-linear stiffness profile can include a region of quasi-zero stiffness. The stiffness profile of the super elastic material member can be selectively varied, such as by controlling a temperature of the super elastic material member.
