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Jones, Robert T.

Publications and source records attributed to Jones, Robert T..

The minimum drag of thin wings at supersonic speed according to Kogan's theory

In the theory of thin lifting surfaces the minimum drag consistent with a given total lift occurs when the downwash, averaged between forward and reversed motion of the wing, has the same value at all points of the wing planform. In Kogan's theory the conditions for minimum drag are determined on the forward sloping characteristic surface touching the trailing edge of the wing and it is shown that such a surface plays the role of the Trefftz plane familiar in subsonic wing theory. This paper shows how Kogan's theory may be applied to determine the drag of elliptic wings at supersonic speed. It appears that such wings have lower drag than the conventional 'delta' wing.

Jones, Robert T.↗

Extending the Lorentz Transformation to Motion with Variable Velocity

The problem considered is that of rectilinear motion with variable velocity. The paper gives, by an elementary construction, a system of coordinates which is conformal in the vicinity of the axis of motion. By a particular choice of the scale relation, such restricted conformal transformations can be made to reduce to the Lorentz transformation everywhere in the case of uniform velocity and locally in the case of variable velocity.

Jones, Robert T.↗

Theory of Wing-Body Drag at Supersonic Speeds

At subsonic speeds the pressure drag arising from the thickness of the body or wings is negligible so long as the shapes are sufficiently well streamlined to avoid flow separation. In that range there exists no possibility of either favorable or adverse interference on the pressure distributions themselves. If one body is so placed as to receive a drag from the pressure field of another then the second body is sure to receive a corresponding increment of thrust from the first. At supersonic speeds this tolerance, which was permitted the designer, disappears and the drag becomes sensitive to the shape and arrangement of the bodies.To be sure, the primary factor here is the thickness ratio, but nevertheless there exist arrangements in which a large cancellation of drag occurs.

Jones, Robert T.↗

Accelerations in Landing with a Tricycle-Type Landing Gear

In connection with the application of stable tricycle-type landing gears to transport airplanes, the question arises as to whether certain passengers may not experience relatively great accelerations in an emergency landing. Since the main landing wheels are behind the center of gravity in this type of gear, a hard-braked landing will cause immediate nosing down of the airplane and, when this motion is stopped due to the front wheel striking the ground, there will be some tendency for the rearmost passengers to be thrown out of their seats, The provided rough calculations are designed to show the magnitudes of the various reactions experienced in a severe landing under these circumstances.

Jones, Robert T.↗