ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 23 -- United States Patent no. 12,365,456, issued on July 22, was assigned to Lockheed Martin Corp. (Bethesda, Md.).

"Thruster system for a convertible aircraft" was invented by Mark R. Alber (Stratford, Conn.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A convertible aircraft is configured to fly in a hover mode and a forward flight mode, the aircraft including a body defining a longitudinal axis and a thruster system coupled to the body and configured to apply forces to the body to fly the aircraft. The thruster system includes a first thruster configured to create a first thrust profile having a fixed direction and a variable amount. The thruster system includes a second thruster c...