Patents Examined by Jason Fountain
  • Patent number: 11753944
    Abstract: An airfoil section has an airfoil wall that defines a leading end, a trailing end, and first and second sides that join the leading end and the trailing end. The airfoil wall circumscribes an internal core cavity. A skincore passage is embedded in the first side of the airfoil wall between inner and outer portions of the first side of airfoil wall. The skincore passage defines a passage forward edge and a passage aft edge. The first side of the airfoil wall has a portion that tapers in thickness at the passage aft edge. A cooling passage is embedded in the second side of the airfoil wall between inner and outer portions of the second side of airfoil wall. The inner portion of the second side of the airfoil wall includes a protrusion located across the internal core cavity from the portion of the first side that tapers in thickness.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Allan N. Arisi, Tracy A. Propheter-Hinckley
  • Patent number: 11566537
    Abstract: A water-cooled compressor housing assembly for a turbocharger includes a compressor housing that defines an open-ended cavity extending axially downstream into the compressor housing, and a separately formed cover that is affixed to the compressor housing so as to close the open end of the cavity and thereby define a coolant passage for a liquid coolant to be circulated through. A coolant inlet and a coolant outlet are provided for supplying coolant into and exhausting coolant from the coolant passage. The compressor housing has a simplified geometry that is manufacturable by sand casting without needed a sand core for the coolant passage, or by die casting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: Garrett Transportation I Inc.
    Inventors: Manuel Marques, Olivier Millotte, Emeric Genin, Jean-Pierre Toniolo
  • Patent number: 11512602
    Abstract: A rotor assembly is provided for a piece of rotational equipment. This rotor assembly includes a rotor disk, a rotor blade and a seal element. The rotor disk is configured to rotate about a rotational axis. The rotor blade includes an airfoil, a platform and a mount attaching the rotor blade to the rotor disk. The seal element is seated in a groove of the rotor disk. The seal element is configured to sealingly engage the platform and the mount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Christopher J. Knortz
  • Patent number: 11499522
    Abstract: A rotor assembly includes a rotor mast, a rotor and a pivot arrangement. The rotor mast is for rotatable attachment of the rotor assembly to a support structure for rotation of the rotor assembly relative to the support structure about a rotation axis. The rotor has two rotor blades extending in a virtual plane in a longitudinal direction. The two rotor blades are arranged to be propelled by air flow. The pivot arrangement defines a pivot axis. The rotor is pivotably connected to the rotor mast for pivoting the two rotor blades simultaneously relative to the rotor mast about the pivot axis. The longitudinal direction and a projection of said pivot axis in the virtual plane enclose a constant acute angle in the virtual plane. A windmill and a wind farm includes the rotor assembly with a capacity in the range of 15-50 MW/km2.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: TouchWind Blue B.V.
    Inventor: Frederikus Van De Klippe
  • Patent number: 11480149
    Abstract: A wind turbine may include a rotor hub, a blade bearing, a rotor blade, and a conical rotor-hub extension disposed between the rotor hub and the blade bearing. The conical rotor-hub extension may have a first diameter on a first side that is directed toward the blade bearing and a second diameter on a second side that is directed toward the rotor hub. The first diameter may be greater than the second diameter, and the rotor blade may be connected to the blade bearing directly or indirectly. The blade bearing may comprise a first blade-bearing ring and a second blade-bearing ring, with the first blade-bearing ring being connected to the conical rotor-hub extension in a form-fitting manner, in a form- and force-fitting manner, or in a form configured as part of the conical rotor-hub extension.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignees: THYSSENKRUPP ROTHE ERDE GERMANY GMBH, THYSSENKRUPP AG
    Inventors: Daniel Becker, Thomas Handreck, Bernd Lüneburg
  • Patent number: 11454120
    Abstract: A turbine blade for a rotary machine includes an airfoil that extends from a root to a tip along a radial span. The airfoil further includes a first sidewall and a second sidewall that are coupled together at a leading edge of the airfoil and that extend aftward to a trailing edge of the airfoil. One of the first sidewall or the second sidewall includes a tip region having an increased stagger angle that produces a non-linear, over-hanging trailing edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2022
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Adam Fredmonski, Moorthi Subramaniyan
  • Patent number: 11454207
    Abstract: A wind turbine and a method for assembling a wind turbine is disclosed. The wind turbine, including a first portion, a second portion which is connectable to the first portion, and a spring element which is connected to the first portion and which protrudes therefrom, wherein the spring element configured to guide the second portion towards the first portion and, and wherein the spring element is configured to be deformed while the second portion is guided towards the first portion. Assembly operations are simplified since an elastic guiding system is provided which reduces movements between portions to be connected. In particular, a duration of assembly operations may be reduced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2022
    Inventors: Jakub Bednarek, Christian Laursen, Peder Bach, Prashant Tukaram Deokar, Kim Gade Nielsen
  • Patent number: 11441434
    Abstract: A turbine ring assembly including ring sectors forming a turbine ring and a ring support structure, each sector having, in a section plane defined by an axial direction and a radial direction of the ring, a first and a second attachment tabs extending in the radial direction, and the structure including a central shell ring from which extend as projections a first and a second radial flanges between which are retained the first and second attachment tabs of each sector. Each sector includes rectilinear seatings mounted on the faces of the first and second attachment tabs in contact, respectively, with the second annular flange and the annular ring-flange and including, along a tangent to the circumferential direction, a variable thickness in the axial direction with a minimum thickness at the first and second ends of the sector and a maximum thickness in a median portion of the rectilinear seating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
    Inventors: Antoine Claude Michel Etienne Danis, Sébastien Serge Francis Congratel, Clément Jean Pierre Duffau, Lucien Henri Jacques Quennehen, Nicolas Paul Tableau
  • Patent number: 11441536
    Abstract: Provided is a wind turbine blade spar cap for a wind turbine blade for a wind turbine, the wind turbine blade including a down conductor, the wind turbine blade spar cap including at least one carbon element and at least one conductive layer, wherein the at least one carbon element and the at least one conductive layer are electrically connected, and at least one conductive profile to electrically connect the at least one conductive layer to the down conductor of the wind turbine blade, wherein the conductive profile is electrically connected to the at least one conductive layer and wherein the conductive profile is arranged at the wind turbine blade spar cap. Also provided is a wind turbine blade including a spar cap and a wind turbine including wind turbine blades.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2022
    Assignee: SIEMENS GAMESA RENEWABLE ENERGY A/S
    Inventors: Claus Burchardt, Mogens Nielsen
  • Patent number: 11434923
    Abstract: A fan rotor for a ram air fan includes a hub and blades extending radially outwards from the hub. The hub includes an inner hub portion, a disk portion connected to a radially outer surface of the inner hub portion, and an outer hub portion connected to a radially outer surface of the disk portion. The outer hub portion has an upstream arm with a compound contoured surface. The compound contoured surface is configured to direct air flow around the compound contoured surface and along roots of the blades.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation
    Inventors: Darryl A. Colson, Roberto J. Perez
  • Patent number: 11434826
    Abstract: An acoustic absorption cell including a bottom wall extending in a plane orthogonal to an axial direction, an enclosure including a first axial end secured to the bottom wall, and an acoustic horn extending inside the enclosure between a first opening of the horn and a second opening of the horn smaller than the first opening, the horn being secured to a second axial end of the enclosure opposite the first axial end, and the first and second openings of the horn each extending in a plane orthogonal to the axial direction. The horn includes at least one retaining arm protruding from the horn inside the enclosure and fixed to the bottom wall or to the enclosure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
    Inventors: Georges Jean Xavier Riou, Jeremy Paul Francisco Gonzalez, Jacky Novi Mardjono
  • Patent number: 11428237
    Abstract: The present invention provides a vacuum pump that measures the temperature of a rotating portion accurately and at low cost, a stator column of the vacuum pump, a base, and an exhaust system of the vacuum pump at low cost. The vacuum pump according to the present embodiment, the thread groove-type seal for causing some of the purge gas to flow back toward the temperature sensor unit is provided on the downstream side of the purge gas flow path in which the temperature sensor unit is disposed, thereby increasing the pressure of the purge gas in the vicinity of the temperature sensor unit. Thus, with the small amount of purge gas, the gas pressure around the temperature sensor unit can create an intermediate flow or a viscous flow. Consequently, the total amount of purge gas to be supplied can be saved, resulting in cost reduction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: Edwards Japan Limited
    Inventor: Takashi Kabasawa
  • Patent number: 11428104
    Abstract: The turbine rotor assembly can include a turbine rotor disc drivingly mounted to a shaft for rotation about a rotation axis and having a central aperture extending coaxially with the shaft through the turbine rotor disc and being defined by a radially inner surface of the turbine rotor disc, a cavity downstream of and housing at least a part of the turbine rotor disc, a nut secured to the shaft and extending across the central aperture, a first air passage defined between an outer surface of the nut and the radially inner surface of the turbine rotor disc and fluidly connected to the cavity, a second air passage defined radially inward of the first air passage by an inner surface of the shaft and an inner surface of the nut.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 30, 2022
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventor: Vincent Paradis
  • Patent number: 11421536
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes rotor having a hub, and a plurality of blades extending generally radially from the hub. Each of the blades has an airfoil portion. The airfoil portion has a leading edge and a trailing edge defining a chordwise direction, and a root and a tip defining a spanwise direction. Only a sub-set of the blades has a cutback at at least one of the trailing edge and the leading edge. A method of designing and a method of assembling a rotor having noise reduction properties in a gas turbine engine is also presented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: Pratt & Whitney Canada Corp.
    Inventors: Yau-Wai Li, Peter Townsend, Vijay Kandasamy
  • Patent number: 11421661
    Abstract: Provided is a protective cover system including a first protective cover and a second protective cover, both include a polymer and being pre-formed into a curved shape so as to accommodate at least a part of a wind turbine blade to be protected, each of the first and second protective covers has a tip end and a root end, wherein the first protective cover includes a first overlap portion at the root end, and the second protective cover includes a second overlap portion at the tip end, wherein the shape of the first overlap portion is substantially complementary to the shape of the second overlap portion such that when overlapping the first and second overlap portions, the resulting cross section of the overlapped overlap portions substantially corresponds to the cross sections of at least one of the first and second protective covers outside the overlap portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: SIEMENS GAMESA RENEWABLE ENERGY A/S
    Inventors: Kasper Koops Kratmann, John Nielsen
  • Patent number: 11415112
    Abstract: There is provided a method of operating a wind turbine which has at least two rotor blades. A first ice detection method is performed by a first ice accretion detection unit. A first warning signal is output if an ice accretion which exceeds a first threshold value is detected at one of the rotor blades by the first ice detection method. A second ice detection method is performed by a second ice accretion detection unit. A second warning signal is output if an ice accretion which exceeds a second threshold value is detected at one of the rotor blades by the second ice detection method. An enable signal is output if a freedom from ice is detected at the at least two rotor blades by the second ice detection method. Intervention in the operation of the wind turbine is effected by a control unit if the first or second warning signal has been detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: Wobben Properties GmbH
    Inventor: Ulf Schaper
  • Patent number: 11408400
    Abstract: Disclosed is a wind turbine blade having a blade de-icing system. The blade de-icing system comprises: a first channel longitudinally extending from a first position to a second position, wherein the second position is between the tip end and the first position; and a heating channel longitudinally extending from the second position to the first position along the leading edge of the wind turbine blade, the heating channel and the first channel being in fluid connection. The blade de-icing system is arranged to provide a flow of heated fluid through the first channel and the heating channel, the flow of heated fluid through the heating channel having a main flow direction along a longitudinal direction of the wind turbine blade, and wherein the blade de-icing system is configured to affect the flow of heated fluid through the heating channel resulting in a rotational flow of the heated fluid about the main flow direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: LM WIND POWER INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY II APS
    Inventors: Helen Rosemary Barnes, Laurids Andersen
  • Patent number: 11408295
    Abstract: The invention concerns a turbine nozzle, comprising a plurality of angular nozzle sectors (6) each angular sector (6) comprising two inner and outer platform sectors, connected together by a plurality of radial blades (63), each inner platform sector (62) being rigidly attached to a radially inner foot (621), this nozzle comprising an annular collar (5) on which the nozzle angular sectors are fastened end-to-end circumferentially, this collar (5) comprising a cylindrical ring (50) the radial inner face (51) of which comprises an abradable material (53). This nozzle is characterised in that the radially inner foot (621) of each inner platform sector comprises a radial tab (622) and in that the annular ring (50) comprises a plurality of L-shaped pads (55), each pad delimiting a slot (553) for receiving the tab (622), so as to ensure the fastening by coupling of the collar on each nozzle angular sector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 9, 2022
    Assignee: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
    Inventors: Coralie Cinthia Guerard, Hamza Guessine
  • Patent number: 11396813
    Abstract: A rough cast blading of this blade includes, a suction sidewall and/or a pressure sidewall of this blading intended to respectively form the suction sidewall and/or the pressure sidewall of the blade, a casting allowance extending over a determined width from a trailing edge of the blading intended to form the trailing edge of the blade in the direction of a leading edge of the blading intended to form the leading edge of the blade, except for a reserved area adjacent to the trailing edge of the blading and whose width is at least one radius of the trailing edge of the blading, over at least part of the height of the blading.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2022
    Assignee: Safran Aircraft Engines
    Inventors: Alexandre Gimel, Josserand Jacques André Bassery, Maxime Paul Numa Givert, Gabriela Mihaila, Marc Soisson, Ba-Phuc Tang
  • Patent number: 11391294
    Abstract: A compressor airfoil of a turbine engine having a geared architecture includes pressure and suction sides that extend in a radial direction from a 0% span position to a 100% span position. The airfoil has a relationship between a tangential stacking offset and span position that defines a curve that is non-linear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2022
    Assignee: RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Edward J. Gallagher, Lisa I. Brilliant, Joseph C. Straccia, Stanley J. Balamucki, Mark A. Stephens, Kate Hudon