Patents Examined by Matthew T. Shanley
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Patent number: 6155778Abstract: A turbine shroud includes a panel having inner and outer surfaces extending between forward and aft opposite ends. The panel includes forward and aft hooks for supporting the panel radially atop a row of turbine rotor blades. The panel includes a plurality of recesses in the inner surface thereof which face tips of the blades. The recesses extend only in part into the panel for reducing surface area exposed to the blade tips.Type: GrantFiled: December 30, 1998Date of Patent: December 5, 2000Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Ching-Pang Lee, George A. Durgin
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Patent number: 6149384Abstract: A centrifugal pump has a casing, an overhung-mounted rotor in the casing having a feed chamber, which centrifugally accelerates the liquid flowing centrally to it, and a discharge chamber positioned axially behind it and connected to the feed chamber in the vicinity of the inner circumference of the rotor, as well as a scoop pipe guided centrally into the discharge chamber close to the inner circumference thereof and by means of which the liquid is discharged. For the discharge of liquids from a vacuum chamber, the discharge chamber is connected by means of a line centrally introduced into it to the gas phase of the vacuum chamber, so that the liquid flowing in via the feed chamber forms on its inner circumference a liquid ring, into which is immersed the feed end of the scoop pipe, and that on the drain side the scoop pipe is closed by an automatically closing valve, which opens under the operating pressure.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 1998Date of Patent: November 21, 2000Inventor: Vaclav Feres
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Patent number: 6142732Abstract: The angular extent of the flow path in a fan scroll is extended by reducing the rate of radial expansion of the flow path. By extending the angular as circumferential extent of the scroll flow path downstream of the fan impeller ANC structure can be located in/on the scroll while being located a sufficient distance downstream of the impeller. The flow path length can be increased without increasing the cubage of the scroll and, if desired, a further flow path increase can be achieved by a combination of the reduced rate of radial expansion together with increasing the cubage.Type: GrantFiled: May 26, 1998Date of Patent: November 7, 2000Assignee: Carrier CorporationInventors: Shau-Tak R. Chou, Mark A. Daniels
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Patent number: 6132175Abstract: A compliant sleeve for attaching a ceramic member to a metal member is comprised of a superalloy substrate having a metal contacting side and a ceramic contacting side. The ceramic contacting side is plated with a layer of nickel followed by a layer of platinum. The substrate is then oxidized to form nickel oxide scale on the ceramic contacting side and a cobalt oxide scale on the metal contacting side. A lubricious coating of boron nitride is then applied over the metal contacting side, and a shear-stress limiting gold coating is applied over the ceramic contacting side.Type: GrantFiled: May 22, 1998Date of Patent: October 17, 2000Assignee: AlliedSignal, Inc.Inventors: Hongda Cai, Dave Narasimhan, Thomas E. Strangman, Michael L. Easley, Bjoern Schenk
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Patent number: 6126400Abstract: An airfoil having extended life due to reduction in stresses. The stresses are reduced by extending the thermal barrier coating below the radius between the outer band perimeter and the inner flow path surfaces and tapering the coating thickness. This additional tapered thermal barrier coating reduces the temperature gradient across a region already having high mechanical stresses resulting from geometric considerations thereby lowering thermally-induced stresses so that low cycle fatigue life is improved.Type: GrantFiled: February 1, 1999Date of Patent: October 3, 2000Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Glenn H. Nichols, Judd D. Tressler
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Patent number: 6126386Abstract: A pump has a rotor made of synthetic resin in a fixed housing which are adjacently arranged while forming a gap between the housing and the rotor to force-feed a medium containing water moisture, in which the rotor is made of a resol-type synthetic resin so that a dimensional change rate of the rotor is 0.15% or less for a medium having a moisture content rate of 10 wt % or less, whereby a sufficient pump performance can be obtained while relatively increasing the degree of freedom of the moisture content rate of the medium to reduce the corrosiveness of the medium.Type: GrantFiled: September 4, 1997Date of Patent: October 3, 2000Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Katsuhiko Kohyama, Toshihiro Kameda, Tetsuhiro Okada, Hideharu Yamazaki
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Patent number: 6123505Abstract: A stator for a hydrodynamic torque converter which is produced by injection molding with axially drawn dies. The stator hub has stator blades produced by use of a thermoplastic material to fill the dies in the injection molding process. The stator blades are positioned relative to one another on the stator hub in such a way that the flow outlet of every stator blade is arranged at an offset of only the width of a gap relative to the flow inlet of the subsequent stator blade in the circumferential direction.Type: GrantFiled: August 26, 1998Date of Patent: September 26, 2000Assignee: Mannesmann Sachs AGInventors: Christoph Sasse, Uwe Dehrmann
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Patent number: 6113350Abstract: A vertical-axle wind power machine comprises a vertical axle, a plurality of jointed radial arms, a plurality of counterbalanced oblique blades at the support points thereof, a friction-rewarding rotary speed multiplying transmission, and an automatic rotary speed regulating means to be performed by either a wind-operated or an alternative digital controlled rotary speed regulating device; the combination of which provides the oblique blades with great sensitivity to the alternation of lee wind and head wind for automatic swinging to the most efficient lee angle at upstanding and overturned positions to sail nearly three quarters and streamline against the head wind resistance for the remaining quarter every circle of rotation, is able to convert the centripetal and centrifugal component forces to the same torque direction of the tangential component force from the same blade by an eccentric-guided angular bracket means and a fork-rooted radial arm, is able to offset the friction loss in the rotary speed multType: GrantFiled: August 31, 1998Date of Patent: September 5, 2000Assignee: Stokwang Windpower Industrial Inc.Inventor: Hsun-Fa Liu
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Patent number: 6106224Abstract: A submersible centrifugal pump is claimed which includes an inner downthrust washer for receiving the downthrust load from the upward movement of the produced fluid, and an outer sealing washer, which is a non-load bearing washer, for allowing the repositioning of the impeller to prevent gaps that create recirculation.Type: GrantFiled: April 2, 1998Date of Patent: August 22, 2000Assignee: Camco International Inc.Inventors: Ketankumar Kantilal Sheth, Dwight Cameron Chilcoat
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Patent number: 6102654Abstract: A turbomachine, especially a steam turbine, includes a casing, an inflow region formed at least in part by the casing for guiding working fluid, a feed for a cooling fluid, a rotating-blade carrier disposed in the casing and extending along a principal axis, and a shielding element disposed in the inflow region for shielding the rotating-blade carrier from the working fluid. The shielding element is attached to the casing by a mounting and the feed is guided through the mounting. A method is also provided for cooling one or more components of a turbomachine adjoining an inflow region for a hot working gas.Type: GrantFiled: December 21, 1998Date of Patent: August 15, 2000Assignee: Siemens AktiengesellschaftInventors: Heinrich Oeynhausen, Edwin Gobrecht, Helmut Pollak, Andreas Feldmueller
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Patent number: 6102661Abstract: A propeller (10) including a hub (11), a plurality of blades (13) extending outwardly from the hub (11) and part annular connecting elements (17) which interconnect tips (16) of adjacent blades (13). The trailing edges (21) of the elements (17) extend from the trailing edge of one blade (13) at its tip to intersect the adjacent blade (13) at a relief point (23) on the high pressure side of the blade (13) between the leading and trailing edges of the blade (13). The leading edge (20) of the elements (17) extends from the leading edge of a blade (13) at its tip (16) to intersect the adjacent blade (13) at a relief point (25) on the low pressure side of the blade (13) intermediate the leading and trailing edges of the blade (13) at its tip (16).Type: GrantFiled: December 29, 1997Date of Patent: August 15, 2000Assignee: SPI LTDInventors: Martin Robson, Eddie Hofmeister
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Patent number: 6095756Abstract: This invention relates to high-Cr precision casting materials containing carbon, silicon, manganese, chromium, nickel, vanadium, niobium, nitrogen, molybdenum, tungsten, cobalt and optionally boron in specific weight proportions, the balance being iron and incidental impurities, as well as turbine blades made by a precision casting process using these materials. Thus, the present invention provides high-Cr precision casting materials which are capable of precision casting and, moreover, have excellent high-temperature strength, as well as inexpensive and highly reliable turbine blades made by using these casting materials and such turbine blades also having lighter weight.Type: GrantFiled: March 3, 1998Date of Patent: August 1, 2000Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.Inventors: Akitsugu Fujita, Masatomo Kamada, Hiroshi Yokota, Mitsuyoshi Tsuchiya, Yoshinori Tanaka
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Patent number: 6089823Abstract: An apparatus for reducing between-stage entanglement of fibrous materials around a rotating impeller drive shaft in a multi-stage vertical turbine pump includes a fluted sleeve on the rotating impeller drive shaft and a notched cutter ring fixed to a stationary inner wall of a lower pump stage for engaging with the fluted sleeve to comminute fibrous materials by shearing action between the notches and the flutes. If necessary, a discharge transition piece may be used to adapt the upper end of an upstream pump stage bowl to the lower end of a downstream bowl.Type: GrantFiled: May 4, 1998Date of Patent: July 18, 2000Assignee: Ingersoll-Dresser Pump CompanyInventors: Richard J. Cronin, Paul W. Behnke
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Patent number: 6086328Abstract: A turbine blade includes a hollow airfoil extending from an integral dovetail. The airfoil includes sidewalls extending between leading and trailing edges and longitudinally between a root and a tip. The sidewalls are spaced apart to define a flow channel for channeling cooling air through the airfoil. The tip is tapered longitudinally above at least one of the sidewalls and decreases in thickness.Type: GrantFiled: December 21, 1998Date of Patent: July 11, 2000Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventor: Ching-Pang Lee
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Patent number: 6082968Abstract: A centrifugally activated variable damper assembly for a stopped-rotor aircraft is disclosed for adjusting dampening level of teetering motions produced by the rotors during the in-flight conversion process from rotary-wing to fixed-wing flight, or vise versa. The assembly includes a damper valve responsive to centrifugal forces produced by rotational speed of the aircraft rotor. The assembly also includes dampers within the rotor system that operate at variable damping levels in response to centrifugal forces acting upon the damper valve.Type: GrantFiled: November 30, 1998Date of Patent: July 4, 2000Assignee: The Boeing CompanyInventor: Dan Nyhus
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Patent number: 6082969Abstract: A quiet compact radiator cooling fan having a hub portion, which extends radially outwardly and axially from its inlet to its outlet end, a shroud portion, which extends radially inwardly and axially adjacent the inlet end and radially outwardly and axially adjacent its outlet end forming a converging annular opening and a plurality of airfoil shaped, forward sweep blades disposed between the hub and shroud which cooperate with the hub and shroud to produce a mixed flow radiator fan which has improved blade loading and aeroacoustic performance producing a quiet and efficient cooling fan for off the road vehicles.Type: GrantFiled: December 15, 1997Date of Patent: July 4, 2000Assignee: Caterpillar Inc.Inventors: Jim K. Carroll, Delbert L. Kramer
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Patent number: 6079948Abstract: A blade for an axial fluid machine comprises an effective blade portion having a root portion and a tip portion and projecting blade portions. The projecting blade portions are defined by axis reference lines extending to an upstream side with respect to a fluid flow from at least one of the root portion and the tip portion of the effective blade portion and by axes obliquely extending from ends of the axis reference lines toward a leading edge of the effective blade portion. The projecting blade portions are formed continuously to and integrally with the leading edge of the effective blade portion so that the effective blade portion and the projecting blade portions have substantially the same maximum blade thickness.Type: GrantFiled: September 30, 1997Date of Patent: June 27, 2000Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha ToshibaInventors: Takashi Sasaki, Kenichi Okuno, Sakae Kawasaki
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Patent number: 6077040Abstract: A system for controlling propeller blade pitch is disclosed. The system comprises a transfer tube, wherein the transfer tube defines an element of the rotatable portion and wherein the transfer tube is non-translating relative the rotatable and non-rotatable portions. A transfer bearing for providing hydraulic fluid to and interfacing with the transfer tube is also used, wherein the transfer bearing is located on the non-rotatable portion. The system further includes a pitch change actuator and a mechanism form for actuating the pitch change actuator, wherein the mechanism is fluidically connected to and translatable relative to the transfer tube. A device for measuring blade angle of the propeller blade is also provided, wherein the device is separate and distinct from the transfer tube.Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 1998Date of Patent: June 20, 2000Assignee: United Technologies CorporationInventors: Robert W. Pruden, Paul A. Carvalho
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Patent number: 6074169Abstract: A high and low pressure sides integrating steam turbine having high and low pressure sides integrating steam turbine blades, each made of a martensite steel including 8-13 wt % Cr, and having a blade length of 33 inches or more for 60 Hz power generation and 40 inches for 50 Hz power generation.Type: GrantFiled: September 22, 1997Date of Patent: June 13, 2000Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.Inventors: Masao Siga, Takeshi Onoda, Shigeyoshi Nakamura, Ryo Hiraga
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Patent number: 6074167Abstract: A variable geometry centrifugal pump varies the pump output and/or centrifugal pump force by varying the effective radial length of the impeller vanes impelling fluid. The pump provides an impeller having graduated vanes with a shorter vane section for low output and a longer vane section for high output. A shroud carried in the impeller has female openings for the vanes to extend through to cover shorter or longer sections of the vanes. The shroud includes apertures for the axial pump inlet to extend through, thereby permitting the impeller to impel fluid on either side of the shroud.Type: GrantFiled: February 5, 1999Date of Patent: June 13, 2000Assignee: Woodward Governor CompanyInventors: Fyodor N. Olifirov, Vladimir I. Petrov, Alexander A. Mikhailov