Patents by Inventor Melissa Wise Starkweather

Melissa Wise Starkweather has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7008178
    Abstract: A turbine nozzle includes outer and inner bands integrally joined to a doublet of hollow vanes extending radially therebetween. Each of the vanes includes opposite pressure and suction sidewalls extending between opposite leading and trailing edges, and spaced apart to define an internal plenum extending radially between the bands for receiving an air coolant. The vanes are spaced apart from each other to define a flow passage for channeling hot combustion gases which are bound by corresponding pressure and suction sidewalls of the vanes facing inboard toward each other, with the remaining suction and pressure sidewalls of the vanes facing outboard. The vanes include different cooling configurations to bias more of the coolant to the inboard sidewalls than to the outboard sidewalls.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2006
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Duane Allan Busch, Melissa Wise Starkweather, Andrew Charles Powis