Patents Assigned to General Electric Company
  • Patent number: 11920500
    Abstract: A passive flow modulation device for a machine defining an axial direction and a radial direction, the passive flow modulation device including: a first ring with a first coefficient of thermal expansion; a second ring disposed coaxially with the first ring and positioned at least partially inward of the first ring along the radial direction, spaced from the first ring along the axial direction, or both, the first ring, the second ring, or both defining at least in part one or more passages, the second ring with a second coefficient of thermal expansion that is less than the first coefficient of thermal expansion to passively modulate a size of the one or more passages during operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Steven Douglas Johnson, Yu-Liang Lin, Craig Alan Gonyou, Scott Alan Schimmels, Jeffrey Douglas Rambo, Brian Gregg Feie
  • Patent number: 11920521
    Abstract: Control schemes for controlling a gas turbine engine in response to disturbances associated with a load mechanically coupled with the gas turbine engine are provided. In one aspect, a gas turbine engine mechanically coupled with a load has a controller that includes executable control logic. The control logic includes a feedforward module, an aggressive control module, and a power turbine governor module. By executing the modules, the controller seeks to maintain a constant power turbine speed stably and subtly in response to small disturbances associated with the load and aggressively in response to large disturbances associated with the load, as well as smooth transitions between the responses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Jessie Thorup, Christopher David King
  • Patent number: 11920672
    Abstract: An air turbine starter that includes a housing with a divider structure dividing the housing into a wet chamber and an air chamber. The air turbine starter further including a bearing assembly, a turbine member, a first drive shaft, and a second drive shaft connecting the turbine member with a rotating assembly. A lubricant supply portion having at least one supply inlet fluidly coupled to the wet chamber and at least one supply outlet fluidly coupled to the bearing assembly whereby lubricant from the wet chamber can be supplied to the bearing assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignees: Unison Industries, LLC, General Electric Company
    Inventors: Roberto Karpik, Eliel Fresco Rodriguez, David Allan Dranschak, Shiloh Montegomery Meyers, Marcin Bialas
  • Patent number: 11920230
    Abstract: Methods for processing an iron cobalt alloy, along with components formed therefrom, are provided. The method may include: pre-annealing a sheet of an iron cobalt alloy at a pre-anneal temperature (e.g., about 770° C. to about 805° C.); thereafter, cutting a component from the sheet; thereafter, heat-treat annealing the component at a treatment temperature (e.g., about 845° C. to about 870° C.) for a treatment period (e.g., about 1 minute to about 10 minutes); and thereafter, exposing the component to oxygen at an oxidizing temperature to form an insulation layer on a surface of the component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Fabian Isaza, Pablo Gabriel Piazza Galarza
  • Patent number: 11918943
    Abstract: A turbine engine having a compressor section, a combustor section, a turbine section, and a rotatable drive shaft that couples a portion of the turbine section and a portion of the compressor section. A bypass conduit couples the compressor section to the turbine section while bypassing at least the combustion section. At least one particle separator is located in the turbine engine having a separator inlet that receives a bypass stream, a separator outlet that receives a reduced-particle stream flows, and a particle outlet that receives a concentrated-particle stream comprising separated particles. A conduit, fluidly coupled to the particle outlet, extends through an interior of at least one stationary vane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Timothy Deryck Stone, Gregory Michael Laskowski, Robert Proctor, Curtis Stover, Robert Francis Manning, Victor Hugo Silva Correia, Jared Peter Buhler, Robert Carl Murray, Corey Bourassa, Byron Andrew Pritchard, Jr., Jonathan Russell Ratzlaff
  • Patent number: 11923586
    Abstract: A combustion section defines an axial direction, a radial direction, and a circumferential direction. The combustion section includes a casing that defines a diffusion chamber. A combustion liner is disposed within the diffusion chamber and defines a combustion chamber. The combustion liner is spaced apart from the casing such that a passageway is defined between the combustion liner and the casing. A fuel cell assembly is disposed in the passageway. The fuel cell assembly includes a fuel cell stack having a plurality of fuel cells each extending between an inlet end and an outlet end. Each fuel cell of the plurality of fuel cells includes an air channel and a fuel channel each fluidly coupled to the combustion chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Seung-Hyuck Hong, Richard L Hart, Honggang Wang, Anil Raj Duggal, Michael Anthony Benjamin, Andrew Wickersham, Shih-Yang Hsieh
  • Patent number: 11920482
    Abstract: A device for fixing the position of adjustable vane rows of a turbomachine is provided. The device includes a support arm and at least one clamping tool. The at least one clamping tool is attached to the support arm. The at least one clamping tool includes a clamping head and a retaining element. The retaining element connects the clamping head to the support arm.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Laurie Ann Cribley, Rubi Elizabeth Triana Zorsano
  • Patent number: 11923569
    Abstract: A fuel cell unit that includes a support structure having a plurality of flow channels and an active layer membrane coupled with the support structure, the active layer membrane comprising at least one electrode layer. Each flow channel of the plurality of flow channels is configured to direct one of air and fuel across at least one electrode layer of an active layer membrane to create electric current. Each flow channel of the plurality of flow channels includes at least one enhancement feature that is configured to disrupt a formation of a boundary layer near a surface of the active layer membrane where reactions occur. The plurality of flow channels can be positioned in a zig-zag configuration to allow for an increase in power density of the fuel cell unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Hendrik Pieter Jacobus de Bock, Richard L. Hart, Honggang Wang, Narendra D. Joshi
  • Publication number: 20240067347
    Abstract: An aircraft includes a gas turbine engine, an electric motor, and a propulsion device. The gas turbine engine and the electric motor are configured to provide a target cumulative output to the propulsion device. An electronic control unit is configured to set the gas turbine engine to a first engine mode to provide a first engine output to the propulsion device, set the electric motor to a first motor mode to provide a first motor output to the propulsion device, a sum of the first engine output and the first motor output being within a predetermined range of the target cumulative output, and in response to a speed of the aircraft reaching a target speed and the first engine output increasing to a second engine output, set the electric motor to a second motor mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 13, 2022
    Publication date: February 29, 2024
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Vinod S. Kumar
  • Publication number: 20240068372
    Abstract: A rotor blade assembly for a turbine engine, including an airfoil blade including an inner diameter end and an outer diameter end, a lower blade carrier coupled to the inner diameter end of the airfoil blade and rigidly coupled to a disk via a pin, an upper blade carrier coupled to the outer diameter end of the airfoil blade, and an outer drum coupled to the upper blade carrier via a radial joint. The radial joint supports radial motion of the upper blade carrier relative to an axis extending through a center of the rotor blade assembly.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2022
    Publication date: February 29, 2024
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Vinod Shashikant Chaudhari, Bhaskar Nanda Mondal, Thomas O. Moniz
  • Patent number: 11913346
    Abstract: An apparatus a multiple layer structure having a sub-portion defining an impact zone, and having an inner composite fiber layer, an outer composite fiber layer overlying the inner composite fiber layer, and a woven glass layer, where the inner composite fiber layer, outer composite fiber layer, and the woven glass layer overly the impact zone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Frank Worthoff, Benjamin James Roby, Scott Roger Finn
  • Patent number: 11913355
    Abstract: Part-span shrouds for pitch controlled aircrafts are disclosed herein. An example apparatus includes a first portion extending from a first airfoil, the first portion including a first surface, the first surface being convex, a second portion extending from a second airfoil towards the first airfoil, the second portion including a second surface the first airfoil circumferentially adjacent to the second airfoil, the second surface being concave, and an interface formed by the first surface and the second surface, the interface reacting circumferential loads between the first airfoil and the second airfoil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Nicholas J. Kray, Nitesh Jain, Gary W. Bryant
  • Patent number: 11913408
    Abstract: A trunnion-to-disk connection for use on an open fan configuration of a gas turbine engine may include an integral trunnion and blade spar inserted through a trunnion aperture of a fan disk and supported by top bearing and a bottom bearing. A cavity can be provided between a trunnion of the integral trunnion and blade spar and the fan disk, as well as between the top bearing and bottom bearing. Pressurized hydraulic fluid can be supplied to the cavity to urge the integral trunnion and blade spar in a direction to preload the bearings. Prior to pressurization, and prior to installation of the bottom bearing, the trunnion can be inserted into a trunnion aperture of the fan disk such that an end of the trunnion extends past the fan disk to provide sufficient space to insert the bottom bearing from within the open interior of the fan disk.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignees: General Electric Company, GE Aviation Systems Limited
    Inventors: Nicholas M. Daggett, Frank Worthoff, Pawel Pres, Daryl John Burford
  • Patent number: 11915531
    Abstract: Systems and methods of servicing equipment including determining, by one or more computing devices, a workscope associated with the equipment; and at least partially-autonomously servicing the equipment in response to the determined workscope.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignees: General Electric Company, Oliver Crispin Robotics Limited
    Inventors: Andrew Crispin Graham, David Scott Diwinsky, Julian Matthew Foxall
  • Patent number: 11915679
    Abstract: An acoustic liner is provided. The acoustic liner includes a face sheet, a back sheet spaced from the face sheet, and a core layer defining a cellular structure disposed between the face sheet and the back sheet. The core layer includes a plurality of first resonant cells coupled to the back sheet. Each of the first resonant cells includes a first cell wall coupled to the back sheet along a first cell wall base edge, the first cell wall extending from the back sheet toward the face sheet, the first cell wall further coupled to the face sheet along a first cell wall top edge, wherein the first cell wall of each of the first resonant cells comprises a surface extension that extends from a surface of the first cell wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignees: General Electric Company, MRA Systems, LLC
    Inventors: Wendy Wenling Lin, Michael Moses Martinez, Rudramuni Kariveerappa Majjigi, David Patrick Calder, Aaron Goldsholl
  • Patent number: 11913376
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a compressor section with a compressor rotor shaft assembly including a plurality of compressor rotors longitudinally spaced apart from each other via respective ones of a plurality of shaft sections of a rotor shaft, each compressor rotor of the plurality of compressor rotors having a plurality of rotor vanes extending radially outward therefrom and being circumferentially spaced about the compressor rotor. A stator shroud assembly has a stator shroud casing surrounding the compressor rotor shaft assembly, a compressor flow passage being defined between the compressor rotor shaft assembly and the stator shroud casing. A pressurized air source generates a flow of pressurized air to be provided to the compressor section, and a plurality of pressurized airflow nozzles are connected with the pressurized air source and provide the flow of pressurized air into the compressor flow passage to cause the compressor rotor shaft assembly to rotate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Kudum Shinde, Ravindra Shankar Ganiger
  • Patent number: 11911848
    Abstract: A method of fabricating a component is provided. The method includes depositing particles onto a build platform. The method also includes distributing the particles to form a build layer. The method further includes operating a consolidation device to consolidate a first plurality of particles along a scan path to form a component. The component includes a top surface spaced apart from the build platform and an outer surface. The outer surface extends between the build platform and the top surface, and at least a portion of the outer surface faces a substantially particle-free region of the build platform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Michael Evans Graham, Thomas Charles Adcock, John Joseph Madelone, Jr., John Broddus Deaton, Jr.
  • Patent number: 11916468
    Abstract: A converter includes a DC bus, a first DC-DC converter, a second DC-DC converter, and a plurality of circulating current suppression circuits. The first DC-DC converter is coupled to the DC bus and includes a first plurality of switches. The second DC-DC converter is coupled to the DC bus in parallel with the first DC-DC converter. The second DC-DC converter includes a second plurality of switches. The plurality of circulating current suppression circuits are coupled to the DC bus and are further respectively coupled to the first DC-DC converter and the second DC-DC converter. Each of the plurality of circulating current suppression circuits has a resonant frequency at or around a switching frequency for the first and second pluralities of switches. The plurality of circulating current suppression circuits is configured to suppress current at or around the switching frequency and pass at least direct current.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Zheyu Zhang, Kenneth McClellan Rush, Luca Tonini, Hao Tu
  • Patent number: 11911213
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to extraction of probe motion estimates from acquired ultrasound image frames. Such image-extracted probe motion data can be used alone or in combination with sensed motion data, such as acquired using an inertial measurement unit (IMU). In certain implementations, the image-extracted probe motion can be used to provide or maintain anatomic context in a sequence of images or to provide guidance to a user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Peter William Lorraine, David Andrew Shoudy, Asha Singanamalli
  • Patent number: 11916422
    Abstract: According to some embodiments, system and method are provided comprising determining a maximum storage capacity of an energy storage system for a time window; performing a first sort of cycles by sorting in numerical order according to a ratio of a load demand to a total available power from a power generation system at each cycle of time window; assigning a unique, charge priority to each cycle; determining, starting from a highest charge priority, a charge power for each cycle until a total charge power satisfies the maximum storage capacity; determining, starting from a lowest sorted charge priority, an available discharge power for each cycle until a total discharge power exceeds the maximum storage capacity; performing a second sort in a temporal order of the cycles; determining, starting from an earliest cycle, an available state-of-charge (SOC) and adjusting the SOC of the energy storage system for each cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Min Yan