Patents Examined by Adam W Brown
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Patent number: 9828105Abstract: A nacelle assembly for a gas turbine engine includes an integrated afterbody mount case. The integrated afterbody mount case includes an outer ring and a plurality of spokes that extend radially inwardly from the outer ring. The outer ring includes a radially outer surface and a radially inner surface. The plurality of spokes are circumferentially disposed about the radially inner surface and extend radially inwardly from the radially inner surface.Type: GrantFiled: August 24, 2011Date of Patent: November 28, 2017Assignee: UNITED TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATIONInventor: Thomas G. Cloft
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Patent number: 9828866Abstract: A nozzle assembly includes at least one stationary nozzle and an outer ring having a predefined shape. The outer ring includes at least one groove defined therein configured to receive at least a portion of the at least one stationary nozzle. The nozzle assembly also includes an attachment member coupled between the stationary nozzle and the outer ring. The attachment member has a first configuration at a first nozzle assembly operating temperature a second configuration at a second nozzle assembly operating temperature.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2013Date of Patent: November 28, 2017Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: David Orus Fitts, David Robert Schumacher, Laurence Scott Duclos, Anand Aravindrao Kulkarni, David Bruce Knorr
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Patent number: 9816389Abstract: In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, a turbine rotor blade is provided for a turbine section of an engine. The turbine rotor blade includes a platform and an airfoil extending from the platform into a mainstream gas path of the turbine section. The airfoil includes a first side wall; a second side wall joined to the first side wall at a leading edge and a trailing edge; a tip cap extending between the first side wall and the second side wall; a first parapet wall extending from the first side wall; a first parapet wall cavity formed at least partially within the first parapet wall; and a first cooling hole extending between the first parapet wall cavity and a first surface of the first parapet wall such that cooling air flows through the first parapet wall cavity, through the first cooling hole, and out of the first parapet wall.Type: GrantFiled: October 16, 2013Date of Patent: November 14, 2017Assignee: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.Inventors: Malak Fouad Malak, Mark C. Morris, David Waldman
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Patent number: 9816488Abstract: A rotor turning system includes a fixture plate configured for attachment to a gearbox, a locking mechanism configured for attachment to the fixture plate, and a reaction fixture configured for attachment to the locking mechanism. The rotor turning system is configured to permit rotation of the rotor only when rotational torque is applied to the locking mechanism, and this rotation is in only one rotational direction.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2013Date of Patent: November 14, 2017Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Raymond Francis Rose, Jr., Jeffrey Eric Bergman, Brent Hamilton Holloway, Drake Joseph Viscome
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Patent number: 9810084Abstract: An airfoil for a gas turbine engine includes pressure and suction side walls joined to one another at leading and trailing edges. The pressure and suction side walls surround an airfoil cavity and provide an exterior airfoil surface. A baffle is arranged in the airfoil cavity and includes a supply hole. Ribs extend from the pressure and suction side walls into the airfoil cavity and engage the baffle. The ribs are configured to provide a serpentine cooling passage between the baffle and at least one of the pressure and suction side walls. The serpentine cooling passage has first and second passes joined by a bend. The ribs form a film cooling cavity between the first and second passes. The supply hole fluidly connects the baffle to the film cooling cavity. Film cooling holes extend through at least one of the pressure and suction side walls. The film cooling holes are in fluid communication with the film cooling cavity.Type: GrantFiled: February 6, 2015Date of Patent: November 7, 2017Assignee: UNITED TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATIONInventors: Brandon W. Spangler, Ryan Alan Waite, Steven Bruce Gautschi, Benjamin F. Hagan
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Patent number: 9790796Abstract: An airfoil is disclosed herein. The airfoil may include a leading edge, a trailing edge, a suction side defined between the leading edge and the trailing edge, and a pressure side defined between the leading edge and the trailing edge opposite the suction side. The pressure side may include a concave profile about the trailing edge that varies from a profile of a remainder of the pressure side.Type: GrantFiled: September 19, 2013Date of Patent: October 17, 2017Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: John David Stampfli, Ajay Keshava Rao, Rudolf Konrad Selmeier
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Patent number: 9777622Abstract: In an adjustable guide vane mechanism for a turbine, comprising a bearing ring with a plurality of guide vanes rotatably supported on the bearing ring by means of guide vane shafts provided with actuating levers which are engaged by a rotatable ring, the rotatable ring comprises axially spaced radial inner and outer sections with a radially inclined center section joining the spaced radial inner and outer sections, the radially inner section being rotatably supported and the radially outer section extending around the actuating levers and having recesses in which the actuating levers are received for pivoting the actuating levers and the guide vanes upon rotation of the rotatable ring.Type: GrantFiled: January 1, 2015Date of Patent: October 3, 2017Assignee: IHI CHARGING SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL GMBHInventor: Lorenz Jaenike
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Patent number: 9777742Abstract: A centrifugal fan impeller structure includes a hub having multiple blades. The blades extend from a circumference of the hub in a direction away from the hub. Each two adjacent blades define therebetween a flow way, an air outlet and an air inlet. The air outlet and the air inlet are respectively positioned at two ends of the flow way in communication with the flow way. The air outlets are arranged at unequal intervals so as to greatly reduce noise in operation.Type: GrantFiled: November 6, 2012Date of Patent: October 3, 2017Assignee: Asia Vital Components Co., Ltd.Inventors: Chih-Wei Yang, Sheng-Pei Lee
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Patent number: 9777743Abstract: A centrifugal fan impeller structure includes a hub and a blade body set. The hub has an extension section. The blade body set has multiple blade bodies. The blade bodies outward extend from the extension section of the hub. Each two adjacent blade bodies define therebetween a flow way, an air outlet and an air inlet. The air outlet and the air inlet are respectively positioned at two ends of the flow way in communication with the flow way. The air outlets are arranged at unequal intervals so as to greatly reduce noise in operation.Type: GrantFiled: November 6, 2012Date of Patent: October 3, 2017Assignee: Asia Vital Components Co., Ltd.Inventors: Chih-Wei Yang, Sheng-Pei Lee
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Patent number: 9759220Abstract: An impeller element includes a plurality of blades disposed along an outer circumference of a circular support plate. Each blade is divided into a plurality of blade sections in a rotational axis direction. At least one of the divided blade sections as a long-chord blade section is configured such that a chord as a line segment connecting a blade outer-circumferential edge and a blade inner-circumferential edge of the blade in a cross section perpendicular to a rotational axis of the blade has a greater length than a chord of another one of the blade sections as a short-chord blade section. The blade inner-circumferential edge of the at least one long-chord blade section having the longer chord protrudes toward the inner circumferential side, relative to the blade inner-circumferential edge of the at least other one of the blade sections as the short-chord blade section having the shorter chord.Type: GrantFiled: December 12, 2011Date of Patent: September 12, 2017Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric CorporationInventors: Takahide Tadokoro, Takashi Ikeda, Shingo Hamada, Mitsuhiro Shirota
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Patent number: 9752672Abstract: A transmission turbo machine integrates drive units and/or driven units into a machine train via a transmission. The integrated transmission substantially comprises a central large wheel with a shaft and a plurality of pinions with pinion shafts. The large wheel is operatively connected to the pinions, and the ends of the pinion shafts are operatively connected to a drive unit and/or driven unit. The shaft of the large wheel is operatively connected to a drive unit and/or driven unit. The invention is characterized in that the drive unit and/or driven unit is an axial expander which is mounted in a cantilevering manner in one or more stages.Type: GrantFiled: September 18, 2013Date of Patent: September 5, 2017Assignee: MAN Diesel & Turbo SEInventors: Emil Aschenbruck, Carsten Bennewa, Sven Boje, Bernd Risse, Philipp Gingter
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Patent number: 9744563Abstract: An undulatory structure and methods for the fabrication and use thereof. The undulatory structure includes a buckled sheet and one or more work input elements for deforming the buckled sheet in an undulating manner wherein each point in a series of points on a sinuously-shaped profile of the buckled sheet travels at least partially along a figure eight-shaped path. The undulatory structure can be adapted for use as a solid-state transducer wherein the buckled sheet provides mechanical advantage without appreciable opposition from elastic restoring forces, thereby achieving improved force, displacement and efficiency characteristics.Type: GrantFiled: September 26, 2011Date of Patent: August 29, 2017Assignee: TECHTONIC PTY LTDInventors: Zachariah Benjamin, Colin Robert Smith
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Patent number: 9726185Abstract: A centrifugal compressor for compressing a fluid comprises a compressor wheel having a plurality of circumferentially spaced blades, and a compressor housing in which the compressor wheel is mounted. The compressor housing includes an inlet duct through which the fluid enters in an axial direction and is led by the inlet duct into the compressor wheel, and a wheel shroud located radially adjacent the tips of the blades. The wheel shroud has a port for bleeding off a portion of air flowing through the compressor. The bleed air enters an annular space, flows forward, and is injected back into the inlet flow through a plurality of circumferentially spaced slots defined through the wheel shroud. The slots are open at a leading edge of the wheel shroud.Type: GrantFiled: May 14, 2013Date of Patent: August 8, 2017Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.Inventors: Hua Chen, Vai Man Lei, Mike Gu, Catherine Yao, Jeff Duan
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Patent number: 9719366Abstract: Systems and methods for blade health monitoring are provided. According to one embodiment of the disclosure, a system may include a feature extraction module and an anomaly detection module in communication with the extraction module. The feature extraction module may be configured to continuously receive blade passing signal data associated with clearance of a blade and pre-process the blade passing signal data. Blade clearance feature data may be extracted from the blade passing signal data prior to transmission to the anomaly detection module. The anomaly detection module may be configured to normalize the blade clearance feature data received from the extraction module, analyze the blade clearance feature data to detect a shift in the clearance of the blade, and determine an abnormality of the blade based on the shift exceeding a predetermined shift threshold.Type: GrantFiled: June 12, 2013Date of Patent: August 1, 2017Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Lijie Yu, Venkatesh Rajagopalan, Sachin Srivastava, Mayank Lalan
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Patent number: 9713838Abstract: A core tie having a varying cross sectional diameter, a component including such a core tie, and a method of casting a hot gas path component for a turbomachine are provided herein. In an embodiment, the core tie includes a tie member having an axial length; and a cross sectional diameter which varies along the axial length of the tie member. A variation in the cross sectional diameter of the tie member positively secures a position of the core tie relative to the core.Type: GrantFiled: May 14, 2013Date of Patent: July 25, 2017Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: David Wayne Weber, Dustin Michael Earnhardt, Michelle Jessica Rogers
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Patent number: 9702365Abstract: The invention relates to a method and control system to control the speed of a centrifugal compressor operating within a vacuum pressure swing adsorption process to avoid an operation at which surge can occur and directly driven by an electric motor that is in turn controlled by a variable frequency drive. The claimed method determines the optimal speed for operation of the compressor along a peak efficiency operating line of a compressor map thereof. Speed of the compressor is adjusted by a feed back speed multiplier when the flow or other parameter referable to flow through the compressor is below a minimum and a feed forward multiplier during evacuation and evacuation with purge steps that multiplies the feed back multiplier to increase speed of the compressor and thereby avoid surge.Type: GrantFiled: May 7, 2013Date of Patent: July 11, 2017Assignee: PRAXAIR TECHNOLOGY, INC.Inventors: Andrew C. Rosinski, Paul W. Belanger, Michael S. Manning
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Patent number: 9683550Abstract: A method for operating a wind turbine is provided. At least one temperature information indicating the temperature of at least one component of the wind turbine is generated. The temperature information is used for determining at least one material property information indicating at least one component specific, temperature dependent mechanical property of the respective component. At least one operational parameter of the wind turbine is adjusted in consideration of the at least one material property information.Type: GrantFiled: November 6, 2012Date of Patent: June 20, 2017Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFTInventor: Hans Laurberg
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Patent number: 9677421Abstract: An assembly for a gas turbine engine includes a rotor formed by a drum and a hub. The drum has a generally conically shaped inner surface that defines a flow path along a first cavity. The hub is connected to the drum and has a conically shaped inner surface that defines a flow path along a second cavity.Type: GrantFiled: October 24, 2012Date of Patent: June 13, 2017Assignee: United Technologies CorporationInventors: Jonathan D. Little, Herbert L. Walker, Arun Jayasingh
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Patent number: 9677419Abstract: An exhaust-gas turbocharger (1) having a bearing housing (9); a turbine housing (2) which is fastened to the bearing housing (9); and a heat shield (12) which has a heat insulating region (13) arranged between the turbine housing (2) and the bearing housing (9). The heat insulating region (13) is provided, in its outer circumferential region (14), with a seal (15).Type: GrantFiled: April 21, 2011Date of Patent: June 13, 2017Assignee: BorgWarner Inc.Inventors: Leif Heidingsfelder, Thomas Ramb
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Patent number: 9670929Abstract: Various methods and systems are provided for detecting turbocharger degradation. In one example, a method comprises detecting an axial position of a turbine rotor based on output from a turbine speed sensor, and if the axial position is greater than a threshold distance from a base position, indicating turbocharger degradation.Type: GrantFiled: January 15, 2013Date of Patent: June 6, 2017Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventor: Matthew John Malone