Patents Examined by Christopher R Legendre
  • Patent number: 11572788
    Abstract: A rotary manifold for a rotor assembly of a cohesion-type drive includes a manifold body extending along a drive axis for rotation thereabout, a first ductwork internal the body for fluid communication with a plurality of first chambers of the drive, and a second ductwork internal the body for fluid communication with a plurality of second chambers of the drive. The second ductwork is in fluid isolation of the first ductwork.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 7, 2023
    Assignee: McGuire Aero Propulsion Solutions Inc.
    Inventor: Daniel Matthew McGuire
  • Patent number: 11549519
    Abstract: A fan blade device includes a plurality of main fan blades and extension fan blades. Each main fan blade includes a main fan blade body arranged obliquely, a plurality of first protrusions, and at least one engaging groove. Each extension fan blade includes an extension fan blade body arranged obliquely and having a top surface that is contiguously flush with a top surface of the main fan blade body of a respective main fan blade, a plurality of second protrusions respectively abutting against the first protrusions of the respective main fan blade, and at least one engaging piece engaging the at least one engaging groove of the respective main fan blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2023
    Assignee: YEN SUN TECHNOLOGY CORP.
    Inventors: Chang-Sung Wang, Mei-Chih Fang
  • Patent number: 11549489
    Abstract: A pitch control method and system of a symmetrical-airfoil vertical axis wind turbine collects data by an anemometer, an anemoscope and an angle sensor, outputs an optimum pitch angle based on a control law of a pitch angle and controls the pitch angle to be the optimum pitch angle through a pitch control actuator. In addition to input variables of the control law such as a wind velocity vin and a blade azimuth angle ?, constants such as a rotation radius R, a rotation velocity ? of the blade and aerodynamic coefficients c1, c2 and c3 are also related. A Reynolds number has little influence on three aerodynamic coefficients c1, c2 and c3. The pitch actuator controls the adjustment rods to realize the automatic pitch control of the blades. An expression of the control law of the pitch is concise, the calculation time is short, and a response speed is fast.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 10, 2023
    Assignee: Anhui University of Science and Technology
    Inventors: Liang Li, Laiwang Jing, Jianqiang Wu, Long Wang, Guanghong Miao
  • Patent number: 11542921
    Abstract: An apparatus for monitoring an ambient environment of a wind turbine is described. The apparatus comprises a cooling system comprising first and second heat exchangers, and a fluid circuit arranged to enable coolant to flow between the first and second heat exchangers. The apparatus further comprises a processor configured to: monitor one or more operational parameters of the cooling system; determine an efficiency of the cooling system based on the monitored one or more operational parameters; and calculate a liquid water content of the ambient environment based on the measured efficiency of the cooling system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 3, 2023
    Assignee: VESTAS WIND SYSTEMS A/S
    Inventors: Jacob Deleuran Grunnet, Claus Thybo, Johnny Nielsen
  • Patent number: 11525360
    Abstract: A blade of a high-pressure turbine of a turboshaft engine, the blade including an airfoil extending in a spanwise direction, terminating in an apex and having a suction wall and a pressure wall joined by a leading edge and joined by a trailing edge. The blade further includes an internal cooling circuit having only an upstream duct and a central chamber for cooling the blade by circulating air. The upstream duct and the central chamber are separately supplied with air. The upstream duct being dedicated to the cooling of the leading edge and the suction wall, and the central chamber being dedicated to the cooling of the pressure wall and the trailing edge and being provided with bridge elements each connecting the pressure wall and the suction wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: SAFRAN HELICOPTER ENGINES
    Inventors: Gontran Martineau, Frédéric Philippe Jean-Jacques Pardo, Kévin Pilette, Jean-Luc Pierre Sahores, Julien Carbon
  • Patent number: 11525457
    Abstract: An impeller for a centrifugal turbomachine includes: a hub having a small-diameter portion positioned at a first end portion in an axial direction and a large-diameter portion positioned at a second end portion in the axial direction, the large-diameter portion having a greater diameter than the small-diameter portion; and a blade having a first edge positioned at an axial-directional position of the small-diameter portion and a second edge positioned at an axial-directional position of the large-diameter portion, the blade being disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the hub. The impeller is configured such that, when a first radial-directional cross section is a cross section of the impeller at an axial-directional position passing a tip of the first edge, at least a part of the first radial-directional cross section in a blade-height range of 50% or more is inclined downstream in a rotational direction of the impeller with respect to a radial direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES ENGINE & TURBOCHARGER, LTD.
    Inventors: Hironori Honda, Kenichiro Iwakiri
  • Patent number: 11525369
    Abstract: A vane assembly for a turbomachine includes a variable vane (10-15), the vane having at least one first, in particular plane or curved, engagement surface (11; 11?) for clamping, in particular without play, an actuator (20) of the vane assembly for adjustment of the vane, this first engagement surface not being inclined toward a longitudinal axis (L) of the vane or being inclined toward it by no more than 15°, and/or the vane assembly including a clamp (30; 31) for clamping the actuator against the first engagement surface by at least partially elastically compressing the clamp transversely to the longitudinal axis of the vane and/or by advancing the clamp in a clamp direction (S) that forms an angle of at least 45° with the longitudinal axis of the vane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: MTU Aero Engines AG
    Inventors: Vitalis Mairhanser, Manuel Hein, Axel Stettner
  • Patent number: 11519295
    Abstract: A thermal management system for a gas turbine engine includes an additively manufactured nacelle component, at least a portion of the additively manufactured nacelle component forming an additively manufactured heat exchanger that extends into a fan bypass flow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 6, 2022
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Gary D. Roberge
  • Patent number: 11512598
    Abstract: A cooling assembly comprises a coolant source chamber inside an airfoil that directs coolant inside the airfoil that extends between a hub end and a tip end that includes a tip body and tip rail along a radial length. A first body cooling chamber and a second body cooling chamber are disposed inside the tip body. The second body cooling chamber is positioned between the tip end and the first body cooling chamber. At least one of the first or second body cooling chambers are fluidly coupled with the coolant source chamber. The coolant source chamber directs the coolant into the first or second body cooling chambers. A rail cooling chamber disposed inside of the tip rail is fluidly coupled with the first or second body cooling chambers. The first or second body cooling chambers directs coolant out of the body cooling chambers and into the rail cooling chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Nicholas William Rathay, Travis Packer, Keith Lord, Jeffrey Jones, Jacob Kittleson, Gustavo Ledezma
  • Patent number: 11512592
    Abstract: A machine for generating energy by exploiting the flow of a fluid. The machine includes a first fixed or static component part or stator which defines a first cylindrical inner surface and a second outer surface. The machine further includes a second component part or rotor configured to be rotated and accommodated in the inner space confined by the first cylindrical inner surface. The first fixed or static component part or stator is configured to introduce a fluid into the inner space confined by the first inner surface through the second outer surface and first inner surface of the stator, such that the interaction between the flow of fluid introduced into the inner space and the second component part or rotor results in the second component part or rotor being rotated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: ANMC—ADVANCED NEW MATERIALS AND COMPONENTS S.R.L.
    Inventor: Raffaele Antonio Spezia
  • Patent number: 11506175
    Abstract: In a wind turbine comprising a tower supporting a nacelle, at least one blade rotationally attached to the nacelle and having a blade-tip section, a system for measuring the separation distance between the tower and the blade-tip-section of the wind turbine, comprising an indicator stripe on the surface of the blade-tip section, an indicator ring encircling the tower, a camera in the nacelle and positioned such that the blade-tip section and the indicator ring are within the camera's field of view when the blade-tip is at its closest approach position to the tower, the camera digitally recording an image of its field of view at this closest approach position, the distance between indicator ring and camera being essentially equal to the distance between the indicator stripe and the camera at this closest approach position, and an image processor and tip-tower clearance calculator unit receiving the digitally recorded image and calculating a physical separation distance between the indicator stripe and the indi
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: NIDEC SSB WIND SYSTEMS GMBH
    Inventor: Fabio Bertolotti
  • Patent number: 11506176
    Abstract: A modular, electricity generating apparatus comprises an elongate, central member comprising a first end and a second end; at least one foil disposed about the central member in fluid interacting relation thereto; the solar foil comprising an outer surface having photovoltaic properties; the first end and the second end dimensioned and configured to be connected to a connecting node; and, the elongate central member at least partially formed of an electrically conductive material and configured to conduct electricity from at least one of the connecting nodes to the other of the connecting nodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Inventor: Charles Martin Sieger
  • Patent number: 11499532
    Abstract: A nacelle assembly for a wind turbine is connected to a wind turbine tower through a yaw system and includes a front region coupled to a rotor having a rotor hub and at least one rotor blade. The nacelle assembly includes a nacelle having a cover structure to house wind turbine components and an add-on wind flow deflector system that is coupled to an outside of the cover structure. The wind flow deflector system guides wind flowing to the nacelle for reducing a drag of the nacelle when a wind direction is misaligned with respect to the longitudinal wind direction in a yaw system failure event.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 15, 2022
    Assignee: General Electric Renovables Espana, S.L.
    Inventors: Andreas Herrig, Santiago Tomas Monpol, Benjamin Patrick Hallissy
  • Patent number: 11492920
    Abstract: A steam turbine includes a rotor; a casing which houses the rotor; a plurality of rotor blades disposed around the rotor; and a plurality of stationary vanes supported on the casing. The stationary vane includes a vane body portion and an inner race positioned on an inner side of the vane body portion in a radial direction of the rotor. The stationary vanes include a first stationary vane having a through hole formed through the vane body portion. The rotor has a cavity having a concave shape and being formed such that at least a part of the inner race of the first stationary vane is housed in the cavity. The steam turbine includes a steam passage to discharge steam extracted from a space upstream of the first stationary vane in the casing to the cavity from the inner race through the through hole of the first stationary vane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Ryo Takata, Mitsuyoshi Tsuchiya, Yasuhiro Sasao
  • Patent number: 11486365
    Abstract: An assembly (127) for a wind turbine (100) includes a housing (126) having a first bearing (150) and a second bearing (154). A shaft (142) extends axially within the housing (126) and is supported by the first bearing (150) and the second bearing (154) for rotation relative to the housing (126). A radially outer portion of the shaft (142) includes at least one shaft engagement formation (146) positioned between the first bearing (150) and the second bearing (154). A retention mechanism (156) is moveable axially between: an engaged position in which it can engage the shaft engagement formation (146), such that rotation of the shaft (142) is constrained; and a disengaged position in which the retention mechanism (156) cannot engage the shaft engagement formation (146), thereby allowing rotation of the shaft (142). Additionally, a method of operating such an assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Assignee: Vestas Wind Systems A/S
    Inventors: Anders Haslund Liingaard, Claus Hald Therkildsen
  • Patent number: 11486369
    Abstract: A rotor system for generating kinetic energy by expanding an unbalanced torque by means of material energy is provided. The rotor has a horizontal rotating shaft and a plurality of sets of radiating members, and each of radiating members combines with a swingable mass and a slidable member that are combined with each other by a transmission system. The slidable member has two containers, each with an opening for holding the substances in the opposite direction, and after the substances are injected into a specific orientation, due to the total weight being greater than the swingable mass that plus the inclination and gravity, which causes the swingable mass to be swung at one hundred and eighty degrees. Therefore, an outer ring system and an inner ring system both generate the torsion toward the running direction so that the entire rotor system generates good operating kinetic energy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2022
    Inventor: Ming-Tung Hung
  • Patent number: 11480186
    Abstract: A blower assembly for advancing the flow of air in an air flow device at a selected one of a plurality of air flow rates. The blower assembly includes a blower housing defining a body thereof and a wall of the blower housing moveably secured to the body, a blower wheel rotatably mounted to the blower housing and a motor for rotating the blower wheel at a selected one of a plurality of rotational speeds. The blower assembly further includes a motion device secured to the body and to the wall. The motion device moves the wall relative to the body to a selected one of a plurality of distinct wall positions. The motor rotates the blower wheel at a selected one of a plurality of rotational speeds. A controller calculates an optimum wall position and rotational speed to provide for minimal energy usage rate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignee: REGAL BELOIT AMERICA, INC.
    Inventors: Philip Wayne Johnson, Rachele Barbara Cocks, Shailesh Prabhakar Waikar, Michael R Koller, John Sheldon Wagley
  • Patent number: 11473428
    Abstract: An axial turbine (100) with two supply levels for the expansion phase of a working fluid in a thermodynamic vapor cycle or in an organic Rankine cycle comprising a shaft (2), a plurality of rotor blade arrays (R1-Rn) and corresponding support disks (21, 22), a plurality of stator blade arrays (S1-Sn), further comprising a first inlet opening (5) and a second inlet opening (7?). The second volute (4) is positioned inside the first volute (3), the working fluid of the second supply level reaching upstream of a stator blade (S2,Sn) that is are immediately upstream of one of the rotor blade arrays that extends radially into both of the first and second supply levels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: TURBODEN S.P.A.
    Inventors: Mario Gaia, Roberto Bini
  • Patent number: 11473557
    Abstract: Sail movement is achieved having rotation while revolving, using a simple structure that does not easily break. A sail device includes a supporting body, a sail body, a guide track comprising recessed portions, and engaging portions. Rotational energy is output from or input to a rotating body forming part of the supporting body. The sail body is attached to the supporting body which freely rotates, and revolves around an axis of the supporting body. The sail body converts fluid energy into rotational energy or converts rotational energy into fluid energy on the basis of the motion of the sail body which contacts a fluid. In the guide track, two recessed portions are continuous with one another, and form an endless track which defines an angle of rotation of the sail body during the process of revolving. The engaging portions engage the sail body with the guide track, and displace the sail body along the guide track.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Inventor: GeungDug Jang
  • Patent number: 11473433
    Abstract: An airfoil for a gas turbine engine includes a substrate portion extending from an airfoil leading edge to an airfoil trailing edge portion. The airfoil trailing edge portion includes a flared portion wherein a substrate portion thickness increases along a camber line of the airfoil, and a trailing edge defined as a full constant radius extending from a pressure side of the airfoil to a suction side of the airfoil. A coating portion includes a coating applied over at least a portion of the substrate portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 24, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Anton G. Banks, Alan C. Barron