Abstract: A mechanism for automatically changing the pitch of propeller blades employing engine torque alone which increases with air speed. A powered hub mounts at least two blades and includes blade pitch changing elements automatically responsive to engine torque for changing blade pitch. The elements include a gear train having a drive gear and several driven gears with flexible coupling components interconnected therebetween. The flexible coupling includes a number of compressible components disposed in cavities in a circular array between the driving gear and the driven gears and which distort under torsional loads at a pre-determined rate.As engine torque changes due to aerodynamic loads on the blades, the flexible coupling components distort causing the blades to change pitch angle.

Abstract: The present invention provides a gas turbine engine blade having a dovetail, a shank extending radially outward from the dovetail, and a platform joined to the shank. An inner surface of the platform faces radially inwardly and an opposite outer surface of the platform faces radially outwardly. An airfoil extends radially outwardly from the platform and has pressure and suction airfoil sides that define pressure and suction blade sides of the blade. The platform extends axially between leading and trailing platform edges and transversely between pressure and suction side platform edges of the platform. At least one transversely extending bracing rib is in a corner of the shank and the platform between one of the blade sides and the inner surface of the platform. The preferred embodiment further includes the bracing rib, the shank, and the platform being integrally cast. The bracing rib is preferably wider along the platform and the shank than at a distal edge of the rib.

Abstract: A gas turbine engine airfoil assembly for damping airfoil vibrations includes a metallic airfoil having an outer surface and a chordwise extending cavity beneath the outer surface of the airfoil. A damper is trapped within the cavity and a region in the airfoil surrounding the cavity has compressive residual stresses imparted by laser shock peening. The damper is preferably a chordwise extending linear wire having a distal end tacked down within the cavity. The invention includes a method for constructing the assembly for damping airfoil vibrations.

Abstract: An air pump includes a housing having a top formed with a circular recess, a first semi-cylindrical member in communication with the circular recess, and a first curved baffle arranged close to the first semi-cylindrical member, an electric motor mounted within the housing and having an output axle extending upwardly out of the center through hole, a bottom cover engaged with a bottom of the housing by retainers, a centrifugal impeller eccentrically fitted in the circular recess so that there is a circular passage between the centrifugal impeller and an inner wall of the circular recess, an upper cover configured to engage with the circular recess to cover the centrifugal impeller and having a conical portion disposed above the centrifugal impeller thereby forming a passage therebetween, whereby the air pump can provide sufficient air pressure to inflate an object in a short time.

Abstract: A piston is formed with one or more recesses or depressions on its underside as it is cast, molded or forged. The recesses are located adjacent the outer cylindrical wall of the piston head so that when a groove such as an oil ring groove is subsequently machined into the outer wall, the groove intersects and cuts into each recess. In this manner, oil drain ports are formed in the oil ring groove without the need for additional boring or cutting operations.

Abstract: A seal ring (1) securing inner shroud members (32) of stationary blades (31) is provided with arm portions (2, 3) projecting along lower surfaces of end portions of the inner shroud members (32). Honeycomb seals (4a, 4b) are mounted on the arm portions (2, 3), respectively. The honeycomb seal (4a) is disposed opposite fins (11a) provided on a rotor arm portion (11) of a platform (22) of a moving blade (21) so that a predetermined clearance (t) can be maintained between the honeycomb seal and the fins. On the other hand, the honeycomb seal (4b) is disposed opposite fins (14b) provided on a seal portion (14a) of a sealing plate (14) of the moving blade (21) so that a predetermined clearance (t) can be maintained between the honeycomb seal and the fins. The inner shroud members (32) undergo deformation after operation of the gas turbine.

Abstract: A tip shroud (11) for a moving blade to be used at a downstream stage of a gas turbine. The tip shroud is extended in its creep lifetime by feeding it effectively with cooling air. In the tip shroud (11), there are cut-off portions (12, 13) which are passed by a hot combustion gas so that they are influenced by thermal stress. On the shroud faces, there are formed grooves (31, 32; 33, 34), and cooling guide covers (21, 22) are mounted in the grooves. The cooling guide covers (21, 22) are closed at one side with members (21a, 22a) and open at an end thereof. The covers function to cover the air holes (17) so that the cooling air is fed to the cut-off portions (12, 13) individually. The metal temperature rise at the cut-off portions (12, 13), as will be influenced by the hot combustion gas, can be suppressed so as to extend the creep lifetime of the tip shroud.

Abstract: A damper for use with a hydraulic actuator of the type including a master cylinder and a slave cylinder with a conduit interconnecting the outlet of the master cylinder and the inlet of the slave cylinder. The damper is positioned in the conduit between the master cylinder and the slave cylinder and includes a housing member defining a chamber opening in one face of the housing member and a mounting bracket plate. The mounting bracket plate includes a housing portion corresponding in size and configuration to the one face of the housing member and is positioned against the one face of the housing member to coact with the housing member to seal the chamber. The bracket plate further includes a bracket portion extending outwardly from the housing portion in the form of mounting arms which are utilized to facilitate mounting of the damper to a fixed vehicle structure.

Abstract: A steam-cooled type gas turbine has flange contact surfaces between adjacent rotor disks in which buffering sheets such as gaskets and the like can not be inserted. Further, the contact surfaces have a large diameter, making it difficult or impossible to ensure sufficient surface contact pressure for sealing. Yet preventing the leakage of coolant steam from these flange contact surfaces presents a very important problem. The present invention provides a seal structure for flange contact surfaces of a gas turbine which can enhance the sealability at these portions. The seal structure for flange contact surfaces includes a plurality of labyrinth-like grooves (8) which are formed in at least one of the flange contact surfaces (7). The seal structure of the present invention provides a gas turbine with high reliability and enhanced sealability. Further, a high surface contact pressure is obtained by reducing the area of the flange contact surfaces.

Abstract: A tip shroud for a moving blade that is made thin and light for use at a gas turbine downstream stage. Cooling air holes (13 to 16) having a slot shape, are formed in a tip shroud (11) of the moving blade (10). The cooling holes are opened in two side faces of the tip shroud to release the cooling air from the inside of the moving blade (10). In the upper face of the tip shroud 11, there are formed cooling air holes 20, which communicate with the higher pressure side in a combustion gas flow direction R to release the cooling air so that the cooling air flows from the higher pressure side to the lower pressure side so as to cool a high stress portion Y. A high stress portion X is likewise cooled with the cooling air coming from an adjoining moving blade. The slot shapes of the cooling air holes (13 to 16) allow the cooling air to flow widely, thereby cooling the face of the tip shroud (11), and the cooling air holes 20 cool the high stress portions X and Y effectively.

Abstract: A system for determining the extended length or orientation of a hydraulic actuator, or of an implement or joint, is disclosed herein. Electromagnetic (EM) bursts such as ultra-wideband or frequency pulses are generated and applied to a transmitter unit attached to a stationary or moveable portion of the actuator. The EM bursts are launched by the transmitter toward a receiver located on the other of the stationary or moveable portion of the actuator. The time for the EM bursts to travel between the associated antennas of the transmitter and the receiver is determined and converted into a position signal representing the distance therebetween.

Abstract: A fan assembly according to which a block member is connected to a rotor end casing and an arm member having a blade connected thereto is mounted to the block member. One of the members has a radially extending slot formed therein and the other member has a mounting flange adapted to extend into the slot when the arm is moved radially outwardly relative to the block member to mount the arm to the block member without the need for additional components.

Abstract: A coating (22) with a high coefficient of friction and low thermal conductivity covers a turbomachine low pressure shaft (12) in the vicinity (17) of a concentric high pressure shaft (11), in the area at which high friction contact between the two shafts could occur if a bearing (13) on the low pressure shaft (12) breaks following a failure causing the appearance of an out-of-balance mass. Friction would also more quickly equalize shaft speeds and reduce overheating in them.

Abstract: A turbine engine airfoil includes a three-pass serpentine shaped cooling cavity including a leading edge chamber, an oversized intermediate chamber, and a trailing edge chamber in flow communication. The cavity further includes a combination of a plurality of ribs and a plurality of pins, a purge air swirler, a turning vane, and a metering partition which mixes the high pressure air and provides increased air cooling and uniform flow control in the airfoil. The metering partition provides a decrease of the air pressure in the trailing edge chamber allowing for an increase in the number of trailing edge slots.

Abstract: A method and device for reducing or eliminating axial thrust in a rotary machine such as a centrifugal pump or compressor by altering the fluid pressure in a cavity formed between a rotor and a housing. The device contains a disk placed along the rotor for subdividing the fluid in the cavity in such a way that all annular gap leakage flow is channeled and pumped through the space between that disk and the rotor from the center of the pump towards the periphery. As a result, the pressure in the cavity is altered to reduce and control the axial thrust on the rotor which becomes independent of the wear state of the shaft seals. In another embodiment, the step of flow subdividing is achieved by providing a set of braking vanes along the periphery of the cavity for reducing the rotational speed of the fluid coming from the cavity as well as from the annular gap and a stationary disk placed along the interior wall of the housing for directing the radial flow of that fluid towards the center of the pump.

Abstract: An insert inserting structure and a method for enabling a stationary blade of a gas turbine to withstand high temperatures of even 1500 C. in order to realize a 150.degree. C. class gas turbine is provided. In a stationary blade of a gas turbine including a hollow opening (2, 3, 4) into which an insert (5, 6, 7) having a plurality of cooling-air ejecting apertures (8) formed in a side wall thereof is inserted to thereby cool wall surfaces of said hollow opening (2, 3, 4) with cooling air ejected from said cooling-air ejecting apertures (8), a structure for inserting an insert in a stationary blade of a gas turbine, comprising a pair of seal plates (9a, . . . , 9f) disposed on side walls of said insert (5, 6, 7) and two grooves (11a, . . . , 11f) disposed on said wall surfaces of said hollow opening (2, 3, 4) so as to receive fittingly said seal plates (9a, . . . , 9f), respectively, wherein at least one (11b, 11c, 11d, 11e) of said two grooves (11a, . . .

Abstract: In an air circulating fan assembly, the combination comprises a fan motor and fan blades rotated by the motor; a fluid reservoir and a thermo-electric cooler for cooling the water in the reservoir; and ducting associated with the blades to conduct fluid from the reservoir to heat exchange structure rotated to effect heat transfer between air relatively passing the blades and fluid being returned to the reservoir.

Abstract: At the time of casting a structural material for a casing, metal pipes to be used as passages to and from a tilt actuator of a swash plate are integrally embedded in a cast body of the structural material. In a casting stage of the structural material for the casing, metal pipes are set in position within a casting mold, and then molten metallic material is introduced into the mold. A main casing for a hydraulic motor is formed out of the cast structural material by finishing its inner and outer peripheral surfaces and outer ends of embedded metal pipes. The resulting casing has the metal pipe conduits embedded in its cylindrical body portion from its open end toward its bottom portion with cylinders for a tilt actuator, the embedded metal pipe conduits providing passages on the inner peripheral side for supplying and discharging tilt control hydraulic fluid to and from the tilt actuator.

Abstract: Each blade of the rotor has a rigid root oversleeve connected to a torsionable and flexible root strip by two laminated, spherical support half bearings, fixed by their outer frame with double rigid horns the lateral ends of which facing each other on each side of the strip and half bearings are clamped towards each other and against struts so as to allow a significant, calibrated pre-compression of the half bearings. The double horns and/or struts are fixed axially to the oversleeves by fixing elements distinct from the compression means of the double horns on the struts and perpendicular to these compression horns on the struts and perpendicular to these compression elements. One of the struts, possibly in a single piece with one double horn, is also in a single piece with a pitch lever.

Abstract: A push rod of a vacuum booster includes an inner rod section, a pipe-shaped outer rod section which is slidably fitted over an outer periphery of a rear portion of the inner rod section and connected to a brake pedal, and a buffer member made of a synthetic resin and fitted over the outer periphery of the inner rod section in front of the outer rod section. Usually, an end face of the outer rod section is retained in a position in which it abuts against a projection of the inner rod section. When an axial compressing force is applied to the push rod upon a collision of an automobile, the end face of the outer rod section slides forwards over and past the projection, while buckling the buffer member. Thus, the pushing-up of the brake pedal toward a vehicle compartment due to the retreating movement of a master cylinder is prevented, and the load applied to a driver's foot is alleviated.