Patents Examined by Jason Davis
  • Machine unit layout system
    Patent number: 9127570
    Abstract: Provided is a machine unit layout system that simplifies the layout of a compressor unit and an expander unit and is extremely effective in terms of not only the reliability of the entire machine but also maintainability. Two separate compressors, a low-pressure-side compressor and a high-pressure-side compressor (11A, 11b), are disposed on either side of a steam turbine (10). Two separate expanders, a low-pressure-side expander and a high-pressure-side expander (12A, 12B), are disposed outside the low-pressure-side and high-pressure-side compressors (11A, 11b). The steam turbine (10), the low-pressure-side and high-pressure-side compressors (11A, 11b), and the low-pressure-side and high-pressure-side expanders (12A, 12B) are coupled by rotor shafts comprising a single shaft. The torque distribution between rotator shafts is optimized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES COMPRESSOR CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hideki Nagao, Yasushi Mori, Masahiro Kobayashi, Hiroyuki Miyata
  • Diaphragm for turbomachines and method of manufacture
    Patent number: 9127559
    Abstract: A turbine diaphragm assembly is described having an annulus of static blades, each static blade including at least an aerofoil and an outer platform; and an outer diaphragm ring or segments of a ring for holding the annulus of static blades; with confronting edges of the outer platforms and the ring are held by an interference fit when pushed in axial direction into contact with the interference fit designed to withstand the forces on the diaphragm during operation of the assembled turbine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2015
    Assignee: ALSTOM TECHNOLOGY LTD.
    Inventors: Adrian Clifford Lord, Philip David Hemsley
  • Winglet for a wind turbine rotor blade
    Patent number: 9103325
    Abstract: In one aspect, a winglet for a rotor blade is disclosed. The winglet may generally include a winglet body extending at least partially between a winglet origin and a blade tip. The winglet body may define a sweep and a pre-bend. The sweep defined between the winglet origin and the blade tip may range from about 0.5% to about 4.0% of a span of the rotor blade. The pre-bend defined between the winglet origin and the blade tip may range from about 1.5% to about 4.5% of the span of the rotor blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Klaus Ulrich Koegler, Ariane Frere, Andreas Herrig
  • Supersonic compressor comprising radial flow path
    Patent number: 9097258
    Abstract: The present invention provides novel supersonic compressors comprising novel supersonic compressor rotors. The supersonic compressor rotors are designed to operate at very high rotational speed wherein the velocity of the gas entering the supersonic compressor rotor is greater than the local speed of sound in the gas, hence the descriptor “supersonic”. The new supersonic compressors comprise at least one supersonic compressor rotor defining an inner cylindrical cavity and an outer rotor rim and at least one radial flow channel allowing fluid communication between the inner cylindrical cavity and the outer rotor rim, said radial flow channel comprising a supersonic compression ramp. The novel supersonic compressor rotors are expected to enhance the performance of supersonic compressors comprising them, and to provide for greater design versatility in systems comprising such novel supersonic compressors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Douglas Carl Hofer, Zachary William Nagel, David Graham Holmes
  • System and method for airfoil cover plate
    Patent number: 9097126
    Abstract: A system includes at least one gas turbine blade that includes at least one recess disposed in a surface of the at least one gas turbine blade. The system also includes a porous insert that includes multiple pores that enable a cooling fluid to flow through the porous insert. The system further includes a cover plate, wherein the porous insert is disposed within the at least one recess, and the cover plate is disposed over the porous insert to enclose the porous insert within the at least one recess.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Christopher Michael Prue, Jesse Blair Butler
  • Device for controlling the pitch of turboprop fan blades
    Patent number: 9090336
    Abstract: The invention provides a device for controlling the pitch of the fan blades of a turboprop, the device comprising: at least one set of adjustable pitch fan blades, the set being constrained to rotate with a rotary ring mechanically linked to a rotor; a synchronizing ring coupled to each blade of the set in order to adjust its pitch; an actuator centered on the longitudinal axis of the turboprop and constrained to rotate with the rotor; and control links, each connected firstly to the actuator rod and secondly to an inside end of a cylindrical shaft via a crank capable of imparting turning movement to the shaft about its axis of revolution, an outside end of the shaft being coupled to a blade in order to adjust its pitch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2015
    Assignee: SNECMA
    Inventor: Francois Gallet
  • Gas turbine
    Patent number: 9085994
    Abstract: This gas turbine includes a turbine cooling structure of cooling a turbine by using cooling air and a filter that reduces dust in the cooling air on an upstream side of the turbine. Furthermore, the gas turbine includes a supply pipe for supplying the cooling air to the filter, a branch pipe that is branched from the supply pipe on an upstream of the filter, and a unit that calculates or estimates a circulation amount of dust in the cooling air. In this gas turbine, at a time of start-up of a turbine, the supply pipe is closed and the branch pipe is opened, and when the circulation amount of dust in the cooling air becomes equal to or less than a predetermined threshold, the supply pipe is opened and the branch pipe is closed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HITACHI POWER SYSTEMS, LTD.
    Inventors: Katsuhisa Kojima, Yasutoshi Ueda, Takashi Sonoda, Masao Terazaki
  • Rotor coupling
    Patent number: 9086099
    Abstract: A rotor coupling (10) including a first member (12) rotatable about a first axis of rotation (14) and a second member (16), engageable with the first member, and rotatable about a second axis of rotation (18). The rotor coupling (10) further includes at least one torque pin (24) for transmitting torque between the first and second members such that the first and second axes of rotation are allowed to respectively angularly vary during rotation of the rotor coupling.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: Das Werk Pty Ltd
    Inventor: Daniel Gasser
  • Airfoil
    Patent number: 9085984
    Abstract: An airfoil includes a leading edge, a trailing edge downstream from the leading edge, a pressure surface between the leading and trailing edges, and a suction surface between the leading and trailing edges and opposite the pressure surface. A first convex section on the suction surface decreases in curvature downstream from the leading edge, and a throat on the suction surface is downstream from the first convex section. A second convex section is on the suction surface downstream from the throat, and a first convex segment of the second convex section increases in curvature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Neil Ristau, Gunnar Leif Siden
  • Floating, anchored installation for energy production
    Patent number: 9080554
    Abstract: A floating, anchored installation for energy production where the installation comprises at least one windmill, and where the installation is provided with at least one float driven pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2015
    Assignee: Pelagic Power AS
    Inventor: Dagfinn Jarl Røyseth
  • Turbomachine component
    Patent number: 9074481
    Abstract: A turbomachine component includes a basic component including a first outer wall having a first joint face. An additional part includes a second outer wall having a second joint face, wherein the first and the second wall enclose an internal cavity, and wherein the first and the second joint faces are joined together between the basic component and the additional part. At least one wall-like intermediate piece is disposed in at least one of the basic component and the additional part and extends from the respective outer wall into the internal cavity, the at least one wall-like intermediate piece including a cutout having a transition contour that deviates from a straight line and is disposed at at least one transition between the at least one wall-like intermediate piece and the outer wall so as to relieve at least one of a mechanical and a thermal stress.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2015
    Assignee: ALSTOM TECHNOLOGY LTD
    Inventors: Alexander Mahler, Hartmut Haehnle
  • Stator vane assembly
    Patent number: 9068475
    Abstract: There is disclosed a stator vane assembly comprising a support structure 14 arranged to be mounted to a mounting structure 16, a stator vane 12 radially extending from the support structure 14 and a continuity member 28 coupled to the support structure 14 and arranged in use to extend between the mounting structure 16 and the support structure 14 so as to provide a substantially continuous gas-washed surface across the mounting structure 16 and the support structure 14. There is also disclosed a method of forming a stator vane assembly, the method comprising the steps of forming at least one stator vane radially extending from a support structure having a continuity member coupled thereto.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE plc
    Inventors: Graham Littler, Ian A Hood
  • Manifold for geared turbofan engine
    Patent number: 9057284
    Abstract: A geared architecture for a gas turbine engine includes a lubricant manifold for directing lubricant flow to the geared architecture. The manifold including annular channel and a bowl member received within the annular channel for defining a passage for directing lubricant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignee: United Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: James B. Coffin, Tony Haugh
  • Non-circular aft nacelle cowling geometry
    Patent number: 9057286
    Abstract: A nacelle for a turbofan propulsion system that extends along a centerline includes a forward cowling and an aft cowling. To improve the fit of a turbofan propulsion system in the space between the wing and ground of a fixed-wing aircraft, the aft cowling of the nacelle is modified. The aft cowling has a non-circular cross-sectional geometry disposed in a plane substantially perpendicular to the centerline. The non-circular cross-sectional geometry includes a radially recessed section disposed between first and second curved sections. The first and the second curved sections each have a radius that is greater than a radial distance between the centerline and a center point of the radially recessed section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignee: United Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: Michael Joseph Murphy, Robert E. Malecki
  • Wind turbine blade with base part having non-positive camber
    Patent number: 9057359
    Abstract: A blade, for a rotor of a wind turbine has a profiled contour in a radial direction is divided into a root region with a substantially circular or elliptical profile closest to the hub and an airfoil region with a lift generating profile furthest away from the hub. A transition region between the root region and the airfoil region has a profile gradually changing in the radial direction from the circular or elliptical profile of the root region to the lift generating profile of the airfoil region, and the airfoil region comprises at least a first longitudinal segment extending at least 20% of a longitudinal extent of the airfoil region. The first longitudinal segment has a first base part with a cross-sectional profile such that, when impacted by an incident airflow at an angle of attack of 0 degrees has a lift coefficient, which is 0 or less.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignee: LM GLASFIBER A/S
    Inventors: Peter Fuglsang, Stefano Bove, Lars Fuglsang
  • Seal for a control device of a supercharger with valve means in the form of a waste gate
    Patent number: 9039354
    Abstract: In a sealing arrangement for an control device of a charging device which sealing arrangement includes a bearing bushing in which an control shaft is rotatably supported by the bushing in a housing opening of the charging device, the control shaft is provided with a collar disposed in the housing opening at an axial end of the bushing and the collar includes a groove accommodating a seal ring which is in direct contact with the wall of the opening for sealing the shaft supported in the bushing directly with respect to the opening wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2015
    Assignee: IHI CHARGING SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL GMBH
    Inventor: Joachim Siegfried Delitz
  • Variable geometry vane system for gas turbine engines
    Patent number: 9033654
    Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention is a unique variable geometry vane system. Another embodiment is a unique gas turbine engine. Other embodiments include apparatuses, systems, devices, hardware, methods, and combinations for gas turbine engines and turbomachinery variable geometry vane systems. Further embodiments, forms, features, aspects, benefits, and advantages of the present application will become apparent from the description and figures provided herewith.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 19, 2015
    Assignees: Rolls-Royce Corporation, Rolls-Royce North American Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Peck, Edward Claude Rice
  • Wind turbine generator with a lifting device
    Patent number: 9022739
    Abstract: A more efficient and simple wind turbine generator with a lifting device and method of using the lifting device is disclosed. A wind turbine generator comprises a tower, a nacelle supported by the tower, the nacelle comprising a foundation supporting components of the nacelle, a yawing system comprising a yaw bearing enabling rotation of the nacelle relative to the tower, a lifting device internally in the wind turbine generator and capable of moving an item, a support supporting the lifting device, and wherein the lifting device is moveable in a horizontal direction from a first position to a second position, and at least one of the positions is, in a vertical direction, between a lowermost level of the foundation, such as just above the yaw bearing, and an uppermost level of the tower, such as just below the yaw bearing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2015
    Assignee: Vestas Wind Systems A/S
    Inventors: Venkatesh Krishnan, Henning Mortensen
  • Furnace air handler blower with enlarged backward curved impeller and associated method of use
    Patent number: 9017011
    Abstract: A blower having a blower housing having a cutoff and a top portion with an air outlet opening, a fan within the blower housing, the fan being adapted for rotation about a fan axis and having an outer diameter with a distance between the outer diameter of the fan and the top portion of the air outlet opening extending along a vertical line between the fan axis and the air outlet opening being less than seventy-five percent of the distance between the outer diameter of the fan and the cutoff of the blower housing extending along a line between the fan axis and the cutoff, and a motor having a stator and a rotor, the rotor being rotatably coupled to the stator for rotation about the fan axis, the rotor and fan being coupled such that the fan rotates with the rotor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Regal Beloit America, Inc.
    Inventors: William Stuart Gatley, Jr., Steven W. Post
  • Efficient spiral wind-turbine configuration
    Patent number: 9004851
    Abstract: A system for converting wind energy to rotational mechanical energy, comprising a conical impeller having multiple spiral vanes on its outer surface, the impeller supported so that it can rotate about its vertical, central axis in response to airflow impinging on the impeller, and connected to a mechanical drive system to transmit energy from the rotation of the impeller to a device that performs useful work using the transmitted energy.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Inventor: Gustavo Q. Garza