Patents Examined by Woody A Lee, Jr.
  • 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: 11920491
    Abstract: A gear assembly for use with a turbomachine comprises a sun gear, a plurality of planet gear layshafts that each support a first stage planet gear and a second stage planet gear, and a ring gear. The sun gear is configured to rotate about a longitudinal centerline of the gear assembly, and the plurality of planet gear layshafts comprise an interior passage that receives one or more lubrication supply lines.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: GE Avio S.r.l.
    Inventors: Pietro Molesini, Fabio De Bellis, Andrea Piazza
  • Patent number: 11920498
    Abstract: Methods, apparatus, systems and articles of manufacture are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a compressor comprising a rotor defining a radial direction and a circumferential direction, the rotor including a slot; a first blade and a second blade disposed in the slot, the first blade including a first platform and a first dovetail, the second blade including a second platform and a second dovetail; and a hollow block disposed circumferentially between the first blade and the second blade in the slot, the hollow block including: a platform interface portion to interface with the first platform and the second platform, the platform interface portion including a central opening defined by a circumferential face of the platform interface portion; and a hollow dovetail interface portion to couple the first dovetail and the second dovetail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Arvind N
  • Patent number: 11920573
    Abstract: A pressure exchanger (1) including a housing (2), a drive shaft (3) and a cylinder drum (4) rotatably arranged in the housing (2) is described, the cylinder drum (4) including two front faces and at least one cylinder (5) between the front faces, wherein the housing (2) includes a port flange (7, 8) at each end of the cylinder drum (4) and at least at one end of the cylinder drum (4) a pressure shoe (18) is arranged between the cylinder drum (4) and the port flange of this end. Such a pressure exchanger should be operated in a cost-effective manner. To this end an adjustable stop arrangement (19) is arranged between the pressure shoe (18) and the cylinder drum (4).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: Danfoss A/S
    Inventors: Poul Erik Hansen, Tommi Kolb
  • Patent number: 11913343
    Abstract: A replaceable rotor blade tip clearance measurement device for a gas turbine engine, includes a threaded section along an axis and an integral abradable tip with an internal lattice geometry that extends from the threaded section along the axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 3, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: RTX Corporation
    Inventors: Jose R. Paulino, Veronika Reynolds, Jason David Liles
  • Patent number: 11913458
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a pump. The pump of the present disclosure includes: a housing; an impeller disposed in the housing and rotating to generate a flow of fluid; and a pump motor configured to rotate the impeller, wherein the impeller includes: a first plate having a disk shape; a boss extending vertically from a center of the first plate, and coupled to a rotating shaft of the pump motor; a plurality of blades extending from an outer circumferential surface of the boss in a radial direction of the first plate; and a second plate having a surface parallel to the first plate, spaced apart from the first plate by a predetermined distance, and connected to the plurality of blades.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: LG ELECTRONICS INC.
    Inventor: Changjoon Kim
  • Patent number: 11905850
    Abstract: An arrangement reduces oscillation (vibration) of an oscillatory structure. The arrangement has a structure having at least one mode in at least one direction; and an oscillation-reducing device (vibration-reducing device). The oscillation-reducing devices has a housing formed by or provided on the structure, a cavity, and a body configured for making impact contacts with the housing and disposed in the cavity in such a manner that the body is configured to make impact contacts with the housing at least temporarily for as long as the structure is excited in the at least one mode in the at least on direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2024
    Assignee: MTU AERO ENGINES AG
    Inventors: Andreas Hartung, Hans-Peter Hackenberg, Malte Krack, Timo Theurich
  • Patent number: 11898464
    Abstract: In one exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure an airfoil is provided. The airfoil defines a spanwise direction, a root end, and a tip end. The airfoil includes: a body defining a pressure side and a suction side and extending along the spanwise direction between the root end and the tip end, the body formed of a composite material; and a spar enclosed in the body of the airfoil extending along the spanwise direction, the spar comprising a plurality of spar segments arranged in an overlapping configuration along the spanwise direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Nicholas Joseph Kray, Nitesh Jain
  • Patent number: 11898458
    Abstract: An integrally bladed rotor includes a rotor disk, rotor blade, internal channel and air outlets. The rotor blade includes a body defined by a pressure surface and suction surface between a leading edge and a trailing edge. The internal channel extends radially from the rotor disk internally within the body of the rotor blade. The air outlets are formed proximate the leading edge and extend within the body of the rotor blade to the internal channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation
    Inventors: Jeremy Clavette, Viktor Kilchyk
  • Patent number: 11898492
    Abstract: Provided are fluid exchange apparatuses and methods of exchanging fluids between streams. Exemplary fluid exchange apparatus includes a first interleaved pathway with a plurality of first passages, and a second interleaved pathway with a plurality of second passages, in which the plurality of first passages and the plurality of second passages interleave with one another. Exemplary methods include directing a first fluid through a first interleaved pathway of a fluid exchange apparatus and directing a second fluid through a second interleaved pathway of a fluid exchange apparatus. The first fluid may flow from an upstream portion of a first duct into the first interleaved pathway and may discharge into a downstream portion of the second duct. The second fluid may flow from an upstream portion of the second duct into the second interleaved pathway and may discharge into a downstream portion of the first duct.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventor: Jeffrey Douglas Rambo
  • Patent number: 11898462
    Abstract: An impeller for a centrifugal compressor, the impeller rotatable about a central axis, has: an outer hub body including a first material and extending around the central axis, the outer hub body defining a gaspath face extending from an inlet to an outlet, the gaspath face extending radially away from the central axis from the inlet to the outlet; blades protruding from the gaspath face and circumferentially distributed around the central axis; and an inner hub body extending around the central axis, the inner hub body secured to the outer hub body, the outer hub body axially overlapping and extending around the inner hub body, the inner hub body made of a second material being more cold dwell resistant than the first material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventor: Farid Abrari
  • Patent number: 11885343
    Abstract: A centrifugal compressor includes: a housing including an intake flow path; a compressor impeller disposed in the intake flow path; an accommodation chamber formed upstream of the compressor impeller in the housing; a movable member disposed in the accommodation chamber and configured to be movable between a retracted position where the movable member is retracted from the intake flow path and a protruding position where the movable member protrudes from the accommodation chamber into the intake flow path, the protruding position being located closer to the intake flow path with respect to the retracted position, and a contacting portion and a non-contacting portion provided on an accommodation chamber opposing surface of the accommodation chamber, the accommodation chamber opposing surface being positioned upstream of the movable member, the contacting portion being contactable with the movable member, the non-contacting portion being non-contactable with the movable member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: IHI Corporation
    Inventors: Ryota Sakisaka, Takashi Fujiwara, Atsushi Yonemura, Takahiro Bamba
  • Patent number: 11884410
    Abstract: Dual function links for gas turbine engine mounts are disclosed. An example apparatus for mounting a casing of a gas turbine engine to a pylon, the apparatus includes a first pin and a linkage including a first linkage portion including the first pin, a second linkage portion, the second linkage portion forming a first load path between the gas turbine engine and the pylon, the second linkage portion arranged with respect to the first linkage portion such that a gap prevents the first linkage portion from forming a second load path between the gas turbine engine and the pylon.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Srinivas Addagatla, Ravindra Shankar Ganiger, Anil Soni, Sharad Tiwari, Jonathan E. Coleman
  • Patent number: 11885239
    Abstract: The invention relates to a turbomachine rotary-fan blade having a predetermined breaking zone, which extends from the upstream edge along a given length and from the blade-tip edge over a given height. According to the invention, the body is made of a composite material comprising a fibre reinforcement obtained by three-dimensional weaving of warp and weft strands, and a resin matrix in which the fibre reinforcement is embedded, and has, in or in the vicinity of the zone, a discontinuity of at least some of the strands, configured such that the zone partially detaches when there is tangential friction in the thickness direction against the blade-tip edge, the height being less than 3% of the aerodynamic stream height of the blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
    Inventors: Guillaume Pascal Jean-Charles Gondre, Thomas Alain De Gaillard, Pierre Jean Faivre D'Arcier
  • Patent number: 11885233
    Abstract: A turbine engine with at least a compressor section, combustor section, turbine section and a set of airfoils. The airfoils include geometric characteristics to create a high contraction ratio (CR), a low blade turning (BT) at a radially inward location the airfoil, a low solidity, or a low aspect ratio (AR).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignees: General Electric Company, GE Avio S.r.l.
    Inventors: Ernesto Sozio, Francesco Bertini, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Jonathan Ong, Lyle Douglas Dailey, Paul Hadley Vitt, Matteo Renato Usseglio
  • Patent number: 11887571
    Abstract: Acoustic structures for a gas turbine engine are disclosed. In various embodiments, the acoustic structures comprise a panel in the form of a cellular structure having a plurality of cells; and a housing configured to house the cellular structure, the housing including a first rail configured for attachment to a static structure within the gas turbine engine and a second rail configured for attachment to the static structure. In various embodiments, the acoustic structures comprise a liner in the form of a non-segmented or two-piece structure configured to extend about the inner barrel of a nacelle structure. The disclosed panels and liners are configured to maximize the operational area of the acoustic structures by eliminating obstructions from adjacent flow paths.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: RTX CORPORATION
    Inventor: Anthony R. Bifulco
  • Patent number: 11879343
    Abstract: A fan assembly includes a fan duct, an inlet fan, an outlet guide vane assembly, and a control system. The inlet fan includes fan blades adapted to rotate about a central axis to force fan exit air toward an aft end of the fan duct. The outlet guide vane assembly is located in the fan duct downstream of the inlet fan and is configured to adjust a direction of the fan exit air. The outlet guide vane assembly includes a plurality of guide vanes that extend radially relative to the central axis and are configured to rotate to a first vane-pitch angle. The control system is configured to rotate the guide vanes redirect the fan exit air, vary a pressure downstream of the fan inlet, minimize intake flow distortion experienced by the inlet fan, reduce inlet fan vibratory response and/or improve fan operability margins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: Rolls-Royce Corporation
    Inventors: Christopher D. Hall, William B. Bryan, Daniel E. Molnar, Jr.
  • Patent number: 11879442
    Abstract: Provided is a seal arranged about a tower aperture of a wind turbine nacelle, which seal includes an annular channel shaped to contain a liquid, and an annular lip extending downwards into the annular channel, which annular channel and annular lip are mounted at opposite sides of a gap between the nacelle and a wind turbine tower; and further including a volume of liquid in the annular channel, which liquid volume is sufficient to immerse the annular lip about its lower circumference to prevent a passage of air between nacelle interior and nacelle exterior. A seal maintenance arrangement including such a seal and a device for replenishing the liquid in the annular channel is also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Inventor: Jorge Cortaire Apesteguia
  • Patent number: 11879468
    Abstract: A control method for a centrifugal compressor and an air conditioning system. The control method for the centrifugal compressor includes: S100, when an inlet opening of the centrifugal compressor is below a first preset value, shutting down a drive motor of the centrifugal compressor; or S200, when the inlet opening of the centrifugal compressor is not below the first preset value, performing the following operations in a preset order: decreasing the inlet opening of the centrifugal compressor, and increasing a rotate speed of the centrifugal compressor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: CARRIER CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kai Deng, Vishnu Sishtla, Jun Cao, Yuchang Shac
  • Patent number: 11879351
    Abstract: An assembly for a gas turbine engine according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a metallic damper including a first contact surface and a gas turbine engine component. The gas turbine engine component includes a main body extending in a first direction between a gaspath surface and a second contact surface. The first and second contact surfaces oppose each other along an interface extending in a second direction. The first and second contact surfaces are dimensioned to contact each other along the interface in a hot assembly state. The main body is established by a composite including fibers in a matrix material. At least some of the fibers are arranged to establish a plurality of cooling passages aligned with the interface relative to the second direction. A method of damping for a gas turbine engine is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: RTX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Russell Kim, James T. Roach