Patents by Inventor Brandon Wayne Miller

Brandon Wayne Miller has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10826343
    Abstract: An electric machine is provided which includes a rotor disk extending along a radial direction and having a rotor flange attached to or formed integrally with the rotor disk and extending substantially along the axial direction. A plurality of rotor magnets are mounted on the rotor disk and supported by the rotor flange such that the rotor flange absorbs centrifugal loads exerted on the magnets and enables high speeds of operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 3, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Nicholas Taylor Moore, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Brandon Wayne Miller, Paul Robert Gemin
  • Publication number: 20200340401
    Abstract: Systems and methods for adjusting airflow distortion in a gas turbine engine using a translating inlet assembly are provided. In one embodiment, a core engine of a gas turbine engine can include a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in series flow and defining at least in part an engine airflow path. The compressor section can include an inner flowpath surface. A core casing can enclose the core engine. A forward end of the core casing can include a translating inlet assembly moveable between a first position and a second position. The translating inlet assembly and the inner flowpath surface can together define an inlet to an engine airflow path. A translating inlet assembly can define a first inlet area in the first position and a second inlet area in the second position, the first inlet area being greater than the second inlet area.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 14, 2020
    Publication date: October 29, 2020
    Inventors: Brian Francis Nestico, Brian K. Kestner, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 10815886
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a compressor section and a turbine section. The turbine section includes a drive turbine and is located downstream of the compressor section. The gas turbine engine also includes a fan mechanically coupled to and rotatable with the drive turbine such that the fan is rotatable by the drive turbine at the same rotational speed as the drive turbine, the fan defining a fan pressure ratio and including a plurality of fan blades, each fan blade defining a fan tip speed. During operation of the gas turbine engine at a rated speed, the fan pressure ratio of the fan is less than 1.5 and the fan tip speed of each of the fan blades is greater than 1,250 feet per second.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Christopher James Kroger, Brandon Wayne Miller, Trevor Wayne Goerig, David William Crall, Tsuguji Nakano, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Bhaskar Nanda Mondal
  • Patent number: 10816078
    Abstract: A planet gear train for an engine casing includes a sun gear rotatable by a shaft, a ring gear, a plurality of planet gears rotatably mounted in a planet carrier and meshing with the sun gear and the ring gear, and a damping system. The damping system includes a soft mount disposed about the shaft and coupling the planet carrier the engine casing. The soft mount includes a flexible inner sleeve and a flexible outer sleeve. The flexible inner sleeve and the flexible outer sleeve are fixedly coupled together at respective central portions thereof near the shaft. The damping system further includes a plurality of damping couplers disposed about an outer flange of the planet carrier. The plurality of damping couplers is configured to flexibly couple the flexible inner sleeve to the flexible outer sleeve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 27, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Randy M. Vondrell, Donald Albert Bradley, Bugra Han Ertas
  • Publication number: 20200331622
    Abstract: A propulsion system for an aircraft having an aft end is provided herein. The propulsion system can include an electric propulsion engine defining a central axis. The electric propulsion engine can include an electric motor, a fan rotatable about the central axis of the electric propulsion engine by the electric motor, a bearing supporting rotation of the fan, and a thermal management system. The thermal management system can include a lubrication oil circulation assembly for providing the bearing with lubrication oil. The lubrication oil circulation assembly can be driven independently of a shaft of the electric propulsion engine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 3, 2020
    Publication date: October 22, 2020
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Randy M. Vondrell, Brandon Wayne Miller, Patrick Michael Marrinan, Lawrence Chih-hui Cheung, Nikolai N. Pastouchenko
  • Patent number: 10800539
    Abstract: A propulsion system for an aircraft includes a gas turbine engine and an electric propulsion engine defining a central axis. The electric propulsion engine includes an electric motor and a fan rotatable about the central axis of the electric propulsion engine by the electric motor. The electric propulsion engine additionally includes a bearing supporting rotation of the fan and a thermal management system including a thermal fluid circulation assembly. The thermal fluid circulation assembly is in thermal communication with at least one of the electric motor or the bearing and is further in thermal communication with a heat exchanger of a thermal management system of the gas turbine engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Randy M. Vondrell, Brandon Wayne Miller, Patrick Michael Marrinan, Lawrence Chih-hui Cheung, Nikolai N. Pastouchenko
  • Patent number: 10794281
    Abstract: Instrumented airflow path components configured to determine airflow path distortion in an airflow path of a gas turbine engine (e.g., using for propulsion of an aircraft) are provided. In one embodiment, a gas turbine engine for an aircraft can include a compressor section, a combustion section, and turbine section in series flow. The compressor section, combustion section, and turbine section define at a portion of an engine airflow path for the gas turbine engine. The gas turbine engine further includes one or more members extending at least partially into the engine airflow path of the gas turbine engine and one or more pressure sensor devices at least partially integrated into the one or more members extending at least partially into the engine airflow path. The one or more pressure sensor devices are configured to obtain measurements for determining a distortion condition for the gas turbine engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Francis Nestico, Brian K. Kestner, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 10787928
    Abstract: A casing for use in a turbofan engine is provided. The casing includes an inner hub, an intermediate casing positioned radially outward from the inner hub, an outer casing positioned radially outward from the intermediate casing, and a plurality of struts spaced circumferentially about the inner hub and extending between the inner hub and the outer casing. At least one strut of the plurality of struts includes a flow channel extending therethrough. The casing also includes a fluid scoop defined within the inner hub, and a collector that couples the fluid scoop in flow communication with the flow channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2020
    Assignees: General Electric Company, GE Avio, S.r.l.
    Inventors: Andrew Michael Tompkins, Brandon Wayne Miller, Donald Albert Bradley, Michele Gravina, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Lorenzo Cipolla
  • Patent number: 10762726
    Abstract: A computer-implemented method of assessing a health of a gas turbine engine of a hybrid-electric propulsion system for an aircraft includes receiving, by one or more computing devices, data indicative of an amount of electrical power provided to, or extracted from, an electric machine. The method also includes receiving, by the one or more computing devices, data indicative of an operating parameter of the hybrid-electric propulsion system. The method also includes assessing, by the one or more computing devices, a health of the gas turbine engine based at least in part on the received data indicative of the amount of electrical power provided to, or extracted from, the electric machine and the received data indicative of the operating parameter of the hybrid electric propulsion system. The method also includes providing, by the one or more computing devices, information to a user indicative of the health of the gas turbine engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Michael Thomas Gansler, Sridhar Adibhatla, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Publication number: 20200269991
    Abstract: A fuel system is provided for an aircraft having a fuel source. The fuel system includes a fuel oxygen reduction unit defining a liquid fuel supply path, a stripping gas supply path, a liquid fuel outlet path, and a stripping gas return path, wherein the stripping gas return path is in airflow communication with the fuel source.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Publication date: August 27, 2020
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 10753278
    Abstract: Systems and methods for adjusting airflow distortion in a gas turbine engine using a translating inlet assembly are provided. In one embodiment, a core engine of a gas turbine engine can include a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in series flow and defining at least in part an engine airflow path. The compressor section can include an inner flowpath surface. A core casing can enclose the core engine. A forward end of the core casing can include a translating inlet assembly moveable between a first position and a second position. The translating inlet assembly and the inner flowpath surface can together define an inlet to an engine airflow path. A translating inlet assembly can define a first inlet area in the first position and a second inlet area in the second position, the first inlet area being greater than the second inlet area.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2016
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Francis Nestico, Brian K. Kestner, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 10724435
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a turbomachine and a fan rotatable by the turbomachine. The fan includes a plurality of fan blades. The gas turbine engine also includes an outer nacelle surrounding the plurality of fan blades and a plurality of part-span inlet guide vanes cantilevered from the outer nacelle at a location forward of the plurality of fan blades along the axial direction. Each of the plurality of inlet guide vanes defines an inner end along the radial direction and it is unconnected with an adjacent part-span inlet guide vane at the inner end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Co.
    Inventors: Christopher James Kroger, Brandon Wayne Miller, Trevor Wayne Goerig, David William Crall, Tsuguji Nakano, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Bhaskar Nanda Mondal
  • Patent number: 10711693
    Abstract: A turbine engine has a core with a compressor, combustor, and turbine sections in axial flow arrangement and with corresponding rotating elements mounted to a shaft defining engine rotor elements. The turbine engine has a rotary driver operably coupled to the engine rotor elements. The turbine engine has at least one thermoelectric generator in thermal communication with the core and in electrical communication with the rotary driver to provide power to the rotary driver to turn the engine rotor elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Raymond Floyd Martell, Mark Leonard Hopper, Scott Douglas Waun
  • Patent number: 10711797
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a turbomachine and a fan rotatable by the turbomachine. The fan includes a plurality of fan blades, each of the plurality of fan blades defining a fan blade span along a radial direction. The gas turbine engine further includes an outer nacelle surrounding the plurality of fan blades and a plurality of part-span inlet guide varies attached to the outer nacelle at a location forward of the plurality of fan blades along an axial direction. Each of the plurality of inlet guide vanes defines an IGV span along the radial direction, the IGV span being at least about five percent of the fan blade span and up to about fifty-five percent of the fan blade span.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 14, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Christopher James Kroger, Brandon Wayne Miller, Trevor Wayne Goerig, David William Crall, Tsuguji Nakano, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Bhaskar Nanda Mondal
  • Publication number: 20200182059
    Abstract: An aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a rotor assembly for a turbine engine. The rotor assembly includes an airfoil assembly and a hub to which the airfoil assembly is attached. A wall assembly defines a first cavity and a second cavity between the airfoil assembly and the hub. The first cavity and the second cavity are at least partially fluidly separated by the wall assembly. The first cavity is in fluid communication with a flow of first cooling fluid and the second cavity is in fluid communication with a flow of second cooling fluid different from the first cooling fluid.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2018
    Publication date: June 11, 2020
    Inventors: Jeffrey Douglas Rambo, Kirk Douglas Gallier, Brandon Wayne Miller, Craig Alan Gonyou, Kevin Robert Feldmann, Justin Paul Smith
  • Patent number: 10676205
    Abstract: A propulsion system for an aircraft includes an electric propulsion engine. The electric propulsion engine includes an electric motor and a fan rotatable about a central axis of the electric propulsion engine by the electric motor. The electric propulsion engine also includes a bearing supporting rotation of the fan and a thermal management system. The thermal management system includes a lubrication oil circulation assembly and a heat exchanger thermally connected to the lubrication oil circulation assembly. The lubrication oil circulation assembly is configured for providing the bearing with lubrication oil. Such an electric propulsion engine may be a relatively self-sufficient engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Randy M. Vondrell, Brandon Wayne Miller, Patrick Michael Marrinan, Lawrence Chih-hui Cheung, Nikolai N. Pastouchenko
  • Patent number: 10677264
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a fan section having a single-stage fan, a core turbine engine, and a nacelle at least partially surrounding the fan of the fan section and the core turbine engine. The gas turbine engine also includes an outlet guide vane extending between a casing of the core turbine engine and the nacelle. The gas turbine engine is configured to define an acoustic ratio greater than or equal to 2.3, with the acoustic ratio being a ratio of an axial spacing between the trailing edge of the fan blade and the leading edge of the outlet guide vane at a radial location seventy-five percent (75%) along the span of the fan blade to the axial width of the fan blade also at the radial location seventy-five percent (75%) along the span of the fan blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 14, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Thomas Ory Moniz, Daniel Robert Dwyer, Mark John Laricchiuta, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 10677158
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine system and method of operating gas turbine engines are provided. The gas turbine engine assembly includes a gas turbine engine includes a power shaft configured to rotate about an axis of rotation. The gas turbine engine assembly also includes a first fan and a second fan coupled to the power shaft coaxially with the gas turbine engine. The gas turbine engine assembly also includes a first fan duct configured to direct a first stream of air to the first fan. The gas turbine engine assembly also includes a second fan duct configured to direct a second stream of air to the second fan. The gas turbine engine assembly also includes an exhaust duct configured to direct a stream of exhaust gases of the gas turbine engine in a direction of the axis of rotation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Narendra Digamber Joshi, Ian Francis Prentice, Kurt David Murrow
  • Publication number: 20200172079
    Abstract: A method and system for distributed power generation is provided. The method includes determining an operational cycle for the system; determining an average energy requirement of the system based on the operational cycle; configuring a plurality of energy sources each corresponding to the load device to produce a peak efficiency corresponding to the average energy requirement of the system; and coupling the energy source to provide energy to the load device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 3, 2018
    Publication date: June 4, 2020
    Inventors: Christian Xavier Stevenson, Brandon Wayne Miller, Christopher James Kroger, Patrick Michael Marrinan
  • Publication number: 20200165982
    Abstract: A thermal management system includes a first heat source assembly including a first heat source exchanger, a first thermal fluid inlet line extending to the first heat source exchanger, and a first thermal fluid outlet line extending from the first heat source exchanger; a second heat source assembly including a second heat source exchanger, a second thermal fluid inlet line extending to the second heat source exchanger, and second a thermal fluid outlet line extending from the second heat source exchanger; a shared assembly including a thermal fluid line and a heat sink exchanger, the shared assembly defining an upstream junction in fluid communication with the first thermal fluid outlet line and second thermal fluid outlet line and a downstream junction in fluid communication with the first thermal fluid inlet line and second thermal fluid inlet line; and a controller configured to selectively fluidly connect the first heat source assembly or the second heat source assembly to the shared assembly.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 28, 2018
    Publication date: May 28, 2020
    Inventors: Justin Paul Smith, Brandon Wayne Miller, Daniel Alan Niergarth