Patents by Inventor Douglas Ray Smith

Douglas Ray Smith 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: 11241735
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure generally relate to a casting mold for forming a cast part. The casting mold includes a casting shell having an internal surface bounding an interior, and a casting core positioned within the interior to define a cavity between the casting core and the casting shell, whereby the internal surface of the casting shell defines an outer surface of the cast part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2022
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Douglas Ray Smith, Gregory Terrence Garay, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Publication number: 20210078070
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure generally relate to a casting mold for forming a cast part. The casting mold includes a casting shell having an internal surface bounding an interior, and a casting core positioned within the interior to define a cavity between the casting core and the casting shell, whereby the internal surface of the casting shell defines an outer surface of the cast part.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 1, 2020
    Publication date: March 18, 2021
    Inventors: Douglas Ray Smith, Gregory Terrence Garay, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Publication number: 20200109636
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for forming a film hole in an outer wall of an airfoil. The film hole includes a blind opening adjacent the interior of the airfoil and a hole adjacent the exterior of the airfoil. The blind opening fluidly couples to the hole to form the film hole for providing a volume of fluid as a surface cooling film along the exterior of the outer wall.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 5, 2019
    Publication date: April 9, 2020
    Inventors: Gregory Terrence Garay, Douglas Ray Smith, Aaron Ezekiel Smith, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Patent number: 10605091
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for forming a film hole in an outer wall of an airfoil. The film hole includes a blind opening adjacent the interior of the airfoil and a hole adjacent the exterior of the airfoil. The blind opening fluidly couples to the hole to form the film hole for providing a volume of fluid as a surface cooling film along the exterior of the outer wall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Gregory Terrence Garay, Douglas Ray Smith, Aaron Ezekiel Smith, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Patent number: 10563867
    Abstract: An engine component for a gas turbine engine generating hot combustion gas flow is provided. The engine component can include a substrate constructed from a CMC material and having a hot surface facing the hot combustion gas flow and a cooling surface facing a cooling fluid flow. The substrate defines a film hole extending through the substrate and having an inlet provided on the cooling surface, an outlet provided on the hot surface, and a passage connecting the inlet and the outlet. The engine component also includes a flow conditioning structure provided upstream of the outlet on the hot surface. The flow conditioning structure can include a ridge extending from the hot surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2020
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ronald Scott Bunker, Kevin Robert Feldmann, Douglas Ray Smith, Kirk D. Gallier, Daniel Scott Martyn, Rachel Anne Vukoja
  • Publication number: 20190255606
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to methods and apparatuses for forming cast parts having cast in features aligned with a casting core. The part is cast around a casting core within a casting shell. The casting core has a first feature that creates a corresponding second feature of the cast part. The casting core includes a third alignment feature that creates a corresponding fourth feature of the cast part spaced apart from the second feature of the cast part. A machining tool is aligned with the second feature of the cast part based on the fourth feature of the cast part. The machining tools machines the cast part to create the at least one passageway aligned with the second feature.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2019
    Publication date: August 22, 2019
    Inventors: Douglas Ray SMITH, Gregory Terrence GARAY, Zachary Daniel WEBSTER
  • Patent number: 10386069
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine wall is provided. The wall includes an inner surface and an opposing outer surface having at least one film cooling hole defined therein. The at least one film cooling hole includes an inclined inlet bore that extends from the inner surface and a pair of channels that diverge laterally from an outlet end of the inclined inlet bore. The pair of channels have a substantially constant width and are separated by a ridge to form a boomerang cross-sectional shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 20, 2019
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Shawn Michael Pearson, Robert Frederick Bergholz, Douglas Ray Smith, Frederick Alan Buck, Stephen Mark Molter, Kevin Robert Feldmann
  • Patent number: 10315248
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to methods and apparatuses for forming cast parts having cast in features aligned with a casting core. The part is cast around a casting core within a casting shell. The casting core has a first feature that creates a corresponding second feature of the cast part. The casting core includes a third alignment feature that creates a corresponding fourth feature of the cast part spaced apart from the second feature of the cast part. A machining tool is aligned with the second feature of the cast part based on the fourth feature of the cast part. The machining tool machines the cast part to create the at least one passageway aligned with the second feature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2019
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Douglas Ray Smith, Gregory Terrence Garay, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Publication number: 20180135425
    Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to methods and apparatuses for forming cast parts having cast in features aligned with a casting core. The part is cast around a casting core within a casting shell. The casting core has a first feature that creates a corresponding second feature of the cast part. The casting core includes a third alignment feature that creates a corresponding fourth feature of the cast part spaced apart from the second feature of the cast part. A machining tool is aligned with the second feature of the cast part based on the fourth feature of the cast part. The machining tools machines the cast part to create the at least one passageway aligned with the second feature.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 17, 2016
    Publication date: May 17, 2018
    Inventors: Douglas Ray SMITH, Gregory Terrence GARAY, Zachary Daniel WEBSTER
  • Publication number: 20170370229
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for forming a film hole in an outer wall of an airfoil. The film hole includes a blind opening adjacent the interior of the airfoil and a hole adjacent the exterior of the airfoil. The blind opening fluidly couples to the hole to form the film hole for providing a volume of fluid as a surface cooling film along the exterior of the outer wall.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2016
    Publication date: December 28, 2017
    Inventors: Gregory Terrence Garay, Douglas Ray Smith, Aaron Ezekiel Smith, Zachary Daniel Webster
  • Publication number: 20170089579
    Abstract: An engine component for a gas turbine engine generating hot combustion gas flow is provided. The engine component can include a substrate constructed from a CMC material and having a hot surface facing the hot combustion gas flow and a cooling surface facing a cooling fluid flow. The hot combustion gas flow defines an upstream direction and a downstream direction relative to the hot surface. The substrate also defines a film hole extending through the substrate and having an inlet provided on the cooling surface, an outlet provided on the hot surface, and a passage connecting the inlet and the outlet. The passage comprises a metering section; and a diffusing section, with the diffusing section including a shelf, a first outer lobe and a second outer lobe.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventors: Ronald Scott Bunker, Kevin Robert Feldmann, Douglas Ray Smith, Kirk D. Gallier, Daniel Scott Martyn, Rachel Anne Vukoja
  • Publication number: 20170089578
    Abstract: An engine component for a gas turbine engine generating hot combustion gas flow is provided. The engine component can include a substrate constructed from a CMC material and having a hot surface facing the hot combustion gas flow and a cooling surface facing a cooling fluid flow. The substrate defines a film hole extending through the substrate and having an inlet provided on the cooling surface, an outlet provided on the hot surface, and a passage connecting the inlet and the outlet. The engine component also includes a flow conditioning structure provided upstream of the outlet on the hot surface. The flow conditioning structure can include a ridge extending from the hot surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventors: Ronald Scott Bunker, Kevin Robert Feldmann, Douglas Ray Smith, Kirk D. Gallier, Daniel Scott Martyn, Rachel Anne Vukoja
  • Publication number: 20150159871
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine wall is provided. The wall includes an inner surface and an opposing outer surface having at least one film cooling hole defined therein. The at least one film cooling hole includes an inclined inlet bore that extends from the inner surface and a pair of channels that diverge laterally from an outlet end of the inclined inlet bore. The pair of channels have a substantially constant width and are separated by a ridge to form a boomerang cross-sectional shape.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 13, 2013
    Publication date: June 11, 2015
    Inventors: Shawn Michael Pearson, Robert Frederick Bergholz, Douglas Ray Smith, Frederick Alan Buck, Stephen Mark Molter, Kevin Robert Feldmann