Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes an engine core including a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine, the compressor being connected to the turbines through a respective shaft; and a cabin blower system comprising: an electric variator comprising a first electrical machine connected to a first shaft arranged along a first axis, a second electrical machine connected to a second shaft arranged along a second axis, and a power management system; a cabin blower comprising a compressor driven by a third shaft arranged along a third axis, the compressor comprising an air inlet and an air outlet; and a differential gearbox. The gas turbine engine further includes an accessory gearbox arranged within an accessory gearbox casing and adapted to drive the cabin blower system.

Abstract: Disclosed is a fuel system for a gas turbine engine. The system comprises a fuel pump for fluid communication with a fuel reservoir; a driving turbine for driving the fuel pump; and a source of compressed air flow to drive the driving turbine. The source of compressed air may be the engine core, a dedicated fuel system compressor or the compressor of a cabin blower system.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: Aircraft cabin blower systems and methods of operating aircraft cabin blower systems are provided. One aircraft cabin blower system comprises: a cabin blower compressor having a contactless bearing arrangement; a transmission having a transmission output arranged to drive the cabin blower compressor, a first transmission input arranged to receive mechanical power from a gas turbine engine, and a second transmission input; a reversible variator arranged to receive power from the gas turbine engine and to output mechanical power to the second transmission input, the reversible variator operable to output in both forward and reverse directions of rotation; and a controller configured to control an output speed and direction of rotation of the reversible variator.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: A sacroiliac joint implant system includes a primary implant configured to be received in a sacroiliac joint of a patient and a secondary implant configured to couple with the primary implant. The primary implant includes a body extending from a proximal end to a distal end and a plurality of threads extending from the body. The secondary implant includes a first anchor configured to anchor within a sacrum of the patient and a second anchor configured to anchor within an ilium of the patient.

Abstract: A system for supplying lubricant to a component of a gas turbine engine having a fan shaft is provided. The system includes a pump drivably couplable to the fan shaft for pumping lubricant to the component. The pump includes an inlet for receiving lubricant from a lubricant source, an outlet for outputting lubricant to the component and a swashplate movable between at least a first position and a second position. The system also includes a swashplate actuator for actuating the swashplate between the first position and the second position according to whether the fan shaft is rotating in a forward direction or a reverse direction opposite to the forward direction.

Abstract: An aircraft cabin blower system includes a transmission configured to receive mechanical power from a gas turbine engine in the form of a first transmission input; and an electrical circuit including a first electrical machine, a second electrical machine, and power management system, wherein, when operating in a blower mode, the first electrical receives mechanical power from the gas turbine engine and act as a generator to provide electrical power to the power management system, and the second electrical machine acts as a motor providing mechanical power to the transmission in the form of a second transmission input, the second electrical machine being driven by electrical power from the power management system. The transmission's output drives a cabin blower compressor when operating in the blower mode, a speed of the output of the transmission being determined by a function of a speed of the first and second transmission inputs.

Abstract: An aircraft cabin blower system includes: a transmission configured to receive mechanical power from a first part of a gas turbine engine in the form of a first transmission input; and an electrical circuit including a first electrical machine, a second electrical machine, and a power management system, wherein an output of the transmission is configured to drive a cabin blower compressor when operating in a blower mode, the first electrical machine being configured to receive mechanical power from a second part of the gas turbine engine and act as a generator to provide electrical power to the power management system, and the second electrical machine being configured to act as a motor providing mechanical power to the transmission in the form of a second transmission input, the second electrical machine being driven by electrical power from the power management system.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a cryptographic protocol, and a system for implementing said protocol, for providing overt ledger secured key escrow access to encrypted data. The invention uses a plurality of trustee systems, each holding a secret share of a secret, to validate requests for the secret from authorised third parties. When a valid request is made, each trustee system publishes its secret share to a ledger. The secret shares can be combined to reveal the encryption key only by the authorised third party. Requests for the encryption key, and the responses by the trustee systems, can be accessed by the owner of the encryption key to identify the requesting third party and to have proof that the key has been revealed to the third party.

Abstract: An aircraft cabin blower system is described having a hydraulic circuit comprising a first hydraulic device and a second hydraulic device. The first hydraulic device is mechanically coupled to a cabin blower compressor and the second hydraulic device is arranged in use to be mechanically coupled to a spool of a gas turbine engine. The first hydraulic device is capable of performing as a hydraulic motor and the second hydraulic device is capable of performing as a hydraulic pump. When, in use, the system is operating in a cabin blower configuration, a driving force supplied by the spool of the gas turbine causes the second hydraulic device to pump liquid provided in the hydraulic circuit and thereby to drive the first hydraulic device, which in turn rotates the cabin blower compressor.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments disclose techniques for managing a global namespace for a distributed filesystem. Two or more cloud controllers collectively manage distributed filesystem data that is stored in a cloud storage system; the cloud controllers ensure data consistency for the stored data, and each cloud controller caches portions of the distributed filesystem. Furthermore, a global namespace for the distributed filesystem is also split across these cloud controllers, with each cloud controller “owning” (e.g., managing write accesses for) a distinct portion of the global namespace and maintaining a set of namespace mappings that indicate which portion of the namespace is assigned to each cloud controller. During operation, an initial cloud controller receives a request from a client system to access a target file in the distributed system. This initial cloud controller uses the namespace mappings for the global namespace to determine a preferred cloud controller that will handle the request.

Abstract: A waste storage device is provided comprising a waste storage compartment for storing waste and a lid. The device further comprises a dispenser for dispensing an agent inside the waste storage device and an actuator arranged to activate the dispenser. A waste cartridge is also provided comprising a relatively rigid upper portion and a relatively flexible lower portion. The relatively flexible lower portion is arranged for storing waste items and the relatively rigid upper portion is arranged to be folded about an axis in a direction substantially towards the relatively flexible lower portion of the waste cartridge.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments disclose techniques for managing a global namespace for a distributed filesystem. Two or more cloud controllers collectively manage distributed filesystem data that is stored in a cloud storage system; the cloud controllers ensure data consistency for the stored data, and each cloud controller caches portions of the distributed filesystem. Furthermore, a global namespace for the distributed filesystem is also split across these cloud controllers, with each cloud controller “owning” (e.g., managing write accesses for) a distinct portion of the global namespace and maintaining a set of namespace mappings that indicate which portion of the namespace is assigned to each cloud controller. During operation, an initial cloud controller receives a request from a client system to access a target file in the distributed system. This initial cloud controller uses the namespace mappings for the global namespace to determine a preferred cloud controller that will handle the request.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments disclose techniques that facilitate of avoiding client timeouts in a distributed filesystem. Multiple cloud controllers collectively manage distributed filesystem data that is stored in one or more cloud storage systems; the cloud controllers ensure data consistency for the stored data, and each cloud controller caches portions of the distributed filesystem in a local storage pool. During operation, a cloud controller receives from a client system a request for a data block in a target file that is stored in the distributed filesystem. Although the cloud controller is already caching the requested data block, the cloud controller delays transmission of the cached data block; this additional delay gives the cloud controller more time to access uncached data blocks for the target file from a cloud storage system, thereby ensuring that subsequent requests of such data blocks do not exceed a timeout interval on the client system.

Abstract: A monopatch antenna system includes a ground plane, a patch antenna arranged parallel to the ground plane and having an aperture, and a monopole antenna extending perpendicularly to the ground plane through the aperture in the patch antenna. A feed system supplies a first portion of an RF signal to the patch antenna with a substantially circular polarization and simultaneously supplies a second portion of the RF signal to the monopole antenna with a linear polarization to produce a wide-beam composite antenna beam pattern having both linear and circular polarizations of the RF signal.