Patents by Inventor Wayne Miller

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).

  • Publication number: 20230407785
    Abstract: A fuel oxygen reduction unit for an engine is provided. The fuel oxygen reduction unit includes an inlet fuel line; a stripping gas source; a contactor selectively in fluid communication with the stripping gas source, the inlet fuel line, or both to form a fuel/gas mixture; and a separator that receives the fuel/gas mixture, the separator configured to separate the fuel/gas mixture into an outlet stripping gas flow and an outlet fuel flow; wherein a flow of stripping gas passes through the fuel oxygen reduction unit a single time.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 1, 2023
    Publication date: December 21, 2023
    Inventors: Ethan Patrick O'Connor, Brandon Wayne Miller, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Alfred Albert Mancini
  • Patent number: 11814174
    Abstract: An aircraft defining a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction is provided. The aircraft includes: a fuselage; an engine mounted at a location spaced from the fuselage of the aircraft, the engine comprising a plurality of rotor blades; and a fuselage shield attached to or formed integrally with the fuselage at a location in alignment with the plurality of rotor blades along the lateral direction, the fuselage shield comprising a first layer defining a first density and a second layer defining a second density, the first density being different than the second density.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 15, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: David William Crall, Nicholas Joseph Kray, Douglas Duane Ward, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 11815024
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a turbomachine and a thermal management system. The thermal management system includes a heat source heat exchanger configured to collect heat from the turbomachine during operation; a heat sink heat exchanger; and a thermal transport bus having a heat exchange fluid configured to flow therethrough at a pressure within an operational pressure range. The thermal management system defines an operational temperature range for the heat exchange fluid, the operational temperature range having a lower temperature limit less than about zero degrees Fahrenheit at a pressure within the operational pressure range and an upper temperature limit of at least about 1000 degrees Fahrenheit at a pressure within the operational pressure range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Adon Delgado, Jr., Brandon Wayne Miller, Hendrik Pieter Jacobus de Bock
  • Patent number: 11808281
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a fan having a plurality of fan blades, a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine including a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath, a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan, the nacelle defining a longitudinal axis, and an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle, wherein the inlet pre-swirl feature is transitionable between a first angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle and a second angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Arthur William Sibbach
  • Publication number: 20230332513
    Abstract: A method of regulating pressure in a thermal transport bus of a gas turbine engine, the method including: operating the gas turbine engine with the thermal transport bus having an intermediary heat exchange fluid flowing therethrough, the thermal transport bus including one or more heat source heat exchangers and one or more heat sink heat exchangers in thermal communication through the intermediary heat exchanger fluid; and adjusting a flow volume of the thermal transport bus using a variable volume device in fluid communication with the thermal transport bus in response to a pressure change associated with the thermal transport bus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Publication date: October 19, 2023
    Inventors: Scott Alan Schimmels, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 11788470
    Abstract: A method is provided of controlling a cooled cooling air system for an aeronautical gas turbine engine. The method includes: receiving data indicative of an ambient condition of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, data indicative of a deterioration parameter of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, data indicative of an operating condition of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, or a combination thereof; and modifying a cooling capacity of the cooled cooling air system in response to the received data indicative of the ambient condition of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, data indicative of the deterioration parameter of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, data indicative of an operating condition of the aeronautical gas turbine engine, or the combination thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Jeffrey Douglas Rambo, Brandon Wayne Miller, Kevin Robert Feldmann, Patrick Michael Marrinan, Robert Jon McQuiston
  • Patent number: 11788465
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine comprises a turbomachine defining a core flow therethrough during operation. A flow tap is provided in fluid communication with the turbomachine, wherein the flow tap is configured to receive a portion of the core flow therethrough as a bleed flow. A bleed assembly includes a machine load, a bleed flow machine, and a bleed regulator. The bleed flow machine is disposed in fluid communication with the turbomachine through the flow tap, and is configured to drive the machine load. The bleed regulator is configured to regulate a bleed output provided to the bleed flow machine by controlling a capture rate of the bleed flow by the bleed flow machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Patrick Michael Marrinan, Arthur William Sibbach, Scott Alan Schimmels, Scott David Hunter
  • Patent number: 11773776
    Abstract: A fuel oxygen reduction unit for an engine is provided. The fuel oxygen reduction unit includes an inlet fuel line; a stripping gas source; a contactor selectively in fluid communication with the stripping gas source, the inlet fuel line, or both to form a fuel/gas mixture; and a separator that receives the fuel/gas mixture, the separator configured to separate the fuel/gas mixture into an outlet stripping gas flow and an outlet fuel flow; wherein a flow of stripping gas passes through the fuel oxygen reduction unit a single time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ethan Patrick O'Connor, Brandon Wayne Miller, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Alfred Albert Mancini
  • Patent number: 11767790
    Abstract: A turbofan engine is provided. The turbofan engine includes a fan comprising a plurality of fan blades; a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine comprising a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath; a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan; an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle; and a means for directing incoming objects towards an outer portion of the turbofan engine in communication with the inlet pre-swirl feature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 11761344
    Abstract: A method is provided for operating a thermal management system of a gas turbine engine. The method includes: operating the gas turbine engine to start-up the gas turbine engine; receiving data indicative of a state of a thermal transport bus of the thermal management system using a sensor, the state of the thermal transport bus including a phase of a thermal fluid within the thermal transport bus; and starting a pump of a pump assembly in response to receiving data indicative of the state of the thermal transport bus of the thermal management system, the pump in fluid communication with the thermal transport bus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Brian Lewis Devendorf, Jeffrey Douglas Rambo, Brian Gene Brzek, Kevin Edward Hinderliter, Erich Alois Krammer, Arthur William Sibbach
  • Publication number: 20230287837
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine and a method of operating the gas turbine engine is provided. The gas turbine engine includes a fan having a plurality of fan blades, a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan, the nacelle defining an inlet and a longitudinal axis, and an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle. The method includes determining, by one or more computing devices, a thrust demand for the gas turbine engine, and in response to the thrust demand, controlling, by the one or more computing devices, a rotational speed of the fan and an angle of the inlet pre-swirl feature with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 10, 2022
    Publication date: September 14, 2023
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller, Tsuguji Nakano, Stefan Joseph Cafaro
  • Publication number: 20230279872
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a fan having a plurality of fan blades, a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine including a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath, a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan, the nacelle defining a longitudinal axis, and an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle, wherein the inlet pre-swirl feature is transitionable between a first angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle and a second angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2022
    Publication date: September 7, 2023
    Inventors: Brandon Wayne Miller, Arthur William Sibbach
  • Publication number: 20230279784
    Abstract: A liquid fuel system for a turbine engine may include one or more sensors configured to generate sensor outputs corresponding to one or more phase properties of a fuel supplied to the turbine engine through a fuel pathway, and a controller configured to generate control commands configured to control one or more controllable components of the liquid fuel system based at least in part on the sensor outputs. The one or more sensors may include one or more phase detection sensors. The fuel may include hydrogen. The fuel may have a liquid phase state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 7, 2022
    Publication date: September 7, 2023
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 11739689
    Abstract: A turbofan engine is provided. The turbofan engine includes a fan comprising a plurality of fan blades; a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine comprising a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath; a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan; an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle; and a means for reducing ice buildup or ice formation on the inlet pre-swirl feature, the means in communication with the inlet pre-swirl feature.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Allan George van de Wall, Sean Christopher Binion, Brian Lewis Devendorf, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Publication number: 20230265764
    Abstract: A system for controlling blade clearances within a gas turbine engine includes a rotor disk and a rotor blade coupled to the rotor disk. Additionally, the system includes an outer turbine component positioned outward of the rotor blade such that a clearance is defined between the rotor blade and the outer turbine component. Furthermore, the system includes a heat exchanger configured to receive a flow of cooling air bled from the gas turbine engine and transfer heat from the received flow of the cooling air to a flow of coolant to generate cooled cooling air. Moreover, the system includes a valve configured to control the flow of the coolant to the heat exchanger. In this respect, the cooled cooling air is supplied to at least one of the rotor disk or the rotor blade to adjust the clearance between the rotor blade and the outer turbine component.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2023
    Publication date: August 24, 2023
    Inventors: Steven Douglas Johnson, Julius John Montgomery, Brandon Wayne Miller, Robert Proctor, Bradley W. Fintel, Jeffrey Douglas Rambo
  • Publication number: 20230265862
    Abstract: A turbofan engine is provided. The turbofan engine includes a fan having a plurality of fan blades; a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine having a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath; a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan, the nacelle defining a radius and a longitudinal axis; and an inlet pre-swirl vane located upstream of the plurality of fan blades and defining a chord, the inlet pre-swirl vane coupled to the nacelle, wherein the inlet pre-swirl vane is angled at a first angle with respect to the radius of the nacelle, and wherein the chord of the inlet pre-swirl vane is angled at a second angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the nacelle.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 21, 2022
    Publication date: August 24, 2023
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Publication number: 20230258134
    Abstract: A turbofan engine is provided. The turbofan engine includes a fan comprising a plurality of rotatable fan blades, each fan blade defining a fan tip speed; a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine comprising a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath; and a gear box, wherein the turbomachine is operably coupled to the fan through the gear box, wherein a gear ratio of the gear box is greater than or equal to 1.2 and less than or equal to 3.0; wherein during operation of the turbofan engine at a rated speed the fan tip speed is greater than or equal to 1000 feet per second. In exemplary embodiments, during operation of the turbofan engine at the rated speed the fan pressure ratio is less than or equal to about 1.5.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2023
    Publication date: August 17, 2023
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller, Christopher James Kroger, Jeffrey Donald Clements, Sean Christopher Binion, Tsuguji Nakano
  • Patent number: 11725526
    Abstract: A turbofan engine includes a fan having a plurality of fan blades, a turbomachine operably coupled to the fan for driving the fan, the turbomachine including a compressor section, a combustion section, and a turbine section in serial flow order and together defining a core air flowpath, a nacelle surrounding and at least partially enclosing the fan, the nacelle including an inlet at a leading edge of the nacelle, the inlet defining an interior inlet surface that is non-annular, and an inlet pre-swirl feature located upstream of the plurality of fan blades, the inlet pre-swirl feature attached to or integrated into the nacelle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Arthur William Sibbach, Brandon Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 11725584
    Abstract: A heat engine comprising a compressor providing a flow of compressed air from a core flowpath of the heat engine; a cooled cooling air (CCA) heat exchanger system to which the flow of compressed air is provided from the compressor; a coolant supply system providing a flow of coolant to the CCA heat exchanger in thermal communication with the flow of compressed air at the CCA heat exchanger, in which the coolant supply system and CCA heat exchanger together define a CCA circuit through which the compressed air flows in thermal communication with the coolant; and a hot section disposed downstream of the compressor section along the core flowpath through which combustion gases flow, in which the hot section defines a secondary flowpath through which the flow of compressed air from the CCA heat exchanger is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Daniel Alan Niergarth, Brandon Wayne Miller, Jeffrey Douglas Rambo, Matthew Robert Cerny
  • Patent number: 11724814
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a compressor section and a turbine section together defining a core air flowpath. Additionally, a rotary component is rotatable with at least a portion of the compressor section and at least a portion of the turbine section. An electric machine is mounted coaxially with the rotary component and positioned at least partially inward of the core air flowpath along a radial direction of the gas turbine engine. A cavity wall defines at least in part a buffer cavity surrounding at least a portion of the electric machine to thermally insulate the electric machine, e.g., from the relatively high temperatures within the core air flowpath.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Thomas Kupiszewski, Brandon Wayne Miller, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Randy M. Vondrell