| ROLLS-ROYCE PLC Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
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| 20120137243 | RATIONALE DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION TOOL - A tool and method for capturing information gathered during an analysis project is provided. The tool comprises a storage means for storing the analysis information generated or acquired during progress of an analysis project, wherein the analysis information is in the form of a plurality of graphical representations. Each graphical representation denotes a plurality of entities under analysis and the plurality of graphical representations comprises at least one representation of a first kind and at least one representation of a second kind. Input means is provided to allow a user to generate each graphical representation using a first or second predetermined structure according to its kind, said graphical representations being arranged for storage as a plurality of graphical representation files in the storage means. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120135198 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A COMPONENT - A method of manufacturing a component having first and second layers, the first and/or second layers including one or more depressions provided on a surface of the respective layer. The method including: arranging the first and second layers so that they face one another and with the depressions on inner facing surfaces of the layers; diffusion bonding the first and second layers together about their edges; applying a first differential pressure across each of the first and second layers to evacuate an inner space defined by the layers, thereby forming one or more depressions on an outer facing surface of the first or second layer; and applying a second differential pressure across each of the first and second layers to expand the inner space defined by the layers. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120134844 | NOSE CONE ASSEMBLY - A nose cone assembly | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120134843 | NOSE CONE ASSEMBLY - A nose cone assembly is provided comprising a nose cone | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120134774 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE BLADE CONTAINMENT ARRANGEMENT - A gas turbine engine blade containment arrangement comprises a casing, a first layer of cellular material arranged within the casing, a septum layer within the first layer of cellular material, a second layer of cellular material within the septum layer, a strong and ductile layer within the second layer of cellular material and a layer of abradable material within the strong and ductile layer. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120133103 | FIXTURE FOR SECURING A THIN-WALLED COMPONENT - A fixture for securing a cylindrical or shell thin-walled component includes a support having one or more securing devices for securing the component to the support. The fixture also includes an inflatable pressure element which, in use, is positioned within the secured component and is adapted to press outwardly, when inflated, against a liner inserted between the pressure element and the inner thin wall of the component. The liner has one or more elastic members, which bias it against the outward expansion of the inflated pressure element. The inflated pressure element and the liner damp vibrations in the component during machining of the outer side of the thin wall. | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120126141 | SURFACE COATING FOR INSPECTION - A method of inspecting an article, comprising applying an organic liquid substance over at least a portion of the article to be inspected so as to form a surface layer thereon, wherein said surface layer is luminescent. The article is irradiated with the surface layer thereon; and, scanning the article to determine its shape. | 05-24-2012 |
| 20120115733 | SUPERCONDUCTOR DEVICE - This invention relates to a superconductor device, comprising: a superconductor; a former which supports the superconductor; and, an intermediate electrical connector attached to the former for coupling the superconductor to a power source, wherein the intermediate electrical connector is connected to the superconductor via a deformable portion in the intermediate electrical connector, wherein the deformable portion allows relative movement between the superconductor and former. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120115732 | SUPERCONDUCTOR WINDING - This invention relates to a superconducting electrical machine, comprising: a superconducting winding at least partially surrounded by a magnetic flux guide, wherein the magnetic flux guide includes a binder loaded with a magnetic material. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120114884 | COMPOSITE MATERIAL HOLLOW AXISYMMETRIC BODY - A method of manufacturing a component comprising a hollow axisymmetric body formed of a cured composite material is provided. The method includes the step of positioning the constituents of the composite material in a mould corresponding to at least a portion of the hollow axisymmetric body. The composite material is cured into a composite part, and residual stresses are generated in the composite material during the curing by controlling the temperature of the constituents in the mould. When the composite part is released from the mould, relaxation of the residual stresses causes one or more regions of the composite part to deflect in the radial direction of the hollow axisymmetric body, the position of greatest radial deflection of each region having a radial deflection which is at least 0.1% of the greatest diameter of the hollow axisymmetric body. | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120111084 | SHAPE ADJUSTING TOOL - A hollow component is adjusted in shape, for example to correct circularity, by means of a shape adjusting tool. The tool comprises a base structure | 05-10-2012 |
| 20120107102 | ANNULUS FILLER - An annulus filler is provided for mounting to a rotor disc of a gas turbine engine and for bridging the gap between two adjacent blades attached to the rotor disc. The annulus filler has a body portion defining an airflow surface for air being drawn through the engine. The annulus filler further has a front attachment formation connecting a forward end of the body portion to the rotor disc and which allows rotational movement of the body portion thereabout. The annulus filler further has a rear attachment formation connecting a rearward end of the body portion to the rotor disc. The rear attachment formation comprises a spring element which extends between the body portion and the rotor disc. The spring element expands under operational centrifugal loading such that the rearward end of the body portion moves radially outwardly with the body portion rotating about the front attachment formation. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120104847 | DISTRIBUTED POWER GENERATION - Distributed power generation systems generally include a number of power sources and electrical power loads interconnected by a distribution network. Electrical switches and fuses are provided such that local groups of power sources and power loads can be established. Should there be a degradation in the distribution network in terms of a set of criteria such as electrical frequency, current or voltage then the switch or fuse may be thrown to establish each local group as an island. By monitoring divergence from a set of criteria a method and controller may be utilised whereby the distribution network as a whole is considered and configured to establish virtual islands which operate prior to the establishment whether inadvertently or deliberately of actual islands within the distribution network. In such circumstances the transition from normal operation for the distribution network to islanded operation for the distribution network is less severe | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120104842 | Method and apparatus for controlling torque on the shaft of a generator - This invention relates to a method of controlling torque oscillations in a mechanical drive train of an electrical generation system which provides electrical power to an isolated electrical network, the method including the steps of: a. monitoring for changes in the electrical condition of the electrical network; b. determining whether a change in the electrical condition of the network falls within a predetermined range; c. adjusting the power in the network using an auxiliary power source when the electrical condition of the network falls within the predetermined range so as reduce or substantially prevent the build up of torque oscillations in the mechanical drive train. | 05-03-2012 |
| 20120100033 | MOULD ASSEMBLY FOR A HOT ISOSTATIC PRESSING PROCESS - This invention relates to a mould assembly for a hot isostatic pressing, HIP, process for fabricating a component, comprising: a first part which includes a shaped surface for forming a first surface of the component, the shaped surface having at least one recess; a second part arranged to move relative to the first part during the HIP process so as to compress a powder in-fill held therebetween, wherein the second part includes a formation configured to focus pressure toward the recess so as to aid consolidation of the powder in-fill at a distal end thereof. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120100032 | MOULD ASSEMBLY FOR A HOT ISOSTATIC PRESSING PROCESS - The invention relates to a mould assembly for a hot isostatic pressing, HIP, process, comprising: an insert comprising a plurality of pieces which combine to provide a recess in which a protrusion of the component can be formed; and, a holding piece having at least one cavity in which the insert is mateably received. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120100006 | BLADE - A turbomachine blade having features arranged to initiate bending of the leading edge towards the pressure surface upon impact of a foreign object on the leading edge. The features may be features weaker than the material of the leading edge located on the pressure surface side of a mid-thickness line. By causing the leading edge to bend towards the pressure surface on impact the volume of the foreign object, typically a bird, that passes over the suction surface is reduced. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120100000 | AEROFOIL STRUCTURE - An aerofoil structure for a rotating blade-row in a casing, the aerofoil structure comprising a suction side, a pressure side and a tip therebetween, wherein at least a portion of the tip comprises a shaped feature provided on a surface of the tip, the shaped feature comprising a convergent portion orientated to reduce a gap between the tip and the casing in a direction from the pressure side to the suction side of the aerofoil structure. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120097645 | METHOD FOR BEAM WELDING ON COMPONENTS - In a method for beam welding on components with a laser beam or electron beam generated by a beam source, the heat treatment of the welded component required to remove stresses is integrated into the welding process. In a work cycle combined with the welding process, a regulated heat supply to a selected region takes place, according to its residual heat resulting from the welding process and the predicted stresses in that region, using the residual heat remaining from the welding process following the welding process from the same or other beam source(s). The welding region is cooled in a controlled manner, so that welded components which are likely to be subject to high stress in use, provided for example for a aircraft engine, can be made available without inherent stresses and with the desired microstructure in a single—combined—work step. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120096951 | CATCHER PIN ASSEMBLY - A catcher pin assembly for attachment to a catcher link of an aircraft frame, the catcher pin assembly having an engine mounting element, a catcher pin, a compressible element, and a nut, which is lockable to the catcher pin, the compressible element being compressed between the pin and the mounting element and/or between the mounting element and the nut, in the assembled condition of the assembly, such that the compressible element applies a predetermined resistance to rotation of the catcher pin relative to the mounting element. The invention also relates to a method of testing a catcher pin assembly to determine if the catcher pin is carrying load from the catcher link, the method including applying a predetermined torque to the catcher pin sufficient to overcome the resistance to rotation of the catcher pin when it is unloaded, and determining whether the catcher pin rotates relative to the mounting element. | 04-26-2012 |
| 20120092681 | HOLE INSPECTION - An apparatus is provided for inspecting holes in components. The apparatus includes a telecentric lens system positionable at a near end of a hole with an optical axis of the lens system aligned with the axis of the hole to image the interior of the hole. The apparatus further includes an illumination system for illuminating the interior of the hole. The apparatus further includes a camera arranged to receive an image of the illuminated interior of the hole from the telecentric lens system. The illumination system includes a light source for producing a beam of parallel light, and optics for directing the produced beam through the telecentric lens system along the optical axis thereof, and through the hole. The beam reaches the far end of the hole, and is reflected from a surface located at or adjacent the far end of the hole to illuminate the interior of the hole. | 04-19-2012 |
| 20120091265 | SUPPORT STRUCTURE - A support structure is provided for attaching a gas turbine engine to a pylon. The gas turbine engine has an engine casing surrounding an engine core, and the pylon has first and second attachment positions, the second attachment position being forward of the first attachment position relative to the working gas flow direction through the engine. The support structure has three elongate members joined to form a triangular frame encircling the engine casing. A first vertex of the triangular frame attaches to the pylon via a first attachment arrangement at the first attachment position. Two thrust struts respectively extend from the other two vertices of the triangular frame and attach to the pylon via a second attachment arrangement at the second attachment position. Three engine connection formations extend from the respective vertices of the triangular frame to positions on the engine casing to connect the support structure to the engine casing. | 04-19-2012 |
| 20120090531 | PRESSURE INDICATOR - A pressure indicator for indicating pressure of a pressure source. The indicator comprises a first reservoir which defines a first enclosed volume having a first inlet pipe for communication between the first enclosed volume and a first source of pressurised fluid. A damping passage is provided in fluid communication with the first enclosed volume. A pressure oscillation damping means is provided in the damping passage. The damping means comprises a moveable body constrained within a limited range of motion along the damping passage. | 04-19-2012 |
| 20120090530 | PRESSURE INDICATOR - A pressure indicator for indicating pressure of a pressure source. The indicator comprises a first reservoir which defines a first enclosed volume having a first inlet pipe for communication between the first enclosed volume and a first source of pressurised fluid. The first inlet pipe defines a nominal communication path length between the first enclosed volume and a first source of pressurised fluid. A member is provided in the first inlet pipe which defines one or more communication paths of greater length to that of the nominal communication path length. | 04-19-2012 |
| 20120090397 | PRESSURE INDICATOR - A pressure indicator for indicating pressure of a pressure source. The indicator comprises a first reservoir which defines a first enclosed volume having a first inlet pipe for communication between the first enclosed volume and a first source of pressurised fluid. A passage which provides a flow path for the pressurised fluid. | 04-19-2012 |
| 20120086577 | SYSTEM FOR VERIFYING THE INTEGRITY OF AN ELECTRICAL UNION - A system is provided for verifying the performance of an electrical union. The electrical union provides electrical connectivity across an interface between first and second elements which rotate relative to each other. The system includes a signal source associated with the first element. The signal source is adapted to send an electrical signal over the union to the second element using a first signal frequency. The system further includes a frequency modulator associated with the second element. The frequency modulator is adapted to return the electrical signal over the union to the first element using a different second signal frequency. The system further includes a comparator which compares the signal sent by the data source to the signal returned by the frequency modulator. The comparator provides an output which identifies whether a discrepancy exists between the contents of the sent and returned signals. | 04-12-2012 |
| 20120086152 | METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING A COMPOSITE COMPONENT - A mould for a composite component having a fillet joint, the mould including a mould body having a cavity within which the component is formed, and an insert mating with the mould body and including a forming surface against which, in use, the fillet of the component fillet joint is formed. The insert may be thermally insulating and highly rigid. A method of forming a composite component having a fillet joint using a mould, the method including forcing a surface of the fillet region of the component to adopt a non constant radius of curvature while the component is inside the mould during the cure process is also provided. Additionally, a method of forming a composite component having a fillet joint that is defined between first and second legs the method including placing the legs of the component in bending during cure of the component is described. | 04-12-2012 |
| 20120082909 | FUEL PROCESSOR FOR A FUEL CELL ARRANGEMENT AND A METHOD OF OPERATING A FUEL PROCESSOR FOR A FUEL CELL ARRANGEMENT - The fuel processor ( | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120082568 | TURBINE DISC COOLING ARRANGEMENT - A cooling arrangement is provided for a turbine disc of a gas turbine engine. The turbine disc has a plurality of circumferentially spaced disc posts forming fixtures therebetween for a row of turbine blades. Each turbine blade has an attachment formation which engages at a respective fixture, a platform radially outwardly of the attachment formation such that the adjacent platforms of the row form an inner endwall for the working gas annulus of the engine, and an aerofoil which extends radially outwardly from the platform. A respective cavity is formed between an exposed radially outer surface of each disc post and the inner endwall. The cooling arrangement has at each disc post, a cooling plate located in the respective cavity and spaced radially outwardly from the exposed outer surface of the disc post to form a cooling channel between the cooling plate and the exposed outer surface. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120082567 | COOLED ROTOR BLADE - A cooled turbine rotor blade for a gas turbine engine is provided. The engine has an annular flow path for conducting working fluid though the engine. The blade has an aerofoil section for extending across the annular flow path. The blade further has a root portion radially inward of the aerofoil section for joining the blade to a rotor disc of the engine. The blade further has a platform between the aerofoil section and the root portion. The platform extends laterally relative to the radial direction of the engine to form an inner boundary of the annular flow path and to provide a rear overhang portion which projects in use towards a corresponding platform of a downstream nozzle guide vane. The platform contains at least one internal elongate plenum chamber for receiving cooling air. The longitudinal axis of the plenum chamber is substantially aligned with the circumferential direction of the engine. The plenum chamber supplies the cooling air to a plurality of exit holes formed in the external surface of the rear overhang portion to cool that portion. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120080124 | ALLOY STEEL - The invention provides an alloy steel having the following composition: Ni 5-14 wt %; Cr 4-16 wt %; Co 7-14 wt %; Mo 1-5 wt %; W 0-5 wt %; Ti 0-0.8 wt %; Al 0.1-3 wt %; the balance being Fe save for incidental impurities. This provides an ultra-high strength corrosion resistant steel with good toughness, which does not significantly creep at temperatures up to 450° C. The high quantity of alloying to elements, particularly chromium, also gives the alloy good corrosion resistance. The alloy is particularly suitable for main shafts of gas turbine engines. | 04-05-2012 |
| 20120076659 | ANTI FRET LINER ASSEMBLY - An anti-fret assembly for a turbine engine, the assembly comprising an elongate liner having first and second walls connected by a base to provide a generally U-shaped channel, the liner having an outer surface adapted to lie against a first component and an inner surface adapted to lie against a second component, at least the first wall being provided with a notch for receipt of an anti-translation pin, the assembly further comprising an anti-translation pin. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120076645 | ENDWALL COMPONENT FOR A TURBINE STAGE OF A GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A component of a turbine stage of a gas turbine engine is provided. The component forms an endwall for the working gas annulus of the stage. The component has one or more internal passages behind the endwall which, in use, carry a flow of cooling air providing convective cooling for the component at the endwall. Each passage is formed by a plurality of straight passage sections. The passage sections connect end-to-end such that the connections between nearest-neighbour passage sections form angled bends. A first portion of the passage sections lie in a first plane. A second portion of the passage sections lie in a second plane which is spaced from and parallel to the first plane. A third portion of the passage sections extend between the first and the second planes. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120073373 | VIBRATION TEST ARRANGEMENT - Testing of components for fatigue under vibration conditions is important. Typically an isolation device is utilised in order to isolate a mode of vibration of interest. Isolation is through engaging a node line utilising isolation elements. By presenting the isolation elements in arms a component can be isolated by engaging the component to one side. The isolation elements are suspended upon springs and allowed to move axially in the direction of the springs as well as laterally through mountings in the arms. The isolation elements are less acceptable to wear and test set up time is reduced by the engaging of component to one side only of the component. | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120073094 | FASTENER - A fastener ( | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120073091 | CIRCUMFERENTIAL CLAMP AND LATCHING ASSEMBLY - A circumferential clamp | 03-29-2012 |
| 20120071069 | SURFACE TREATMENT DEVICE - A surface treatment device includes an enclosure which has an opening through which the leading edge of an aerofoil passes. A sealing element is provided on the enclosure to seal the device to the surfaces of the aerofoil. An abrasive is located within the enclosure and two fluid openings are also provided through which a chemical accelerant can be pumped. In operation the enclosure is oscillated relative to the component so that material is abraded. Whilst the enclosure is oscillated a chemical accelerant is simultaneously pumped through it. The device allows for the local application of a surface treatment on a component. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120070278 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE BEARING ARRANGEMENT - A gas turbine engine comprising first and second rotor shafts and an intershaft rolling element bearing arranged between the shafts. The first rotor shaft has a stator stage and a rotor stage; the second rotor shaft has only a rotor stage and is arranged to contra-rotate relative to the first shaft. The intershaft bearing is arranged between the first and second shafts such that the relative speeds of the shafts minimise a cage speed of the intershaft bearing. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120070270 | DAMPED ASSEMBLY - A damped assembly | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120068453 | ASSEMBLY COMPRISING FIRST AND SECOND FASTENERS AND A BAULKING ELEMENT - An assembly comprising a first fastener | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120067158 | FLEXIBLE TOOL - A flexible tool comprises stiffening means switchable in use from a first state of relatively low stiffness to a second state of relatively high stiffness, and subsequently switchable from the second state back to the first state. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120067061 | BLEED VALVE - A bleed valve having an inlet port and an outlet port. The bleed valve comprises mutually perpendicular radial, longitudinal and tangential axes arranged such that the outlet port is substantially in a plane defined by the longitudinal and tangential axes. The bleed valve also comprises at least one vane spanning the outlet port and having a first side and a second side, the first side being closer to the inlet port than the second side. The at least one vane defining a vector from its first to its second side that has non-zero radial, longitudinal and tangential components. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120067042 | TEMPERATURE ACTIVATABLE ACTUATOR - An actuator is provided having a temperature activatable actuating member comprising an inductively couplable material. The actuator has an electrical heating element for electrically heating the actuating member. The heating element is configured to inductively couple with said material when an AC current is passed through the heating element such that an opposing electromotive force is induced in the heating element. A detector is provided for detecting activation of the actuating member by sensing a change in the AC impedance of the heating element. | 03-22-2012 |
| 20120063909 | FAN BLADE WITH WINGLET - A fan blade ( | 03-15-2012 |
| 20120060704 | OBJECT FORMING ASSEMBLY - An assembly ( | 03-15-2012 |
| 20120060594 | STRAIN INDICATOR FOR A GAS TURBINE ENGINE COMPONENT - A component for use in a gas turbine engine comprises an indicator operable to provide a visual indication when strain over a threshold value has been experienced by the component by transitioning from a rest state to an indication state on occurrence of strain above the threshold value. | 03-15-2012 |
| 20120060507 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A gas turbine engine comprising a turbine section cooling system and a method of cooling a turbine section of a gas turbine engine is provided. The gas turbine engine comprises in flow series a compressor section, a combustor, and a turbine section, the engine further comprising a turbine section cooling system. The turbine section cooling system including a first compressed air bleed arrangement and a second compressed air bleed arrangement. The first compressed air bleed arrangement bleeds a first flow of compressed air from a high pressure stage of the compressor section. The first flow of compressed air bypasses the combustor and arrives at the turbine section to form a sealing and/or cooling flow at a row of stator vanes upstream of an adjacent rotor disc. The second compressed air bleed arrangement bleeds a second flow of compressed air from one or more lower pressure stages of the compressor section. The second flow of compressed air bypasses the combustor and arrives at the turbine section to fowl a cooling flow. A first portion of the cooling flow is routed to a front face of the rotor disc and a second portion of the cooling flow is routed to a rear face of the rotor disc. | 03-15-2012 |
| 20120060506 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A gas turbine engine has a compressor section with rotational compressor components rotatable with respect to static compressor components. A compressed air bleed arrangement is provided to cool one or more other rotational components of the gas turbine engine. The compressed air bleed arrangement takes a flow of compressed air from the compressor section along an off-take passage. The off-take passage opens in the compressor section at an off-take port. The off-take passage is rotatable, in use, with the rotational compressor components. The compressed air bleed arrangement is operable to provide the air in the off-take passage with higher static pressure than the air in the compressor section at the off-take port, by diffusing the air in the off-take passage. The off-take passage further includes off-take vanes, operable to increase the tangential velocity of the air in the off-take passage compared with the air at the off-take port. | 03-15-2012 |
| 20120057961 | TURBINE STAGE SHROUD SEGMENT - A shroud segment for a turbine stage of a gas turbine engine forms an endwall for the working gas annulus of the stage. The segment also provides a close clearance to the tips of a row of turbine blades which sweep across the segment. In use, a mainstream flow of the working gas passes through the passages formed between adjacent turbine blades. The segment has a plurality of cooling holes and respective air feed passages for the cooling holes. The cooling holes are distributed over that part of the gas-washed surface of the segment which is swept by the blade tips. The cooling holes deliver, in use, cooling air which spreads over the gas-washed surface. The feed passages are configured such that the delivered air has swirl directions which are co-directionally aligned with the swirl directions of the mainstream flow at the segment. | 03-08-2012 |
| 20120056005 | SHAPE MEMORY MATERIAL ACTUATION - A shape memory material inductive heating arrangement comprising an array of coils capable of carrying an alternating electrical current and generating a magnetic field, a shape memory element having a first modulus and a second modulus, the second modulus greater than the first, characterised in that the array of coils and shape memory element are in effective range so that when an alternating current is passed through the coils the shape memory element is subject to the magnetic field and heated thereby, the induced heat sufficient to change the modulus of the shape memory material from the first to the second modulus. | 03-08-2012 |
| 20120043725 | INTERSHAFT SEAL - An intershaft seal for inner and outer coaxial shafts which rotate relative to each other. The seal is located in an annular space between the shafts and maintains an axial pressure differential between a fluid pressure on the first side of the seal and a fluid pressure on the other, second side of the seal. The seal comprises a sealing ring which is coaxial with the shafts and which forms a sealing contact with the outer shaft to maintain the pressure differential. | 02-23-2012 |
| 20120042660 | MANIFOLD MOUNTING ARRANGEMENT - A manifold mounting arrangement comprising: a discrete manifold module; a clevis arrangement having a clevis straddling a flange and pivotally secured to the flange by a clevis pin; and a locking bar configured to be coupled to the clevis and to constrain the manifold module relative to the clevis arrangement in the locality of the locking bar. The invention finds utility for mounting case cooling manifolds to turbine casing for a gas turbine engine. | 02-23-2012 |
| 20120041585 | ADJUSTABLE LOCATOR FOR A WORKPIECE FIXTURE - An adjustable locator includes a locator element for contact with a workpiece supported on a fixture. The locator comprises a support element in which a ramp element is slidable. The ramp element has a ramp surface which is contacted by a plunger which carries the locator element. Displacement of the ramp element causes displacement of the plunger to adjust the position of the locator element with respect to the support element. A ratchet mechanism permits displacement of the ramp element in one direction, but prevents such movement in the opposite direction. The adjustable locator can be used in a workpiece fixture to achieve an optimum orientation of a workpiece prior to machining. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120037602 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A FIBRE REINFORCED METAL MATRIX COMPOSITE ARTICLE - A method of manufacturing a fibre reinforced metal matrix composite article, the method comprises forming a first metal component, forming a second metal component and forming at least one fibre preform comprising at least one metal coated fibre. The metal at least one first portion of the at least one metal coated fibre of the at least one fibre preform is bonded to the metal at least one second portion of the at least one metal coated fibre of the at least one fibre preform to hold the at least one fibre in position. The at least one fibre preform is placed between the first metal component and the second metal component. The second metal component is sealed to the first metal component, and heat and pressure is applied such as to consolidate the at least one fibre preform and to diffusion bond the metal on the fibre of the at least one fibre preform, the first metal component and the second metal component to form a unitary composite article. The bonding comprises ultrasonic welding. | 02-16-2012 |
| 20120034091 | AEROFOIL, AN AEROFOIL SUB-ASSEMBLY AND A METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME - An aerofoil sub-assembly of a blade, in particular an aerofoil blade for a gas turbine engine. A multi-layer construction including first and second skin panels which together define the external surfaces of the aerofoil and aerofoil leading and trailing edges. Between the skin panels at least there is at least one web-forming membrane which has a multiplicity of fingers trapped between the first and second panels at one of the edges and which extend away from the edge region. The fingers each have “dog-leg” shapes which are overlaid immediately behind the blade leading edge to form a transition zone providing additional support to resist crumpling of the hollow blade in the event of an external foreign object striking the leading edge. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120034089 | COMPOSITE MATERIAL AND METHOD - A composite material and method for manufacturing the material, the material including: a plurality of plies layered one on top of the other; and one or more through-thickness fibres which join one or more of the plurality of plies to one another; wherein the one or more through-thickness fibres form a boundary which delineates one or more discrete regions of the material. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120034072 | SEAL ASSEMBLY - A seal assembly arranged adjacent to a primary flow region, the seal assembly including: first and second components; a seal arranged between the first and second components to seal a secondary flow region from the primary flow region; and a first recess portion provided in the first component and arranged adjacent to the seal and the primary flow region, the first recess portion further being arranged to receive flow from at least one of the primary flow region and the secondary flow region and shed flow to the primary flow region, wherein the first recess portion is configured to promote a first flow feature within the first recess portion, the first flow feature flowing with a portion of the first flow feature adjacent to the primary flow region and the portion of the first flow feature being shed to the primary flow region in substantially the same direction as the flow in the primary flow region. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120034068 | VENTILATION INLET - A ventilation inlet comprising a ventilation pipe to receive flow from a first flow zone and to deliver the flow to a second flow zone; a divider arranged to divide a portion of the ventilation pipe into a static pressure zone and a total pressure zone; and a deflector arranged to direct flow from the total pressure zone at least partially across the static pressure zone to restrict delivery of the flow from the static pressure zone to the second flow zone dependent on the pressure of the flow in the first flow zone. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120034046 | FASTENER - A fastener ( | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120032403 | SEAL ASSEMBLY - A seal assembly including first and second components; a seal arranged between the first and second components to seal a secondary flow region from a primary flow region; and a second recess portion provided on a surface of the second component between the seal and the primary flow region, the second recess portion further being arranged to receive a first portion of a flow from the secondary flow region and being configured to promote a second flow feature within the second recess portion, wherein the second recess portion is set back from the surface of the second component such that a second portion of the flow from the secondary flow region bypasses the second recess portion. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120032368 | FIBRE CUTTING DEVICE AND METHOD - A fibre cutting device and method for cutting one or more exposed portions of a through-thickness fibre in a surface of a composite material, the device including: a cutting element for cutting the one or more exposed portions; a suction device which is operable to extract the cut exposed portions from the surface of the composite material; and a storage device for receiving the cut exposed portions. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120032053 | FIXTURE FOR SECURING A THIN-WALLED COMPONENT - A fixture for securing a thin-walled component includes a support having one or more securing devices for securing the component to the support. An inflatable pressure element is adapted to press, when inflated, against a flexible liner located adjacent the thin wall of the component. The inflated pressure element and the liner act to damp vibrations in the component during machining of another side of the thin wall. The liner has at least one stiffening element located opposite a position where a machining operation is performed on the other side of the thin wall. The stiffening element holds the liner away from the thin wall to create a cavity between the liner and the thin wall. | 02-09-2012 |
| 20120027576 | TURBINE STAGE SHROUD SEGMENT - A shroud segment for a turbine stage of a gas turbine engine forms an endwall for the working gas annulus of the stage. The segment also provides a close clearance to the tips of a row of turbine blades which sweep across the segment. In use a leakage flow of the working gas passes through the clearance gap between the blade tips and the segment. The segment has a plurality of cooling holes and respective air feed passages for the cooling holes. The cooling holes are distributed over that part of the gas-washed surface of the segment which is swept by the blade tips. The cooling holes deliver, in use, cooling air which spreads over the gas-washed surface. The feed passages are configured such that the delivered air opposes the leakage flow of the working gas. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120027575 | LABYRINTH SEAL - A labyrinth seal is provided for forming a seal between a first and a second component which rotate relative to each other. The seal has an abradable lining mounted to the first component, and a plurality of fins projecting from the second component. The fins are arranged in abutment with the abradable lining to form a labyrinthal path for a flow of air through the seal. The seal further has a bypass passage which extends through the abradable lining. The bypass passage allows air to flow through the seal and bypass the labyrinthal path. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120025013 | AEROSPACE VEHICLE YAW GENERATING TAIL SECTION - A tail section for an aerospace vehicle is provided. The tail section comprises a rudder which is movable about an axis to generate a yawing moment on the aerospace vehicle. The tail section further comprises a thruster having, in flow series, an air intake, an electrically powered device for accelerating the air received through the intake, and an air outlet which directs the accelerated air to increase the yawing moment generated by the rudder. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120024932 | TOOL - A tool for applying retaining elements in the form of a pins made from a shape memory effect material to a workpiece includes a body having a discharge passage for the pins, and application means in the form of a solenoid for ejecting pins from the discharge passage. Pins for application are accommodated in a magazine which has a region maintained at lower than ambient temperature by cooling elements. At the cold temperature, the pins are generally straight. Upon heating after application to the workpiece, the pins assume a second memorised configuration in which they are retained within the workpiece. The tool includes a display screen for displaying a count of pins discharged by the solenoid and the temperature maintained by the cooling elements. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120023965 | COMBUSTION CONTROLLER - The present invention relates to a combustion controller for controlling the combustion of a flow of combustible and/or combusting fluid. The combustion controller comprises an inlet and an outlet which defines a flow path between them. A magnetic-field generator is arranged to generate a magnetic field across the flow path such that in use the fluid flows in the flow path through the magnetic field. As the fluid flows through the magnetic field an electric current is induced in the fluid. This results in energy being supplied to the fluid. This energy can assist is reignition. If the magnetic field is an alternating magnetic field then this induces an alternating current in the fluid. The frequency of this current can be controlled such that certain chemical reactions are either promoted or inhibited. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120023950 | CONTROLLABLE FLAMEHOLDER - The present invention relates to a flameholder ( | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120023898 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A gas turbine engine includes, in flow series, a generator section and a free power turbine. The generator section includes one or more generator turbine stages. One or more respective generator drive shafts extend axially forwardly from the generator turbine stages to one or more corresponding compressor stages. The free power turbine includes a first turbine stage and a contra-rotating second turbine stage. The gas turbine engine further includes a first drive shaft extending axially from the free power turbine to transmit rotational drive from the first turbine stage to a first propeller. The gas turbine engine further includes a second drive shaft extending from the free power turbine coaxially with the first drive shaft to transmit contra-rotational drive from the second turbine stage to a contra-rotating second propeller. | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120023890 | FLASHBACK PROTECTOR - The present invention relates to a flashback protector ( | 02-02-2012 |
| 20120022838 | SYSTEM CONTROL - A method of controlling a system that has a finite execution time in the optimisation of a cost function: | 01-26-2012 |
| 20120022678 | LINEAR FRICTION WELDING OF AN AEROFOIL BLISK - A method of making an aerofoil blink comprising a plurality of aerofoil blades joined to a disc to extend radially outwardly therefrom is provided, The method includes the step of: (a) modelling a linear friction welding process in which a blade member is joined to the disc, the blade member having a stub for joining to the disc, wherein the modelling provides results which are indicative of the welding power at positions along the stub during the welding process; (b) identifying adaptations to the stub using the modelling results to compensate for differences in welding power along the stub during the welding process; (c) providing a blade member having a stub with the identified adaptations; and (d) joining the provided blade member to the disc by the linear friction welding process. | 01-26-2012 |
| 20120012644 | APPARATUS AND A METHOD OF DETERMINING THE QUALITY OF A FRICTION WELD - A method of determining the quality of a friction weld between two components, the method comprising joining two components together using a friction welding process, measuring the loss of length of the components as a function of time during the friction welding process, determining the double differential with respect to time of the loss in length of the components as a function of time, determining the quality of the friction weld by calculating the R | 01-19-2012 |
| 20120012643 | PROCESS CONTROL METHOD - A method is disclosed for controlling a process in which a component | 01-19-2012 |
| 20120009065 | ROTOR BLADE - A rotor blade for a gas turbine engine, comprising an aerofoil having pressure and suction surfaces, leading and trailing edges, and an array of passages at a tip region of the aerofoil. The passages extend from the pressure surface to the suction surface of the aerofoil and are disposed so that the array creates, in operation, a planar jet of gas issuing from the suction surface. The jet is inclined outwardly from the suction surface and towards the tip, and in the direction from the leading edge to the trailing edge. The jet inhibits migration away from the suction surface of a clearance vortex formed by leakage of air over the tip of the rotor blade. | 01-12-2012 |
| 20120006452 | METHOD OF IMPROVING THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF A COMPONENT | 01-12-2012 |
| 20120006433 | SPLIT FLOW VALVE ARRANGEMENT - A split flow valve arrangement comprising a first valve portion having an inlet, a first outlet and a second outlet; and a second valve portion having a first inlet coupled to the first outlet, a second inlet coupled to the second outlet, a main outlet and a secondary outlet. The inlet is selectively coupled to none, one or both of the first and second outlets; the first inlet is selectively coupled to the main outlet and the second inlet is selectively coupled to the secondary outlet. The first and second valve portions are constrained to move in synchronicity to therefore selectively direct fluid to flow from the inlet to none, one or both of the main and secondary outlets. | 01-12-2012 |
| 20120006037 | CLAMPING ASSEMBLY - A clamping assembly ( | 01-12-2012 |
| 20120003103 | TURBINE ROTOR ASSEMBLY - A turbine rotor assembly ( | 01-05-2012 |
| 20120003100 | COMPOSITE TURBOMACHINE BLADE - A composite turbomachine blade ( | 01-05-2012 |
| 20120001022 | JET ENGINE INSTALLATION - Noise generated by a gas turbine engine | 01-05-2012 |
| 20120001019 | PYLON FOR ATTACHING A GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A pylon is provided for attachment of a gas turbine engine to a wing of an aircraft. The gas turbine engine comprises a core fairing surrounding a core generator and defining a nozzle for discharging a core gas flow, and a fan nacelle surrounding the core fairing to define an annular bypass duct therebetween for discharging fan air. The pylon has a trailing edge which is rearward of the trailing edge of the core fairing and the trailing edge of the fan nacelle. The pylon further has having two laterally-spaced side faces which span the bypass duct between the fan nacelle and the core fairing and extend in the rearward direction of the engine to end at the trailing edge of the pylon. Each side face has a bottom edge which extends in a rearward direction of the engine from the core fairing to the bottom end of the trailing edge of the pylon. The bottom edges merge at a merging position between the trailing edge of the fan nacelle and the trailing edge of the pylon such that the bottom edges form a single bottom edge from the merging position to the bottom end of the trailing edge of the pylon. The pylon is intended to exert control on the bypass flow of a gas turbine engine. Other pylons are also provided which can also exert such control. | 01-05-2012 |
| 20110320186 | ENTITY RECOGNITION - The invention relates to a method of querying technical domains that recognises the concepts represented by strings of characters, rather than merely comparing strings. It can be used to compute conceptual similarity between terms. The method employs string distance metrics and a cyclic progression of lexical processing to recognise constituent term concepts that are then combined to form full-term concepts by means of a grammar. Terms can be extracted and identified as being conceptually similar (or dissimilar) to other terms even if they have never previously been encountered. | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110318181 | APPARATUS FOR PREVENTING ICE ACCRETION - Aerofoils ( | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110317740 | HIGH TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT PROBE - A high temperature measurement probe comprises an elongate probe body having a measuring head which in use is located in a hot fluid flow. The probe further comprises a thermocouple extending along the interior of the probe body to terminate at a temperature-sensing thermocouple junction inside the measuring head. The probe body has internal passages for circulation of a coolant fluid therein. The measuring head contains a channel, one end of the channel forming an inlet for receiving hot fluid from the hot fluid flow and another end of the channel forming an outlet for discharging the hot fluid received at the inlet. Between the inlet and the outlet a section of the channel extends along the length direction of the probe body. The thermocouple runs along the section of the channel with the thermocouple junction proximate the upstream end of the section. | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110315814 | ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A GAS TURBINE ENGINE AND A SUPPORTING PYLON - A gas turbine engine | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110314909 | METHOD FOR PREDICTING INITIAL UNBALANCE IN A COMPONENT - A method for predicting initial unbalance in a component comprising one or more elements, the method comprising: defining a statistical distribution of a mass moment weight of each of the one or more elements; restricting the statistical distribution to a selected range; and calculating an initial unbalance of the component for the restricted distribution of the one or more elements. | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110314890 | PRESS BRAKE - A press brake tool assembly mounting device | 12-29-2011 |
| 20110309587 | SEAL - A seal having an integral attachment arrangement. The attachment arrangement comprises at least one attachment feature and at least one locking feature. The at least one attachment feature is configured and arranged to interdigitate with features of another component in a first orientation and to lock to the other component in a second orientation. The second orientation is rotationally displaced from the first orientation. | 12-22-2011 |
| 20110305572 | MECHANICAL ARRANGEMENT - A mechanical arrangement for an engine having two propeller stages, including: a first epicyclic gear stage including a sun gear, a planet gear, a planet carrier and an annulus, wherein the sun gear is driven by a shaft of the engine, the planet carrier is stationary and thereby permits static structure to be located there through, and the annulus outputs torque and/or drive; a second epicyclic gear stage including a second sun gear, a second planet gear, a second planet carrier and a second annulus, wherein the second sun gear is driven by the annulus of the first epicyclic gear stage and is annular to accommodate the static structure, the second planet carrier includes the output to one of the propeller stages and the second annulus includes the output to the other of the propeller stages; wherein the static structure provides mounting for static components on one or both sides of each epicyclic gear stage. | 12-15-2011 |
| 20110301915 | SURFACE PROFILE EVALUATION - A method and system for accepting or rejecting a curved surface of a body under evaluation involves conducting a comparison between the curvature of a surface profile for the surface under evaluation and higher and lower curvature tolerance boundaries. The higher and lower curvature tolerance boundaries are determined from a desired surface profile. The curvature at a plurality of locations on the curve profile under evaluation may be defined with reference to a geometric variable for said curved surface and may be plotted on a graph. The higher and lower curvature tolerance boundaries may also be plotted on the graph so as to determine whether the plot of curvature for the surface under evaluation falls within the bounds of the higher and lower tolerance boundaries. | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110297734 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING AN ARTICLE BY DIFFUSION BONDING AND SUPERPLASTIC FORMING - In a method of manufacturing an article ( | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110296848 | FLUID TRANSFER ARRANGEMENT - A fluid transfer arrangement comprising a duct having a first end and a second end, a pulse generation mechanism located at the first end of the duct to direct fluid pulses towards the second end of the duct in use, and a baffle located at the second end of the duct that defines an aperture having sharp edges. The sharp edges generate ring vortex fluid flow from the aperture in use. Applications include impingement heating and cooling. | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110296847 | MOUNTING ASSEMBLY - A mounting assembly | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110296811 | Heat transfer arrangement for fluid-washed surfaces - A heat transfer arrangement for a fluid-washed body having first and second ends and a fluid-washed surface extending there-between. The arrangement includes a heat transfer member extending from the first end at least part way along the body towards the second end. A heat source is arranged in use to heat the heat transfer member in the vicinity of the first end of the body. A plurality of thermal control layers are provided on the heat transfer member, each of the layers having a different thermal conductivity and being juxtaposed so as to create a thermal conductivity profile which varies along the length of the member. The arrangement may be used for prevention of icing of an aerofoil body such as a blade, vane or the like. | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110296686 | ROTATIONALLY BALANCING A ROTATING PART - A method is provided of rotationally balancing a rotating part. A rotor hub or ring and a plurality of rotor blades for assembly onto the hub or ring are provided, each blade having an unfilled internal cavity. The respective masses and moment weights of the blades with filled internal cavities are then predicted. Next, the rotor blades are assembled onto the hub or ring to form the rotating part. The relative positions of the assembled blades are determined on the basis of their predicted masses and moment weights with filled internal cavities. The internal cavities of the assembled rotor blades are then filled. | 12-08-2011 |
| 20110294427 | DATA TRANSMISSION SYSTEM - A system is provided for transmitting data between a first component and a second component, which rotates relative to the first component. The system includes a first coupling element of limited angular extent mounted to the first component, and a second coupling element of limited angular extent mounted to the second component. The first and second coupling elements come into angular alignment once per revolution of the second component relative to the first component. The system further includes a first transceiver connected to the first coupling element, and a second transceiver connected to the second coupling element. The first and second transceivers are configured to detect the angular alignment of the first and second coupling elements. The first and second transceivers are further configured to transmit data between the first and second transceivers via the first and second coupling elements when the angular alignment is detected. | 12-01-2011 |
| 20110293825 | METHOD AND AN ARRANGEMENT FOR VAPOUR PHASE COATING OF AN INTERNAL SURFACE OF AT LEAST ONE HOLLOW ARTICLE - An arrangement for vapour phase coating an internal surface of hollow articles comprises a part plate, at least one spud site and at least one manifold. The part plate defines a portion of a chamber for supplying a vapour coating. Each spud site has a tube and a first mouldable sealant is arranged around the tube. Each manifold has at least one supply tube extending from the manifold to supply vapour into a respective hollow article. Each manifold has a feed tube extending from the manifold to supply vapour into the manifold. The tube of each spud site is inserted into the feed tube of the respective manifold and an end of the feed tube remote from the manifold locates in the first mouldable sealant. A second mouldable sealant is arranged around the at least one supply tube of the respective manifold and between the respective manifold and hollow article. | 12-01-2011 |
| 20110293435 | COMPOSITE AEROFOIL - A composite blade ( | 12-01-2011 |
| 20110285491 | ROTARY TRANSFORMER - A rotary transformer is disclosed which includes a primary core having a primary coil wound thereon, and a secondary core having a secondary coil wound thereon, wherein said cores are mounted for relative rotation about an axis of rotation. One of said cores includes a plurality of core segments arranged in spaced-apart relation relative to one another in a substantially circular array about said axis, the other core having a substantially annular configuration. In a particular embodiment, said primary core is fixed and hence remains static during operation, and includes a plurality of spaced apart core segments arranged in a circular array around said axis. | 11-24-2011 |
| 20110278408 | LOCKING DEVICE - A locking device adapted to lock a component to a locking surface, the locking device comprising a body and a lever, the lever being movable with respect to the body from an open position, in which the locking device is open to receive the component, to a closed position, in which the component is locked against the locking surface, wherein the lever comprises: a first abutment surface arranged to abut the component and lock the component against the locking surface when in the closed position; and a second abutment surface arranged such that upon insertion of the component into the locking device, the component abuts the second abutment surface to urge the lever from the open position to the closed position. The locking device may further comprise one or more knife edge pivot points arranged between the body and the lever such that the lever may be rotatable from the open position to the closed position. | 11-17-2011 |
| 20110274547 | BACK-UP FEATHERER - A back-up featherer is provided for an engine arrangement. The engine arrangement has a main hydraulic actuator which operates a pitch change mechanism to angularly displace propellers of a propeller assembly of the engine arrangement, the pitch change mechanism and main hydraulic actuator rotating with the propeller assembly. The back-up featherer has one or more brakes located on a static structure of the engine arrangement. The back-up featherer further has one or more input gears rotatable about respective axes, which axes rotate with the propeller assembly. The input gears are operatively connected to the brakes such that, when the brakes are activated, the input gears rotate about their axes. The back-up featherer further has one or more load application members which rotate with the propeller assembly and which are operatively connected to the input gears such that, when the input gears is rotate about their axes, the load application members bear against respective engagement portions of the pitch change mechanism. This applies a load to the pitch change mechanism which results in angular displacement of the propellers. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110274546 | BACK-UP FEATHERER - A back-up featherer is provided for an engine arrangement having a main hydraulic actuator which operates a pitch change mechanism to angularly displace propellers of a propeller assembly of the engine arrangement, the pitch change mechanism and main hydraulic actuator rotating with the propeller assembly. The back-up featherer has one or more back-up hydraulic actuators located on a static structure of the engine arrangement. The back-up featherer further has one or more load application members which are located on the static structure of the engine arrangement and which are movable by the back-up hydraulic actuators. When moved by the back-up hydraulic actuators, the load application members bear against an engagement portion of the pitch change mechanism across a rotating interface formed therebetween to apply a load to the pitch change mechanism which results in angular displacement of the propellers. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110274545 | PITCH CONTROL MECHANISM - A pitch control mechanism is provided for angular displacement of propellers of a propeller assembly of an engine arrangement. The pitch control mechanism has an epicyclic gear system rotating with the propeller assembly. The pitch control mechanism further has a drive gear controlling the rotational speed of the first epicyclic input in the rotating frame of reference of the propeller assembly, a control gear controlling the rotational speed of the second epicyclic input in the rotating frame of reference of the propeller assembly, and a drive mechanism rotating with the propeller assembly. The drive mechanism accepts rotary motion from the epicyclic output to deliver an output motion which angularly displaces the propellers of the propeller assembly. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110274544 | PITCH CONTROL MECHANISM - A pitch control mechanism for controlling the pitch of propeller assembly propellers has a hydraulic actuator, main hydraulic fluid supply lines, first back-up hydraulic fluid supply lines, and second back-up hydraulic fluid supply lines. The hydraulic actuator has first and second hydraulic cylinders that each angularly displace the propellers between fine and coarse positions. The main hydraulic fluid supply lines supply fluid to the first and second hydraulic cylinders for operating the hydraulic cylinders. The first back-up hydraulic fluid supply lines supply fluid to the hydraulic cylinder for displacing the propellers to a coarser position. The second back-up hydraulic fluid supply lines supply fluid to the second hydraulic cylinder for displacing the propellers to a coarser position. When the main hydraulic fluid supply lines supply inadequate fluid, the first and/or second back-up hydraulic fluid supply lines can supply fluid for displacing the propellers to a coarser position. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110274534 | SEALING ASSEMBLY - A sealing assembly is provided for sealing against a component. The sealing assembly comprises a seal carrier and a continuous seal element that is attached to the seal carrier at at least two discrete positions of attachment. The seal element is provided with a sealing surface that is arranged to seal against the component. The seal element is further provided with a thermal expansion slot that is located between the discrete positions of attachment and which extends from a first edge of the seal element over a portion of the width of the seal element. This allows the seal carrier and seal element to thermally expand in the length direction at different rates. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110272890 | FIRESEAL - A fireseal for sealing around a cylindrical shaft or pipe. The fireseal is helical and has an expanded cross-section in a central portion intermediate its ends. | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110272843 | MOULD ASSEMBLY - A mould assembly ( | 11-10-2011 |
| 20110268563 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A heat exchanger arrangement for a gas turbine engine. The arrangement including a flow path within an outer cowl, which flow path locates a heat exchanger part way therealong. A valve is provided at an inlet end of the flow path to selectively receive fluid into the flow path from outside of the cowl and/or from a pressurised fluid flow. An exit from the flow path includes a plenum chamber to receive exhausted coolant flows from the heat exchanger and possibly other exhaust flows. The heat exchanger exhaust flow is then utilised to provide cooling to engine structures. | 11-03-2011 |
| 20110268560 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A gas turbine engine has an annular bypass duct defined between a fan nacelle and a core fairing through which fan air is discharged. One or more bifurcator members are positioned inside the exit of the bypass duct to bifurcate the air flow in the bypass duct around the bifurcator members prior to exiting the bypass duct. The bifurcator members modify the flow field of the air in the bypass duct radially and/or tangentially with respect to the axis of the annular bypass duct. | 11-03-2011 |
| 20110262265 | INSTALLATION HAVING A THERMAL TRANSFER ARRANGEMENT - A gas turbine engine | 10-27-2011 |
| 20110259506 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A CERAMIC MATRIX COMPOSITE ARTICLE - A method of manufacturing a ceramic matrix composite article comprising the steps of: — | 10-27-2011 |
| 20110255990 | BLADES - A rotor blade for a gas turbine engine has an aerofoil portion and a tip region. The tip region is at the radially outermost end of the blade. The radially outermost surface carries abrasive material (not shown) to interact with an abradable surface. The tip has a recess in which cooling air outlets are formed. The recess is open in a circumferential direction. This allows cooling air outlets to be formed without interference from the abrasive material, and inhibits any tendency for abrasion debris to collect in the recess and interfere with the flow of cooling air. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110255986 | BLADES - A turbine blade ( | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110255985 | BLADES - A rotor blade | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110254390 | MOUNTING ARRANGEMENT FOR AN ELECTRICAL MACHINE - A mounting arrangement for locating a stator ( | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110254284 | ELECTRICAL GENERATION - Synchronous generators are driven by shafts to produce 3-phase AC power. The frequency and amplitude of power depends on the speed of the respective shaft. The outputs are rectified and connected in series to provide an output of varying voltage DC power to a load. Applications in aerospace and renewable energy supply are described. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110254274 | GAS TURBINE ENGINES - The generator uses a permanent magnet electrical machine providing three phase, unregulated DC voltage, from three windings feeding a rectifier circuit. A capacitor across the DC voltage acts as a buffer between the DC supply and the load. Regulation of the DC supply seen by the load is achieved by a switch in parallel with the DC voltage and with the load. The switch allows current to be drawn by the capacitor or load from the windings, or shorts the windings. The inductance of the windings makes it safe to short them. A blocking diode prevents current returning from the capacitor when the switch is closed. The result is a regulated DC output of adequate quality for e.g. aerospace applications and with low component count and complexity. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110253815 | METHOD OF PRODUCING A POWDER - A powder and/or polyhedral grains of a solid material are produced by directing one or more jets of liquid at a body of the solid material, thereby causing the ablation of powder particles from the solid material. The jet or jets of liquid may be controlled to cut polyhedral grains from the solid material. The liquid within which the powder particles and/or grains are entrained is then collected and the powder particles and/or grains are separated from the liquid. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110253680 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A COMPONENT - A method of manufacturing a component. The method includes the steps of heating a working region of a substrate with a heating means; directing a material into the working region to bring the material into a temporary molten state, and depositing said material on the substrate such that when the material solidifies it forms at least part of the component. The heating means power output, stand off, orientation, speed and direction of travel relative to the substrate are adjustable and controlled throughout the material deposition process to control the shape and/or size of the working region to thereby control the distribution and rate of heat delivery to the substrate. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110253498 | VARIABLE GEAR RATIO MAGNETIC GEARBOX - A magnetic gear arrangement is provided comprising a first gear member for generating a first magnetic field and a second gear member for generating a second magnetic field. A coupling element is disposed between the first and second gear members and provides arrangements of interpoles which couple the first and second magnetic fields. The coupling element comprises a plurality of magnetisable lamellae, each interpole in an arrangement of interpoles being formed from a group of neighbouring lamellae. Selected lamellae are deactivatable to provide boundaries between adjacent interpoles. This allows different numbers and arrangements of interpoles to be formed, so as to provide different gear ratios between the first and second gear members. | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110253170 | APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR APPLYING A FLUID TO A COMPONENT - Apparatus for applying a fluid to a target area of a component is provided, the apparatus comprising a fluid applicator | 10-20-2011 |
| 20110241364 | SUPPORT FRAME - A frame for the support of a bladed array, such as a compressor rotor stage or turbine rotor stage for turbo machinery, comprises a collar configured to fit around a radially outer periphery of the array. The collar is provided with a closure mechanism. The closure mechanism is configured to, in use, close the collar around the bladed array such that at least part of at least some of the blades are engaged with and/or captured by the radially inner surface of the collar. The collar and bladed array are held in a fixed relationship relative to one another. | 10-06-2011 |
| 20110240204 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A ROTOR DISC - A method of manufacturing a composite rotor disc ( | 10-06-2011 |
| 20110236217 | GAS TURBINE ENGINE NOSE CONE - A gas turbine engine nose cone assembly ( | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110236185 | INTERSTAGE SEAL - An interstage seal is provided for installation between forward and aft stage discs of a turbine section of a gas turbine engine. The seal has a forward annular portion, which extends forward to contribute to an air seal at the outer periphery of the forward stage disc, and an aft annular portion, which extends rearward to contribute to an air seal at the outer periphery of the aft stage disc. The seal has a peripheral slot into which static vane inner rails are loadable. The seal includes a first component, which provides the forward annular portion, and a second component, which provides the aft annular portion. The second component is separably connectable to the first component such that the first and second components, when connected, cooperate to form the peripheral slot. Loading the static vane inner rails into the slot prevents the second component separating from the first component. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110234180 | ELECTRICAL MACHINE SAFETY SYSTEM - An electrical machine system including a permanent magnet assembly having a magnetic field and a plurality of conductive coils, the magnet assembly and coils arranged for relative rotation between the coils and magnetic field in the manner of an electrical generator or motor, the system further comprising a current injector electrically connected to said coils and arranged selectively to supply a current signal thereto, the current signal being asynchronous with the frequency of rotation between the permanent magnet assembly and coils so as to heat and thereby demagnetise one or more magnet within said permanent magnet assembly. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110234034 | MAGNETIC GEAR ARRANGEMENT - A magnetic gear arrangement comprises: (i) a first gear member for generating a first magnetic field, (ii) a second gear member for generating a second magnetic field, and (iii) a coupling device which provides arrangements of interpoles between the first gear member and the second gear member. The interpoles couple the first and second magnetic fields such that different arrangements of interpoles produce different gear ratios between the first and second gear members. The coupling device comprises a plurality of ferromagnetic pole elements which at leastly partly form the interpoles. Each pole element has a Curie temperature whereby the pole element is active below its Curie temperature and inactive above its Curie temperature. The magnetic gear arrangement further comprises a temperature controller for controlling the temperature of at least some of the pole elements such that, under the control of the temperature controller, the temperatures of pole elements can cross their respective Curie temperatures and thereby change from active to inactive or the reverse. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110233434 | VALVE - A valve arrangement including a valve body and a valve seat each having an opposed surface, the valve arrangement also includes a high-frequency cyclic actuator to move the valve body with respect to the valve scat seat to bring the opposed surfaces into and out of abutment, characterised in that the opposed surface at least one of the valve body and the valve seat includes a resiliently displaceable surface. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110232833 | METHOD OF SECURING A LINER PANEL TO A CASING - A liner panel, such as a cassette | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110232395 | STRAIN MEASUREMENT OF ROTATING COMPONENTS - A strain sensor apparatus for a rotatable shaft including an emitter/receiver, a vibration element attached to the shaft and arranged for receiving and reflecting signals to and from the emitter/receiver wherein the vibration element includes asymmetric stiffness properties between a radial and axial and/or circumferential directions relative to a rotational axis of the shaft. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110232293 | FUEL HEAT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM - A fuel heat management system comprises a fuel line for conveying fuel, and a fuel/oil heat exchanger which receives fuel flowing through the fuel line. The fuel heat management system further comprises an oil line for circulating oil from an engine oil system to the fuel/oil heat exchanger and back to the engine oil system. The fuel/oil heat exchanger brings the oil and the fuel into heat exchange relationship. The fuel heat management system further comprises an air/oil heat exchanger which receives oil flowing through the oil line, the air/oil heat exchanger bringing the oil and air into heat exchange relationship. The fuel heat management system further comprises an air/fuel heat exchanger which receives fuel flowing through the fuel line, the air/fuel heat exchanger bringing the fuel and air into heat exchange relationship. | 09-29-2011 |
| 20110231171 | ROTATING BLADE ANALYSIS - Methods are provided for: (i) measuring the position of the blade stagger angle axis for one or more blades of a row of blades attached to a rotor, (ii) measuring the blade tip stagger angle for one or more such blades, and (iii) measuring the blade tip axial displacement for one or more such blades. The methods use forward and rearward blade tip timing datasets for successive rotations of the blades from two axially spaced blade tip timing probes. The forward probe is forward of the rearward probe along the axial direction of the rotor. The blade tip timing datasets allow the times of arrival of the blades at the respective probes to be measured. The methods also use a once per revolution dataset for the successive rotations of the blades. The once per revolution dataset allows the angular velocity of the blades to be measured. | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110229319 | CONTROLLING BLADE PITCH ANGLE - A method and arrangement of controlling blade pitch angle of a set of rotor blades. The method comprises providing a target blade pitch angle to a controller mounted on the rotor; measuring the speed of rotation of the rotor using a rate gyro mounted on the rotor; calculating the blade pitch angle required to match the target blade pitch angle by summing the target blade pitch angle and the measured rotational speed; and actuating the blades to the calculated blade pitch angle. | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110229306 | ROTOR BLADE TIP CLEARANCE CONTROL - A gas turbine engine has a row of circumferentially spaced rotor blades and a plurality of seal segments circumscribing the rotor blade tips and attached to a radially inward side of a casing of the engine. The seal segments are spaced from the casing by a spacing cavity. A flow of relatively hot cooling air is routed to the spacing cavity to cool the seal segments. The engine has an external cooling arrangement for impinging relatively cold cooling air on a radially outward side of the casing. The engine has a wall containing a plurality of through-holes which is attached to a radially inward side of the casing adjacent the seal segments. The wall is spaced from the casing to define a heating control chamber between the wall and the casing. The engine has one or more closable ducts which allow air to be exhausted from the heating control chamber. | 09-22-2011 |
| 20110223020 | PROPELLER ARRANGEMENT - A propeller arrangement has a first propeller assembly providing a row of first propellers, and a second propeller assembly, rearward of the first propeller assembly, providing a row of second propellers. The first and second propellers are radially extendable and retractable. The propeller arrangement further has a control system for controlling the extension and retraction of the first and second propellers. The control system is arranged such that when the propellers of one of the first and second propeller assemblies extend, the propellers of the other of the first and second assemblies retract. | 09-15-2011 |
| 20110219887 | STRAIN MEASUREMENT OF ROTATING COMPONENTS - A strain sensor apparatus for a rotatable shaft including a radiation emitter/receiver, a vibration element attached to the shaft and a radiation-reflective annulus surrounding the shaft and vibration element. | 09-15-2011 |
| 20110219883 | STRAIN GAUGE ASSEMBLY AND METHOD - A strain gauge assembly | 09-15-2011 |
| 20110219764 | ACTUATOR - An actuator comprises an actuator element in the form of a lamina | 09-15-2011 |
| 20110217517 | PROCESS FOR MANUFACTURING A LAYERED COMPOSITE COMPONENT - A process for manufacturing a layered composite component includes introducing a plurality of micro cracks into a predetermined region of the component in order to provide an increase in strength of the component at certain critical regions of high loading within the component. The micro cracks may be introduced using mechanical means, a pre conditioning load, or by manipulation of process parameters, material properties or stacking sequences. | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110217170 | VARIABLE SHAPE ROTOR BLADE - A rotor blade comprising a core blade section; and a trailing edge section, the trailing edge section being attached to the core blade section along a join interface. The trailing edge section comprises a shape memory material which is actuable so as to cause selective deformation of the trailing edge section between a first condition in which a trailing edge of the trailing edge section follows a substantially smooth profile and a second condition in which the trailing edge is perturbed. The direction of the perturbation may be oblique or perpendicular to the direction of flow over the blade in use. The rotor blade may be a fan or propeller for a gas turbine engine. | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110217166 | LAYERED COMPOSITE COMPONENTS - A layered composite component | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110217160 | COMPONENT COMPRISING A RESIN MATRIX - A composite material comprises plies | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110217156 | CONTAINMENT CASING - A containment casing is provided comprising a radially outer layer; an intermediate energy absorbing layer, and a retention framework for retaining an aerofoil blade in the event of detachment of whole or part of the blade. The retention framework is distributed axially and circumferentially along the casing and extends substantially radially inwardly at least partially through the intermediate energy absorbing layer. | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110214497 | APPARATUS AND A METHOD OF TESTING THE ADHESION STRENGTH AND/OR COHESIVE STRENGTH OF A COATING - An apparatus ( | 09-08-2011 |
| 20110211943 | PANELLED ASSEMBLY - A panelled assembly has a spacer | 09-01-2011 |
| 20110209563 | TORQUE MEASUREMENT - A strain sensor apparatus for a rotatable shaft including a radiation emitter/receiver, a vibration element attached to the shaft and a reflector that is positioned to reflect radiation onto the vibration element. | 09-01-2011 |
| 20110206527 | COMPRESSOR AEROFOIL - An aerofoil ( | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110206454 | FASTENER AND FASTENER ASSEMBLY - A fastener for securing together two sheet like members where a blind fixing is required, and yet possessing high positional accuracy. The fastener comprises a shank with a transverse foot the end of which carries a locating pin adapted to be received into locating holes in the members to be joined. The fastener is assembled by passing the foot through an opening in one of the members positioned so that the locating pin may be inserted into the locating holes. The fastener is secured by tightening a retaining nut and washer on a threaded portion of the shank of the fastener. | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110203397 | GEAR - A gear for use in a power transmission arrangement which has a plurality of split teeth projecting outwardly from a body. Each tooth has a first part and a second part which each project outwardly from the body, each tooth defining a gap between the first part and the second part. Each tooth part includes an interlock formation which corresponds with the interlock formation of the other tooth part to limit relative movement of the tooth parts in use. The invention provides a power transmission arrangement in which backlash is eliminated or reduced, so that the power transmission arrangement operates more quietly than conventional arrangements. | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110203251 | FIRESEAL - An elongate fireseal having two ends joined by a longitudinal axis. The fireseal comprises at least two portions having D-shaped cross section and adjacent portions share a common dividing wall. Each end of the fireseal is configured to interlock with a complementary opposite end of the same or a further fireseal. | 08-25-2011 |
| 20110202321 | METHOD FOR OPTIMISING THE SHAPE OF AN AEROFOIL - A method for defining the shape of an edge of an aerofoil comprises the following steps: obtaining a starting value for the thickness of the edge; defining a distance from the edge of the aerofoil in terms of the thickness; over the defined distance, defining a space S in terms of normalised camberline and normalised thickness; transforming the space S to a new space S′; parameterising the new space S′ to obtain new values for normalised camberline and normalised thickness; defining a new shape for the edge using the new parameter values. In a preferred embodiment, the transforming step comprises applying a parabolic function to the space S. | 08-18-2011 |
| 20110200448 | TURBINE DISK AND BLADE ARRANGEMENT - A turbine disk and blade arrangement for a gas turbine engine has a plurality of turbine blades mounted circumferentially around a disk. Each blade has a fir tree root which provides, on circumferentially spaced sides thereof, a series of fore-to-aft-extending projections and grooves. The disk has a plurality of circumferentially spaced, radially extending posts which define fir tree recesses therebetween. Each fir tree recess also provides, on circumferentially spaced sides thereof, a series of fore-to-aft-extending projections and grooves. Each fir tree root is slidable into a respective fir tree recess with the projections and grooves on facing sides of the fir tree root and the fir tree recess interengaging with each other. On each pair of facing sides of the fir tree root and the fir tree recess, one or more of the projections of the fir tree roots and/or the fir tree recesses are truncated to form fore-to-aft-extending cooling passages between facing sides of the fir tree roots and fir tree recesses. The arrangement has lock plates which cover forward surfaces of the posts and of the fir tree roots and/or cover rearward surfaces of the posts and of the fir tree roots. The lock plates and the posts define feed channels therebetween which feed cooling air to the cooling passages, each cooling passage extending to a respective feed channel. | 08-18-2011 |
| 20110198847 | DISTRIBUTED ELECTRICAL GENERATION SYSTEM - A distributed electrical generation system includes a plurality of turbines, generators, diode bridges, transformers and high voltage diodes. The system further includes a HVDC-cable and a high voltage inverter bridge. Each turbine drives a respective one of a plurality of electrical generators producing an alternating current. Each electrical generator is electrically connected to an associated diode bridge and each diode bridge rectifies the alternating current to a direct current. Each diode bridge is electrically connected to an associated transformer and each transformer steps up the direct current to a high voltage direct current. Each transformer is electrically connected in parallel to a high voltage direct current cable by associated high voltage diodes. The high voltage direct current cable is electrically connected to the high voltage inverter bridge. The high voltage inverter bridge converts the direct current to alternating current. | 08-18-2011 |
| 20110198001 | METHOD OF HEAT TREATING A SUPERALLOY COMPONENT AND AN ALLOY COMPONENT - A method of heat treating a superalloy component includes solution heat treating the component at a temperature below the gamma prime solvus temperature to produce a fine grain structure. Insulation is placed over a first area to form an insulated assembly that is placed in a furnace at a temperature below the solvus temperature and maintained at that temperature for a predetermined time to achieve a uniform temperature. The temperature is increased at a predetermined rate to a temperature above the solvus temperature to maintain a fine grain structure in a first region, produce a coarse grain structure in a second region and produce a transitional structure in a third region between the first and second regions. The insulated assembly is removed from the furnace when the second region has been above the solvus temperature for a predetermined time and/or the first region has reached a predetermined temperature. | 08-18-2011 |
| 20110194932 | DIFFUSIVE NACELLE - A nacelle for a propeller gas turbine engine, the nacelle comprising a forebody upstream of the propellers and an afterbody downstream of the forebody. The forebody comprises a first, upstream region and a second, downstream region. The first region has a convex profile and the second region has a concave profile to cause diffusion of the airflow into the propellers. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110194906 | MACHINE TOOL - A machine tool has a tool holder mounted to a platform, and a plurality of legs for connecting the platform to a workpiece. Each leg has joint systems which allow each leg to rotate relative to the platform and the workpiece and are also actuatable to alter the inter-joint distance. By alterations in the inter-joint distances of the legs the position and orientation of the tool holder relative to the workpiece is controllable. Each leg also has an attachment foot for removably attaching the leg to the workpiece. The provision of separate attachment feet avoids the need for a dedicated base for the machine tool so that it can be used in-situ and in confined and obstructed working environments. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110194799 | BEARING - A bearing comprising a plurality of rolling elements disposed between a first race and a second race. At least one of the rolling elements is a control element having characteristics which differ from the remaining rolling elements. Rotation of the first race with respect to the second race causes the control element to travel at a precessional speed which is greater than or less than the precessional speed of the remaining rolling elements. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110194122 | CLEARANCE AND WEAR DETERMINATION APPARATUS - Apparatus is provided for determining the clearance between a member and a casing surface over and relative to which the member moves, e.g. in a gas turbine engine. The apparatus includes a main waveguide and a reference element that is provided at a position intermediate the proximal and distal ends, or at the distal end, of the waveguide. The transmitter/receiver is arranged to transmit an electromagnetic signal through the main waveguide and receive (i) a first portion of the electromagnetic signal reflected from the reference element, (ii) a second portion of the electromagnetic signal reflected from the casing surface, and (iii) a third portion of the electromagnetic signal reflected from the member, allowing the relative positioning of the reference element, the casing surface and the member to be simultaneously determined. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110193293 | SEAL ARRANGEMENT - A seal arrangement provided between a static component and a rotating component arranged for rotation about a rotational axis. The arrangement preferably takes the form of an interstage seal for a gas turbine engine, including: first and second seal members carried by respective said components and arranged concentrically about said rotational axis. The first seal member has a plurality of radially directed seal fins extending towards the second member and a substantially radially directed flow outlet configured to direct a flow of cooling air through the first member. In one aspect of the invention, the second member has a radial projection at one end of its axial length, the projection extending towards the first member at a position spaced axially between the flow outlet and said seal fins. In another aspect of the invention, the flow outlet is axially adjacent a seal fin which is configured so as to be generally concave towards the flow outlet. | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110192166 | OUTLET GUIDE VANE STRUCTURE - An outlet guide vane structure | 08-11-2011 |
| 20110191002 | ENGINE MONITORING - A method of monitoring a device, the method comprising: measuring one or more device operating parameters and a device performance parameter during one or more device operational periods; recording a plurality of data points, each data point comprising the device operating parameters and the associated device performance parameter; identifying one or more steady state regions in the device performance parameter and selecting a plurality of the data points from the one or more steady state regions in the device performance parameter; selecting one or more groups ( | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110185731 | OIL COOLER - An oil cooler is provided for a wall of an air flow passage of a gas turbine engine. The oil cooler has a heat exchanger with an oil conduit for carrying a flow of heated oil proximal to the wall of the air flow passage. The heat exchanger is arranged to transfer heat from the heated oil to the air flowing through the passage. The oil cooler further has a system for altering the flow of air across the heat exchanger such that the heat transfer effectiveness of the heat exchanger can be adjusted. | 08-04-2011 |
| 20110183077 | METHOD OF PRODUCING AN INTEGRAL SELF SUPPORTING COATING TEST PIECE FROM A COATING MATERIAL - A method of producing an integral self supporting coating test piece ( | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110182751 | ROTOR DISC - A rotor disc | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110182744 | METHOD OF FORMING A HOLLOW COMPONENT WITH AN INTERNAL STRUCTURE - A method of forming a hollow component with an internal structure from first and second panels includes the step of forming at least one protrusion on a surface of at least one of the first and second panels by a material deposition process. The first and second panels are assembled into a preform the panels being oriented such that each panel defines an interior and an exterior facing surface, with the at least one protrusion extending from an exterior facing surface of a panel. The preform is expanded against a die, such that the at least one protrusion is transferred from the exterior surface of a panel to the interior surface of a panel so as to define an internal structure. Forming the at least one protrusion may include encapsulating an elongate member on the surface of a panel by a material deposition process. | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110182721 | SEALING ARRANGEMENT FOR A GAS TURBINE ENGINE - The present invention relates to a sealing arrangement between a stator assembly and a rotor | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110180727 | APPARATUS AND A METHOD OF DETERMINING THE PRESENCE OF AN ALUMINA LAYER ON A SURFACE OF A COMPONENT - Provided is a method for determining the presence of an alumina layer on a surface of a component. The method includes illuminating a surface of a component with radiation; detecting radiation emitted at a particular wavelength; analyzing the detected radiation; to determine the thickness of the alumina at at least one point on the surface of the component; and comparing the determined thickness of the alumina at the at least one point on the surface of the component with a predetermined thickness of alumina at that point to decide if the thickness of alumina at the at least one point on the surface of the component is satisfactory. | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110180589 | METHOD OF RESTORING A METALLIC COMPONENT - A component is repaired by removing a damaged region to form a cavity, in which layered repair inserts are installed. The profile of the cavity, and of the exposed surface of each repair insert is measured to serve as the basis for the contact surface of each subsequent repair insert. The repair inserts are fused to the wall of the cavity and to each other in a process in which heated locations of each repair insert are successively heated to minimise heat transfer within the repair inserts and in the underlying substrate material. The repair inserts may be made in a powder bed process from an alloy powder having the same composition as the material of the substrate. | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110179877 | APPARATUS FOR GENERATING VIBRATIONS IN A COMPONENT - An apparatus for generating vibrations in a component comprising a clamp assembly for clamping the component and a vibration generator for generating vibrations in the clamped component, the clamp assembly including: a base member, a pair of fixedly-spaced clamp members and a wedge for laterally wedging part of the component between the clamp members thereby to clamp the component. The base member, or a fixed clamp member, is inclined and the wedge having an inclined wedging surface arranged to engage the inclined base member or inclined fixed clamp member. The apparatus may form part of a test rig for vibration testing components such as turbo machine blades. | 07-28-2011 |
| 20110178780 | Characterisation of soft body impacts - The fragmentation of a bird or similar soft body, following its impact on an angled target plate, is modelled by representing the body as a combination of fragments and slurry, their relative proportions depending on the severity and angle of impact. The method is particularly suitable for modelling the behaviour of a bird striking an obscuring intake of a gas turbine engine. | 07-21-2011 |
| 20110178648 | Aircraft Power Management System - A method and associated system for managing power within an aircraft electrical system, the aircraft comprising a generator driven by a gas turbine engine for the supply of electrical power to the system, wherein the generator and electrical system are connected to a common energy store. The method comprises determining predicted electrical energy demands of the system and predicted thrust demands for the gas turbine engine over at least a portion of a flight. A plurality of time periods within at least said portion of the flight are defined and a desired rate of charge of the energy store for each time period is determined based upon the predicted thrust and electrical energy demands over said time period. The rate of charge of the energy store is controlled during the flight in accordance with the determined desired rate of charge for each time period. The desired rate of charge of the energy store may represent an optimal energy efficiency charge profile based on a global assessment of the operational characteristics of the flight. | 07-21-2011 |
| 20110174401 | COMPRESSOR FOR PRESSURISING CARBON DIOXIDE - A compressor is provided for pressurising carbon dioxide produced by a carbon dioxide production plant and introducing the pressurised carbon dioxide to a carbon dioxide sequestration system. The compressor has a measuring system which determines the amount of carbon dioxide produced by the production plant. It also has a control system which varies the power of the compressor depending on the determined amount of produced carbon dioxide. | 07-21-2011 |
| 20110171030 | BACK-UP FEATHERER - A back-up featherer for an engine arrangement having a main hydraulic actuator which angularly displaces propellers of a propeller assembly of the engine arrangement, and fluid supply lines for transferring hydraulic fluid between a hydraulic pressure power source located on a static structure of the engine arrangement and the main hydraulic actuator. The back-up featherer has a back-up actuator assembly for angular displacement of the propellers, the back-up actuator assembly rotating with the propeller assembly, a signal detector operatively connected to the back-up actuator assembly and rotates with the propeller assembly, and a back-up rotating coupling. A static side of the back-up rotating coupling is mounted to the static structure of the engine arrangement and communicates with a regulator located on a static structure of the engine arrangement. A rotating side of the back-up hydraulic rotating coupling rotates with the propeller assembly and communicates with the signal detector. | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110168092 | SPRAY NOZZLE - A spray nozzle | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110168090 | SPRAY NOZZLE - A spray nozzle | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110167834 | FLOW DISCHARGE DEVICE - The present invention relates to a flow discharge device ( | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110167829 | FUEL CONTROL ARRANGEMENTS - Fuel injection apparatus | 07-14-2011 |
| 20110164998 | PITCH CHANGE APPARATUS - A pitch change apparatus comprises a hydraulic actuator for angular displacement of propellers of the propeller assembly. The hydraulic actuator has a piston and cylinder arrangement which defines fine and coarse fluid chambers. Increasing the volume of the fine chamber at the expense of the coarse chamber results in angular displacement of the propellers to a finer pitch. Increasing the volume of the coarse chamber at the expense of the fine chamber results in angular displacement of the propellers to a coarser pitch. The pitch change apparatus further comprises one or more fine hydraulic lines carrying hydraulic fluid to and from the fine chamber, and a coarse hydraulic line carrying hydraulic fluid to and from the coarse chamber. The apparatus further comprises a pressure-sensing check valve which fluidly isolates the coarse chamber from the coarse hydraulic line if the pressure in the coarse hydraulic line falls below a threshold pressure. | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110164980 | PROPELLER ASSEMBLY PITCH CHANGE APPARATUS - A pitch change apparatus is provided for a propeller assembly having a row of propeller blades which rotate around an axis of the assembly. The apparatus has a unison ring which is coaxial with the propeller assembly. The unison ring is movable to drive respective mechanisms for varying the pitch of the blades. The apparatus further has a plurality of pitch lock assemblies circumferentially distributed around the unison ring. Each pitch lock assembly has a free state which allows movement of the unison ring and a locked state which prevents or limits movement of the unison ring and thus prevents or limits variation of the pitch of the blades. The pitch lock assembly moves from the free to the locked state when the assembly receives a signal to lock the blades. | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110164978 | BACK-UP FEATHERER - A back-up featherer is provided for an engine arrangement having a main hydraulic actuator which angularly displaces propellers of a propeller assembly of the engine arrangement. The back-up featherer has a back-up hydraulic actuator for angular displacement of the propellers, the back-up hydraulic actuator rotating with the propeller assembly. The back-up featherer further has one or more back-up fluid supply lines for transferring hydraulic fluid between a hydraulic pressure power source located on a static structure of the engine arrangement and the back-up hydraulic actuator. The back-up featherer further has a back-up hydraulic rotating coupling, the back-up fluid supply lines fluidly communicating with the back-up hydraulic actuator via the back-up rotating coupling. A static side of the back-up hydraulic rotating coupling is mounted to the static structure of the engine arrangement, and a rotating side of the back-up hydraulic rotating coupling rotates with the propeller assembly. | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110162387 | TURBINE COOLING SYSTEM - A cooling system is provided for cooling a turbine of a gas turbine engine. The system has first and second flow paths for guiding cooling air received from the compressor of the engine. The routes of both flow paths bypass the combustor of the engine. The system also has a preswirler for receiving the cooling air at the ends of the two flow paths, swirling the cooling air tangentially to the engine axis, and delivering the swirled cooling air to a rotor of the turbine. The first flow path is routed through a heat exchanger which cools the cooling air guided by the first flow path relative to the cooling air guided by the second flow path. | 07-07-2011 |
| 20110156518 | MAGNETIC GEAR ARRANGEMENT - A magnetic gear arrangement is provided having a magnetically active gear member that generates a first magnetic field, which is modulated by interpoles. The modulated magnetic field generates magnetic poles on a magnetically passive gear member, and these poles form a second magnetic field. The material of the passive gear member is sufficiently magnetically hard that the first and second magnetic fields interact to couple the motion of the active and passive gear members according to a given gear ratio. | 06-30-2011 |
| 20110151186 | HYDROPHOBIC SURFACE - An article has a textured surface comprising locally melted, displaced and resolidified material produced by relative movement of a power beam over the surface. The article further has a wetting-resistant coating formed on the textured surface to make the surface hydrophobic and thereby restrict accumulation of ice. | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110150378 | BEARING ASSEMBLY - The present invention relates to a bearing assembly ( | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110150372 | BEARING ASSEMBLY - The present invention relates to a bearing assembly ( | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110148046 | LEAF SEAL ASSEMBLY - A leaf seal assembly ( | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110147219 | HYDROPHOBIC SURFACE - An article has an anodised titanium or titanium alloy surface layer containing pores which form recesses opening to the outside of the layer. A wetting-resistant coating is formed on the anodised surface layer. The coating penetrates the pores but retains the recesses to make the surface of the article hydrophobic and thereby restrict accumulation of ice. | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110146299 | ANNULUS FILLER ASSEMBLY FOR A ROTOR OF A TURBOMACHINE - An annulus filler assembly for a rotor of a turbomachine, the assembly comprising: an annulus lid ( | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110146297 | BLEED ASSEMBLY FOR A GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A bleed assembly for a gas turbine engine is provided. The assembly includes: a duct having an inlet and an outlet; a bleed valve that controls the flow of bleed fluid into the inlet; and a dome-shaped diffuser screen which covers the outlet. The diffuser screen has a plurality of through-holes for passage of the bleed fluid. Each through-hole has one or more nearest-neighbour through-holes at a nearest-neighbour spacing. At the periphery of the diffuser screen, the average nearest-neighbour spacing of the through-holes at a given radial distance from the centre of the diffuser screen increases with increasing radial distance. | 06-23-2011 |
| 20110143090 | CASTING OF INTERNAL FEATURES WITHIN A PRODUCT - A method of forming a cast product by providing a core having a plurality of sections and one or more gaps there-between. The core further comprises an insert member spanning the gap between adjacent sections. The core is located within a mould and a liquid phase material is introduced into gap between the core sections. The liquid phase material is solidified in the gap so as to form a cast feature of a resulting solid product and the core sections are removed from the solid product such that the insert member remains securely held within the feature. | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110142709 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A COMPONENT - A component is manufactured from a powdered material such as a titanium alloy, by performing a first hot isostatic pressing HIP operation on the powdered material | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110142648 | ENGINE ARRANGEMENT - An engine arrangement has a gear assembly that drives a first propeller assembly. The gear assembly is driven by a power drive shaft that joins to the gear assembly at a first side. The engine arrangement has a static conduit that extends along a longitudinal internal cavity of the power drive shaft. The conduit penetrates the gear assembly such that a portion of the conduit projects from an opposing second side of the gear assembly. The engine arrangement has one or more first fluid supply lines routed along the static conduit between a hydraulic pressure power source and the first hydraulic actuator. A first hydraulic rotating coupling is mounted to the projecting portion of the static conduit. The first fluid supply lines fluidly communicate with the first hydraulic actuator via the first rotating coupling. | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110138896 | TRANSDUCER ASSEMBLY - A transducer assembly ( | 06-16-2011 |
| 20110135455 | OIL COOLER - An air-cooled oil cooler for the wall of an air flow passage of a gas turbine engine is provided, the oil cooler allowing improved heat exchange performance to be obtained. This is achieved by: (I) diverting air flow from the inner side of the oil cooler towards the outer side of the oil cooler, (ii) enhancing heat exchange performance at the leading edge of the cooler, and/or (iii) suppressing airflow wake at the trailing edge of the cooler. | 06-09-2011 |
| 20110129339 | CLAMPING ASSEMBLY - A clamping assembly comprising a bearing support member ( | 06-02-2011 |
| 20110126544 | AIR FLOW PASSAGE LINER - A liner is provided for an air flow passage of a gas turbine engine. The liner comprises an acoustic attenuation layer which forms an air-washed surface of the flow passage, and a heat exchanger layer which extends as a backing to the acoustic attenuation layer. The heat exchanger layer is configured to carry a heated fluid flow and to transport heat from the fluid flow to the acoustic attenuation layer from where the heat is transferred to air flowing through the air flow passage. | 06-02-2011 |
| 20110125339 | PROTECTION ARRANGEMENT FOR AN ELECTRICAL POWER DISTRIBUTION NETWORK - Protection arrangements and methods of operating protection arrangements are important in order to maintain operability with regard to electrical power distribution networks. Such networks generally comprise grids or meshes of electrical distribution pathways from generators and electrical loads. Faults may occur within the network and circuit breakers or other protection elements are utilised to isolate such faults. A number of regimes for protection are known but problems can arise with regard to ensuring an appropriate pan of the distribution network is isolated. By providing circuit breakers which have a time grade margin compared to other circuit breakers which is proportional to an inverse current-time logarithmic relationship between a fault electrical current divided by a major contribution electrical current to the circuit breaker operation can be achieved which is sufficiently quick for high electrical fault currents but incorporates a time delay for low electrical currents which may have a more transient nature. | 05-26-2011 |
| 20110123386 | METHOD OF MANUFACTURING A MULTIPLE COMPOSITION COMPONENT - The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a multiple composition component | 05-26-2011 |
| 20110121674 | MAGNETIC GEAR ARRANGEMENT - A magnetic gear arrangement, having a first gear member for generating a first magnetic field and a second gear member for generating a second magnetic field. An interpole member is provided between the first and second gear members for coupling the two magnetic fields and controlling the gear ratio between the two gear members. The interpole member includes a unitary body of magnetisable material and associated control wiring, and is arranged such that when current is passed through the wiring, space regions of the unitary body are magnetised by an electrically-induced magnetic field. Discrete interpoles, the number and spacing of which define the gear ratio, are then formed in the unitary body between adjacent magnetised regions. | 05-26-2011 |
