1150results about "Power installations" patented technology

An aircraft thermal management system comprising a high temperature loop and a low temperature loop. The high temperature loop is configured to manage a temperature of a fuel cell stack in a nacelle using a nacelle heat exchanger. The low temperature loop is configured to cool a number of heat loads in a nacelle using a heat capacity of liquid hydrogen.

A propulsion system for an aircraft as disclosed herein may include a nacelle, a shaft positioned centrally within a cylindrical passageway of the nacelle, a fan coupled to one end of the shaft, a turbine coupled to an opposite end of the shaft, an electric motor coupled to the shaft, a compressor positioned within the cylindrical passageway, and a solid oxide fuel cell positioned with a hollow ring-shaped interior of the nacelle. The hollow ring-shaped interior may surround and be isolated from the cylindrical passageway. The turbine may be configured to provide primary torque to the shaft while the electric motor may be configured to provide additional torque to the shaft. The electric motor may be powered an electric output of the solid oxide fuel cell while the turbine may be powered at least in part by output gases from the solid oxide fuel cell.

An aircraft air management system comprises an air heat exchanger; an intercooler; and a conduit system connected to the air heat exchanger, the intercooler, and a fuel cell stack. Heated air flows through the conduit system to the air heat exchanger. The air heat exchanger is configured to cool the heated air to form cooler air, wherein the cooler air flows from the air heat exchanger through the conduit system to the intercooler; and the intercooler is configured to cool the cooler air to form cooled air, wherein the cooled air flows from the intercooler through the conduit system to the fuel cell stack.

A propulsion system for an aircraft as disclosed herein may include a nacelle, a shaft positioned centrally within a cylindrical passageway of the nacelle, a fan coupled to one end of the shaft, a turbine coupled to an opposite end of the shaft, an electric motor coupled to the shaft, a compressor positioned within the cylindrical passageway, and a solid oxide fuel cell positioned with a hollow ring-shaped interior of the nacelle. The hollow ring-shaped interior may surround and be isolated from the cylindrical passageway. The turbine may be configured to provide primary torque to the shaft while the electric motor may be configured to provide additional torque to the shaft. The electric motor may be powered an electric output of the solid oxide fuel cell while the turbine may be powered at least in part by output gases from the solid oxide fuel cell.

A heat exchanger system for an aircraft comprises nacelle having an inlet and an outlet, a nacelle heat exchanger within the nacelle, and a fan system within the nacelle. Air flows into the nacelle through the inlet and out of the nacelle through the outlet. The nacelle heat exchanger is configured to transfer heat away from a coolant using the air in an airflow to the nacelle heat exchanger. The fan system is configured to increase the airflow to the nacelle heat exchanger.

An aircraft conditioning system including: a fuel inlet (2) to a fuel conduit (3), an engine (4), a first heat exchanger (6) connected to a power unit outlet (5) of the engine, a first portion (3.1) of the fuel conduit (3) connecting the fuel inlet (2) to a fuel inlet (6.3) of the first heat exchanger (6) and a second portion (3.2) connecting a fuel outlet (6.4) of the first heat exchanger (6) to an inlet (4.1) of the engine (4), a heater (7) converting liquid fuel in the fuel conduit (3) to a low temperature gas form, a bypass conduit (8) connecting the first and second portions (3.1, 3.2) wherein the first heat exchanger (6) transfers heat from exhaust gases of the power unit outlet (5) to fuel of the fuel conduit (3).

An aircraft cooling system comprises an evaporator, condenser, an accumulator, and a pump system. The evaporator is configured to cool a set of heat loads in an aircraft using a liquid. The liquid forms a vapor in response to cooling the set of heat loads. The condenser is configured to receive the vapor from the evaporator and cool the vapor in which cooling the vapor forms the liquid. The accumulator is configured to receive the liquid from the condenser and store the liquid. The pump system is configured to pump the liquid stored in the accumulator to the evaporator.

A fuel cell system configured to provide electrical power to an electrical motor producing propulsive thrust for an aircraft includes a plurality of fuel cell stacks radially arranged about a central cavity. Fuel cell plates within each of the fuel cell stacks are oriented such that major surfaces of the fuel cell plates are parallel to an airflow created by the aircraft as it moves through the air. The fuel cell system further includes a plurality of cooling devices disposed in radial cavities located between at least two fuel cell stacks in the plurality of fuel cell stacks.

An integrated hydrogen-electric engine includes, an air compressor system; a hydrogen fuel source; a fuel cell; an elongated shaft connected to the air compressor system or a propulsor; and a motor assembly disposed in electrical communication with the fuel cell, wherein the air compressor system includes a plurality of electrically driven compressors configured to run in series or parallel.

An aircraft power plant, has: an air mover for propelling an aircraft; an electric motor drivingly engaged with the air mover; a gas turbine engine having a compressor for pressurizing air, a combustor in which the pressurised air is mixed with fuel and ignited for generating combustion gases, and a turbine for extracting energy from the combustion gases; and a hydrogen fuel cell operatively connected to the electric motor for powering the electric motor with electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell, the hydrogen fuel cell operable to generate electricity using the air from the compressor and hydrogen from a source of hydrogen.

An aircraft electrical power supply system includes a fuel cell auxiliary power unit (APU) that supplies auxiliary electrical power to an aircraft, a fuel cell power plant that supplies primary electrical power to the aircraft, and a hydrogen storage unit that supplies hydrogen to the fuel cell APU and the fuel cell power plant.

An electrical power (EP) generation system (100) for an aircraft comprising a fuel cell (3), a cryogenic tank (1), a conditioning circuit (C1) configured to heat a liquid fuel stream (LH2) to a tank pressure (P2) to supply a gaseous fuel stream (GH2) to the fuel cell (3), a pressurization circuit (C2) to increase the gas pressure (P1) of the gaseous phase (PHL) in said cryogenic tank (1), the pressurization circuit (C2) comprising at least one flow control device (4), a gas pressure (P1) sensor (10) for measuring the gas pressure (P1) of the gaseous phase (PHG), and a computer (5) configured to control the flow control device (4) based on at least said gas pressure (P1) to control the tank pressure (P2). Abstract figure: Figure 1

An air supply apparatus for an aerial mobility vehicle, which is provided with a fuel cell stack, includes an air compressor mounted in the aerial mobility vehicle and configured to compress air introduced into the aerial mobility vehicle, and an air chamber provided in the aerial mobility vehicle and connecting the air compressor and the fuel cell stack, wherein the air chamber defines a conditioning space for conditioning the air having passed through the air compressor, obtaining an advantageous effect of ensuring a stable supply of air to the fuel cell stack and improving operational stability and reliability.

A method of determining the capability of a nonlinear aircraft power source includes accessing status values representing a current state of an energy storage system in an aircraft, accessing demand values related to expected power demands on the energy storage system, modeling an ongoing status of the energy storage system using the status values and the demand values to predict when one of the status values will reach a threshold value, and providing an output of a capability of the aircraft based on the status value reaching the threshold value.

The present invention relates to an aircraft propulsion system (100) comprising: a fuel cell arrangement comprising at least one fuel cell (110); an air source (130) for providing air to the fuel cell arrangement; a compressor arrangement comprising a first compressor (120) in fluid communication with the air source and a fuel cell of the fuel cell arrangement; and, a turbine arrangement comprising a first turbine (124) mechanically coupled to the first compressor, wherein the first turbine is in fluid communication with the at least one fuel cell (110), the system being arranged so that, in use, air from the air source (130) flows in turn to the first compressor (120), the fuel cell arrangement and the first turbine (124).

An aircraft, such as a rotorcraft, may have at least one area designated to house at least one fuel cell and at least one aircraft structure that may translate, during a drop impact of the aircraft, into the area designated to house the fuel cell. At least one shaped fuel cell may be provided and deployed therein, in accordance with the present systems and methods. Each respective shaped fuel cell may define at least one respective through-voids defined through the respective shaped fuel cell, and / or at least one respective edge cavity defined along an edge of the shaped fuel cell, wherein the respective through-void and / or the respective edge cavity correspond to the respective aircraft structure that may translate, during the drop impact of the aircraft, into the area of the aircraft designated to house the respective fuel cell to receive and accommodate the respective structure during the drop impact.

An assembly for an aircraft includes an aircraft housing, an auxiliary power unit (APU), an oil system, a door actuator, and a controller. The aircraft housing forms a compartment. The aircraft housing includes an intake door. The intake door is movable between a closed position, an open position, and intermediate positions between the closed position and the open position. The APU is disposed within the compartment. The APU includes an engine. The engine includes an air inlet and a rotational assembly. The oil pump is operatively connected to the rotational assembly. The door actuator is operatively connected to the intake door. The door actuator is operable to position the intake door in the closed position, the open position, and the intermediate positions to control an ambient air flow to the air inlet. The controller is operatively connected to the door actuator. The controller is configured to identify a fire condition within the compartment, identify a fire position of the intake door, and control the door actuator to position the intake door in the fire position. The fire position is one of the open position or the intermediate positions.

An aircraft includes a fuselage, a wing connected to the fuselage, an engine connected to the wing, and a liquid hydrogen tank. Each of the engines includes a nacelle, an electric motor within the nacelle, a fuel cell stack within the nacelle, and a nacelle heat exchanger within the nacelle that receives air flowing through a nacelle inlet. The liquid hydrogen tank is configured to store liquid hydrogen, wherein the liquid hydrogen tank extends along an exterior of the fuselage and above the wings and below a window in the fuselage.

A cooling system for a fuel-cell system onboard a vehicle such as an aircraft in one embodiment employs the latent heat of evaporation of a two-phase coolant to reduce mass and parasitic power requirements of the cooling system. In another embodiment the cooling system has a primary ambient air heat exchanger coolant loop for cooling the fuel-cell system, and a secondary coolant loop comprising a fluid circuit configured to circulate a coolant in thermal contact with a phase-change material (PCM) in thermal contact with the fuel-cell to absorb heat from the fuel-cell. The secondary coolant loop includes a heat pump for cooling the PCM.

A lubrication system for a turbine engine. The turbine engine includes a propulsor and one or more rotating components. The lubrication system includes a sump, a primary lubrication system, an auxiliary lubrication system, and a fuel system. The sump stores lubricant therein. The primary lubrication system supplies the lubricant from the sump to the one or more rotating components during normal operation of the turbine engine. The auxiliary lubrication system includes an auxiliary pump. The fuel system stores hydrogen fuel. The fuel system includes a fuel cell controller that generates electricity from the hydrogen fuel. The electricity powers the auxiliary pump when the propulsor is windmilling such that the auxiliary pump pumps the lubricant from the sump to the one or more rotating components.

An electric power system (400) for a vehicle includes at least one electric machine (321), one or more power rectifiers, and a plurality of DC channels. The at least one electric machine (321) includes a plurality of tooth-wound multi-phase windings (311) that are substantially magnetically decoupled, and the at least one electric machine (321) is mechanically balanced even if one of the plurality of windings (311) is de-energized. The one or more power rectifiers are configured to produce rectified power from the power generated by the at least one electric machine (321). The plurality of DC channels are formed after the at least one power rectifier and are configured to provide DC power to one or more loads within a vehicle.

A multilevel power converter includes a plurality of switches, a first DC link capacitor, a second DC link capacitor, and one or more processors configured to: generate, for a duty cycle of the multilevel power converter, a pulse width modulated pulse pattern in accordance with a reduced common mode voltage scheme; modify the pulse width modulated pulse pattern to render a modified pulse pattern; and cause the plurality of switches to implement the duty cycle based at least in part on the modified pulse pattern to render a common mode voltage pulse to balance voltages at the first DC link capacitor and the second DC link capacitor.

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for storing, transporting, and using hydrogen. In some embodiments, the method may comprise (a) storing hydrogen fuel in one or more fuel storage modules; (b) transporting the one or more fuel storage modules to a vehicle fueling site, wherein one or more hydrogen fuel compatible vehicles are located at or near the vehicle fueling site; (c) loading the one or more fuel storage modules into the one or more hydrogen fuel compatible vehicles, wherein the one or more fuel storage modules are configured to be releasably coupled to the one or more hydrogen fuel compatible vehicles; and (d) decoupling the one or more fuel storage modules from the one or more hydrogen fuel compatible vehicles after the one or more fuel storage modules are depleted or partially depleted.

A multilevel power converter includes a plurality of switches, a first DC link capacitor, a second DC link capacitor, and one or more processors configured to: generate, for a duty cycle of the multilevel power converter, a pulse width modulated pulse pattern in accordance with a reduced common mode voltage scheme; modify the pulse width modulated pulse pattern to render a modified pulse pattern; and cause the plurality of switches to implement the duty cycle based at least in part on the modified pulse pattern to render a common mode voltage pulse to balance voltages at the first DC link capacitor and the second DC link capacitor.

A series of convertible aircrafts with a core with an airframe defining a first axis is described; a first, a second, a third, a fourth, a fifth and a sixth rotor which are rotatable about respective first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth axis, and operable independently of each other so as to generate respectively a first, a second, a third, a fourth, a fifth and a sixth thrust value independent of each other; the core comprises an electric power source and electric motors which are connected to said first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth rotor; each aircraft of the series comprises a module associated with a respective architecture and interfaced with said core.

Systems and methods for locating UAV. The methods comprise: causing a physical joining of a payload with a fuselage of the UAV (where the payload comprises a communication relay); using a power source to supply power to the payload that is independent from a main power source of the UAV; and continuing to perform relay operations by the communication relay and location operations by a first locator, when power is no longer being supplied by the main power source.

A turbine wheel may include an inner hub having a central axis, an outer ring concentric with the inner hub, and an intermediate ring concentrically disposed between the inner hub and the outer ring, and a plurality of turbine blades extending between the intermediate ring and the outer ring. The turbine blades may be oriented to be driven by a fluid stream flowing through the turbine wheel to rotate the turbine wheel in a first direction about the central axis. In addition, the turbine wheel may further include a plurality of compressor blades extending between the inner hub and the intermediate ring. Also, the compressor blades may be oriented to propel a fluid in a downstream direction when the turbine wheel is rotated in the first direction.

An unmanned aerial vehicle according to certain embodiments generally includes a chassis, a power supply mounted to the chassis, a control system operable to receive power from the power supply, at least one rotor operable to generate lift under control of the control system, and a winch mounted to the chassis. The winch includes a reel and a motor. The reel has a line wound thereon, the line having a free end. The reel includes a circumferential channel in which a wound portion of the line is wound onto the reel. The circumferential channel includes an inner portion, an outer portion, and a passage connecting the inner portion and the outer portion. The motor is operable to rotate the reel under control of the control system to thereby cause the line to wind onto and off of the reel, thereby causing the free end of the line to raise and lower.

An aircraft thermal management system includes a high temperature circuit and a low temperature circuit. The high temperature loop is configured to manage a temperature of a fuel cell stack in the engine compartment using the engine compartment heat exchanger. The cryogenic circuit is configured to cool a plurality of thermal loads in the engine compartment using the thermal capacity of the liquid hydrogen.

An aircraft comprises a fuselage, wings connected to the fuselage, engines connected to the wings, and liquid hydrogen tanks. Each engine in the engines comprises a nacelle, an electric motor within the nacelle, a fuel cell stack within the nacelle, and a nacelle heat exchanger within the nacelle that receives air flowing through an inlet in the nacelle. The liquid hydrogen tanks are configured to store liquid hydrogen, wherein the liquid hydrogen tanks extend along an outside of the fuselage and above the wings and below windows in the fuselage.