Systems and methods for synchronizing phasing propulsion systems using motors

Abstract

A propulsion system includes at least two propellers. The at least two propellers each include a fan and a controller having one or more processors configured to implement controller logic. The controller logic includes a phase angle control scheme and a speed control scheme. When implementing the controller logic, the one or more processors are configured to: determine an actual pairwise phase difference between a pair of thrusters of the at least two thrusters; generating a reference phase angle for the pair of propellers; comparing the actual pairwise phase differences with a reference phase angle to generate a phase error; providing the phase error to a phase controller module to generate an output based on the phase error; and adjusting a speed of at least one of the at least two propellers based on the output to drive the phase error to zero.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present subject matter generally relates to systems and methods for synchronously phasing a propulsion system having two or more propellers using an electric motor coupled to a shaft of each propeller. Background Art

[0002] Conventional commercial aircraft typically include a fuselage, a pair of wings, and a propulsion system that provides thrust. The propulsion system typically includes at least two aircraft engines, such as turbofan jet engines. Each turbofan jet engine is typically mounted to a corresponding one of the wings of the aircraft, such as in a hanging position below the wing, separate from the wing and fuselage. In an aircraft with two or more engines (i.e., a multi-engine aircraft), the phase angle refers to the position of the fan blades on each engine relative to each other. When the fan blades of the engines are not optimally phase-shifted relative to each other, or when the engines are not rotating at the same speed, uneven application of power and torque may result, resulting in vibration and noise. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0003] A full and enabling disclosure of the present disclosure, including the best mode thereof, to one of ordinary skill in the art is set forth in the specification with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0004] Figure 1 is a top view of an aircraft according to various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0005] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A side view of an exemplary aircraft.

[0006] Figure 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a gas turbine engine according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, which gas turbine engine may be mounted to Figure 1 An exemplary aircraft.

[0007] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a propulsion system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0008] Figure 5 is a front view of an aircraft having a propulsion system with two thrusters according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0009] Figure 6 It is shown that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 a block diagram of controller logic within and implemented by the supervisory controller shown;

[0010] Figure 7 It is shown that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 a block diagram of controller logic within and implemented by the supervisory controller shown;

[0011] Figure 8 It is shown that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 a block diagram of controller logic within and implemented by the supervisory controller shown;

[0012] Fig. 9 It is shown that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 a block diagram of controller logic within and implemented by the supervisory controller shown;

[0013] Fig.10 is a flow chart of a method of operating a propulsion system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0014] Fig.11 A block diagram of a computing system for implementing one or more aspects of the present disclosure is provided according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] Fig.12 It is shown that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 A block diagram of a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) control module within and implemented by a supervisory controller is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the present disclosure, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The detailed description uses numerical and letter references to refer to features in the drawings. Like or similar reference numbers in the drawings and description have been used to refer to like or similar parts of the present disclosure.

[0017] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any implementation described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other implementations. In addition, unless expressly stated otherwise, all embodiments described herein should be considered exemplary.

[0018] The singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0019] The term "at least one" in a context such as "at least one of A, B, and C" means only A, only B, only C, or any combination of A, B, and C.

[0020] As used herein, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third” may be used interchangeably to distinguish one component from another, and are not intended to indicate the position or importance of each component.

[0021] The terms "front" and "rear" refer to relative positions within a gas turbine engine or vehicle, and refer to the normal operating attitude of the gas turbine engine or vehicle. For example, with respect to a gas turbine engine, front refers to a position closer to the engine inlet, while rear refers to a position closer to the engine nozzle or exhaust.

[0022] The terms "upstream" and "downstream" refer to relative directions with respect to flow in a path. For example, with respect to fluid flow, "upstream" refers to the direction from which the fluid is flowing, and "downstream" refers to the direction toward which the fluid is flowing. However, the terms "upstream" and "downstream" as used herein may also refer to electrical current.

[0023] As used herein throughout the specification and claims, approximate language is applied to modify any quantitative representation that allows variation without causing a change in the basic function associated therewith. Therefore, the values ​​modified by terms such as "about", "approximately", "substantially" and "substantially" are not limited to the specified exact values. In at least some cases, approximate language may correspond to the accuracy of an instrument for measuring a value, or the accuracy of a method or machine for constructing or manufacturing a component and / or system. In at least some cases, approximate language may correspond to the accuracy of an instrument for measuring a value, or the accuracy of a method or machine for constructing or manufacturing a component and / or system. For example, approximate language may refer to within a margin of 1%, 2%, 4%, 5%, 10%, 15% or 20% of a single value, a range of values ​​and / or an endpoint of a limited range of values.

[0024] Here and throughout the specification and claims, range limitations are combined and interchanged, and unless context or language indicates otherwise, such ranges are identified and include all sub-ranges contained therein. For example, all ranges disclosed herein are inclusive of the endpoints, and the endpoints are independently combinable with each other.

[0025] In aircraft with two or more engines (i.e., multi-engine aircraft), phase angle refers to the position of the fan blades on each engine relative to each other. When the fan blades of an engine are not optimally phase-shifted relative to each other, or when the engines are not rotating at the same speed, it can result in an uneven application of power and torque, leading to vibration and noise.

[0026] For a hybrid electric gas turbine engine, the motor can be coupled to one or both of the high pressure system and the low pressure system, such as coupled to a shaft that can rotate with the high pressure system and / or the low pressure system. The present disclosure utilizes a motor to facilitate synchronization of the phase angle and / or blade speed of one or more engines in an aircraft. That is, the motor can be used to apply, extract, or transfer power to the fan and / or propeller shaft of the aircraft engine to achieve synchronization of the speed and / or blade phase from one or more engines to another engine. The use of an embedded motor for synchronous phasing advantageously allows phase errors to be eliminated more quickly with minimal interference to engine performance or control, and can be applied and coordinated on multiple propeller engines that are fuel-driven or electrically driven.

[0027] Referring now to the drawings, in which like numerals represent like elements throughout, Figure 1 A schematic top view of an aircraft 10 having a hybrid electric propulsion system 50 according to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is provided. Figure 2 Provided Figure 1 In particular, Figure 1 and Figure 2 An aircraft 10 is shown defining a longitudinal centerline 14 extending therethrough, a lateral direction L, a front end 16, and a rear end 18. The aircraft 10 includes a fuselage 12, a tail 19, a first wing 20, and a second wing 22. The first wing 20 and the second wing 22 each extend laterally outward relative to the longitudinal centerline 14. The first wing 20 and a portion of the fuselage 12 together define a first side 24 of the aircraft 10, and the second wing 22 and another portion of the fuselage 12 together define a second side 26 of the aircraft 10. For the depicted embodiment, the first side 24 of the aircraft 10 is configured as the port side of the aircraft 10, and the second side 26 of the aircraft 10 is configured as the starboard side of the aircraft 10.

[0028] Each of the wings 20, 22 of the depicted exemplary embodiment includes one or more leading edge flaps 28 and one or more trailing edge flaps 30. The aircraft 10 also includes, or more precisely, the tail 19 of the aircraft 10 includes: a vertical stabilizer 32, which has a rudder flap (not shown) for yaw control; and a pair of horizontal stabilizers 34, each of which has an elevator flap 36 for pitch control. The fuselage 12 additionally includes an outer surface or skin 38. However, it should be understood that in other exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the aircraft 10 may additionally or alternatively include any other suitable configuration. For example, in other embodiments, the aircraft 10 may include any other configuration of stabilizers.

[0029] Figure 1The exemplary aircraft 10 also includes a hybrid electric propulsion system 50 having a first gas turbine engine 100A, a second gas turbine engine 100B, and an electrical energy storage unit 57. For the depicted embodiment, the first gas turbine engine 100A and the second gas turbine engine 100B are each configured in an underwing mounted configuration. Figure 1 Only an aircraft with two gas turbine engines is depicted, but the aircraft 10 may have any number of gas turbine engines, such as one per wing, two per wing, three per wing, or any other number of gas turbine engines.

[0030] Now also refer to Figure 3 , a schematic cross-sectional view of a gas turbine engine 100 is provided. Figure 1 and Figure 2 The first and second gas turbine engines 100A, 100B depicted in FIG. 1 may be configured to operate in a manner similar to that of FIG. Figure 3 The exemplary engine 100 is constructed in a similar manner.

[0031] Figure 3 The gas turbine engine 100 is more specifically configured as a turbofan engine 100 including a turbine 102 and a fan 104. Figure 3 As shown, turbofan engine 100 defines an axial direction A (extending parallel to a longitudinal centerline 101 for reference) and a radial direction R. As described above, turbofan engine 100 includes a fan 104 and a turbine 102 disposed downstream of fan 104 .

[0032] The depicted exemplary turbomachine 102 generally includes a substantially tubular casing 106 defining an annular inlet 108. The casing 106 encloses, in serial flow relationship: a compressor section including a supercharger or low pressure (LP) compressor 110 and a high pressure (HP) compressor 112; a combustion section 114; a turbine section including a first high pressure (HP) turbine 116 and a second low pressure (LP) turbine 118; and an ejection exhaust nozzle section 120. The compressor section, combustion section 114, and turbine section together at least partially define a core air flow path 121.

[0033] The exemplary turbine 102 of the turbofan engine 100 also includes one or more shafts that can rotate with at least a portion of the turbine section and, for the depicted embodiment, can rotate with at least a portion of the compressor section. More specifically, for the depicted embodiment, the turbofan engine 100 includes a high pressure (HP) shaft or spool 122 that drivingly connects the HP turbine 116 to the HP compressor 112. Additionally, the exemplary turbofan engine 100 includes a low pressure (LP) shaft or spool 124 that drivingly connects the LP turbine 118 to the LP compressor 110.

[0034] In addition, the depicted exemplary fan 104 is configured as a variable pitch fan having a plurality of fan blades 128 coupled to a disk 130 in a spaced apart manner. The fan blades 128 extend outwardly from the disk 130 generally along a radial direction R. Each fan blade 128 can rotate relative to the disk 130 about a respective pitch axis P by virtue of the fan blades 128 being operably coupled to appropriate actuating members 132, the actuating members 132 being configured to collectively change the pitch of the fan blades 128. The fan 104 is mechanically coupled to the LP shaft 124 such that the fan 104 is mechanically driven by the second LP turbine 118. More specifically, the fan 104 including the fan blades 128, the disk 130, and the actuating members 132 is mechanically coupled to the LP shaft 124 through a power gearbox 134, and can rotate about the longitudinal axis 101 across the power gearbox 134 through the LP shaft 124. The power gearbox 134 includes a plurality of gears for reducing the rotational speed of the LP shaft 124 to a more efficient rotating fan speed. Thus, the fan 104 is powered by the LP system of the turbomachine 102 , including the LP turbine 118 .

[0035] Still reference Figure 3 In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the disk 130 is covered by a rotatable front hub 136, which is aerodynamically shaped to facilitate airflow through the plurality of fan blades 128. In addition, the turbofan engine 100 includes an annular fan case or outer nacelle 138 circumferentially surrounding the fan 104 and / or at least a portion of the turbine 102. Therefore, the exemplary turbofan engine 100 depicted can be referred to as a "ducted" turbofan engine. In addition, the nacelle 138 is supported relative to the turbine 102 by a plurality of circumferentially spaced outlet guide vanes 140. A downstream section 142 of the nacelle 138 extends over an outer portion of the turbine 102 so as to define a bypass airflow passage 144 therebetween.

[0036] Still reference Figure 3, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 also includes an electric motor 56, which, for the depicted embodiment, can be configured as an electric motor / generator. For the depicted embodiment, the electric motor 56 is positioned within the turbine 102 of the turbofan engine 100 and is mechanically connected to one of the shafts of the turbofan engine 100. More specifically, for the depicted embodiment, the electric motor 56 is a first electric motor 56-1, and is positioned inside the core air flow path 121, driven by the first HP turbine 116 through the HP shaft 122. The first electric motor 56-1 is configured to convert the mechanical power of the HP shaft 122 into electrical power during certain operations, and is further configured to convert electrical power into mechanical power in other operations. Therefore, the first electric motor 56-1 can be powered by the HP system (including the HP turbine 116) of the turbine 102 during certain operations, and can power the HP system during other operations.

[0037] In addition, for the described embodiment, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 also includes a second electric machine 56-2. The second electric machine 56-2 is configured to convert the mechanical power of the LP shaft 124 into electrical power during certain operations, and is further configured to convert the electrical power into mechanical power during other operations. Therefore, the second electric machine 56-2 can be powered by the LP system (including the LP turbine 118 and the fan 104) of the turbomachine 102 during certain operations, and can provide power to the LP system during other operations.

[0038] It is worth noting that the motors 56-1, 56-2 can be relatively powerful motor / generators. For example, during certain operations, the motors 56-1, 56-2 can be configured to generate at least about fifty kilowatts of electrical power or at least about sixty-five horsepower of mechanical power. However, in other embodiments, the motors 56-1, 56-2 can generate other amounts of power. In other embodiments, the motors 56-1, 56-2 can be configured to generate up to two hundred kilowatts of electrical power.

[0039] However, it should be understood that in other exemplary embodiments, the motors 56-1, 56-2 may alternatively be positioned at any other suitable location or other location within the turbine 102, and may be powered, for example, in any other suitable manner. For example, in other embodiments, the first motor 56-1 may be mounted within the turbine section coaxially with the HP shaft 122, or alternatively may be offset from the HP shaft 122 and driven by a suitable gear train. Similarly, in other embodiments, the second motor 56-2 may be mounted within the compressor section coaxially with the LP shaft 124, or alternatively may be offset from the LP shaft 124 and driven by a suitable gear train. Additionally or alternatively, in still other embodiments, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 may not include the first and second motors 56-1, 56-2, but may include only one of such motors 56-1 and 56-2.

[0040] It should be further understood that in other exemplary embodiments, Figure 3 The exemplary turbofan engine 100 depicted in the figure may have any other suitable configuration. For example, in other exemplary embodiments, the fan 104 may not be a variable pitch fan, and further, in other exemplary embodiments, the LP shaft 124 may be directly mechanically coupled to the fan 104 (i.e., the turbofan engine 100 may not include a gearbox 134). In addition, it should be understood that in other exemplary embodiments, the first propeller 52 may include any other suitable type of engine. For example, in other embodiments, the turbofan engine 100 may alternatively be configured as a turboprop engine or a non-ducted turbofan engine. In addition, in other embodiments, the turbofan engine 100 may alternatively be configured as any other suitable combustion engine for driving motors 56-1, 56-2. For example, in other embodiments, the turbofan engine may be configured as a turboshaft engine, or any other suitable combustion engine (such as a non-ducted open rotor engine).

[0041] Still reference Figure 1 and Figure 2, the turbofan engine 100 also includes a controller 150, and although not depicted, one or more sensors. The controller 150 may be a full authority digital thrust control system, also referred to as a FADEC. The controller 150 of the turbofan engine 100 may be configured to control the operation of, for example, the actuating member 132, a fuel delivery system 151 to the combustion section 114 (the controller 150 may be operable to adjust the amount of fuel provided to the combustion section 114 by the fuel delivery system 151), and the like. In addition, the controller 150 may be operably connected to one or more sensors to receive data from the sensors and determine various operating parameters of the turbofan engine 100. For example, the controller 150 may determine one or more of the exhaust temperature, the rotational speed of the core (i.e., the rotational speed of the HP shaft 122 or the LP shaft 124), the compressor discharge temperature, and the like. In addition, return to reference Figure 1 , the controller 150 of the turbofan engine 100 is operably connected to the controller 72 of the hybrid electric propulsion system 50. In addition, as will be understood, the controller 72 may also be operably connected to one or more of the first gas turbine engine 100A, the second gas turbine engine 100B, the energy storage unit 57, etc. via a suitable wired or wireless communication system (depicted in dashed lines).

[0042] Special return reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 The electrical system of the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 includes one or more electric machines (e.g., electric machine 56A, schematically depicted) mechanically coupled to the first gas turbine engine 100A and one or more electric machines (e.g., electric machine 56B, schematically depicted) mechanically coupled to the second gas turbine engine 100B. Although schematically depicted outside of the respective gas turbine engines 100A, 100B, in certain embodiments, the electric machines 56A, 56B may be positioned within a respective one of the gas turbine engines 100A, 100B (see, e.g., Figure 3 ). In addition, although a single electric machine is depicted with each gas turbine engine 100A, 100B, in certain embodiments, multiple electric machines 56A, 56B may be provided for each gas turbine engine (e.g., electric machines 56A-1, 56A-2 for gas turbine engine 100A and electric machines 56B-1, 56B-2 for gas turbine engine 100B).

[0043] In addition, as mentioned above Figure 3 Briefly mentioned, Figure 1 and Figure 2In an embodiment of the hybrid electric propulsion assembly 50, the hybrid electric propulsion assembly 50 also includes a controller 72. As will be appreciated, the energy storage unit 57 may be configured to receive electrical power from one or both of the first motor 56A and the second motor 56B under certain operating conditions, and may be further configured to provide the stored electrical power to one or both of the first motor 56A and the second motor 56B under certain operating conditions. In addition, the controller 72 may be operably connected to the turbofan engines 100A, 100B, the motors 56A, 56B, and the energy storage unit 57 to, for example, control the operation of the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 during various operating conditions, and selectively electrically connect components of the hybrid electric propulsion system 50.

[0044] Additionally, controller 72 may communicate with one or more aircraft controllers to receive data indicative of an aircraft demand for electrical power and may responsively provide electrical power from one or more of motors 56A, 56B and energy storage unit 57 to aircraft loads 74 .

[0045] However, it should be understood that in other exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, any other suitable aircraft 10 may be provided having a hybrid electric propulsion system 50 configured in any other suitable manner. For example, in other embodiments, the turbofan engines 100A, 100B may each be configured as any other suitable combustion engine (e.g., a turboprop engine, a non-ducted turbofan engine, a turboshaft engine, a turbojet engine, etc.) and may be installed in any other suitable location.

[0046] Furthermore, in other exemplary embodiments, the exemplary hybrid electric propulsion system 50 may have other configurations. For example, referring now briefly to Figure 4 , a schematic diagram of a hybrid electric propulsion system 50 according to yet another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is provided. Figure 4 The exemplary hybrid electric propulsion system 50 depicted in FIG. 5 may be similar to the one described above with reference to FIG. Figures 1 to 3 One or more exemplary hybrid-electric propulsion systems 50 are described.

[0047] In various embodiments, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 may include at least two propellers. For example, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 may include a first propeller 52 and a second propeller 54. The first propeller 52 generally includes a first engine 100A having a first turbine 102A and a first fan 104A, and a second engine 100B having a second turbine 102B and a second fan 104B. Each of the first and second turbines 102A, 102B generally includes a low-pressure system and a high-pressure system, the low-pressure system having a low-pressure compressor 110A, 110B drivenly coupled to a low-pressure turbine 118A, 118B through a low-pressure shaft 124A, 124B, and the high-pressure system having a high-pressure compressor 112A, 112B drivenly coupled to a high-pressure turbine 116A, 116B through a high-pressure shaft 122A, 122B.

[0048] Additionally, the first fan 104A is drivingly coupled to the low pressure system of the first turbine 102A (e.g., via the low pressure shaft 124A), and the second fan 104B is drivingly coupled to the low pressure system of the second turbine 102B (e.g., via the high pressure shaft 124B). In certain exemplary embodiments, the first fan 104A and the first turbine 102A may be configured as a first turbofan engine, and similarly, the second fan 104B and the second turbine 102B may be configured as a second turbofan engine (see, e.g., Figure 3 ). However, alternatively, these components may alternatively be configured as part of a turboprop engine or any other suitable turbine-driven propulsion device.

[0049] also, Figure 4 The hybrid electric propulsion system 50 also includes an electrical system. More specifically, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 includes one or more motors operable with the first engine 100A, the second engine 100B, or both, and an electrical energy storage unit 57 electrically connected to one or more of the motors. In particular, for the described embodiment, the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 includes a first motor 56A-1 and a second motor 56A-2 operable with the first engine 100A, and a first motor 56B-1 and a second motor 56B-2 operable with the second engine 100B.

[0050] More specifically, for Figure 4 In the embodiment depicted in FIG, the first electric machines 56A-1, 56B-1 are each coupled to a high pressure system of a corresponding turbine 102A, 102B (such as coupled to a high pressure shaft 124A, 124B), and the second electric machines 56A-2, 56B-2 are each coupled to a low pressure system of a corresponding turbine 102A, 102B (such as coupled to a low pressure shaft 122A, 122B).

[0051] In many embodiments, each of the turbines 100A, 100B may each include a fuel delivery system 151A, 151B. For example, the first turbine 100A may include a first fuel delivery system 151A fluidly connected to the combustion section 114A of the first turbine 100A. Similarly, the second turbine 100B may include a second fuel delivery system 151B fluidly connected to the combustion section 114B of the second turbine 100B. The fuel delivery systems 151A, 151B may each include one or more fuel supply parts (such as fuel tanks), one or more fuel pumps, one or more valves and a fuel controller. The fuel delivery systems 151A, 151B are operable to adjust the amount of fuel supplied to the respective combustion systems 114A, 114B (e.g., by actuating one or more valves). The fuel controller for each fuel delivery system 151A, 151B may be integrated into the FADEC, or may be an independent controller. The fuel controller can be operably connected to one or more pumps and / or one or more valves of the fuel delivery system so that the fuel controller can adjust the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section (e.g., by setting a fuel command, thereby actuating one or more valves and / or modifying the power level of one or more pumps).

[0052] Also like Figure 4 As depicted in , the exemplary hybrid electric propulsion system 50 also includes an electric bus 58. The first motor 56A-1, 56A-2, the second motor 56B-1, 56B-2, and the electrical energy storage unit 57 can each be electrically connected to each other via one or more wires 60 of the electric bus 58. For example, the electric bus 58 can include various switches or other power electronic devices that are movable to selectively electrically connect various components of the hybrid electric propulsion system 50 and optionally convert or regulate such electrical power transmitted therethrough. The various switches and other power electronic devices can be operably connected to the controller so that the controller can control the power flowing to and / or from the first motor 56A-1, 56A-2, the second motor 56B-1, 56B-2, and the electrical energy storage unit 57.

[0053] In addition, Figure 4 As depicted in the example of FIG, the power bus 58 is electrically connected to one or more aircraft systems 74 for providing electrical power from one or more of the first motors 56A-1, 56A-2, the second motors 56B-1, 56B-2, and the electrical energy storage unit 57 to the one or more aircraft systems 74. The one or more aircraft systems 74 may include, for example, environmental control, aircraft control, hydraulic systems, pumps, de-icing systems, navigation, lighting, heating, etc.

[0054] In many embodiments, the propulsion system 50 may include one or more sensors operably connected to any (or all) of the FADEC A 156, FADEC B 158, and the supervisory controller 300, so that the one or more sensors can provide sensed data to the controller. The one or more sensors can each be coupled to the propellers 52, 54, and can each be configured to sense data indicating the angle of the fan blades relative to a reference line. For example, the one or more sensors can include a first sensor 230A coupled to the first propeller 52 and a second sensor 230B coupled to the second propeller 54. The first sensor 230A is operable to sense data indicating a first angle of the blades of the first fan 104A relative to a reference line (such as a vertical reference line). Similarly, the second sensor 230B is operable to sense data indicating a second angle of the blades of the second fan 104B relative to a reference line (such as a vertical reference line). The supervisory controller 300 can receive the data indicating the first angle and the data indicating the second angle, and the supervisory controller 300 can determine the paired phase difference between the first propeller and the second propeller (i.e., or the phase angle between the first propeller 52 and the second propeller).

[0055] in addition, Figure 4 The system depicted in FIG. 1 includes a supervisory controller 300 (which may be similar to the controller 72 described above), a first gas turbine engine controller 156 (which may be, for example, a FADEC controller), and a second gas turbine engine controller 158 (which may also be, for example, a FADEC controller). The supervisory controller 300 may receive data indicating one or more operability parameters of the first gas turbine engine 100A, the second gas turbine engine 100B, or both. For example, the exemplary supervisory controller 300 may receive data indicating one or more fuel flows, one or more operating temperatures (e.g., exhaust gas temperature, compressor outlet temperature, turbine inlet temperature, etc.), one or more speeds of the gas turbine engine (e.g., LP shaft 124 speed, HP shaft 122 speed, fan / propeller speed, etc.), a phase angle difference between the fans / propellers of each propeller, one or more shaft torques, one or more pressure measurements, one or more thrust outputs (which may be, for example, a calculation from a combination of fan / propeller speed and fan / propeller pitch angle), a serial number or other unique component identifier identifying a component (such as an identifier of one or more engines), an estimate or measurement of component consumption or remaining life or performance, any combination of these or calculations derived therefrom, and the like.

[0056] In particular, the supervisory controller 300 may receive data indicating the angle of the fan blades of each of the fans 104A, 104B at a certain moment relative to a vertical reference line, for example, from the sensors 230A, 230B. The supervisory controller 300 may utilize the data indicating the angles to determine the phase angle between the first fan 104A and the second fan 104B. As used herein, in an aircraft or propulsion system having multiple thrusters, "phase angle" refers to the position of a fan blade on a first fan of a first thruster of the plurality of thrusters relative to the position of a fan blade on a different fan of a different thruster of the plurality of thrusters.

[0057] The supervisory controller 300 includes controller logic 350. The controller logic 350 may be a set of computer executable instructions stored in a memory that, when executed by one or more processors of the supervisory controller 300, causes the one or more processors to implement a synchronized phasing control scheme. When implementing the synchronized phasing control scheme, the one or more processors may: determine a phase error and a speed error; provide the phase error to a phase control module to generate an output (such as a speed reference modifier or a motor command) that (when implemented) drives the phase error toward zero; and provide the speed error to a fuel control module to generate a fuel command that (when implemented) drives the speed error toward zero. The motor command and the fuel command may be implemented by adjusting the speed of one or more of the at least two thrusters. Adjusting the speed of the thrusters may include adjusting the amount of power transferred between the motors 56A-1, 56A-2, 56B-1, 56B-2 and the shafts 122 and / or 124 based on the motor power command. For example, adjusting the amount of power transferred between the motors 56A-1, 56A-2, 56B-1, 56B-2 and the shafts 122 and / or 124 may include any of the following: (1) transferring power from the first engine 100A to the second engine 100B, or vice versa; (2) transferring power from the electrical energy storage unit 57, the first engine 100A, or both to the second engine 100B, or from the electrical energy storage unit 57, the second engine 100B, or both to the first engine 100A; (3) transferring power from the low-pressure system of one of the first or second engines 100A, 100B to the high-pressure system of the same engine, or vice versa; and / or (4) extracting different amounts of power from the first and second engines 100A, 100B. In this manner, the system may adjust the phase angle between fans 104A, 104B to a reference phase angle (such as a reference phase angle of zero in some embodiments or a non-zero reference phase angle in other embodiments) and / or may synchronize the speeds of fans 104A, 104B.

[0058] Figure 5A schematic diagram of an aircraft 50 having a propulsion system 50 with at least two thrusters according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. In particular, Figure 5 A propulsion system 50 is shown having two propellers (e.g., a first propeller 52 mounted on the first wing 20 of the aircraft 10, and a second propeller 54 mounted on the second wing 22 of the aircraft 10). Each of the propellers 52, 54 may be similar to Figure 3 1 and described above.

[0059] Each of the propellers 52, 54 may include a fan (e.g., a first fan 104A and a second fan 104B) having a plurality of fan blades. For example, the first fan 104A may have a first plurality of fan blades 128A extending outwardly (e.g., radially outwardly) from the first disk 130A, and the second fan 104B may have a second plurality of fan blades 128B extending outwardly (e.g., radially outwardly) from the second disk 130B. Returning to Reference Briefly Figure 3 Each fan blade 128 may be rotated relative to disk 130 about a respective pitch axis P by virtue of fan blades 128 being operably coupled to suitable actuation members 132 that are configured to collectively vary the pitch of fan blades 128 .

[0060] Each of the thrusters 52, 54 can define a top dead center (TDC) reference line. The TDC reference line can extend vertically (eg, along a vertical direction V) through a center point of each thruster 52, 54 (eg, the TDC reference line can be aligned with Figure 3 ). In particular, the first thruster 52 may include a first TDC reference line 202, and the second thruster 54 may include a second TDC reference line 204. Notably, in order to calculate the phase angle, reference lines (such as TDC reference lines) do not necessarily need to be vertical, as long as the reference line of each thruster is similarly oriented (e.g., parallel) and extends through (or intersects) the center of the respective thruster.

[0061] The propulsion system 50 may include a supervisory controller 300, which may include one or more processors and one or more memory devices. Additionally, the supervisory controller 300 may include controller logic 350, which may be a set of computer executable instructions stored in a memory that, when executed by one or more processors of the supervisory controller 300, causes the one or more processors to implement a synchronized phasing control scheme.

[0062] The supervisory controller 300 may be in operative communication with each of the propulsors 52, 54 such that the supervisory controller 300 may receive data indicative of operating parameters associated with the propulsors 52, 54. For example, the exemplary supervisory controller 300 may receive data indicative of one or more fuel flows, one or more operating temperatures (e.g., exhaust gas temperature, compressor outlet temperature, turbine inlet temperature, etc.), one or more speeds of the gas turbine engine (e.g., rotational speed of the low pressure system, rotational speed of the high pressure system, rotational speed of the fan / propeller, etc.), one or more shaft torques, one or more pressure measurements, one or more thrust outputs (which may be, for example, calculated based on a combination of fan / propeller speed and fan / propeller pitch angle), vibration measurements or estimates of each engine, or vibrations associated with components of each engine, etc.

[0063] like Figure 5 As shown, at a particular moment (i.e., a certain moment), or within a certain time period, supervisory controller 300 can determine or receive (e.g., by measuring, sensing, or estimating) an angle 302 between the propeller blade of each fan and a reference line, and can then compare angles 302 to each other to determine a pairwise phase difference. Angle 302 can be defined in a vertical longitudinal plane (e.g., Figure 5 For example, the first propeller 52 defines a first angle θ1 between the first reference line 202 and the fan blade 128A of the first plurality of fan blades 128A closest to the first TDC reference line 202 at a certain moment. The second propeller 54 defines a second angle θ2 between the second reference line 204 and the fan blade 128B of the second plurality of fan blades 128B closest to the second TDC reference line 204 at this moment.

[0064] In some embodiments, supervisory controller 300 may obtain information from one or more sensors (e.g., Figure 4 The sensor 230 described above receives the angle 302. In other embodiments, the angle 302 may be estimated (e.g., calculated), for example, based on other operating parameters of the aircraft 10 and / or the thrusters 52, 54, such as the speed of the LP shaft, the speed of the HP shaft, and / or vibrations of the thrusters 52, 54.

[0065] Supervisory controller 300 may generate one or more control signals 301 that may be communicated to one or more controllable devices 304 of each of thrusters 52, 54. For example, controllable device 304 may include motor 316, such as described above with reference to Figure 3 The controllable device 304 may also include a fuel delivery system 318, such as the one described above with reference to Figure 3 and Figure 4The controllable device 304 may also include a fan blade pitch 320, for example, by actuating an actuating member 132 connected to the fan blade 128 (see Figure 3 ).

[0066] The speed (rotational speed of the shaft) and angle 302 (and therefore the phase angle between the thrusters) can be adjusted by the motors 316. For example, the motors 316 can adjust the rotational speed of the shafts to which they are attached, which can be achieved by transferring power between the motors 316 and the shafts (e.g., adding or removing power). In particular, in an exemplary embodiment, the phase angle can be adjusted by transferring power between the motor 56-2 and the LP shaft (e.g., adding power or removing power). In addition, the speed (e.g., rotational speed) and angle 302 (and therefore the phase angle) can be modified by adjusting the amount of fuel provided to the combustion section of the thrusters via the fuel delivery system 318. Furthermore, the speed and angle 302 (and therefore the phase angle) can be adjusted by adjusting the fan blade pitch 320.

[0067] Figures 6 to 9 Each shows a reference that can be stored above Figure 4 and Figure 5 Controller logic 350 within and implemented by the supervisory controller 300 is discussed. The controller logic 350 may be a set of computer executable instructions stored in a memory that, when executed by one or more processors of the supervisory controller 300, causes the one or more processors to implement a control scheme.

[0068] In particular, if Figure 6As shown, the controller logic 350 may include a phase angle control scheme 352 and a speed control scheme 354. The phase angle control scheme 352 may generate a control output 358 (such as a power command for an electric machine coupled to the LP shaft) based on a difference between an actual pairwise phase difference 360 ​​(or actual phase angle) and a reference phase angle 362 (e.g., at a summing point 374) using a phase control module 356. That is, the phase control scheme 352 may generate a control output 358 based on a phase error 376 using a phase control module 356, and the control output 358 may be used by one or more of the controllable devices 304 to drive the phase error 376 toward (or to) zero. The speed control scheme 354 may generate a control output 367 (such as a fuel command for a fuel delivery system) based on a difference between an actual speed 368 and a reference speed 370 (e.g., at a summing point 372) using a fuel controller module 364. That is, the speed control scheme may utilize the fuel control module 364 to generate an output 367 based on the speed error 378, and the control output 367 may be used by one or more of the controllable devices 304 to drive the speed error 378 toward (or to) zero. The control outputs 367, 358 may be provided to the controllable devices 304 via the control signals 301, for example, to modify or adjust the operation of the motor 316, the fuel delivery system 318, and / or the fan blade pitch 320, so that the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 converge toward zero.

[0069] In many embodiments, the control logic 350 may determine the actual pair phase difference (PPD) 360 of a pair of at least two thrusters (e.g., as described above with reference to FIG. 1 ) before providing the actual pair phase difference (PPD) 360 to the summing junction 374. Figure 4 and Figure 5 The actual PPD 360 between the thrusters 52 and 54 discussed above. The actual PPD (i.e., the phase angle of the particular two thrusters) may be the difference between the angle θ of one of the at least two thrusters and the angle θ of the other of the at least two thrusters at a certain moment in time. For example, for Figure 5 , PPD can be the difference between the first angle θ1 and the second angle θ2 at that moment. In one non-limiting example, if the first angle θ1 is equal to 30° and the second angle θ2 is equal to 15°, the actual pairwise phase difference 350 is 15° (e.g., θ1 minus θ2).

[0070] In various embodiments, the controller logic 350 may also include generating a reference phase angle (RPA) 362. The reference phase angle 362 may be a desired phase angle (i.e., a desired pairwise phase difference) between an identified pair of thrusters. The RPA 362 may be generated based on one or more gas turbine operating parameters, such as vibration, speed, or other parameters. In many embodiments, the RPA 362 may be equal to zero, such that after a phase shift occurs, the phase angle or pairwise phase difference is equal to zero. Alternatively, the RPA 362 may be non-zero, such that after a phase shift occurs, the phase angle or pairwise phase difference is equal to a non-zero value.

[0071] In a propulsion system with only two thrusters, such as Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, the supervisory controller 300 may generate only one reference phase angle RPA between the first propeller 52 and the second propeller 54. 12 However, for propulsion systems with more than two thrusters, the supervisory controller 300 may generate multiple RPAs that are all relative to the same reference thruster. For example, with the first thruster as the reference thruster, the supervisory controller 300 may generate: a first RPA between the first thruster 52 and the second thruster 54 12 ; A second RPA between the first propeller 52 and the third propeller (not shown) 13 and / or a third RPA between the first propeller 52 and the fourth propeller (not shown) 14 .

[0072] Return to reference Figure 6, the phase angle control scheme 352 may further include comparing the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​to the reference phase angle 362 at a summing point 374 to generate a phase error 376. The phase error 376 may be the difference between the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​and the reference phase angle 362, which may be calculated at the summing point 374. For example, if the PPD 360 is 15° and the RPA 362 is 7°, the phase error 376 is 8° (e.g., 15° minus 7°). In many embodiments, the controller logic 350 may further include providing the phase error 376 to the phase controller module 356 to generate an output 358 based on the phase error 376. In an exemplary embodiment, the controller logic 350 may adjust the speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters (e.g., the rotational speed of the HP shaft 122 and / or the LP shaft 124) based on the output 358 to drive the phase error 376 toward (or to) zero. That is, as the actual paired phase difference converges toward the reference phase angle, the phase error 376 can converge toward zero. For example, if the PPD 360 is initially 15° and the RPA 362 is 7°, the phase error 376 is 8° (e.g., 15° minus 7°). Subsequently, after starting speed adjustment, if the PPD 360 is 13° and the RPA 362 is still 7°, the phase error 376 is 6°. Subsequently, after continuing speed adjustment, if the PPD 360 is 8° and the RPA 362 is still 7°, the phase error 376 is 1°. In this way, adjusting speed can drive the phase error 376 toward zero.

[0073] In many embodiments, such as Figure 6As shown, when implementing the speed control scheme 354, the controller logic 354 may further include generating a speed reference 370 for one or more of the at least two propellers (e.g., one or more of the first propeller 52 and / or the second propeller 54). The speed reference 370 may be a desired speed of the one or more propellers (such as a desired rotational speed of the HP shaft 122 and / or the LP shaft 124 of the one or more propellers). The speed reference 370 may be generated based on one or more operating parameters of the propellers (such as one or more temperatures, pressures, vibrations, or other operating parameters of the propellers) or in response to an operator input (such as a pilot adjusting the throttle of the aircraft 10). That is, if the pilot increases the throttle angle, the reference speed may increase, and vice versa. In addition, the controller logic 350 may include receiving an actual speed of one or more of the at least two propellers. The actual speed 368 may be a rotational speed of one or more of the at least two propellers (such as a rotational speed of the LP shaft 124 or the HP shaft 122 of the propellers 52, 54). The actual speed 368 may be sensed (e.g., via one or more sensors) or estimated (e.g., by the supervisory controller 300 based on other operating parameters of the thrusters 52, 54). In many embodiments, the speed control scheme 354 may further include comparing the actual speed 368 to the reference speed 370 at a summing junction 372 to generate a speed error 378. The speed error 378 may be the difference between the reference speed 370 and the actual speed 368. For example, if the reference speed is 3000 RPM and the actual speed is 2500 RPM, the speed error 378 may be 500 RPM. In such an embodiment, the speed control scheme 354 may further include providing the speed error 378 to the fuel controller module 364 to generate the fuel command 366 as an output 367 based on the speed error 378. The fuel command 366 may be an operating set point for the fuel delivery system 151 such that when the fuel delivery system 151 receives the fuel command 366, the fuel delivery system adjusts the amount of fuel provided to the combustion sections 114 of the thrusters 52, 54 to comply with the fuel command 366. For example, the controller logic 350 may adjust the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion sections 114 of one or more of the at least two thrusters (e.g., thrusters 52, 54) using the fuel delivery system 151 based on the fuel command, thereby adjusting the speed of the one or more thrusters to drive the speed error toward (or to) zero.

[0074] The phase controller module 356 may be a phase proportional integral derivative (PID) controller 357 configured to regulate an actual pairwise phase difference 360. The phase PID controller 357 may be used to regulate a process variable (e.g., an actual pairwise phase difference 360 ​​between a pair of thrusters 52, 54) in response to a measured deviation from a desired set point (e.g., a reference phase angle 362) by adjusting a control variable (e.g., an output 358, which may be a motor power command 359 or a reference speed modifier 380).

[0075] For example, the phase controller module 356 can be used to adjust the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​in response to a deviation from the reference phase angle 362 (i.e., based on the phase error 376) by adjusting the output 358. In some embodiments, based on the phase error 376 (e.g., based on the magnitude and / or rate of change of the phase error 376), the phase controller module 356 can generate or adjust the motor power command 359 as the output 358. The motor power command 359 can be a power delivery set point, and the motor power command 359 can be provided to one or more motors 316 to adjust the amount of power supplied to or removed from the shaft (e.g., the LP shaft 124 and / or the HP shaft 122) to which the motor 316 is attached. As a result, the rotational speed of the LP shaft 124 and / or the HP shaft 122 can be adjusted, which drives the phase error 376 toward zero. For example, such an adjustment drives the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​toward the reference phase angle 362 (thereby minimizing or eliminating the phase error 376).

[0076] In particular, in an exemplary embodiment, the motor power command 359 may be provided to a motor coupled to the first and / or second propellers 52, 54 (eg, Figure 5 One or both of the motors 56A-2 and / or 56B-2 of the LP shaft 122 of the thrusters 52, 54 are adjusted to adjust the amount of power transferred between the motors 56A-2, 56B-2 and the corresponding LP shaft 122, which causes the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​between the thrusters 52, 54 to converge toward the reference phase angle 362 (i.e., causes the phase error to converge toward zero).

[0077] Similarly, the fuel controller module 364 may be a speed proportional integral derivative (PID) controller 365 configured to regulate the actual speed 368 of one or more of the at least two thrusters. The speed PID controller 365 may be used to regulate a process variable (e.g., the actual speed 368 of one or more of the thrusters 52, 54) in response to a measured deviation from a desired set point (e.g., a reference speed 370) by adjusting a control variable (e.g., a fuel command 366).

[0078] For example, the fuel controller module 364 may be used to adjust the actual speed 368 (e.g., the rotational speed of the LP shaft 124 and / or the HP shaft 122) of one or more propellers in response to a deviation from the speed reference 370 (i.e., based on the speed error 378). That is, based on the speed error 378 (e.g., based on the magnitude and / or rate of change of the speed error 378), the fuel controller module 364 may generate or adjust the fuel command 366 as an output, which may be provided to the fuel delivery system to adjust (e.g., increase or decrease) the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section, thereby adjusting the speed of the propeller, which drives the actual speed 368 toward the speed reference 370 (i.e., drives or drives the speed error toward zero). For example, if the speed error is 500 RPM (e.g., the actual speed is 2500 RPM and the reference speed is 3000 RPM), the fuel controller module 365 may determine that an increased amount of fuel needs to be supplied to the combustion section in order to increase the actual speed, thereby driving the speed error toward zero.

[0079] The PID controllers discussed above (e.g., phase PID controller 357 and speed PID controller 365) can each use three terms to adjust the corresponding control variable: a proportional term (P), an integral term (I), and a derivative term (D). The proportional term is proportional to the error (e.g., phase error or speed error) between the process variable (e.g., actual paired phase difference or actual speed) and the set point (e.g., reference phase angle or speed reference). It causes the controller to respond proportionally to the error. The integral term is proportional to the accumulation of past errors over time (i.e., the area under the curve). It helps to eliminate steady-state errors, which may occur when there is a constant small deviation from the set point. The integral term slowly adjusts the control variable until the steady-state error is eliminated. The derivative term is proportional to the rate of change of the error over time. It helps to predict future changes in the process variable and respond accordingly. It helps the PID controller respond quickly to changes in the set point and prevent overshoot. The three terms are combined by summing the three terms to determine the overall response of the system. The proportional term provides an immediate response to the current error, the integral term eliminates the steady-state error, and the derivative term helps predict and respond to future changes in the error. The PID controller continuously monitors the process variable and calculates the error, which is then fed into the PID algorithm. The algorithm calculates the appropriate controlled variable output based on the three terms and then uses that output to adjust the process variable toward the set point.

[0080] Now specific reference Figure 7 In some embodiments, the controller logic 350 may include a large error control scheme 400 and a small error control scheme 402. The small error control scheme 402 may be similar to the above referenced Figure 64. The controller logic 350 may implement the phase angle control scheme 402 discussed above. In general, when the phase error 376 is large, the controller logic 350 may implement the large error control scheme 400, and when the phase error 378 is small, the controller logic 350 may implement the small error control scheme 402. In particular, the controller logic 350 may determine whether the phase error 376 is less than or exceeds an error threshold. When the phase error 376 exceeds the phase error threshold, the phase error 376 is considered to be a large phase error 404, and the controller logic 350 may implement the large error control scheme 400. Conversely, when the phase error 376 is less than the phase error threshold, the phase error 376 is considered to be a small phase error 406, and the controller logic 350 may implement the small error control scheme 402.

[0081] More specifically, when the phase error 376 is determined to be less than the error threshold, the small error control scheme 402 may be implemented and only the motor power command 359 may be generated as the output 358 of the phase controller module 356. In such an implementation, the speed of at least one of the at least two propellers may be adjusted based on the output (e.g., by transferring power between the motor and the shaft of the propeller).

[0082] Alternatively, when the phase error 376 is determined to exceed the error threshold, the large error control scheme 400 may be implemented, and only the speed reference modifier 380 for one or more of the at least two thrusters may be generated as the output 358 of the phase controller module 356. In particular, when the large error control scheme 400 is implemented, based on the phase error 376 (e.g., based on the magnitude and / or rate of change of the phase error 376), the phase controller module 356 may generate the speed reference modifier 380 as the output 358, which may be used to modify the speed reference 370 (at the summing junction 371) prior to the comparison (at the summing junction 372) between the actual speed 368 and the speed reference 370, thereby affecting the output of the fuel controller module 364. That is, the summing junction 371 may output the modified speed reference 381, which may be compared with the actual speed 368 to generate the speed error 378. In this manner, the phase controller module 356 can drive the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​toward (or to) the reference phase angle 362 by modifying the speed reference 370 by the speed reference modifier 380, which is based on the phase error 376 (e.g., based on the magnitude and / or rate of change of the phase error 376).

[0083] Reference now Figure 8 and Fig. 9 , Figure 8 and Fig. 9300. Each of the controller logic 350s shows a phase angle control scheme 352 and a speed control scheme 354. The phase angle control scheme 352 can generate a control output 358 (such as a motor power command for a motor coupled to the LP shaft) based on a difference between an actual pairwise phase difference 360 ​​(or actual phase angle) and a reference phase angle 362 (e.g., at a summing point 374) using a phase control module 356. The speed control scheme 354 can generate a control output 367 (such as a fuel command for a fuel delivery system) based on a difference between an actual speed 368 and a reference speed 370 (e.g., at a summing point 372) using a fuel controller module 364. The control outputs 367, 358 can be provided to the controllable device 304 via the control signal 301, for example, to modify or adjust the operation of the motor 316, the fuel delivery system 318, and / or the fan blade pitch 320.

[0084] The controller logic 350 may also include providing a reference phase angle trajectory 392 to the phase angle control scheme 352 via the trajectory planner 390 during a time period 396. The reference phase angle trajectory 392 includes a plurality of reference phase angle set points 394 each at a corresponding time during the time period 396. In many embodiments, the controller logic 350 may provide the plurality of reference phase angle set points 394 to the phase controller module 356 during the time period 396. The trajectory planner 390 may generate a phase angle reference (RPA) trajectory 392 including the plurality of phase angle reference set points 394 and provide them to the phase angle control scheme 352 during the time period 396.

[0085] The plurality of RPA set points 394 may include an initial RPA set point 397 at the beginning of the time period 396, a final RPA set point 399 at the end of the time period 396, and one or more intermediate RPA set points 398 at respective times within the time period between the initial RPA set point 387 and the final RPA set point 399. The trajectory planner 390 may provide the plurality of RPA set points 394 to the phase angle control scheme 352 starting from the initial RPA set point 397 within the time period 396, thereby generating an output 358 for each set point 394 to drive the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​toward (or to) each of the RPA set points 394 within the time period 396. In this manner, the actual paired phase difference 360 ​​is ultimately driven to the final RPA set point 399 at the end of the time period 396.

[0086] Additionally, in many embodiments, the controller logic 350 may also include providing a derivative of the reference phase angle trajectory 392 to the speed control scheme 354 to modify the speed reference 370 prior to the comparison (e.g., at the summing junction 372) between the speed reference 370 and the actual speed 368. The derivative of the reference phase angle trajectory 392 may be equivalent to the speed (e.g., the change in the reference phase angle over time), such that the derivative may be advantageously used to modify the speed reference 370.

[0087] That is, the controller logic 350 can generate a derivative of the reference phase angle trajectory 392, and the controller logic 350 can modify the speed reference 370 by the derivative of the reference phase angle trajectory 392 before comparing the actual speed 368 to the reference speed 370 to generate the speed error 378. Specifically, the controller logic 350 can generate a rate of change 395 for each of the plurality of reference phase angle set points 394, which can be used to modify the speed reference 370 (e.g., at the summing junction 373) before comparing the actual speed 368 to the reference speed to generate the speed error 378. More specifically, the modified speed reference 382 and the actual speed 368 can be provided to the summing junction 372 to generate the speed error 378. In this manner, the rate of change 395 of the reference phase angle trajectory 392 can affect the output of the fuel controller module (e.g., the fuel command) to more accurately drive the actual speed 368 to the reference speed 370. In some embodiments, the rate of change 395 (i.e., the differential of the reference phase angle trajectory 392) may first be provided to a multiplier 385 prior to the summing junction 373. The multiplier 385 may multiply the rate of change 395 by a constant. In this manner, the rate of change 395 may be scaled (by the multiplier 385) prior to being provided to the summing junction 373. For example, if the rate of change 395 of the phase angle trajectory is 15° per second, and the multiplier is 2, the scaled rate of change 395 may be 30° per second.

[0088] Specific reference Fig. 9In many embodiments, the controller logic 350 may also include providing an integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to the fuel controller module 364 via the integrator 384 to generate the fuel command 366 based on the integral 386 of the motor power command 359. More specifically, once the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 are initially detected or determined (i.e., one or more thrusters require synchrophasing), the fuel controller module 364 may generate the fuel command 366 based on (e.g., solely) the speed error 378, and the phase controller module 356 may generate the motor power command 359 based on (e.g., solely) the phase error 376. However, once synchronized phasing is approximately achieved (i.e., the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 are each driven to near zero, such as within 20% of zero, or such as within 15% of zero, or such as within 10% of zero, or such as within 5% of zero, or such as within 1% of zero), the controller logic 350 may stop providing the speed error 376 to the fuel controller module 364 so that the fuel command 366 is no longer generated based on the speed error 376. The controller logic 350 may then provide the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to the fuel controller module 364 to generate the fuel command 366 based on the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 so as to maintain synchronized phasing (i.e., maintain the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 near zero).

[0089] In many embodiments, the controller logic may include determining when the phase error is within a predetermined range (e.g., a predetermined range of zero, such as within 15% of zero, or such as within 10% of zero, or such as within 5% of zero, or such as within 1% of zero). Once the phase error is within the predetermined range, the controller logic 350 may stop providing the speed error 376 to the fuel controller module 364 so that the fuel command 366 is no longer generated based on the speed error 376. Subsequently, the controller logic 350 may provide the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to the fuel controller module 364 to generate the fuel command 366 based on the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to help maintain the motor power command 359 within a predetermined range of zero, which also advantageously maintains synchronous phasing (i.e., maintaining the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 near zero).

[0090] In various embodiments, controller logic 350 may include determining when integral 386 of motor power command 359 is within a predetermined range of zero (eg, Fig. 9388 in FIG. 1 ), such as within 15% of zero, or such as within 10% of zero, or such as within 5% of zero, or such as within 1% of zero. Once the motor power command 359 is within a predetermined range of zero (or at zero), the controller logic 350 may stop providing the speed error 376 to the fuel controller module 364 so that the fuel command 366 is no longer generated based on the speed error 376. Subsequently, the controller logic 350 may provide the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to the fuel controller module 364 to generate the fuel command 366 based on the integral 386 of the motor power command 359 to help maintain the motor power command 359 within a predetermined range of zero, which also advantageously maintains synchronous phasing (i.e., maintaining the phase error 376 and / or the speed error 378 near zero).

[0091] Reference now Figure 7 , a flow chart of one embodiment of a method 1000 of operating a propulsion system according to an embodiment of the present subject matter is shown. In general, this document will refer to the above reference Figure 1-9 The method 1000 is described with reference to the propulsion system 50, thrusters 52, 54, aircraft 10, gas turbine engine 100, supervisory controller 300, and control logic 350 described herein. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the disclosed method 1000 may generally be used with any suitable turbine and / or may be used in conjunction with a system having any other suitable system configuration. In addition, although for purposes of illustration and discussion, Fig.10 The steps are depicted as being performed in a particular order, but unless otherwise specified in the claims, the methods discussed herein are not limited to any particular order or arrangement. Using the disclosure provided herein, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the various steps of the methods disclosed herein may be omitted, rearranged, combined, and / or adjusted in various ways without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Dashed boxes may indicate optional steps of method 1000.

[0092] The propulsion system according to method 1000 may include at least two propellers. The at least two propellers may each include a fan. The propulsion system of method 1000 may include determining an actual paired phase difference between a pair of propellers of the at least two propellers at (1002). The actual paired phase difference (i.e., the phase angle of the pair of propellers) may be the difference between an angle θ of one of the at least two propellers and an angle θ of another of the at least two propellers at a certain moment. For example, at a particular moment (i.e., a certain moment), the supervisory controller may determine or receive (e.g., by measuring, sensing, or estimating) an angle between a reference line and a propeller blade of each fan closest to the reference line, and these angles may then be compared to each other (e.g., by obtaining an absolute value of the difference) to determine the paired phase difference.

[0093] In a propulsion system or aircraft having more than two thrusters, method 1000 may include generating multiple pairs of thrusters (e.g., a first pair between thruster one and thruster two, a second pair between thruster one and thruster three, a third pair between thruster one and thruster four, etc.) that are all relative to the same reference thruster. Subsequently, method 1000 may include generating a pairwise phase difference for each pair of thrusters.

[0094] In an exemplary embodiment, method 1000 may also include generating a reference phase angle for the pair of thrusters at (1004). For example, the reference phase angle may be a desired or target paired phase difference between the given pair of thrusters. The reference phase angle may be generated based on operating conditions of the thrusters. In various embodiments, method 1000 may also include comparing the actual paired phase difference with the reference phase angle to generate a phase error at (1006), and providing the phase error to a phase controller module at (1008) to generate an output based on the phase error. In some embodiments, method 1000 may include generating a motor power command as an output at (1010). In other embodiments, method 1000 may include generating a speed reference modifier as an output at (1012).

[0095] The method 1000 may also include adjusting the speed of at least one of the at least two propellers based on the output to drive the phase error toward zero at (1014). In some embodiments, adjusting the speed at (1014) may include adjusting the amount of power transferred between the motor and the shaft based on the motor power command at (1016).

[0096] In many embodiments, the method may include generating a speed reference for one or more of the at least two thrusters, and the method may include receiving an actual speed of a thruster of the at least two thrusters. In such embodiments, the method 1000 may include, at (1020), comparing the actual speed to a reference speed to generate a speed error. In some embodiments, the speed reference may be directly compared (e.g., added or subtracted) to the actual speed to determine the speed error. In other embodiments, the method 1000 may include, at (1018), modifying the speed reference using a speed reference modifier before comparing the actual speed to the reference speed to generate the speed error.

[0097] In many embodiments, the method 1000 may include providing the speed error to a fuel controller module at (1022) to generate a fuel command based on the speed error. In such embodiments, the method 1000 may include adjusting the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section of the thrusters of the at least two thrusters using the fuel delivery system at (1024) to drive the speed error toward zero. For example, if the speed error is 500 RPM (e.g., the actual speed is 2500 RPM and the reference speed is 3000 RPM), the fuel controller module 365 may generate a fuel command to supply an increased amount of fuel to the combustion section to increase the actual speed, which causes the actual speed to converge toward the reference speed, thereby driving the speed error toward zero.

[0098] Fig.11 A block diagram of an example computing system 600 is provided. The computing system 600 may be used to implement aspects disclosed herein. The computing system 600 may include one or more computing devices 602. For example, the controller 72, the first gas turbine engine controller 156, the second gas turbine engine controller 158, the supervisory controller 300, and / or the fuel controller disclosed herein may be constructed and operated in the same or similar manner as one of the computing devices 602.

[0099] like Figure 8 As shown in , one or more computing devices 602 may each include one or more processors 604 and one or more memory devices 606. One or more processors 604 may include any suitable processing device, such as a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an integrated circuit, a logic device, or other suitable processing device. One or more memory devices 606 may include one or more computer-readable media, including but not limited to one or more non-transitory computer-readable media, RAM, ROM, hard disk drives, flash drives, and other memory devices, such as one or more buffer devices.

[0100] The one or more memory devices 606 may store information accessible by the one or more processors 604, including computer-readable or computer-executable instructions 608 that may be executed by the one or more processors 604. The instructions 608 may be any set of instructions or control logic that causes the one or more processors 604 to operate when executed by the one or more processors 604. The instructions 608 may be software written in any suitable programming language, or may be implemented in hardware. In some embodiments, the instructions 608 may be executed by the one or more processors 604 to cause the one or more processors 604 to operate.

[0101] The memory device 606 may further store data 610 that may be accessed by the processor 604. For example, the data 610 may include sensor data, such as engine parameters as described herein, model data, logic data, etc. According to an example embodiment of the present disclosure, the data 610 may include one or more tables, functions, algorithms, models, equations, etc.

[0102] The one or more computing devices 602 may also include a communication interface 612 for communicating with other components of the aircraft, for example. The communication interface 612 may include any suitable components for interfacing with one or more networks, including, for example, a transmitter, a receiver, a port, a controller, an antenna, or other suitable components.

[0103] The technology discussed herein refers to computer-based systems, actions taken by computer-based systems, information sent to computer-based systems, and information sent from computer-based systems. It should be understood that the inherent flexibility of computer-based systems allows for various possible configurations, combinations, and divisions of tasks and functions between and within components. For example, the processing discussed herein can be implemented using a single computing device or multiple computing devices working in combination. Databases, memories, instructions, and applications can be implemented on a single system, or can be distributed on multiple systems.

[0104] Reference now Fig.12 , showing that the embodiment of the present disclosure can be stored in Figure 4 and Figure 5 1 is a block diagram of a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) control logic 500 within and implemented by the supervisory controller 300 shown. As shown, the MIMO control logic 500 may include a MIMO control module 502. The MIMO control module 502 may utilize mathematical algorithms to analyze multiple input signals and generate control signals for outputs. These algorithms may be based on different control strategies, such as PID (proportional integral differential), LQR (linear quadratic regulator), or MPC (model predictive control). The MIMO control module 502 may take into account the interaction between inputs and outputs, meaning that changing one input will not only affect the corresponding output, but also other outputs. This may be represented using a mathematical model of the system, such as a transfer function or a state space model.

[0105] In many embodiments, the supervisory controller 300 can determine a speed error 504, a phase error 506, and a torque error 508. For example, the controller 300 can compare an actual speed (e.g., a rotational speed of the HP shaft and / or the LP shaft) with a reference speed to generate the speed error 504. Additionally, the controller 300 can compare an actual pairwise phase difference with a reference phase angle to generate the phase error 506. Additionally, the controller 300 can compare an actual torque (e.g., a torque of the HP shaft and / or the LP shaft) with a reference torque to generate a torque error. The speed error 504, the phase error 506, and the torque error 508 can be provided to the MIMO control module.

[0106] In an exemplary embodiment, the MIMO control module 502 may utilize the MIMO control module 502 to generate a fuel command 510, a pitch command 512, and a torque command 514 based at least in part on the speed error 504, the phase error 506, and the torque error 508. Notably, the MIMO control module 502 may take into account the interaction between the inputs and the outputs, meaning that changing one input will not only affect the corresponding output, but also the other outputs (e.g., an adjustment to any one of the speed error 504, the phase error 506, and the torque error 508 may result in an adjustment to all of the fuel command 510, the pitch command 512, and the torque command 514).

[0107] Subsequently, the gas turbine engine may perform one or more control actions based at least in part on the generated fuel command 510, pitch command 512, and torque command 514. For example, the fuel command 510 may be provided to the fuel delivery system to adjust (e.g., increase or decrease) the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section, thereby adjusting the speed of the propeller. The pitch command 512 may be provided to the controller 300 for adjusting the pitch P of the fan blades 128 via the actuator 132. The torque command 514 may be provided to at least one of the motors 56-1, 56-2 to adjust the amount of torque (i.e., the power delivered) applied to the LP shaft and / or the HP shaft from the motors 56-1, 56-2.

[0108] Although specific features of various embodiments may be shown in some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only. In accordance with the principles of the present disclosure, any feature of a drawing may be referenced and / or claimed in conjunction with any feature of any other drawing.

[0109] The present disclosure provides various control methods for synchronously phasing two or more thrusters by utilizing motors and / or fuel delivery systems of the two or more thrusters. In particular, the various control methods advantageously utilize a phase control module for generating an output based on a phase error, which output is provided to the motor and / or fuel delivery system to drive the phase error to zero. Similarly, the various control methods advantageously utilize a fuel control module for generating a fuel command based on a speed error, which fuel command is provided to the fuel delivery system for driving the speed error toward zero.

[0110] Further aspects are provided by the subject matter of the following clauses:

[0111] A propulsion system comprises: at least two thrusters, each of the at least two thrusters comprising a fan; and a controller having one or more processors configured to implement controller logic, wherein when implementing the controller logic, the one or more processors are configured to: determine an actual paired phase difference between a pair of thrusters among the at least two thrusters; generate a reference phase angle for the pair of thrusters; compare the actual paired phase difference with the reference phase angle to generate a phase error; provide the phase error to a phase controller module to generate an output based on the phase error; and adjust the speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters based on the output to drive the phase error toward zero.

[0112] A propulsion system according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein each of the at least two propellers further includes a shaft connected to the fan and a motor operably connected to the shaft, and wherein when implementing a phase angle control scheme, the one or more processors are constructed to: provide the phase error to the phase controller module to generate the output as a motor power command, the motor power command being based on the phase error; and adjust the amount of power transferred between the motor and the shaft based on the motor power command.

[0113] A propulsion system according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein each of the at least two thrusters further includes a fuel delivery system operably connected to the combustion section, wherein when implementing the speed control scheme, the one or more processors are further constructed to: generate a speed reference for one or more of the at least two thrusters; receive an actual speed of the thruster of the at least two thrusters; compare the actual speed with the reference speed to generate a speed error; provide the speed error to a fuel controller module to generate a fuel command based on the speed error; and adjust the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section of the one or more thrusters of the at least two thrusters using the fuel delivery system to drive the speed error toward zero.

[0114] A propulsion system according to any preceding clause, wherein the one or more processors are further constructed to: generate, using the phase controller module, a speed reference modifier for the one or more thrusters of the at least two thrusters as the output based on the phase error; and modify the speed reference using the speed reference modifier before comparing the actual speed with the speed reference to generate the speed error.

[0115] A propulsion system according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein the one or more processors are further constructed to: determine whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; when the phase error is determined to be less than the error threshold, generate only a motor power command as the output based on the phase error; and adjust the speed of at least one of the at least two propellers based on the output.

[0116] A propulsion system according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein the one or more processors are further constructed to: determine whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; when the phase error is determined to exceed the error threshold, generate a speed reference modifier for only the thruster of the at least two thrusters as the output based on the phase error; and adjust the speed of at least one thruster of the at least two thrusters based on the output.

[0117] A propulsion system according to any preceding clause, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to provide a reference phase angle trajectory to a phase angle control scheme via a trajectory planner over a time period, the reference phase angle trajectory comprising a plurality of reference phase angle set points, each reference phase angle set point at a corresponding time within the time period.

[0118] A propulsion system according to any preceding clause, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: generate a differential of the reference phase angle trajectory; and modify the speed reference by the differential of the reference phase angle trajectory before comparing the actual speed to the speed reference to generate the speed error.

[0119] A propulsion system as described in any preceding clause, wherein the output of the phase controller module is an electric motor power command, and wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: provide an integral of the electric motor power command to the fuel controller module via an integrator.

[0120] A propulsion system as described in any of the preceding clauses, wherein the one or more processors are further constructed to: determine when the phase error is within a predetermined range; stop providing the speed error to a fuel controller module to generate the fuel command based on the speed error; and provide the integral of the motor power command to the fuel controller module to generate the fuel command based on the integral of the motor power command.

[0121] A propulsion system according to any preceding clause, wherein the one or more processors are further constructed to: compare an actual speed with the speed reference to generate a speed error; compare an actual torque with a reference torque to generate a torque error; provide the phase error, the speed error, and the torque error to a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) control module; generate a fuel command, a pitch command, and a torque command using the MIMO control module; and perform one or more control actions.

[0122] A method for operating a propulsion system, the propulsion system comprising at least two propellers, each of the at least two propellers comprising a fan, the method comprising: determining an actual paired phase difference between a pair of propellers among the at least two propellers; generating a reference phase angle for the pair of propellers; comparing the actual paired phase difference with the reference phase angle to generate a phase error; providing the phase error to a phase controller module to generate an output based on the phase error; and adjusting the speed of at least one of the at least two propellers based on the output to drive the phase error toward zero.

[0123] A method according to any preceding clause, wherein each of the at least two propellers further includes a shaft coupled to the fan and a motor operably connected to the shaft, and wherein the method further includes: providing the phase error to the phase controller module to generate the output as a motor power command, the motor power command being based on the phase error; and adjusting the amount of power transferred between the motor and the shaft based on the motor power command.

[0124] A method according to any preceding clause, wherein each of the at least two thrusters further includes a fuel delivery system operably connected to the combustion section, and wherein the method further includes: generating a speed reference for one or more of the at least two thrusters; receiving an actual speed of the thruster of the at least two thrusters; comparing the actual speed with the speed reference to generate a speed error; providing the speed error to a fuel controller module to generate a fuel command based on the speed error; and adjusting the amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section of the thruster of the at least two thrusters using the fuel delivery system to drive the speed error toward zero.

[0125] A method according to any preceding clause, wherein the method further comprises: generating, using the phase controller module, a speed reference modifier for the thruster of the at least two thrusters as the output based on the phase error; and modifying the speed reference using the speed reference modifier before comparing the actual speed with the speed reference to generate the speed error.

[0126] A method according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein the method further comprises: determining whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; when the phase error is determined to be less than the error threshold, generating only a motor power command as the output based on the phase error; and adjusting the speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters based on the output.

[0127] A method according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein the method further comprises: determining whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; when the phase error is determined to exceed the error threshold, generating a speed reference modifier for only the thruster of the at least two thrusters as the output based on the phase error; and adjusting the speed of at least one thruster of the at least two thrusters based on the output.

[0128] A method according to any of the preceding clauses, wherein the method further comprises: providing a reference phase angle trajectory to the phase controller module via a trajectory planner within a time period, the reference phase angle trajectory comprising a plurality of reference phase angle set points, each reference phase angle set point at a corresponding time within the time period.

[0129] A method according to any preceding clause, wherein the method further comprises: generating a differential of the reference phase angle trajectory; and modifying the speed reference by the differential of the reference phase angle trajectory before comparing the actual speed to the speed reference to generate the speed error.

[0130] A method as claimed in any preceding clause, wherein the output of the phase controller module is a motor power command, and wherein the method further comprises providing an integral of the motor power command to the fuel controller module via an integrator.

[0131] This written description uses examples to disclose the present disclosure, including the best mode, and also enables any person skilled in the art to practice the present disclosure, including making and using any device or system and performing any combined methods. The patent scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. If these other examples include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements that do not differ substantially from the literal language of the claims, these other examples are intended to fall within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A propulsion system, characterized in that: include: at least two propellers, each of the at least two propellers comprising a fan; and A controller having one or more processors configured to implement controller logic, wherein when implementing the controller logic, the one or more processors are configured to: determining an actual paired phase difference between a pair of thrusters of the at least two thrusters; generating a reference phase angle for the pair of thrusters; comparing the actual pairwise phase difference with the reference phase angle to generate a phase error; providing the phase error to a phase controller module to generate an output based on the phase error; and The speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters is adjusted based on the output to drive the phase error toward zero.

2. The propulsion system according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, Each of the at least two propellers further comprises a shaft coupled to the fan and a motor operably connected to the shaft, and wherein when implementing the phase angle control scheme, the one or more processors are configured to: providing the phase error to the phase controller module to generate the output as a motor power command, the motor power command being based on the phase error; and An amount of power transferred between the motor and the shaft is adjusted based on the motor power command.

3. The propulsion system according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, Each of the at least two thrusters further comprises a fuel delivery system operably connected to the combustion section, wherein when implementing the speed control scheme, the one or more processors are further configured to: generating a speed reference for one or more of the at least two thrusters; receiving an actual speed of the propeller of the at least two propellers; comparing the actual speed with the reference speed to generate a speed error; providing the speed error to a fuel controller module to generate a fuel command based on the speed error; and An amount of fuel supplied to the combustion section of the one or more of the at least two thrusters using the fuel delivery system is adjusted to drive the speed error toward zero.

4. The propulsion system according to claim 3, characterized in that: in, The one or more processors are further configured to: generating, with the phase controller module, as the output, a speed reference modifier for the one or more of the at least two thrusters based on the phase error; and The speed reference is modified using the speed reference modifier before comparing the actual speed with the speed reference to generate the speed error.

5. The propulsion system according to claim 1, characterized in that: in, The one or more processors are further configured to: determining whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; generating only a motor power command as the output based on the phase error when the phase error is determined to be less than an error threshold; A speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters is adjusted based on the output.

6. The propulsion system according to claim 1, characterized in that in, The one or more processors are further configured to: determining whether the phase error is less than or exceeds an error threshold; generating as the output a speed reference modifier for only the thruster of the at least two thrusters based on the phase error when the phase error is determined to exceed an error threshold; and A speed of at least one of the at least two thrusters is adjusted based on the output.

7. The propulsion system according to claim 3, characterized in that: in, The one or more processors are further configured to: A reference phase angle trajectory is provided to a phase angle control scheme via a trajectory planner over a time period, the reference phase angle trajectory comprising a plurality of reference phase angle set points, each reference phase angle set point at a respective time within the time period.

8. The propulsion system according to claim 7, characterized in that in, The one or more processors are further configured to: generating a differential of the reference phase angle trajectory; and The speed reference is modified by the differentiation of the reference phase angle trajectory before comparing the actual speed to the speed reference to generate the speed error.

9. The propulsion system according to claim 7, characterized in that: in, The output of the phase controller module is a motor power command, and wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: An integral of the electric machine power command is provided to the fuel controller module via an integrator.

10. The propulsion system according to claim 9, characterized in that in, The one or more processors are further configured to: determining when the phase error is within a predetermined range; ceasing to provide the speed error to a fuel controller module to generate the fuel command based on the speed error; as well as The integral of the electric machine power command is provided to the fuel controller module to generate the fuel command based on the integral of the electric machine power command.

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