Compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration integrated with starting and generating integrated motor and aircraft

Abstract

The utility model relates to a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration integrated with a starting and generating integrated motor and an aircraft, the engine configuration comprises a gas turbine engine, the gas turbine engine comprises an air inlet casing, an air compressor, a combustion chamber and a turbine, the air compressor is coaxially connected with the turbine through a main shaft, the air compressor is a centrifugal air compressor, and the combustion chamber is communicated with the combustion chamber; the turbine is a centripetal turbine, and the centrifugal compressor and the centripetal turbine are spaced by a certain distance in the axial direction of the main shaft and are mounted in a back-to-back manner; and the starting and starting integrated motor is fixed relative to the air inlet casing and is provided with a transmission shaft, and the transmission shaft is connected with the main shaft through a coupler. The system has the advantages that the characteristics of high rotating speed and low oil consumption of an aviation gas turbine engine and small size, high power density and the like of a high-speed motor can be brought into full play, a set of efficient lightweight power system is provided, a pure electric power system is replaced, the flight time and endurance mileage of the unmanned aerial vehicle are increased, and development of low-altitude economy is assisted.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of engines, and in particular to a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration and an aircraft with an integrated starter motor. Background Art

[0002] The low-altitude economy has been officially listed as a strategic emerging industry by the state, and many places are actively seizing the opportunities of intensive innovation and rapid development of the low-altitude economic industry. Among them, EVTOL (Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing) is an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. This type of aircraft is powered by electricity and can take off and land vertically like a helicopter, without the need for a traditional runway. Due to its electric drive characteristics, eVTOLs generally have the advantages of lower operating costs, a quieter operating environment, and less environmental impact when used in urban environments. They have different designs, including multi-rotors, tilt-rotors, and other innovative layouts, designed to achieve efficient and safe urban air travel (such as air taxi services) or rapid transportation solutions within a specific area. With the development of technology, eVTOL has become an important part of the future travel field, especially urban air traffic (UAM, Urban Air Mobility).

[0003] However, at this stage, electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL) use pure electric mode and have a short range, so there are also the following problems: 1. Purely electric-driven eVTOLs usually have a short range, which means that they may not be able to cover all expected routes or mission requirements. This limits the application of eVTOLs in long-distance travel, inter-city or international flights. 2. The energy density of battery technology is relatively low, which means that in order to provide sufficient endurance, eVTOLs may need to carry a large number of battery packs. This will increase the weight of the aircraft, which in turn affects its performance, load capacity and fuel efficiency. Utility Model Content

[0004] The first technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor that can effectively extend the flight range of an aircraft in view of the current status of the prior art.

[0005] The second technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an aircraft of compact hybrid electric propulsion engine type using the above-mentioned integrated starter motor in view of the current status of the prior art.

[0006] The technical solution adopted by the utility model to solve the first technical problem is: a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor, comprising:

[0007] A gas turbine engine, comprising an air intake casing, a compressor, a combustion chamber and a turbine, wherein the compressor and the turbine are coaxially connected via a main shaft, the compressor is a centrifugal compressor, and the turbine is a centripetal turbine, wherein the centrifugal compressor and the centripetal turbine are spaced a certain distance apart in the axial direction of the main shaft and are installed back to back;

[0008] The starting-integrated motor is fixed relative to the air intake casing and has a transmission shaft, which is connected to the main shaft through a coupling.

[0009] In order to connect the main shaft with the transmission shaft of the starting motor and ensure the stability of the main shaft rotation, the air intake casing defines a mounting hole for the main shaft to pass through, and a bearing sleeved outside the main shaft is provided in the mounting hole.

[0010] As an improvement, the combustion chamber is a recirculation combustion chamber. The design of the recirculation combustion chamber makes its structure relatively simple and occupies less space, so it is very suitable for installation and use in a limited space. This compact structure also helps to reduce the weight of the engine, making it more lightweight and flexible. The design of the recirculation combustion chamber makes the axial dimension of the engine relatively small, thereby reducing the overall size of the engine. This not only helps to reduce the weight of the engine, but also allows the engine and the compressor to cooperate better, achieving a more compact and reasonable overall layout of the engine.

[0011] As an improvement, it also includes a diffuser arranged between the compressor and the combustion chamber.

[0012] In order to make the overall structure of the engine more compact, it also includes a combustion chamber casing located outside the combustion chamber, and the combustion chamber casing is fixedly connected to the air intake casing.

[0013] As an improvement, it also includes a power supply system electrically connected to the starter motor and the external fan electrical device, and the power supply system includes a rectifier and an inverter. During the starting process, the starter motor first acts as a power source to drive the engine to rotate and start ignition. After the engine ignites successfully and reaches the rated speed, the starter motor is transformed from a starter motor to a generator to generate electricity. The generated electricity is directly supplied to the motor of the multi-rotor drone through the rectifier and inverter.

[0014] The technical solution adopted by the utility model to solve the second technical problem is: an aircraft, including a power device, and the power device adopts the compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor as mentioned above.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the utility model are as follows: the compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter and generator motor of the present application adopts an oil-electric hybrid solution of an aviation gas turbine + a high-power density high-speed motor direct drive. This configuration can give full play to the high speed and low fuel consumption of aviation gas turbine engines and the small size and high power density of high-speed motors, providing a set of efficient and lightweight power systems to replace pure electric power systems, increase the flight time and cruising range of drones, and help the development of the low-altitude economy. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the engine configuration of an embodiment of the utility model;

[0017] Figure 2 It is a cross-sectional view of the engine configuration of an embodiment of the utility model. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The present invention will be described in further detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0019] In the specification and claims of the present invention, terms indicating directions, such as "front", "rear", "up", "down", "left", "right", "side", "top", "bottom", etc., are used to describe various exemplary structural parts and elements of the present invention, but these terms are used here only for the purpose of convenience of description and are determined based on the exemplary orientations shown in the accompanying drawings. Since the embodiments disclosed in the present invention can be arranged in different directions, these terms indicating directions are only used as explanations and should not be regarded as limitations. For example, "up" and "down" are not necessarily limited to directions opposite to or consistent with the direction of gravity.

[0020] Figure 1-Figure 2The utility model shows a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor and a preferred embodiment of an aircraft. An aircraft generally includes a fuselage structure, a power unit, a flight control system, and a navigation system. The fuselage structure is the main frame of the aircraft, carrying all other components, including a cockpit, a cargo compartment (if any), and all necessary mechanical and electronic systems. The power unit is a key part of the aircraft. In this embodiment, the power unit adopts a hybrid power system, that is, a combination of an electric motor and a fuel engine to improve the performance and range of the aircraft. The hybrid power system provides electricity to the electric motor, and the electric motor drives the rotor or rotary wing to generate lift. Its structure is specifically described below. The flight control system is responsible for monitoring the status of the aircraft, receiving the driver's instructions and controlling the flight of the aircraft, specifically including controlling the attitude, speed, altitude and heading of the aircraft. The navigation system is used to determine the position, speed and direction of the aircraft and compare it with the predetermined flight path. It can be achieved by using a global positioning system (GPS) and other sensors.

[0021] The main inventive point of this embodiment is to provide a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor, which includes a gas turbine engine, an integrated starter motor 20, and a power supply system electrically connected to the integrated starter motor 20 and an external fan electrical device.

[0022] The gas turbine engine includes an air intake casing 10, a compressor 12, a diffuser 14, a combustion chamber 13, a combustion chamber casing 130 and a turbine 15. The compressor 12 and the turbine 15 are coaxially connected through a main shaft 11, wherein the compressor 12 is a centrifugal compressor 12. Compared with the axial compressor 12, the centrifugal compressor has a high pressure ratio and a simple structure; the turbine 15 is a centrifugal turbine 15, which can obtain a large specific work and efficiency. The centrifugal compressor 12 and the centrifugal turbine 15 are spaced a certain distance apart in the axial direction of the main shaft 11 and installed back to back. This installation method can effectively reduce the combined force on the engine main shaft 11, reduce the workload of the bearing 16 of the core component of the engine, and thus extend the service life. The diffuser 14 is arranged between the compressor 12 and the combustion chamber 13. The combustion chamber 13 is a recirculation combustion chamber 13. The design of the recirculation combustion chamber 13 makes its structure relatively simple and occupies less space, so it is very suitable for installation and use in a limited space. This compact structure also helps to reduce the weight of the engine, making it more portable and flexible. The design of the recirculating combustion chamber 13 reduces the axial dimension of the engine relatively, thereby reducing the overall size of the engine. This not only helps to reduce the weight of the engine, but also allows the engine to better cooperate with the compressor 12, achieving a more compact and reasonable overall layout of the engine.

[0023] The combustion chamber casing 130 is located outside the combustion chamber 13 and is fixedly connected to the above-mentioned intake casing 10. The intake casing 10 defines a mounting channel 100 for the main shaft 11 to pass through. The mounting channel 100 is provided with a bearing 16 sleeved outside the main shaft 11. There are two bearings 16 arranged at intervals along the axial direction.

[0024] The starter-generator motor 20 is fixed relative to the air intake casing 10, and has a transmission shaft, which is connected to the main shaft 11 of the turbine 15 engine through a coupling 21. That is, the starter-generator motor 20 is directly connected to the turbine 15 engine. This installation method is not only simple to install and easy to disassemble, but also can effectively reduce the error between the shafts and reduce the difficulty of shaft processing. Because the coupling 21 is not used to transmit power, the engine and the generator need to adopt a coaxial design, which will increase the manufacturing cost and processing difficulty. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter-generator motor in this embodiment can give full play to the advantages of high power density of high-speed motors, thereby improving space utilization. On the other hand, it has a simple configuration and a small number of parts, which can reduce the use of batteries, and the production price of the whole machine is low and the quality is light.

[0025] The power supply system of this embodiment includes a rectifier and an inverter. During the starting process, the starter motor 20 first acts as a power source to drive the engine to rotate and start ignition. After the engine ignition is successfully transferred to the rated speed, the starter motor 20 is converted from a starter motor to a generator to generate electricity. The generated electricity is directly supplied to the motor of the multi-rotor drone through the rectifier and the inverter. That is, since the aviation gas turbine engine is directly connected to the high-speed starter motor 20 through the coupling 21, after the engine ignition is successfully transferred to the rated speed, it can drive the high-speed starter motor 20 to generate electricity. The generated electricity is connected to the rectifier through a wire, and then connected to the inverter through the rectifier. The inverter contains multiple power channels and is connected to the drive motor on the multi-rotor aircraft through a wire to drive the propeller.

[0026] The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter and generator in this embodiment adopts an oil-electric hybrid solution of an aviation gas turbine + a high-power density high-speed motor direct drive. This configuration can give full play to the high speed and low fuel consumption of aviation gas turbine engines and the small size and high power density of high-speed motors, providing a set of efficient and lightweight power systems to replace pure electric power systems, increase the flight time and cruising range of drones, and promote the development of the low-altitude economy.

Claims

1. A compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter motor, characterized in that include: A gas turbine engine comprises an air intake casing (10), a compressor (12), a combustion chamber (13) and a turbine (15), wherein the compressor (12) and the turbine (15) are coaxially connected via a main shaft (11), the compressor (12) is a centrifugal compressor (12), and the turbine (15) is a centripetal turbine (15), and the centrifugal compressor (12) and the centripetal turbine (15) are spaced a certain distance apart in the axial direction of the main shaft (11) and are installed back to back; The starting-integrated motor (20) is fixed relative to the air intake casing (10) and has a transmission shaft, and the transmission shaft is connected to the main shaft (11) through a coupling (21).

2. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter and generator according to claim 1 is characterized by: The air intake casing (10) defines a mounting hole (100) for the main shaft (11) to pass through, and a bearing (16) sleeved outside the main shaft (11) is provided in the mounting hole (100).

3. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter and generator according to claim 1 is characterized by: The combustion chamber (13) is a reflow combustion chamber (13).

4. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter and generator as claimed in claim 1 is characterized by: It also includes a diffuser (14) arranged between the compressor (12) and the combustion chamber (13).

5. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter and generator according to claim 1 is characterized by: It also includes a combustion chamber casing (130) located outside the combustion chamber (13), and the combustion chamber casing (130) is fixedly connected to the air intake casing (10).

6. The compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with integrated starter motor according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: It also includes a power supply system electrically connected to the starting-in-one motor (20) and an external fan electrical device, wherein the power supply system includes a rectifier and an inverter.

7. An aircraft, comprising a power plant, characterized in that: The power device adopts a compact hybrid electric propulsion engine configuration with an integrated starter motor as described in any one of claims 1 to 6.

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