Aircraft configured as a power generator, equipment and kit for such an aircraft, and method for equipping an aircraft

Abstract

The invention relates to an aircraft (1) comprising at least one turbomachine (10, 20) that is free of receiver blades, and a current generator (30) having at least one shaft (31) mechanically coupled to a rotor shaft (110) of the turbomachine (10). The current generator (30) is configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its shaft (31). The invention further relates to equipment (5) for an aircraft (1), an equipment kit, and methods for equipping and restoring the aircraft (1) to flight condition.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The invention relates to the field of aeronautics and more specifically to aircraft. The invention relates more particularly to an aircraft, aircraft equipment, an aircraft equipment kit, a method for transforming an aircraft, a method for restoring an aircraft to flight condition and a method for starting a turbomachine of an aircraft. PREVIOUS STATE OF THE ART During natural disasters, such as cyclones and earthquakes, electricity production and transmission are generally disrupted. However, in such a situation, the need for electricity is significant, particularly for providing first aid, organizing relief efforts, and supplying basic necessities to survivors, such as drinking water. Thus, to compensate for insufficient production and / or the impossibility of bringing in electricity, it is known to bring in electric generators. However, such generators, in order to provide sufficient production, are heavy and therefore relatively difficult to transport to regions that are generally, due to the consequences of the disaster, difficult to access. To solve such a problem, it would be beneficial to find a solution that generates electricity using resources already at least partially available locally, thus limiting the logistical needs for such production. DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The invention aims to remedy these drawbacks and thus aims to provide electricity production directly on the site of a natural disaster while limiting the resources to be brought on site. The invention relates to this purpose to an aircraft comprising at least one turbomachine: The turbomachine is free of receiver blades, and the aircraft further comprises a current generator having at least one shaft mechanically coupled with a rotor shaft of the turbomachine, the current generator being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its shaft. An aircraft converted into a power generator by coupling its turbomachine with a power generator is a high-capacity power generator. Indeed, while a conventional generator set rarely exceeds 1500 kW, a single turbomachine can provide a peak power of typically 25,000 kW in a takeoff configuration and a continuous power output of nearly 10,000 kW. Thus, such an aircraft, stationed at an airport during a disaster, can, through the simple modification according to the invention, replace more than six generators, requiring only the power generator to be brought to the site. This capacity can, of course, be doubled if at least two of the aircraft's turbomachines are equipped with power generators according to the principle of the invention. It should be noted that it is also conceivable, within the framework of the invention, that such a generator could be stored at the airport in anticipation of such a natural disaster, thereby eliminating the need to bring it to the scene of the disaster. An aircraft according to the invention also allows the use of the aircraft's fuel reserves, generally around 2 tonnes, and those of the airport. This also eliminates the need to transport fuel to the disaster site for electricity production. Of course, according to an advantage of the invention, the aircraft can, after the production and transmission of electricity have been standardized, by a simple decoupling of the turbomachine with the current generator and by a simple installation of the receiver blades, regain its ability to fly. Finally, the invention also allows for the possibility of supplying an aircraft The turbomachine can be a turbojet engine that is free of fan blades. Such a turbojet engine makes it possible to provide a particularly large generation of electricity and therefore benefits particularly from the possibilities offered by the invention. The invention further relates to equipment for an aircraft comprising at least one turbomachine, the equipment comprising: a current generator having at least one shaft configured to be mechanically coupled with a blower disk of the turbomachine, the receiver blades of said turbomachine having been previously removed, said current generator being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its shaft. Such equipment makes it possible to equip a turbomachine of an aircraft in order to obtain an aircraft according to the invention and to benefit from the advantages associated therewith. The equipment may further include a cooling system capable of generating an airflow at the level of at least one heat exchanger of a turbomachine bearing lubrication circuit, the cooling system preferably comprising at least one of the following: a fan configured to be mounted on a brick heat exchanger, a fan configured to equip at least part of an air / oil surface heat exchanger, an assembly comprising at least one fan associated with an air distributor intended to equip at least part of a surface air / oil heat exchanger, the air distributor being configured to distribute the airflow generated by the fan towards the surface air / oil heat exchanger, an airflow generation system in a secondary flow path of the turbomachine towards a sampling scoop arranged in said secondary flow path of the turbomachine, said sampling scoop serving in particular at least one heat exchanger. This cooling system compensates for the absence of secondary airflow generated by the fan rotor during normal turbomachine operation, thus preventing the risk of overheating that such an absence could cause. It is therefore possible to operate the turbomachine at full speed for relatively long periods, i.e., exceeding 30 minutes, without damaging it. The equipment may further include a control box adapted to connect to on-board electronics of the turbomachine, the control box being adapted to provide control instructions of the turbomachine to the on-board electronics when the aircraft is equipped with the equipment, the control box preferably also being adapted to allow a measurement of the power supplied by the rotor shaft of the turbomachine and to control the operating point of the turbomachine on the basis of the result of the power measurement. Such a control box makes it possible to provide optimized operation of the turbomachine when the latter and the aircraft which includes it are equipped with equipment according to the invention. The equipment may also include a filter system intended to equip the air intake of the turbomachine and configured to prevent any ingestion of foreign matter into the turbomachine. In this way, it is possible to reduce the risk of ingestion of foreign bodies which could be detrimental to the proper functioning of the turbomachine. The invention further relates to an aircraft equipment kit (comprising: equipment according to the invention, at least one tool for dismantling receiver vanes) Such a kit is particularly advantageous for implementing equipment according to the invention. It is thus possible to store such a kit at an airport. In this way, in the event of a natural disaster, airport technicians have access to all the necessary components to implement the invention on one or more aircraft parked at the airport. The invention further relates to a method for converting an aircraft into an electrical generator, the aircraft comprising at least one turbomachine, the method comprising the following steps: supply of a current generator having at least one shaft configured to be coupled with a rotor shaft of the turbomachine, the current generator being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its shaft, removal of the turbomachine receiver blades coupling of the current generator shaft with the receiver disk of the turbomachine so as to mechanically couple the shaft with a rotor shaft of said turbomachine. Such a process allows the provision of an aircraft according to the invention and the benefit of the advantages associated with it. The process includes the following steps: decoupling of the current generator shaft from the turbomachine rotor shaft, installation of the turbomachine receiver blades around the receiver disk. In this way, using such a process it is possible to restore an aircraft according to the invention to a flying condition. Method for starting an aircraft turbomachine according to the invention, the method comprising the following steps: - Ignition of the aircraft, - ignition of an auxiliary onboard generator of the aircraft, - Ignition of the turbomachine, - fuel supply for the turbomachine, - Turbomachine start-up command to initiate current generation by the current generator whose shaft is driven by the turbomachine rotor shaft, - shutdown of the auxiliary on-board generator. Such a process makes it possible to obtain current generation with an aircraft according to the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be better understood with the aid of the following description, given solely by way of non-limiting example and made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: - Figure 1 illustrates a schematic view of an aircraft according to the invention supplying an electrical network, a turbomachine equipped according to the invention being illustrated inset, - Figure 2 schematically illustrates in cross-section an example of a turbomachine that could be fitted to an aircraft according to the invention, - Figure 3 schematically illustrates in cross-section a turbomachine of the aircraft after removal of its fan disk and before its coupling to the current generator, - Figure 4 schematically illustrates a cross-section of the aircraft's turbomachine after coupling to the current generator, - Figures 5A and 5B illustrate a cooling system according to a first and a second possibility of the invention, - Figure 6 illustrates an equipment kit according to the invention. The different parts represented in the figures are not on a uniform scale, to make the figures more legible. The different possibilities (variants and modes of implementation) should be understood as not being mutually exclusive and can be combined with each other. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC METHODS OF IMPLEMENTATION Figure 1 illustrates an aircraft 1 according to the invention supplying an electrical network 2 with electricity in order to provide, for example, a makeshift hospital or a refugee camp. According to the principle of the invention, aircraft 1 comprises: a first and a second turbomachine 10, 20, of which the first turbomachine 10 is made free of receiver blades, an on-board computer 21, the on-board computer 21 being configured to control aircraft components, such as an aircraft auxiliary generator 25 and the first and second turbomachines 10, 20 through a respective control unit 150 of the latter, a current generator 30 having an axis 31 mechanically coupled with a rotor shaft 110 of the first turbomachine 10, the current generator 30 being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its axis 31, a cooling system 50 arranged in the first turbomachine 10 configured to provide airflow in a secondary flow channel a control box 40 connected to the current generator 30 and configured to provide a required voltage, for example an alternating voltage of 220V, from the current generated by the current generator 30 to supply the electrical network 2, the control box also being configured to connect to a control unit 150 of the turbomachine 10. Of course, if in this example of embodiment only the first turbomachine 10 is equipped with the current generator 30 according to the principle of the invention, it is also conceivable, without departing from the scope of the invention, that all the turbomachines 10, 20 of the aircraft 1 are equipped with a respective current generator 30. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a type of turbomachine as fitted to an aircraft according to the invention, Figure 2 referring to the first turbomachine 10. According to this example, the first turbomachine 10 is a turbofan engine for aircraft, generally comprising a fan disk 112, equipped with fan blades 113 forming an assembly the fan rotor, intended for the suction of an airflow Fl which divides downstream of the fan into a primary flow F2 supplying a core of the turbofan and a secondary flow F3 bypassing this core and intended to provide in principle the majority of the thrust. The core of the turbojet engine comprises, as is well known, a low-pressure compressor 114, a high-pressure compressor 116, a combustion chamber 118 (for example, of the annular type), a high-pressure turbine 120, and a low-pressure turbine 122. The turbojet engine is enclosed by a nacelle 124 surrounding the secondary flow space 126. The turbine engine's rotor shafts, including the low-pressure rotor shaft 110 on which the fan disk is mounted, are rotatable around a longitudinal axis 128 of the turbojet. Of course, the invention is not limited to this type of turbomachine and is therefore applicable to any type of turbomachine. According to the principle of the invention, as illustrated in Figure 3, the first turbomachine 10 is free of receiver blades, which, for a turbojet engine, are the fan blades 113. More precisely, the first turbomachine 10 is free of fan blades, these having been previously removed. In this way, the removal of the fan blades allows access to the fan disk for coupling to the current generator 30. This coupling is illustrated in Figure 4. As shown in this figure, the current generator 30 is preferably an alternator. Alternatively, if a DC voltage is required, the current generator 30 can also be a dynamo. The current generator 30 has its shaft 31 coupled to the rotor shaft 110 of the first turbomachine 10 via the fan disk. The shaft 31 of the current generator 30 is adapted to allow such a coupling. Thus, the shaft 31 presents a complementary interface to the fan disk of the first turbomachine 10, free of the fan blades 113, such as, for example, a bulbous ring reproducing the geometry of the fan blade roots 113. According to one embodiment of the invention, not illustrated, the shaft 31 may have the interface in the form of a removable end piece, the current generator 30 being able to be supplied with a plurality of ends, each adapted for a specific type of turbomachine. In this way, the current generator 30 does not have to be dedicated to a particular type of turbomachine and can be installed on any aircraft present at the airport when the natural disaster occurs. To keep the current generator 30 centered with respect to the rotor shaft 110 of the first turbomachine 10, the aircraft 1 includes, as shown in Figure 4, a stator mounting system 35 adapted to attach the current generator 30 to a stator element of the first turbomachine 10. Thus, the mounting system can be a connection based on bolting to a stator element of the fan, such as the fan housing. Such a connection is particularly suitable since the fan stator is designed, by the turbomachine 10, to withstand the torque to which the current generator 30 is subjected during operation of the first turbomachine 10. It should be noted that, depending on whether the interface takes the form of a removable end cap and the generator is supplied with a variety of end caps, each adapted to a specific type of turbomachine, it is also possible, to facilitate the adaptability of the current generator, for it to be supplied with a variety of mounting systems 35 or an adjustable mounting system. In this way, it is possible to adapt the mounting system to the configuration of the turbomachine stator 10. The fixing system 35 preferably includes a centering support, not shown, to facilitate the centering of generator 30 vis-à-vis rotor shaft 110 and flexible junctions 36 connecting the stator of the first turbomachine 10 to the current generator 30. Aircraft 1 further includes a filter system 32, such as a grid or other filtering element, arranged at the air inlet of the first turbomachine 10. With such a filter system, the risk of foreign body ingestion into the first turbomachine 10 is limited, or even eliminated. Such equipment is all the more advantageous if we consider that, in the configuration of the invention, aircraft 1 is intended to operate on the ground, which drastically increases the risks of such ingestion. As illustrated in Figure 1, the control box 40 includes a transformer unit 41 configured to adapt the current generated by the current generator 30 to provide a voltage compatible with the electrical network 2, for example, an alternating voltage of 220V. According to one embodiment of the invention, the transformer unit is also capable of determining, for example from a measurement of at least one parameter of the current generator 30, the value of the power supplied by the rotor shaft 110 to the current generator 30. The control box 40 also includes a control unit 45 configured to determine an operating point of the turbomachine from electrical network parameters 2 and parameters of the first turbomachine 10 and to command the first turbomachine to parameterize it in accordance with said operating point. To achieve this, the control unit 45 is adapted to be connected to the aircraft's onboard computer 21 and, through the onboard computer 21, to the onboard electronics 150 of the first turbomachine 10. In this way, the control unit 45 can provide instructions to the onboard electronics of the first turbomachine 10 to operate it in a configuration that optimizes electricity generation efficiency and meets the electrical requirements. It should be noted that among the parameters of the first turbomachine 10, the control unit 45 can be adapted to retrieve, from the transformer unit 41, the power value supplied by the rotor shaft 110 to the current generator 30. It should be noted that it is conceivable, according to the invention, that the control unit is adapted to calculate, from the electrical power to be supplied by the generator 30, an engine speed in order to maintain the turbomachine in an optimized efficiency zone. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the control unit 45 can be adapted to implement a method for starting the generator formed by the aircraft 1, said method comprising the following steps: - Ignition of aircraft 1, this first step being generally implemented directly by the technician responsible for connecting the control unit 45 to the on-board computer 25 of aircraft 1, - ignition of an auxiliary on-board generator 25 of aircraft 1, - ignition of the first turbomachine 10, - fuel supply for the first turbomachine 10, - Start-up command for the turbomachine 10 in order to start the generation of current by the current generator 30, therefore the shaft 31 is driven by the rotor shaft 110 of the turbomachine 10, - shutdown of the auxiliary on-board generator 25. It should be noted that, according to a typical turbomachine startup sequence, the startup command includes the following sub-steps: Opening of a compressed air valve on an air starter of the first turbomachine, ignition of the spark plugs and fuel injection, control of the first turbomachine 10 thus started according to an adapted operating point. In the aircraft configuration 1 according to the invention, the first turbomachine 10 is started while free of receiver blades or other aerodynamic receivers to generate a secondary airflow F3. However, for certain types of turbomachines, such as turbofan engines, a portion of the secondary airflow F3 generated by the fan rotor is used to cool certain parts of the turbomachine. Thus, in the case of a turbofan engine, a portion of the secondary airflow F3 cools, in particular, the oil in the compressors 114, 115 and the turbines 120, 122 and the low-pressure turbine 122, and ventilates the core compartment of the turbomachine. Therefore, the secondary airflow F3 is generally necessary for the first turbomachine 10 to reach its full power and / or maintain its full power over a prolonged period (i.e., a period greater than 30 minutes). To compensate for the absence of secondary flow F3, it is possible within the framework of the invention to provide a cooling system 50 capable of generating an airflow at the level of at least one heat exchanger of a compressor, combustion chamber and turbine assembly of the turbomachine 10. In this way, by generating, from such a cooling system 50, an airflow at the level of at least one heat exchanger, such as an air-oil heat exchanger, it is possible to provide cooling similar to that provided by the secondary flow F3 in a propulsion configuration of the first turbomachine 10. Thus equipped, the turbomachine is able to reach its full power without risk of damage and / or maintain its full power for a prolonged period (i.e. a period greater than 30 minutes). As illustrated in Figures 5A and 5B, the cooling system 50 may include at least one of the following: an axial fan 41 configured to be mounted on a brick heat exchanger 123, as shown in Figure 5A, a fan 42A, 42B, 42C, 42D configured to equip at least part of a surface heat exchanger 124 air / oil, only part of the fins of the surface heat exchanger 124 being shown in figure 5B, according to an unillustrated possibility, an assembly comprising at least one fan, associated with an air distributor intended to equip at least part of a surface air / oil heat exchanger, the air distributor being configured to distribute the airflow generated by the fan towards the heat exchanger according to an unillustrated possibility, an airflow generation system in a secondary flow path of the turbomachine towards a sampling scoop arranged in said secondary flow path of the turbomachine, said sampling scoop serving in particular at least one heat exchanger. It should be noted that, according to the general knowledge of those skilled in the art, brick heat exchangers are air / oil heat exchangers with a shape These parallelepiped-shaped heat exchangers, from which they derive their name "brick heat exchangers," are supplied with fresh air through specific scoops. Surface heat exchangers, on the other hand, are installed on a casing surface and intercept the secondary airflow F3 from the turbomachine 10. In a classic configuration of the invention, the cooling system 50 can include several of the elements of the list above, the system thus being able to include an axial fan 41 for each of the scoops and a plurality of fans 42A, 42B, 42C, 42D equipping the surface heat exchangers 124 of the first turbomachine 10. It should be noted that the brick heat exchangers 123 and the surface heat exchangers 124 air-oil exchangers are commonly used in turbofan engines and are generally arranged to receive a portion of the secondary flow drawn from sources such as scoops to feed the engine core. Thus, the brick heat exchangers are typically located at the level of such scoops. According to an advantageous possibility of the invention, the cooling system 50 can be controlled by the control box 40, in particular by the control unit 45, in order to best adapt the cooling capacity to the cooling requirements of the first turbomachine 10. The power generator 30, the mounting system, the filtering system, the cooling system 50, and the control box 40 together form aircraft equipment 5. Such equipment can, for example, be stored at an airport located in a region susceptible to natural disasters. In this way, in the event of a natural disaster, a technician can use said equipment to modify an aircraft into an aircraft 1 according to the invention, which is capable of generating electricity. According to another embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figure 6, this equipment 5 can also be combined with at least one tool 6 for dismantling the turbomachine receiver blades 10, to form an equipment kit 4 for an aircraft 1. In this way, the technician required to equip the aircraft 1 to obtain an aircraft according to the invention, is in the presence of all the required elements. To perform such an installation, the technician can implement an aircraft equipment procedure comprising the following steps: supply of the current generator 30 having at least one shaft 31 configured to be coupled with a rotor shaft 110 of the turbomachine (10), the current generator 30 being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its shaft 31, removal of the receiver blades of turbomachine 10, coupling of the shaft 31 of the current generator 30 with the free-flowing blower disk of receiver blades, here blower blade, of the turbomachine 10, installation of the other equipment elements 5, with the fixing system for fixing the current generator 30, the filter system arranged at the air inlet of the first turbomachine, the cooling system 50 mounted inside the turbomachine 10 and the control box 40 connected to the current generator 30 and to the aircraft's on-board computer 21. Of course, once the electricity production and transmission capacities have been restored in the region affected by the natural disaster, and the electricity generation provided by the aircraft is no longer required, the technician is able to restore an aircraft to flight condition using the appropriate procedure comprising the following steps: decoupling of the shaft 31 of the current generator 30 with the rotor shaft 110 of the turbomachine 10, dismantling and removal of elements 30, 32, 35, 40, 50, of the equipment to clear aircraft 1 and the first turbomachine 10, reinstallation of the turbomachine receiver blades 10 around the rotor shaft 110. In this way, aircraft 1 is able to resume its passenger and / or freight transport functions. Of course, although the invention is aimed more particularly at commercial aircraft equipped with turbojets, the invention is not limited to this type of aircraft and covers all types of aircraft, whether they are commercial, tourist or even military aircraft, and regardless of the type and number of turbomachines equipping them.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. Aircraft (1) comprising at least one turbomachine (10, 20), the aircraft (1) being characterized in that: the turbomachine (10) comprising a receiver disc free of receiver blade, and the aircraft (1) further comprises a current generator (30) having at least one axis (31) mechanically coupled with a rotor shaft (110) of the turbomachine (10), the current generator (30) being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its axis (31).

2. Aircraft (1) according to claim 1, in which the turbomachine (10, 20) is a turbojet which is free of fan blade.

3. Aircraft (1) according to claim 1 or 2 further comprising a cooling system (50) capable of generating an air flow at at least one heat exchanger (123, 124) of a bearing lubrication circuit of the turbomachine (10), the cooling system (50) preferably comprising at least one of: a fan (51) mounted on a brick exchanger (123), a fan (52A, 52B, 52C, 52D) equipping at least part of an air / oil surface heat exchanger (124), an assembly comprising at least one fan associated with an air distributor equipping at least part of an air / oil surface heat exchanger (124), the air distributor being configured to distribute the air flow generated by the fan towards the air / oil surface heat exchanger (124), a system for generating air flow in a secondary flow vein of the turbomachine towards a sampling scoop arranged in said secondary flow vein of the turbomachine, said sampling scoop serving in particular at least one heat exchanger.

4. Aircraft (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3 further comprising a control unit (45) connected to on-board electronics (150) of the turbomachine (10), the control unit (45) being adapted to provide control instructions of the turbomachine to the on-board electronics (150) when the aircraft (1) is equipped with the equipment (5), the control unit (45) preferably being further adapted to allow a measurement of power supplied by the rotor shaft of the turbomachine (10) and to control the operating point of the turbomachine (10) on the basis of the result of the power measurement.

5. Aircraft (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4 further comprising a filter system (32) intended to equip the air inlet of the turbomachine (10) and configured to prevent any ingestion of foreign bodies into the turbomachine.

6. Aircraft equipment kit (4) (1) comprising: a current generator (30) having at least one axis (31) configured to be mechanically coupled with a receiver disc (110) of the turbomachine (10), the receiver blades of said turbomachine (10) having been previously removed from said receiver disc (110), said current generator (30) being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its axis (31), at least one tool (6) for dismantling the turbomachine receiver blades (10) from a receiver disc of this same turbomachine (10).

7. Method for transforming an aircraft (1) into an electric generator, the aircraft (1) comprising at least one turbomachine (10, 20), the method comprising the following steps: providing a current generator (30) having at least one axis (31) configured to be coupled with a rotor shaft (110) of the turbomachine (10), the current generator (30) being configured to generate current from a rotational movement of its axis (31), removing the turbomachine receiver blades (10) from the receiver disc (110), coupling the shaft (31) of the current generator (30) with the receiver disc (110) of the turbomachine (10) so as to mechanically couple the shaft (31) with a rotor shaft (110) of said turbomachine (10).

8. Method for restoring an aircraft (1) to flight condition according to claim 1, the method comprising the following steps: decoupling the shaft (31) of the current generator (30) with the rotor shaft (110) of the turbomachine (10), installation of the turbomachine receiver blades (10) around the receiver disc (110).

9. Method for starting a turbomachine (10) of an aircraft (1) according to claim 1 to 5, the method comprising the following steps: - ignition of the aircraft (1), - ignition of an auxiliary on-board generator (25) of the aircraft (1), - ignition of the turbomachine (10), - fuel supply to the turbomachine (10), - starting control of the turbomachine (10) in order to start the generation of current by the current generator (30) whose axis (31) is driven by the rotor shaft (110) of the turbomachine (10), - switching off the on-board auxiliary generator (25).

Images