Aircraft Lubricant Pump Drivetrain With Mechanical Fuse Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aircraft engine lubrication systems are bulky and require complex plumbing due to the arrangement of pumps, which is cumbersome and inefficient.
Innovation Solution
A lubricant pump system with separate drivetrains for supply and scavenge pumps, connected via a mechanical fuse that disconnects both paths if a malfunction occurs, ensuring safe operation by stopping lubricant supply in case of a pump failure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If pumps are arranged in a integrated configuration, then the lubrication system can deliver and recover oil efficiently, but the system becomes bulky and requires complex plumbing
Solution Approach 1:
The lubrication system is divided into separate functional modules: supply pump assembly and scavenge pump assembly, each with dedicated drivetrains. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each pump's function while simplifying the overall plumbing architecture by reducing interconnections between components.
2Device complexity
If a single drivetrain drives both supply and scavenge pumps, then the system structure is simplified, but a malfunction in one pump can cause lubricant escalation and ignition risks
Solution Approach 1:
The drivetrain system is segmented into separate load paths: first drivetrain for supply pump and second drivetrain for scavenge pump. This segmentation ensures that a malfunction in one pump does not affect the operation of the other pump, preventing lubricant escalation and ignition risks while maintaining reliable safe operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates fail-safe mechanisms that anticipate potential pump malfunctions. If a pump malfunction occurs, the system automatically stops the other pump to prevent lubricant escalation and ignition risks, providing beforehand protection against safety hazards.
3Reliability
If separate drivetrains are used for supply and scavenge pumps, then safe operation is improved by preventing lubricant escalation, but the system arrangement becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
While maintaining separate drivetrains for safety, the system merges the mechanical fuse component into both drivetrains. This single mechanical fuse component serves dual purposes: protecting both the supply pump and scavenge pump drivetrains, thereby reducing the number of protective components needed while maintaining reliable safe operation.
Data Source
AI summary
Lubricant pump systems and associated methods for aircraft engines are provided. The method includes receiving an input torque, dividing the input torque between a first load path receiving a first portion of the input torque, and a second load path receiving a second portion of the input torque. A first lubricant pump of the aircraft engine is driven via the first load path using the first portion of the input torque. A second lubricant pump of the aircraft engine is driven via the second load path using the second portion of the input torque. When a malfunction of the second lubricant pump occurs, the method includes ceasing to drive the first lubricant pump and the second lubricant pump using the input torque.