Elastomeric Turbine Component Cover for Finishing Damage Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Gas turbine components, such as blades and vanes, are prone to damage during finishing processes due to handling and foreign material contamination, leading to costly repairs or scrapping.
Innovation Solution
An additively manufactured protective cover with a chamber and elastomeric material is designed to retain gas turbine components, featuring stops to prevent over-insertion and unintentional release, thereby protecting the components from damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If gas turbine components are handled during finishing processes, then finishing operations can be performed, but handling damage and foreign material contamination occur
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is divided into multiple sections (first section, second section, recessed section) that can be selectively positioned to protect different portions of the blade. This segmentation allows the blade to remain accessible for finishing operations on exposed areas while protected areas are shielded, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing accessibility and protection from harmful factors.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective cover acts as an intermediary barrier between the blade and the harmful environment during finishing operations. It provides a physical shield that prevents foreign material contamination and handling damage while allowing the blade to remain in place for finishing work, thus resolving the contradiction without requiring direct handling of the blade.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the cover is made from elastomeric material, then protection from damage is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is manufactured using additive manufacturing with elastomeric material, changing the material parameter from traditional rigid materials to flexible elastomers. This provides superior damage protection while the additive manufacturing process actually reduces overall manufacturing complexity by enabling direct fabrication of the complex multi-section geometry without assembly, resolving the contradiction between protection quality and manufacturing complexity.
3Reliability
If stops are added to prevent over-insertion, then component protection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stops are integrated directly into the cover structure as built-in features rather than separate components. The first stop and second stop are formed as part of the cover's wall structure, merging the retention function with the cover body itself. This provides reliable component retention while minimizing device complexity by avoiding separate stop components or assembly steps.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The protective cover effectively shields critical parts of gas turbine components from damage during finishing processes, reducing the risk of handling damage and foreign material contamination, and minimizing the need for repairs or replacements.
Implementation Method 1
The cover includes an elastomeric material
Data Source
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Figure 3A~3D
AI summary
A cover is provided for covering at least a portion of a component for finishing. The cover has a top portion, a bottom portion, and at least one wall extending from the top portion to the bottom portion. The cover includes a chamber accessible via the bottom portion. The chamber is configured to retain the component such that at least a portion of the component is protected by the cover. The chamber includes a first stop and a second stop each extending into the chamber. The first stop and the second stop are disposed in different vertical planes. The cover is additively manufactured using an elastomeric material.