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US 10,208,624 B2Granted
Lubrication of journal bearing during clockwise and counter-clockwise rotation
AssigneeUnited Technologies Corporation
InventorsLoc Quang Duong, Xiaolan Hu, Ernest Boratgis, Michael E. McCune
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present disclosure is applicable to all gear trains using a journal bearing as a means of supporting gear shaft rotation. It is related in some embodiments to a system and method for supplying lubricant to the journal bearings of a gear-turbofan engine gear train when the fan rotor is subjected to a wind-milling condition in both directions, either clockwise or counter-clockwise.
Claims10
A lubrication for a gas turbine engine, the gas turbine engine comprising a fan, a fan drive gear system, a fan shaft that drives the fan and that is driven by the fan drive gear system, and
- the lubrication system providing lubrication to the fan drive gear system, the lubrication system comprising:
- a pump gear rotationally coupled to the fan shaft to be continuously driven by the fan shaft when the fan shaft rotates in either rotational direction due to operation of the fan drive gear system in one rotational direction and windmilling of the fan in another rotational direction;
- and
- an axially eccentric rotary vane pump coupled to the pump input gear to be continuously driven by the pump input gear,
- the rotary vane pump comprising:
- (i) an axially elongated cylindrical housing that remains stationary during rotation of the pump input gear in and between either rotational direction, the housing having an axially extending inlet slot and an axially extending outlet slot circumferentially centered on opposing ends of an axis extending radially through the housing, the inlet slot having a circumferential span that is less than a quarter of a circumference of the housing and larger than a circumferential span of the outlet slot,
- (ii) an axially elongated and axially eccentric cylindrical rotor within the hosing, the rotor having a rotational axis that is closer to the housing outlet slot than the housing inlet slot, the rotor being driven by the pump input gear, the rotor the having a plurality of axially elongated slots, the plurality of rotor slots being greater than two slots circumferentially spaced about the rotor to circumferentially divide the rotor into circumferentially equal segments,
- (iii) a plurality of axially elongated vanes extending through the rotor slots toward the housing, the vanes being spring-biased from the rotational center of the rotor to continuously and directly contact the housing, and
- whereby when the fan shaft rotates in either direction, the plurality of vanes rotate about the center of the rotor and the pump transfers lubricant from the pump outlet in the housing to the fan drive gear system.
6 more elements
A gas turbine engine comprising:
- a fan,
- a fan drive gear system,
- a fan shaft that drives the fan and that is driven by the fan drive gear system, and
- a lubrication system providing lubrication to the fan drive gear system, the lubrication system comprising:
- a shaft gear coupled to the fan shaft and an idler gear mesh-wise coupled to the shaft gear to be continuously driven by the fan shaft when the fan shaft rotates in either rotational direction due to operation of the fan drive gear system in one rotational direction and windmilling of the fan in another rotational direction,
- a pump input gear rotationally coupled to the fan shaft to be continuously driven by the fan shaft when the fan shaft rotates in either rotational direction due to operation of the fan drive gear system in one rotational direction and windmilling of the fan in another rotational direction, and
- an axially eccentric rotary vane pump coupled to the pump input gear to be continuously driven by the pump input gear,
- the rotary vane pump comprising:
- (i) an axially elongated and cylindrical housing that remains stationary during rotation of the pump input gear in and between either rotational direction, the housing having an axially extending inlet slot and an axially extending outlet slot circumferentially centered on opposed ends of an axis extending radially through the housing, the inlet slot having a circumferential span that is less than a quarter of a circumference of the housing and larger than a circumferential span of the outlet slot,
- (ii) an axially elongated and axially eccentric cylindrical rotor within the hosing, the rotor having a rotational axis that is closer to the housing outlet slot than the housing inlet slot, the rotor being driven by the pump input gear, the rotor the having a plurality of axially elongated slots, the plurality of rotor slots being greater than two slots circumferentially spaced about the rotor to circumferentially divide the rotor into circumferentially equal segments,
- (iii) a plurality of axially elongated vanes extending through the rotor slots toward the housing, the vanes being spring-biased from the rotational center of the rotor to continuously and directly contact the housing, and
- whereby when the fan shaft rotates in either direction, the plurality of vanes rotate about the center of the rotor and the pump transfers lubricant from pump outlet in the housing to the fan drive gear system.
9 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.