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US 10,208,629 B2Granted
Piezo-electric motor for bowed rotor mitigation
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorsJason J. Jackowski, Kent E. Karnofski
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A piezoelectric motor comprising one or more concentric stator rings arranged to transfer energy and provide torque to an engine rotor or to an engine transmission. Such a piezo-electric motor improves spatial integration of an engine turning motor in a gas turbine engine.
Claims20
An aircraft engine assembly, comprising:
- a gas turbine engine including a rotor shaft, the rotor shaft having a longitudinal axis;
- a nacelle housing the rotor shaft and comprising trapped air creating a temperature gradient perpendicular to the longitudinal axis;
- and
- means for rotating the rotor shaft using a piezoelectric motor, the rotating reducing or preventing thermal bowing of the rotor shaft in the temperature gradient.
1 more element
An aircraft engine assembly, comprising:
- a gas turbine engine including a rotor shaft;
- and
- a piezoelectric motor attached to at least one shaft selected from the rotor shaft and a drive shaft, wherein the piezoelectric motor rotates the rotor shaft in response to one or more electric fields.
A method of rotating a shaft in an aircraft engine, comprising:
- obtaining a piezoelectric motor comprising one or more stators and one or more rotor members disposed around at least one shaft selected from a rotor shaft and a drive shaft in an aircraft engine,
- driving a shaft in an aircraft engine using a piezoelectric motor, wherein the driving comprises:
- connecting the one or more rotor members to the shaft;
- and
- generating one or more traveling waves in the stators such that the traveling waves deliver mechanical output to the one or more rotor members and rotate the rotor shaft or the drive shaft.
2 more elements
A method of rotating a shaft in an aircraft engine, comprising:
- providing a piezoelectric motor comprising actuators paired with a surface of a rotor member;
- and
- connecting the rotor member to at least one shaft in an aircraft engine;
- and
- driving the at least one shaft using the piezoelectric motor, wherein the driving comprises applying one or more electric fields to the actuators such that the actuators press against different radial positions on the surface, delivering torque to the rotor member and the at least one shaft connected to the rotor member.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.