Morphing vane
AssigneeRolls-Royce North American Technologies Inc.
InventorEdward C. Rice
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system for directing the flow of a fluid which comprises a channel for containing the fluid; an articulating vane positioned within the channel for directing the flow of the fluid, the vane comprising a fixed segment rigidly connected to the channel and a first moveable segment operably connected to the fixed segment by a first hub, the first hub configured to allow relative articulation between the segments; an actuator member operably connected to the moveable segment to articulate the moveable segment about the first hub; and wherein the vane further comprises a second moveable segment operably connected to the vane by a second hub, wherein the actuator member articulates the first and second moveable segments by applying a single moment to the first hubs.
Claims8
A system for directing a flow of a fluid comprising:
- a channel for containing the fluid;
- an articulating vane disposed in said channel, said articulating vane comprising:
- a fixed segment rigidly coupled to said channel;
- a first moveable segment comprising a first stem rotatably coupled to said fixed segment via a first hub;
- a second moveable segment comprising a second stem rotatably coupled to said fixed segment via a second hub;
- and
- a cable in contact with both of said first and second stems, said cable having a fixed length;
- and
- an actuator connected to said first stem, wherein said actuator applies a first moment to said first stem causing said first moveable segment to rotate about the first hub, said rotation of said first moveable segment imparts a force from said first stem to said cable causing said cable to move, and said movement of said cable applies a second moment to said second stem causing said second moveable segment to rotate about the second hub.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.