Method and system of operating an airplane engine
AssigneePratt & Whitney Canada Corp.
InventorsNicolas Des Roches-Dionne, Thomas Trevor Ricci, Charles Bolon-Bruhn, Jeremie Hebert
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The method can include, while the airplane is on the ground: entering a disking mode including positioning the blades at a disking pitch including rotating each blade around the length, the disking pitch oriented parallel to the plane of rotation; maintaining the blades at the disking pitch; and exiting the disking mode when a disking mode exit condition is met, including rotating each blade around the length, away from the disking pitch.
Claims19
A method of operating an engine of an airplane, the engine having an engine controller and a rotary thrust device having a plurality of variable pitch blades, each blade having a length extending radially away from a rotation axis, each blade individually rotatable around the length, the blades distributed circumferentially around the rotation axis and collectively rotatable around the rotation axis, in a plane of rotation, the method comprising:
- while the airplane is on the ground:
- at the engine controller, receiving an input indicative of a disking mode entry request, said input generated at a pilot interface when a requesting action is taken by the pilot, said requesting action being taken distinctly from a pilot action to control an engine power control;
- at the engine controller, in response to said receiving input, entering a disking mode including positioning the blades at a disking pitch including rotating each blade around the length, the disking pitch oriented parallel to the plane of rotation;
- at the engine controller, performing an automated function of maintaining the blades at the disking pitch using a stabilizing algorithm;
- and
- at the engine controller, exiting the disking mode when a disking mode exit condition is met, including rotating each blade around the length, away from the disking pitch.
A system for operating an engine of an airplane, the engine having a rotary thrust device having a plurality of variable pitch blades, each blade having a length extending radially away from a rotation axis, each blade individually rotatable around the length, the blades distributed circumferentially around the rotation axis and collectively rotatable around the rotation axis, in a plane of rotation, the system comprising a non-transitory memory having stored thereon computer-readable instructions which, when executed thereon by a processor, perform a method including:
- receiving an input indicative of a disking mode entry request, said input generated at a pilot interface when a requesting action is taken by the pilot, said requesting action being taken distinctly from a pilot action to control an engine power control;
- in response to said receiving the input, entering a disking mode including positioning the blades at a disking pitch including rotating each blade around the length, the disking pitch oriented parallel to the plane of rotation;
- performing an automated function of maintaining the blades at the disking pitch using a stabilizing algorithm;
- and
- exiting the disking mode when a disking mode exit condition is met, including rotating each blade around the length, away from the disking pitch.
A method of operating an engine of an airplane, the engine having an engine controller and a rotary thrust device having a plurality of variable pitch blades, each blade having a length extending radially away from a rotation axis, each blade individually rotatable around the length, the blades distributed circumferentially around the rotation axis and collectively rotatable around the rotation axis, in a plane of rotation, the method comprising:
- while the airplane is on the ground:
- at the engine controller, entering a disking mode including positioning the blades at a disking pitch including rotating each blade around the length, the disking pitch oriented parallel to the plane of rotation, said entering a disking mode further including lowering a gain of the engine controller;
- at the engine controller, performing an automated function of maintaining the blades at the disking pitch using a stabilizing algorithm;
- and
- at the engine controller, exiting the disking mode when a disking mode exit condition is met, including rotating each blade around the length, away from the disking pitch.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.