Component mounting and drive in a geared turbofan architecture
AssigneeRtx Corporation
InventorsTodd A. Davis, David Allen Stachowiak
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fan drive gear system for a turbine engine includes a sun gear configured to be driven by an engine shaft that is rotatable about an axis, a plurality of intermediate gears coupled to a first gear portion of the sun gear, a ring gear that is coupled to the plurality of intermediate gears, and a carrier supporting rotation of the plurality of intermediate gears. A coupling shaft is engaged to drive the sun gear and includes a gear portion. An accessory component is coupled to and driven by the gear portion of the coupling shaft.
Claims11
A fan drive gear system for a turbine engine comprising:
- a sun gear configured to be driven by an engine shaft rotatable about an axis, wherein the engine shaft is coupled to and driven by a turbine section of the turbine engine;
- a plurality of intermediate gears coupled to the sun gear;
- a ring gear coupled to the plurality of intermediate gears;
- a carrier supporting rotation of the plurality of intermediate gears;
- a coupling shaft engaged to drive the sun gear, the coupling shaft extends axially forward from the engine shaft for rotation about the axis and includes a gear portion, wherein the coupling shaft is fixed to the engine shaft such that the coupling shaft and the engine shaft rotate at a common speed;
- and
- an accessory component that is coupled to the gear portion of the coupling shaft, wherein the carrier and the accessory component are both attached to a common static engine structure and the ring gear is rotatable about the axis.
A turbine engine assembly comprising:
- a static engine structure;
- a fan section including a plurality of blades rotatable about an axis;
- a compressor section, a combustor section, and a turbine section disposed along the axis, wherein the turbine section is coupled to an engine drive shaft rotatable about the axis;
- a fan drive gear system including a sun gear configured to be driven by an engine shaft rotatable about the axis, a plurality of intermediate gears coupled to the sun gear, a ring gear coupled to the plurality of intermediate gears, and a carrier supporting rotation of the plurality of intermediate gears;
- a coupling shaft fixed to the engine drive shaft such that both the coupling shaft and the engine drive shaft rotate at a common speed and the coupling shaft is engaged to drive the sun gear, the coupling shaft extends axially forward from the engine shaft for rotation about the axis and includes a gear portion;
- an accessory component that is coupled to the gear portion of the coupling shaft;
- and
- a fan drive shaft coupled to a portion of the fan drive gear system to drive the fan section, wherein the carrier and the accessory component are both attached to a common static engine structure and the ring gear is rotatable about the axis.
A method of powering an accessory component of a turbine engine assembly comprising:
- assembling a fan drive gear system including a sun gear configured to be driven by an engine shaft rotatable about an axis, a plurality of intermediate gears coupled to the sun gear, a ring gear coupled to the plurality of intermediate gears, and a carrier supporting rotation of the plurality of intermediate gears;
- attaching the carrier to a static engine structure and assembling the ring gear such that it is rotatable about the axis;
- coupling a coupling shaft to the engine drive shaft and sun gear such that the engine drive shaft, coupling shaft and the sun gear rotate at a common speed, wherein the coupling shaft extends axially forward from the engine shaft for rotation about the axis and the coupling shaft includes a gear portion;
- mounting an accessory component proximate the fan drive gear system on the same static engine structure to which the carrier is attached;
- coupling a driven gear of the accessory component to the gear portion of the coupling shaft;
- and
- coupling a fan drive shaft to a portion of the fan drive gear system to drive a fan section.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.