Rotor blade erosion protection system
AssigneeBell Helicopter Textron Inc.
InventorJeffrey P. Nissen
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present application includes a rotor blade having an erosion protective coating, the coating being a cermet material configured to protect against erosion during the operation of the rotor blade. Further, the present application includes a method of selectively applying the erosion protective coating, a method of selectively repairing/reapplying the erosion protective coating, and a process of developing an erosion surface model map of an optimized erosion protective coating pattern and thickness.
Claims20
An airfoil member comprising:
- a root end;
- a tip end;
- a skin member defining an airfoil surface, the airfoil surface having a leading edge surface, an upper airfoil surface, and a lower airfoil surface;
- and
- a cermet coating exterior to the skin member, the cermet coating being configured to protect the airfoil member against erosion during operation;
- wherein a thickness of the cermet coating is tapered spanwise along the leading edge surface.
A rotor blade comprising:
- a root end;
- a tip end;
- a skin member defining an airfoil surface, the airfoil surface having a leading edge surface, an upper airfoil surface, and a lower airfoil surface;
- and
- a cermet coating exterior to the skin member, the cermet coating being configured to protect the rotor blade against erosion during operation;
- wherein the cermet coating is tapered along a chordwise direction.
A method of selectively applying an erosion protective coating on an airfoil surface, the method comprising:
- spraying a tapered cermet coating on the airfoil surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.