Aircraft fuel cell air supply anti contanimation system
AssigneeZero Emissions Aerospace Limited
InventorMatthew Noel ORCHARD
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention defines a combined system of sensor(s), control logic, air intake and contaminant deflector for a fuel cell system mounted on an aircraft, which will detect contamination in the free air flow surrounding the aircraft and if excessive contamination is detected will activate the contaminant deflector to protect the fuel cell system from contamination, damage and power loss. The system ensures constant speed of the aircraft by adjusting the power of the fuel cells to compensate any change in aircraft drag and adjusts the speed of any connected compressors to maintain and achieve necessary changes in power and compensation for any air pressure losses the system creates.
Claims20
An aircraft air intake channel anti-contamination system configured to protect the air intake channel from airborne contaminants in an air flow around the aircraft, the air intake channel being configured to deliver air from the air flow to a fuel cell of the aircraft, and the system including:
- a sensor configured to detect contaminants in the air flow;
- a contaminant deflector deployable from a retracted position to a deployed position in which it disrupts the air flow to thereby deflect contaminants away from or out of the air intake channel;
- and
- a controller programmed to move the contaminant deflector to the deployed position in response to detection by the sensor of contaminants in the air flow.
An aircraft comprising a fuel cell, an external surface, an air intake channel in fluid communication with the external surface and the fuel cell, and an aircraft air intake channel anti-contamination system configured to protect the air intake channel from airborne contaminants in an air flow around the aircraft, the air intake channel being configured to deliver air from the air flow to a fuel cell of the aircraft, and the system including:
- a sensor configured to detect contaminants in the air flow;
- a contaminant deflector deployable from a retracted position to a deployed position in which it disrupts the air flow to thereby deflect contaminants away from or out of the air intake channel;
- and
- a controller programmed to move the contaminant deflector to the deployed position in response to detection by the sensor of contaminants in the air flow.
A method of protecting an air intake channel of an aircraft from airborne contaminants in an air flow using an anti-contamination system comprising a sensor configured to detect contaminants in the air flow, a contaminant deflector deployable from a retracted position to a deployed position in which it disrupts the air flow to thereby deflect contaminants away from or out of the air intake channel;
- and a controller programmed to move the contaminant deflector to the deployed position in response to detection by the sensor of contaminants in the air flow, the method including the step of:
- by the controller, responding to detection of contaminants in the air flow by the sensor by deploying the contaminant deflector to the deployed position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.