Oil pump for gas turbine engine and associated method of pumping oil
AssigneePratt & Whitney Canada Corp.
InventorDave MENHEERE
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The pump can have a support having a guide extending around an axis, a radial position of the guide relative the axis varying around the axis, and a first oil passage formed in the support; a rotary assembly mounted to the support via support bearings, and rotatable around the axis, the rotary assembly having a second oil passage and a cylinder, the cylinder extending radially relative the axis, an inlet port fluidly connecting the first oil passage to the cylinder, and an outlet port fluidly connecting the cylinder to the second oil passage, and a piston slidingly mounted in the cylinder, a radially-outer end of the piston further slidingly engaged with the guide.
Claims20
An oil pump comprising:
- a support having a guide extending around an axis, a radial position of the guide relative the axis varying around the axis, between a maximum radial position and a minimum radial position, and a first oil passage extending through the support;
- a rotary assembly mounted to the support via support bearings, and rotatable around the axis, the rotary assembly having a second oil passage and a cylinder, the cylinder extending radially relative to the axis, an inlet port fluidly connecting the first oil passage to the cylinder, and an outlet port fluidly connecting the cylinder to the second oil passage, the outlet port at a radially-inner end of the cylinder;
- and
- a piston slidingly mounted in the cylinder, a radially-outer end of the piston slidingly engaged with the guide, wherein when the piston is engaged with the maximum radial position of the guide, the inlet port is uncovered by the piston and open, and wherein when the piston is engaged with the minimum radial position of the guide, the inlet port is covered by the piston and closed.
A method of pumping oil from a first oil passage formed in a support to a second oil passage formed in a rotary assembly, the method comprising:
- rotating the rotary assembly relative the support, around a rotation axis, the rotary assembly having at least one cylinder extending radially relative the rotation axis;
- said rotating the rotary assembly including applying centripetal acceleration to at least one piston slidingly mounted in a respective one of the at least one cylinder, and sliding a distal end of the piston circumferentially against a guide extending around the rotation axis;
- the guide exerting a radially-inward force to the piston in reaction to the centripetal acceleration, the radially-inward force pushing the piston radially inward, and the centripetal acceleration moving the piston radially outward during said rotating, as the piston is carried by the cylinder around the axis;
- and
- said moving the piston radially outward including opening an inlet port and allowing oil from the first oil passage into the cylinder, and said moving the piston radially inward including closing the inlet port and pumping the oil radially inwardly through an outlet port, into the second oil passage.
A gas turbine engine comprising:
- an auxiliary gearbox having a support and a rotary assembly rotatably mounted to the support for rotation around a rotation axis;
- the support having a guide extending around the rotation axis, a radial position of the guide relative the rotation axis varying around the rotation axis, between a maximum radial position and a minimum radial position, and a first oil passage formed in the support;
- the rotary assembly rotatably mounted to the support via support bearings, the rotary assembly having a second oil passage and a cylinder, the cylinder extending radially relative the rotation axis, an inlet port fluidly connecting the first oil passage to the cylinder, and an outlet port fluidly connecting the cylinder to the second oil passage, the outlet port at a radially-inner end of the cylinder;
- and
- a piston slidingly mounted in the cylinder, a radially-outer end of the piston further slidingly engaged with the guide, wherein when the piston is engaged with the maximum radial position of the guide, the inlet port is uncovered by the piston and open, and wherein when the piston is engaged with the minimum radial position of the guide, the inlet port is covered by the piston and closed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.