Aircraft with wheel well between cooling duct outlets

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10745142-B2
Application number	US-201815898739-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 19, 2018
Priority date	Feb 19, 2018
Publication date	Aug 18, 2020
Grant date	Aug 18, 2020

Abstract

An assembly for an aircraft having a propeller, including an engine assembly having an engine shaft configured for driving engagement with the propeller. The engine assembly includes first and second heat exchangers configured for circulation of at least one of a liquid coolant and a lubricant therethrough. A wheel well is configured for receiving a retracted landing gear. A first cooling duct receives the first heat exchanger and has a first outlet downstream of the first heat exchanger, and a second cooling duct receives the second heat exchanger and has a second outlet downstream of the second heat exchanger. The outlets are in direct fluid communication with an environment of the aircraft, and laterally spaced from each other. The wheel well is located between the outlets. A method of cooling an engine assembly is also discussed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An assembly for an aircraft having a propeller, the assembly comprising:
an engine assembly having an engine shaft configured for driving engagement with the propeller, the engine assembly including: an intermittent internal combustion engine drivingly engaged to the engine shaft, a turbine having an inlet in fluid communication with an exhaust of the intermittent internal combustion engine, the turbine including a turbine shaft drivingly engaged to the turbine shaft via a compounding gearbox fluidly connected to a lubricant circulation system, and first and second heat exchangers configured for circulation of at least one of a liquid coolant and a lubricant therethrough;
a wheel well configured for receiving a retracted landing gear; and
a first cooling duct receiving the first heat exchanger and having a first outlet downstream of the first heat exchanger, and a second cooling duct receiving the second heat exchanger and having a second outlet downstream of the second heat exchanger, the first and second outlets in direct fluid communication with an environment of the aircraft, the first and second outlets laterally spaced from each other and the wheel well located between the first and second outlets, wherein the lubricant circulation system is in fluid communication with at least one of the first and second heat exchangers.

2. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the assembly is a nose assembly for a front end of the aircraft, the propeller is a nose propeller, and the landing gear is a nose landing gear.

3. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the first heat exchanger is in fluid communication with a coolant circulation system of the engine assembly for circulation of the liquid coolant therein, and the second heat exchanger is in fluid communication with the lubricant circulation system of the engine assembly for circulation of the lubricant therein.

4. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the first and second cooling ducts respectively include first and second downstream ends, the first and second downstream ends respectively defining the first and second outlets, the first and second downstream ends laterally spaced from each other with the wheel well located between the first and second downstream ends, the first and second downstream ends configured to protrude downwardly from a nacelle receiving the engine assembly and oriented such that a flow out of the first and second outlets is directed rearwardly and along a longitudinal direction of the aircraft.

5. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the first and second cooling ducts each have a front inlet in direct fluid communication with the environment of the aircraft, the front inlet of the first and second cooling ducts configured to be located adjacent to and downstream of the propeller when the propeller is drivingly engaged to the engine assembly.

6. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the first and second cooling ducts each includes a diffusing portion and a nozzle portion, the first and second heat exchangers located downstream of the diffusing portion and upstream of the nozzle portion of a respective one of the first and second cooling ducts, wherein along a direction of the first and second cooling airflows, the first and second cooling ducts have a progressively increasing cross-sectional area in the diffusing portion and a progressively reducing cross-sectional area in the nozzle portion.

7. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the intermittent internal combustion engine is fluidly connected to at least one of the first and second heat exchangers.

8. The assembly as defined in claim 7 , wherein the intermittent internal combustion engine includes at least one Wankel rotary engine.

9. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein an outlet of the turbine is in fluid communication with the environment of the aircraft via an exhaust conduit independent from the first and second cooling ducts.

10. The assembly as defined in claim 1 , wherein the intermittent internal combustion engine and the turbine are located between the first and second cooling ducts.

11. An assembly for an aircraft having a propeller, the assembly comprising:
an engine assembly including:
a rotary internal combustion engine in driving engagement with an engine shaft, the engine shaft configured for driving engagement with the propeller,
a turbine having an inlet in fluid communication with an exhaust of the rotary internal combustion engine, the turbine including a turbine shaft configured to compound power with the engine shaft, wherein the engine shaft is drivingly engaged to the turbine shaft via a compounding gearbox, and
first and second heat exchangers configured for circulation of at least one of a liquid coolant and a lubricant therethrough, wherein the compounding gearbox is fluidly connected to a lubricant circulation system in fluid communication with at least one of the first and second heat exchangers;

a wheel well configured for receiving a retractable landing gear when in a retracted configuration; and
a first cooling duct receiving the first heat exchanger and having a first outlet downstream of the first heat exchanger, and a second cooling duct receiving the second heat exchanger and having a second outlet downstream of the second heat exchanger, the first and second outlets in direct fluid communication with an environment of the aircraft, the first and second outlets laterally spaced from each other with the wheel well located between the first and second outlets.

12. The assembly as defined in claim 11 , wherein the assembly is a nose assembly for a front end of the aircraft, the propeller is a nose propeller, and the landing gear is a nose landing gear.

13. The assembly as defined in claim 11 , wherein the first heat exchanger is in fluid communication with a coolant circulation system of the engine assembly for circulation of the liquid coolant therein, and the second heat exchanger is in fluid communication with a lubricant circulation system of the engine assembly for circulation of the lubricant therein, the rotary internal combustion engine fluidly connected to the coolant circulation system.

14. The assembly as defined in claim 11 , wherein the first and second cooling ducts respectively include first and second downstream ends, the first and second downstream ends respectively defining the first and second outlets, the first and second downstream ends laterally spaced from each other with the wheel well located between the first and second downstream ends, the first and second downstream ends configured to protrude downwardly from a nacelle receiving the engine assembly and oriented such that a flow out of the first and second outlets is directed rearwardly and along a longitudinal direction of the aircraft.

15. The assembly as defined in claim 11 , wherein the engine assembly includes a reduction gearbox drivingly engaged to the engine shaft and configured to define the driving engagement between the engine shaft and the propeller, and wherein the first and second cooling ducts each have a front inlet in direct fluid communication with the environment of the aircraft, the reduction gearbox located adjacent to and between the front inlet of the first cooling duct and the front inlet of the second cooling duct.

16. The assembly as defined in claim 11 , wherein the first and second cooling ducts each includes a diffusing portion and a nozzle portion, the first and second heat exchangers located downstream of the diffusing portion and upstream of the nozzle portion o

Assignees

• Pratt & Whitney Canada

Inventors

• Dionne Luc
• Villeneuve Bruno
• Thomassin Jean

Classifications

• B64D33/08 Primary

  of power plant cooling systems · CPC title

• B64D33/10 Primary

  Radiator arrangement · CPC title

• B64D2033/024

  comprising cooling means · CPC title

• B64D29/04

  associated with fuselages · CPC title

• F02B41/10

  in exhaust turbines (use of exhaust turbines for charging F02B37/00) · CPC title