Aircraft comprising an electrical power distribution network

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10919639-B2
Application number	US-201816050461-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 31, 2018
Priority date	Aug 2, 2017
Publication date	Feb 16, 2021
Grant date	Feb 16, 2021

Abstract

An aircraft comprises a fuselage, at least a first electrical generator and a second electrical generator, a set of electrical equipment items distributed in the fuselage and an electrical power distribution network comprising a switching system and a set of buses. The buses comprise at least a first bus and a second bus extending, at least partly, in a longitudinal direction of the fuselage and following segregated paths in the fuselage. In a normal mode of operation, the switching system links the first electrical generator to the first bus and the second electrical generator to the second bus. Each bus comprises connection points at different locations distributed along its length and each of the electrical equipment items is linked to a connection point of a bus via a local electrical power supply link.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An aircraft comprising:
a fuselage;
a set of electrical generators, comprising at least a first electrical generator and a second electrical generator;
a set of electrical equipment items, distributed in the fuselage; and
an electrical power distribution network comprising:
a set of buses, comprising at least a first bus and a second bus; and
a switching system,

wherein:
the first bus and the second bus extend a longitudinal length of a substantially straight portion of the fuselage;
the first bus and the second bus follow segregated paths in the fuselage;
the switching system is linked electrically to the first electrical generator and to the second electrical generator, and to the first bus and to the second bus;
the switching system comprises a normal mode of operation, in which the switching system is configured to electrically link the first electrical generator to the first bus and the second electrical generator to the second bus;
each bus of the set of buses comprises connection points at different locations distributed along its length; and
each of the electrical equipment items of the set of electrical equipment items is linked to a connection point of a bus of the set of buses, via a local electrical power supply link;
wherein the electrical power distribution network further comprises a third bus and a fourth bus which extend, at least partly, in a longitudinal direction of the fuselage, the first, second, third and fourth buses following segregated paths in the fuselage of the aircraft, and
wherein the set of electrical generators further comprises a third electrical generator and a fourth electrical generator and, in the normal mode of operation, the switching system is configured to electrically link the third electrical generator to the third bus and the fourth electrical generator to the fourth bus.

2. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the first bus extends also partly in a first wing of the aircraft and the second bus extends also partly in a second wing of the aircraft.

3. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the first electrical generator and the second electrical generator are linked electrically to the switching system via buses.

4. The aircraft according to claim 3 , wherein the first electrical generator is linked electrically to the switching system via dedicated conductors of the first bus and the second electrical generator is linked electrically to the switching system via dedicated conductors of the second bus.

5. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the switching system comprises a reconfigured mode of operation, activatable in a case of an occurrence of a failure in the electrical power distribution network, in which the switching system is configured to at least one of:
establish electrical links between electrical generators of the set of electrical generators and the buses of the set of buses, these electrical links being modified relative to electrical links established in the normal mode of operation; or
establish electrical links between buses of the set of buses.

6. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the switching system comprises a main switching device and at least one secondary switching device remote from the main switching device.

7. The aircraft according to claim 5 , wherein the switching system comprises a main switching device and at least one secondary switching device remote from the main switching device, and, in the reconfigured mode of operation of the switching system, the at least one secondary switching device is capable of being controlled to establish one or more electrical links between buses of the set of buses.

8. The aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein at least one bus of the set of buses comprises at least two modular sections arranged end-to-end and linked electrically to one another.

9. The aircraft according to claim 8 , wherein the switching system comprises a main switching device and at least one secondary switching device remote from the main switching device and wherein a secondary switching device is linked electrically to two consecutive modular sections of a bus, so as to establish electrical links between similar electrical conductors of the two modular sections in the normal mode of operation and to establish electrical links between electrical conductors of at least one of the two modular sections and electrical conductors of another bus, in the reconfigured mode of operation.

Assignees

• Airbus Operations Sas

Inventors

• Donadille Christian
• Giraud Xavier
• Chabot Franck
• Morin Thomas

Classifications

• H02J2105/32

  for aircrafts · CPC title

• B64D27/35

  Arrangements for on-board electric energy production, distribution, recovery or storage · CPC title

• B64D27/402

  comprising box like supporting frames, e.g. pylons or arrangements for embracing the power plant · CPC title

• B64C1/20 Primary

  specially adapted for freight · CPC title

• B64D41/00 Primary

  Power installations for auxiliary purposes · CPC title