Method and system for open rotor engine fuselage protection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9725155-B2
Application number	US-201514984758-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2015
Priority date	Dec 30, 2015
Publication date	Aug 8, 2017
Grant date	Aug 8, 2017

Abstract

An aircraft and method of operating the aircraft are provided. The aircraft includes a fuselage including a nose, a tail, and a hollow, elongate body extending therebetween, a wing extending laterally away from the fuselage, the wing including a leading edge in a direction of motion of the aircraft during normal flight and a trailing edge on an opposing edge of the wing, and an engine configured to drive a bladed rotatable member, the engine coupled to at least one of the wing and the fuselage. The aircraft further includes at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member extending from the fuselage at a point forward of the engine aftward to a point aft of the bladed rotatable member.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An aircraft comprising:
a fuselage comprising a nose, a tail, and a hollow, elongate body extending therebetween;
a wing extending laterally away from said fuselage, said wing comprising a leading edge in a direction of motion of said aircraft during normal flight and a trailing edge on an opposing edge of said wing;
an engine configured to drive a bladed rotatable member, said engine coupled to at least one of said wing and said fuselage;
at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member extending from said fuselage at a point forward of said bladed rotatable member aftward to a point aft of said bladed rotatable member.

2. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member is configured to shield the fuselage from impinging pressure waves from the engine.

3. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member comprises an acoustic treatment within said chine member.

4. The aircraft of claim 3 , wherein said acoustic treatment within said chine member comprises at least one of a tuned vibration absorber (TVA) and a vibration control system.

5. The aircraft of claim 3 , wherein said acoustic treatment within said chine member comprises at least one of a passive and an adaptive tuned vibration absorber (TVA).

6. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member comprises an impact armor system within said chine member.

7. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said engine comprises at least one of an open rotor configuration a turboprop configuration, a nacelle surrounding said bladed rotatable member, and a multiple fan configuration.

8. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member comprises a physical feature configured to passively cause a wave front of an acoustic wave emitted in a first direction to intersect the wave front of the acoustic wave emitted in a second direction at the fuselage approximately 180° out-of-phase.

9. The aircraft of claim 8 , wherein the acoustic wave emitted in the first direction travels a different distance to the fuselage than the acoustic wave emitted in a second direction.

10. The aircraft of claim 9 , wherein the different distance is approximately equal to one-half of a wavelength or multiple thereof.

11. The aircraft of claim 8 , wherein the acoustic wave emitted in the first direction travels at a different speed to the fuselage than the acoustic wave emitted in the second direction.

12. The aircraft of claim 11 , wherein the acoustic wave emitted in the first direction travels in air to the fuselage and the acoustic wave emitted in the second direction travels through a portion of the aircraft to the fuselage.

13. The aircraft of claim 1 , wherein said at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member comprises a blended surface contour between said wing and said fuselage proximate a plane of rotation of said bladed rotatable member.

14. A method of operating aircraft, the aircraft including a fuselage having a nose, a tail, and a hollow, elongate body extending therebetween, the aircraft further including a wing extending laterally away from the fuselage, the wing including a leading edge in a direction of motion of the aircraft during normal flight and a trailing edge on an opposing edge of the wing, the aircraft also including an engine configured to drive a bladed rotatable member, the engine coupled to at least one of the wing and the fuselage, said method comprising forming at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member extending from the fuselage at a point forward of the engine aftward to a point aft of the bladed rotatable member.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising acoustically treating at least one of the forward chine member and the aft chine member internally to the at least one chine member.

16. The method of claim 14 , further comprising coupling an impact armor system to at least one of the forward chine member and the aft chine member, the impact armor system including at least one of layers of impact and penetration resistant material and panels of a plurality of layers of impact and penetration resistant material and an energy absorbing material, the impact armor system formed at least one of in a surface of the forward chine member or fuselage and within an interior of the forward chine member or fuselage.

17. The method of claim 14 , passively scattering at least one of an acoustic wave incident from the engine and an acoustic wave from the fuselage to approximately cancel the acoustic wave incident from the engine.

18. An aircraft powered by one or more gas turbine engines, said aircraft comprising:
a fuselage comprising a nose, a tail, and a hollow, elongate body extending therebetween;
a wing extending laterally away from said fuselage, said wing comprising a leading edge in a direction of motion of the aircraft during normal flight and a trailing edge on an opposing edge of said wing;
an engine configured to drive one or more fans to generate thrust, said engine coupled to at least one of said wing and said fuselage proximate said tail;
at least one of a forward chine member and an aft chine member extending from said fuselage at a point forward of said engine aftward to a point aft of said bladed rotatable member.

19. The aircraft of claim 18 , wherein at least one of said forward chine member and said aft chine member comprises an acoustic treatment within said at least one chine member.

20. The aircraft of claim 18 , wherein at least one of said forward chine member and said aft chine member comprises an impact armor system within said at least one chine member.

21. The aircraft of claim 18 , wherein at least one of said fuselage and at least one of said forward chine member and said aft chine member comprises an acoustic scattering feature configured to passively generate an acoustic wave to approximately cancel an acoustic wave incident from said engine.

22. The aircraft of claim 18 , wherein at least one of said fuselage and at least one of said forward chine member and said aft chine member comprises one or more interior acoustic treatments configured to generate an acoustic wave to approximately cancel an acoustic wave incident from said engine.

23. The aircraft of claim 18 , wherein said at least one of said forward chine member and said aft chine member comprises a blended surface contour between said wing and said fuselage proximate a plane of rotation of said bladed rotatable member.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Miller Brandon Wayne
• Prentice Ian Francis
• Goerig Trevor Wayne
• Wood Trevor Howard
• Ramakrishnan Kishore
• Breeze-Stringfellow Andrew

Classifications

• B64C1/00 Primary

  Fuselages; Constructional features common to fuselages, wings, stabilising surfaces or the like · CPC title

• B64D2027/005

  Aircraft with an unducted turbofan comprising contra-rotating rotors, e.g. contra-rotating open rotors [CROR] · CPC title

• B64D45/00

  Aircraft indicators or protectors not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• B64C1/40 Primary

  Sound or heat insulation {, e.g. using insulation blankets} · CPC title

• B64D27/12

  within, or attached to, wings · CPC title