Aircraft

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9815559-B2
Application number	US-201514976414-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 21, 2015
Priority date	Jan 21, 2015
Publication date	Nov 14, 2017
Grant date	Nov 14, 2017

Abstract

An aircraft ( 2 ) comprises at least first and second gas turbine engines ( 10 a, 10 b ) arranged in a line extending generally normally to an aircraft longitudinal axis (A), each engine ( 10 a, 10 b ) comprising at least one compressor or turbine rotor disc ( 32 - 42 ) defining a respective rotational plane (D 32 -D 42 ). The rotational plane (D 32 -D 42 ) of at least one of the rotors ( 32 - 42 ) of at least one of the engines ( 10 a, 10 b ) is angled relative to the aircraft longitudinal line (A) such that a burst disc plane of the respective engine ( 10 a, 10 b ) is nonintersecting with another engine ( 10 a, 10 b ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A blended wing body or a flying wing aircraft having a longitudinal axis and comprising:
at least two gas turbine engines arranged in a line generally normally to the aircraft longitudinal axis in the horizontal plane and substantially coincident with at least one of an aircraft center of mass and an aircraft center of lift, and having a longitudinal axis and comprising at least one compressor or turbine rotor disc defining a respective rotational plane normal to the longitudinal axis, wherein each engine longitudinal axis is angled relative to the aircraft longitudinal axis such that a rotational plane of the compressor or turbine rotor disc of each engine is nonintersecting with the other engine; and
at least one duct arrangement comprising an intake duct leading from an air inlet to an intake of a respective engine, and an exhaust duct leading from an exhaust of the respective engine to an exhaust outlet, wherein the intake duct transitions from a direction generally parallel to the aircraft longitudinal axis at the air inlet, to a direction generally parallel to the respective engine longitudinal axis at the intake, and the outlet duct transitions from a direction generally parallel to the respective engine longitudinal axis at the exhaust of the respective engine, to a direction generally parallel to the aircraft longitudinal axis at the exhaust outlet.

2. An aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the engines are located at a trailing edge of the fuselage of the aircraft.

3. An aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the engines are mounted at a point of transition between the fuselage and wings.

4. An aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the engines are located within the aircraft wing or fuselage.

5. An aircraft in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the aircraft comprises at least two redundant control runs for at least one aircraft control surface, wherein one control run extends along a first side of an engine, and a further control run extends along a second side of the respective engine.

6. An aircraft according to claim 1 , wherein the air inlet of the or each intake duct is located at a leading edge of the point of transition between the fuselage and wings.

Assignees

• Rolls Royce Plc

Inventors

• Moxon Matthew

Classifications

• B64D27/10 Primary

  of gas-turbine type  (jet aircraft B64D27/16) · CPC title

• B64C39/10 Primary

  All-wing aircraft · CPC title

• B64C2039/105

  of blended wing body type · CPC title

• B64D27/14

  within, or attached to, fuselages · CPC title

• B64D27/02

  Aircraft characterised by the type or position of power plants · CPC title