Braked aircraft wheel
An aircraft wheel including a rim fitted with rotor disks driven in rotation with the rim by first splines secured to the rim and engaged in notches in the rotor disks, stator disks interposed between the rotor disks and provided with notches engaged on second splines secured to a brake torque tube arranged to be fastened to an axle carrying the aircraft wheel, one or more heatpipe extending in one or more of the first and second splines parallel to a plane containing an axis of rotation of the wheel, the heatpipe having an end projecting outside the aircraft wheel, and one or more heatsinks secured to the end of the heatpipe.
1 . An aircraft wheel comprising:
a rim connected by a web to a hub and fitted with rotor disks driven in rotation with the rim by first splines secured to the rim and engaged in notches in the rotor disks;
stator disks interposed between the rotor disks and provided with notches engaged on second splines secured to a brake torque tube arranged to be fastened to an axle carrying the aircraft wheel, the rotor disks and the stator disks being received in an annular space defined between the rim and the hub;
at least one heatpipe extending in at least one of the first and second splines and in a plane containing an axis of rotation of the aircraft wheel, the at least one heatpipe having an end projecting outside the aircraft wheel; and
at least one heatsink secured to said end of the at least one heatpipe,
wherein the at least one heatpipe extends in the annular space without ever crossing the web.
2 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the first splines are integral with the aircraft wheel.
3 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the first splines are bars fitted to the aircraft wheel.
4 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one heatpipe is tubular in shape and is implanted in a bore made in the first spline.
5 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 4 , wherein the at least one heatpipe is held in the first spline by hydroforming.
6 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 5 , wherein a thermally conductive material is deposited between the at least one heatpipe and the first spline.
7 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one heatsink comprises fins imparting an increased free surface area to the end of the at least one heatpipe.
8 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 7 , wherein the fins are fastened to the at least one heatpipe by hydroforming.
9 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one heatpipe extends parallel to the axis of rotation of the aircraft wheel.
10 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one heatpipe slopes relative to the axis of rotation of the aircraft wheel, the end of the at least one heatpipe being farther from said axis of rotation than a portion of the at least one heatpipe held in the at least one of the first and second splines, and the at least one heatpipe and the axis of rotation of the aircraft wheel forming therebetween an angle that is less than or equal to an angle defined by said axis of rotation and an outer wall of the rim.
11 . An aircraft undercarriage including at least one of the aircraft wheel according to claim 1 .
12 . An aircraft including at least one of the aircraft undercarriage according to claim 11 .
13 . The aircraft wheel according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one heatpipe is a sintered heatpipe.