IP Library Granted Patent US 8,649,954
Granted Patent B2
US 8,649,954 · App. 13/500,347 · Granted Feb 11, 2014

System for controlling the angular position of stator blades and method for optimizing said angular position

View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,649,954
App. No.
13/500,347
Granted
Feb 11, 2014
Kind
B2
Abstract

A system for controlling angular position of stator blades including: a mechanism for calculating a set angular position of the blades according to one of speeds; and a module for correcting the set position including: a mechanism for determining the angular position of the blades; a mechanism for measuring fuel flow rate of the turbine engine; a memory unit in which consecutive angular positions of the blades are combined with the fuel flow rates of the turbine engine measured at the angular positions; and a mechanism for determining a correcting angle according to the difference between the fuel flow rates measured between two consecutive angular position of the blades. A method for optimizing the common angular position can utilize the system.

Claims (24)

1. A system for controlling angular position of variable-pitch stator blades of a turbine engine compressor including at least two spools, each with a rotation speed, for a turbine engine operating at steady speed, the system comprising:

circuitry configured to

compute an angular set position of the blades as a function of one of rotation speeds;

determine angular positions of the blades;

measure fuel flow rate of the turbine engine;

associate successive angular positions of the blades with the fuel flow rates of the turbine engine measured at the angular positions;

determine a correcting angle;

compute a correcting angle as a function of the difference between the fuel flow rates measured between two successive angular positions of the blades; and

compute an optimized set position by adding the correcting angle to the set angular position; and

an actuator configured to control the angular position of the blades as a function of the optimized set position.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to check a state of the turbine engine and to inhibit the correcting of the current angular position of the blades, the correcting of the current angular position of the blades being inhibited if the state of the turbine engine is not suitable for a correction of the angular position of the blades.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1 , the circuitry is further configured to limit a value of the correcting angle.

4. A turbine engine comprising a control system as claimed in claim 1 .

5. A method for optimizing a current angular position of stator blades of a turbine engine compressor including at least two spools each rotating at a speed, for a turbine engine operating at steady speed, the method comprising:

a) determining, by a processor, a reference fuel flow rate of the turbine engine at a reference angular position of the blades;

b) determining, by the processor, a current fuel flow rate of the turbine engine at a current angular position of the blades;

c) computing, by the processor, a correcting angle as a function of the difference between the reference fuel flow rate and the current fuel flow rate so as to reduce the fuel flow rate;

d) adding, by the processor, the correcting angle to a previously computed set position so as to obtain an optimized set position;

e) modifying, by the processor, the current angular position of the blades so that it corresponds to the optimized set position.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein,

(a) to (e) are iterated by using as the reference angular position in (a) a current angular position of (b) of a previous iteration.

7. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein,

the correcting angle is computed by an optimization method, or by a method of steepest descent of a fuel function defining the fuel flow rate of the turbine engine relative to the angular position of the blades.

8. The method as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the value of the correcting angle is limited to limit occurrence of transients in the turbine engine.

Assignments (3)
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE COVER SHEET TO REMOVE APPLICATION NOS. 10250419, 10786507, 10786409, 12416418, 12531115, 12996294, 12094637 12416422 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED ON REEL 046479 FRAME 0807. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE CHANGE OF NAME. Recorded Aug 24, 2018
From: SNECMA
To: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
Reel/Frame 046939/0336 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded May 23, 2018
From: SNECMA
To: SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES
Reel/Frame 046479/0807 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 10, 2012
From: BOYER, DAVID, JULIEN; DJELASSI, CEDRIK; RICORDEAU, JULIEN, ALEXIS, LOUIS
To: SNECMA
Reel/Frame 028020/0054 →