The present invention relates to an electrical aircraft engine. The engine includes a stator with windings for generating a rotating magnetic field. The engine further includes a rotor for rotating inside or outside the stator. The rotor has a fan or propeller including thrust blades. The fan or propeller defines a closed-loop conductor. Advantageously, the thrust blades may generate direct thrust by moving fluid (i.e. gas or liquid), instead of driving a drive shaft, in turn, coupled to thrust blades.

Systems and methods for controlling an unducted turbofan engine to limit noise. The unducted turbofan engine may include an unducted fan drivingly coupled with a low-pressure turbine and a plurality of unducted outlet guide vanes. The unducted fan may include a plurality of fan blades and a pitch angle of the fan blades may be variable. A pitch angle of the unducted outlet guide vanes may be variable. A controller is configured to control the engine to limit noise based on a noise sensitive condition.

A propeller provided with interchangeable blades, and to a method of mounting such interchangeable blades on the propeller. The propeller comprises a hub, fastening fittings, rotation guide devices for guiding the fastening fittings in rotation relative to the hub, locking parts, and blades. The fastening fittings are configured to be assembled into the hub from the inside of the hub, and the locking parts lock respective ones of the fastening fittings onto the hub. The blades are fastened to respective ones of the fastening fittings outside the hub and can thus easily be replaced with other blades without removing the propeller.

Multiple propulsion units mounted inside an enclosure near openings can be used to control the fluid flow in and out of the openings and also to determine the total fluid flow at any additional uncontrolled openings. By controlling the fluid flow, where such control is available, and by considering the resulting flow at any uncontrolled enclosure openings, it may be possible to achieve a desired thrust vector but have a more favorable weight/shape/efficiency than would be possible without the enclosure and use of coordinated control of fluid flow into or out of some openings. The designed geometry of the enclosure is an important consideration and will have an effect on the overall thrust magnitude and direction. A grouping of propulsion systems can be coordinated to achieve a more general thrust vector and associated moment on a vehicle.

A rotor assembly for generating thrust for a vehicle. The rotor assembly includes a rotor hub and a plurality of rotor blade assemblies coupled to the rotor hub. Each rotor blade assembly includes a metallic bearing race, a composite rotor blade and a metallic coupling assembly. The composite rotor blade has a root section with a radially outwardly tapered outer surface. The metallic coupling assembly has a radially inwardly tapered inner surface that receives the radially outwardly tapered outer surface of the root section of the rotor blade therein to provide a centrifugal force seat for the rotor blade. The coupling assembly includes at least two circumferentially distributed coupling members. The coupling assembly is configured to couple the rotor blade to the bearing race and to provide a centrifugal force load path therebetween.

A duct for a ducted-rotor aircraft may include internal structural components such as a spindle that is supported by a fuselage of the aircraft, first and second annular spars that are attached to an end of the spindle, a central hub that supports a motor of the aircraft, a plurality of stators that extend from the central hub to the second spar, and a plurality of ribs that are attached to the first spar and the second spar at respective opposed ends. The spindle may include an attachment interface to which the first and second spars are attached. The attachment interface may be disposed at the second end of the spindle. The attachment interface may define first and second arc-shaped planar surfaces to which the first and second spars, respectively, are attached.

The aircraft comprises a fuselage defining a fuselage main axis. The fuselage comprises a docking system for fixing removable nacelles. The aircraft has wings equipped with tilting actuators for rotating wings about rotation axes parallel to the fuselage main axis and at least six propellers mechanically connected to the fuselage. The aircraft also has at least one cryo-hydrogen tank and at least one fuel cell for supplying power to the propellers, and

A capacitor for supplying power to the propellers, charged by at least one fuel cell. This capacitor stores electrical energy greater than the energy needed by all the propellers for ten seconds of hovering flight. Each propeller is equipped with a tilting actuator for rotating the propeller about a rotation axis making an angle of less than 45 degrees with a plane perpendicular to the fuselage main axis. The fuselage having a forward and a rear portion defining a forward to rear order of the propellers, in cruise flight, the two forward propellers are activated to provide vertical thrust, the intermediate propellers between the forward and rearmost propellers are not activated and the two rearmost propellers are activated to provide horizontal thrust.

A propeller includes a hub coaxially surrounding a longitudinal axis. A ring shroud coaxially surrounds the longitudinal axis and is spaced radially from the hub. At least one propeller blade is fixedly attached to both the hub and ring shroud and extends radially therebetween for mutual rotation therewith. At least one stub blade has a first stub end radially spaced from a second stub end. The first stub end is fixedly attached to a selected one of the hub and ring shroud. The second stub end is cantilevered from the first stub end and is radially interposed between the first stub end and the selected one of the hub and ring shroud.

A propulsion system for an aircraft having an aft end is provided herein. The propulsion system can include an electric propulsion engine defining a central axis. The electric propulsion engine can include an electric motor, a fan rotatable about the central axis of the electric propulsion engine by the electric motor, a bearing supporting rotation of the fan, and a thermal management system. The thermal management system can include a lubrication oil circulation assembly for providing the bearing with lubrication oil. The lubrication oil circulation assembly can be driven independently of a shaft of the electric propulsion engine.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) includes lift rotors and control rotors. The lift rotors are mounted to the UAV and oriented to provide a first vertical thrust to the UAV. The control rotors are mounted to the UAV outboard of the lift rotors and oriented to provide a second vertical thrust to the UAV. The control rotors are each smaller than any of the lift rotors.