AIRCRAFT ENGINE

Abstract

An engine for an aircraft is presented comprising a rotor, an electric motor actuating the rotation of the rotor and an ECU controlling the electric motor, wherein the rotation of the rotor provides a main flow of air causing the thrust of the engine and wherein the ECU is located within the volume defined by the main flow.

Claims

1. An engine for an aircraft, comprising: a rotor; an electric motor actuating rotation of the rotor, the rotation of the rotor providing a main flow of air causing thrust of the engine; and an engine control unit (ECU) controlling the electric motor the ECU located within a volume defined by the main flow of air.

2. The engine according to claim 1, further comprising a duct housing the rotor so that the main flow of air flows within the duct.

3. The engine according to claim 1, wherein the ECU is arranged around a centerline or a rotation axis of the engine.

4. The engine according claim 1, wherein the ECU has an axially symmetric shape.

5. The engine according to claim 4, wherein the ECU has an axis of symmetry coinciding with a centerline or a rotation axis of the engine.

6. The engine according to claim 1, wherein the ECU comprises a plurality of printed circuit boards (PCBs), and wherein the plurality of PCBs are stacked so as to define an overall volume of the ECU.

7. The engine according to claim 1, wherein the engine further comprises a hub, and the ECU is located in the hub.

8. The engine according to claim 7, wherein the ECU comprises a plurality of printed circuit boards (PCBs), and wherein one or more of the PCBs are placed on an internal surface of the hub.

9. The engine according to claim 7, wherein the ECU and at least a section of the hub are configured as plug and play components of the engine.

10. The engine according to claim 9, wherein the at least a section of the hub comprises female and/or male connectors, and the ECU comprises male and/or female connectors configured to mate with the connectors of the at least a section of the hub, wherein the female and/or male connectors of each of the at least a section of the hub and the ECU are preferably arranged axially around a centerline of the engine.

11. The engine according to claim 10, wherein the at least a section of the hub comprises only female connectors, and the ECU comprises only male connectors configured to mate with the female connectors of the at least a section of the hub.

12. The engine according to claim 10, wherein the at least a section of the hub comprises only male connectors, and the ECU comprises only female connectors configured to mate with the male connectors of the at least a section of the hub.

13. The engine according to claim 7, wherein the hub comprises one or more fins configured to cool the ECU.

14. The engine according to claim 13, wherein the one or more fins are arranged circumferentially around an entire perimeter of the hub.

15. The engine according claim 1, further comprising one or more hollow outlet guide vanes, and wherein the one or more hollow outlet guide vanes house at least part of or all cabling of the ECU.

16. The engine according claim 1, further comprising one or more hollow pylons, and wherein the one or more hollow pylons house at least part of or all cabling of the ECU.

17. The engine according to claim 1, further comprising an airflow compression section, and wherein the ECU is located in correspondence to or downstream of the airflow compression section.

18. The engine according to claim 1, further comprising a back-cone, and wherein the ECU is located in the back-cone.

19. The engine according to claim 1, further comprising a spinner, and wherein the ECU is located in the spinner.

20. An aircraft comprising one or more engines, the one or more engines respectively comprising: a rotor; an electric motor actuating rotation of the rotor, rotation of the rotor providing a main flow of air causing thrust of the engine; and an engine control unit (ECU) controlling the electric motor, the ECU being located within a volume defined by the main air flow.

21. The aircraft according to claim 20, wherein the aircraft is a vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

22. The aircraft according to claim 21, comprising thirty-six of the one or more engines.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] The present disclosure will be described with reference to the attached figures in which the same reference numerals indicate the same parts and/or similar and/or corresponding parts of the system.

[0029] FIG. 1 schematically shows an exploded view of an engine according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0030] FIG. 2 schematically shows a cutaway section of an engine according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0031] FIG. 3 schematically shows a 3D view of a detail of an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0032] FIG. 4 schematically shows a 3D view of a detail of a further embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] Hereinafter, the present disclosure is described with reference to particular embodiments, as illustrated in the attached figures. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the particular embodiments described in the following detailed description and represented in the figures, but rather the described embodiments simply exemplify the various aspects of the present disclosure, the purpose of which is defined by the claims. Further modifications and variations of the present disclosure will be clear to those skilled in the art.

[0034] FIG. 1 schematically shows an exploded view of an engine 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] The engine 100 comprises a rotor 101 and a stator 102. The rotation of the rotor 101 provides a main flow of air causing the thrust of the engine 100. The engine 100 further comprises an electric motor 103 that actuates the rotation of the rotor 101. The electric motor 103 may operate on the basis of magnets and coils in any manner as known by those skilled in the art. The engine 100 further comprises an ECU 104 that is configured to control the electric motor 103.

[0036] For example, the ECU 104 may control the output of the electric motor 103 so as to regulate the rotational speed of the rotor 101. The ECU 104 may perform this control on the basis of various input parameters. For example, the ECU may receive input signals not only as input commands regarding speed and orientation of the aircraft, but also from position sensors, temperature sensors and so on. Ultimately, therefore, the ECU 104 controls the thrust produced by the engine 100 and guarantees optimal engine performances.

[0037] As can be seen in the figure, the ECU 104 is contained within the volume defined by the main flow of air that causes the thrust of the engine and that is obtained by the rotation of the rotor 101.

[0038] In particular, in the embodiment shown in the figure, the ECU 104 is arranged around the rotation axis of the engine 100.

[0039] Still more, in particular, the engine 100 of FIG. 1 comprises a spinner 106 at the intake side and a back-cone 105 at the exhaust site. The ECU 104 is arranged in the back-cone 105.

[0040] The ECU 104 schematically shown in the figure has a substantially cylindrical shape so as to properly fit into the volume of the back-cone 105. Alternatively, the ECU could have a conical or frusto-a conical shape so as to optimize space occupation in the back-cone 105. In general, the ECU may have an axially symmetric shape so that the axis of symmetry of the ECU may coincide with the rotation axis or the centerline of the engine.

[0041] For example, the ECU 104 could comprise a stack of PCBs that are each configured so that the stack has an axially symmetric shape, for example, a cylindrical, conical or frusto-conical shape.

[0042] FIG. 1 further shows schematically that the engine 100 comprises a containment component or duct 107 that houses the various components of the engine 100. The main flow of air that causes the thrust of the engine 100 flows inside the volume defined by the duct 107. Engine 100 of FIG. 1 is thus a ducted fan engine.

[0043] FIG. 2 schematically shows a cutaway section of the engine. The figure shows that the duct 107 comprises an air inlet section 113, an intermediate section 114 and an exhaust section 115. The air inlet section 113 of the duct 107 houses the spinner 106. The intermediate section 114 houses the compression section of the engine. In particular, the intermediate section 114 houses the rotor 101 and the stator 102. The exhaust section 115 houses at least part of the back-cone 105. In particular, in the example shown in FIG. 2, part of the back-cone further protrudes downstream of the exhaust section 115 of the duct 107.

[0044] In the example schematically shown in FIG. 2, part of the ECU 104 is housed in the intermediate section 114 of the duct 107 and another part is housed in the exhaust section 115 of the duct 107.

[0045] The engine according to the present disclosure further comprises cabling for connecting the ECU. In general, this cabling may comprise all wires and cables that are necessary for managing all input and output signals of the ECU. For example, this cabling may comprise power supply cables, for example, DC or AC power supply cables, CAN or communication wires, anti-icing wires, sensor wires, and so on.

[0046] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, at least part of the cabling for connecting the ECU is housed in one or more hollow outlet guide vanes of the engine.

[0047] FIG. 3 schematically shows a representation of a detail of such an embodiment. A portion of an outlet guide vane 108 of the engine is shown. The outlet guide vane 108 is hollow. In particular, the outlet guide vane 108 comprises a housing or channel 109, which is configured for housing the cabling 110 of the ECU 104. The figure schematically shows that cabling 110 comprises four cables but the number of cables of the cabling 110 housed in the channel 109 is not limited thereto. Moreover, even if the figure schematically shows that the outlet guide vane comprises a single channel 109, the outlet guide vane may comprise a plurality of housings or channels.

[0048] According to this embodiment, the cables of the cabling 110 can be brought from outside of the engine, i.e., even from beyond the outer diameter of the engine defined, for example, by the duct 107 to the inner core, or hub, of the engine, where the ECU 104 is located.

[0049] The engine 100 may comprise two or more hollow outlet guide vanes and the cabling 110 of the ECU may be split on order to be housed in two or more of the hollow outlet guide vanes.

[0050] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, at least part of the cabling for connecting the ECU is housed in a hollow pylon, for example, in a pylon that connects the hub of the engine with the containment component. For example, the pylon may comprise one or more housings or channels configured for housing the cabling of the ECU. The pylon may be placed, for example, downstream of the outlet guide vanes row of the engine.

[0051] FIG. 4 schematically shows a representation of a detail of such an embodiment. A hollow pylon 111 extends from the hub of the engine to the duct 107. The pylon 111 houses cabling 110 of the ECU 104.

[0052] The pylon 111 may have a circular cross section. Preferably, the pylon 111 may have an airfoil-profiled cross-section in order to minimize the aerodynamic losses of the system. The airfoil-profiled cross-section of the pylon 111 may be neutral, so as to cause no lift or airflow deflection, or can be used to deflect the airflow.

[0053] Also according to this embodiment, the cables of the cabling 110 can be brought from outside of the engine, i.e., even from beyond the outer diameter of the engine defined, for example, by the duct 107 to the inner core, or hub, of the engine, where the ECU 104 is located.

[0054] The engine 100 may comprise two or more hollow pylons and the cabling 110 of the ECU may be split on order to be housed in two or more of the hollow pylons.

[0055] Still according to further embodiments of the present disclosure, the engine may comprise one or more hollow outlet guide vanes and one or more hollow pylons and the cabling of the ECU may be split, so that part of the cabling is housed in one or more of the hollow outlet guide vanes and another part is housed in one or more of the hollow pylons.

[0056] FIG. 4 schematically shows also a plurality of fins 112 configured to cool the ECU 104 by directing at least part of the main flow of the engine toward the ECU 104. The fins 112 are arranged circumferentially around the entire perimeter of the hub so as to maximize the cooling effect. In particular, the fins 112 are uniformly distributed around the perimeter of the hub. The fins 112 extrude in the main air flow of the engine so as to direct part of the flow toward the ECU 104.

[0057] Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to the embodiments described above, it is clear to those skilled in the art that it is possible to make different modifications, variations and improvements of the present disclosure in light of the teaching described above and in the attached claims, without departing from the object and the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0058] For example, even if FIG. 3 shows both the pylon 111 and the fins 112, these features are independent from each other and they are not necessarily combined in one and the same embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0059] Moreover, even if the figures show a stator, this is not a mandatory component of the engine according to the present disclosure.

[0060] Finally, aspects that are deemed to be known by those skilled in the art have not been described in order to avoid needlessly obscuring the present disclosure described.

[0061] For example, no details of the design and functioning principles of an electrically driven aircraft engine have been provided since these are deemed to be known by those skilled in the art and since the present disclosure may be implemented in various types of electrically driven aircraft engines, independently of the actual particular structural and/or electronic architecture of the engine.

[0062] Moreover, no details of the architecture of the ECU nor of its PCB s have been described since these are deemed to be known by those skilled in the art and since the present disclosure may be implemented with various types of ECUs, independently of the actual electronic architecture of same.

[0063] Consequently, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, but is only limited by the scope of protection of the attached claims.