Dynamic flight command cross-feed for rotor speed droop reduction

• US 10,641,184 B2
• Filed: 08/23/2017
• Issued: 05/05/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Wulff, Ole, Geiger, Derek
• Primary Examiner(s): Butler, Rodney A
• Application Number:
  US15/684,009
• Publication Number:
  US 20180135535A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: F02C 9/28 Regulating systems responsive to plant or ambient parameters, e.g. temperature, pressure, rotor speed F02C9/30 - F02C9/38, F02C9/44 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F05D 2220/329 in helicopters
• CPC Class Codes: F05D 2270/024 to keep rotational speed constant
• CPC Class Codes: F05D 2270/07 to improve fuel economy
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0858 specially adapted for vertical take-off of aircraft

Abstract

An aircraft and method of flying an aircraft are disclosed. The aircraft includes a cross-feed unit that receives a flight command for the aircraft and determines an amount of fuel for a motor of the aircraft in order to reduce a droop in the aircraft when executing the flight command at the aircraft. A fuel injector or fuel supplier provides the determined amount of fuel to the motor when the flight command is executed at the aircraft.

Claims

1. A method of flying an aircraft, comprising:

receiving a control input at a control system of the aircraft;

determining a flight command indicated by the control input;

computing a torque response at a motor of the aircraft to the flight command for a selected air density and altitude of the aircraft;

determining an amount of fuel required at the motor in order to reduce a rotor droop associated with the torque response when executing the flight command at the aircraft;

determining a fuel flow to the motor based on motor parameters,

executing the determined flight command at the aircraft; and

supplying fuel to the motor of the aircraft to reduce the rotor droop while executing the flight command, wherein the fuel supplied to the motor is a sum of the fuel flow determined by the engine controller and the amount of fuel for reducing rotor speed droop determined by the processor.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining the amount of fuel based on a dynamic interaction between the aircraft and the motor of the aircraft.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the control system includes a pitch/roll model following control system, further comprising receiving a pitch/roll command and a current pitch/roll state at the pitch/roll model following control system and determining the flight command as a pitch/roll command based on the pitch/roll command and current pitch/roll state.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the flight parameter includes at least one of:

(i) aircraft air speed;

(ii) air density;

(iii) aircraft altitude;

(iv) air temperature;

(v) rotor speed.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising determining, using the dynamic interaction between the aircraft and the motor, the torque response of the motor for executing the flight command and determining the amount of fuel from the determined the torque response.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the control input includes at least one of (i) a pitch command;

(ii) a roll command;

(iii) a collective command; and

(iv) a propeller pitch command.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the amount of fuel required at the motor to reduce a rotor droop is added to a fuel requirement determined from a motor controller to obtain a total fuel flow and the total fuel flow is provided to the motor of the aircraft.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the motor includes at least one of:

(i) an engine; and

(ii) an electrical motor.

9. An aircraft, comprising:

a control system that provides a flight command to the aircraft for execution of the flight command in response to a command input;

a processor of the control system that computes a torque response at a motor of the aircraft to the flight command for a selected air density and altitude of the aircraft and determines an amount of fuel for the motor for reducing rotor speed droop associated with the torque response when executing the flight command at the aircraft;

an engine controller that determines a fuel flow to the motor based on motor parameters; and

a fuel supplier that provides the determined amount of fuel to the motor when the flight command is executed at the aircraft, wherein the determined amount is a sum of the fuel flow determined by the engine controller and the amount of fuel for reducing rotor speed droop determined by the processor.

10. The aircraft of claim 9, wherein the processor determines the amount of fuel based on a dynamic interaction between the aircraft and the motor of the aircraft.

11. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the control system includes a pitch/roll model following control system that receives a pitch/roll command and a current pitch/roll state and determines the flight command as a pitch/roll command based on the pitch/roll command and current pitch/roll state.

12. The aircraft of claim 10, wherein the processor determines a torque response required to execute the flight command and determines the amount of fuel from the determined the torque response.

13. The aircraft of claim 9, wherein the flight command is at least one of (i) a pitch command;

(ii) a roll command;

(iii) a collective command; and

(iv) a propeller pitch command.

14. The aircraft of claim 13, further comprising an engine controller for determining a fuel requirement for maintaining a flight state of the aircraft, wherein the fuel supplier provides a total fuel flow to the aircraft that is a sum of the fuel requirement determined by the engine controller and the amount of fuel for reducing the rotor speed droop.