APPARATUS FOR GENERATING POWER FROM A TURBINE ENGINE

• US 20130088019A1
• Filed: 10/07/2011
• Published: 04/11/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Huang, Hao, Jia, Xiaochuan, Karipides, David Dimitri
• Granted Patent: US 8,723,349 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 290/1.C
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 16/03 for supply of electrical power to vehicle subsystems or for circuit arrangements for charging batteries H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 25/22 Multiple windings; Windings for more than three phases
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 9/00 Arrangements for controlling electric generators for the purpose of obtaining a desired output Ward-Leonard arrangements H02P7/34; vector control H02P21/00; feeding a network by two or more generators H02J; for charging batteries H02J7/14

Abstract

An apparatus for powering an aircraft by generating power from a pressure spool of a turbine engine. AC power can be extracted from the turbine engine by a generator having an integrated autotransformer unit, and converted to DC power.

Claims

1. A power generation system for a turbine engine having a pressure spool comprising:

an AC generator with an integrated auto transformer unit having at least two three-phase outputs from the integrated auto transformer unit;

a rectifier matrix connected to the at least two three-phase outputs; and

a filter connected to the rectifier matrix configured to provide DC output to a DC bus.

2. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the AC generator comprises a constant frequency generator.

3. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the AC generator comprises a variable frequency generator.

4. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the AC generator comprises three main windings coupled with a motor starter controller.

5. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the pressure spool is a high pressure spool, and the AC generator is coupled with the high pressure spool.

6. The power generation system of claim 5 and further comprising an accessory gearbox having an input mechanically coupled to the high pressure spool and an output mechanically coupled to the AC generator.

7. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the pressure spool is a low pressure spool, and the AC generator is coupled with the low pressure spool.

8. The power generation system of claim 7 and further comprising a constant speed mechanical drive having an input mechanically coupled to the low pressure spool and an output mechanically coupled to the AC generator.

9. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the rectifier matrix comprises a plurality of diodes, and the number of the plurality of diodes is equal to the desired pulse count of the integrated auto transformer unit.

10. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the rectifier matrix comprises three rectifier bridges, where each rectifier bridge is coupled with one of the phase outputs from the AC generator.

11. The power generation system of claim 1 wherein the AC generator comprises three three-phase outputs from the integrated auto transformer unit.

12. The power generation system of claim 1, further comprising an additional winding coupled with the AC generator and configured to provide AC output to an AC bus.

13. An electrical architecture for a turbine engine having a high pressure (HP) spool and a low pressure (LP) spool comprising:

a first AC generator coupled to the HP spool and comprising a first integrated auto transformer unit having at least two three-phase outputs from the first integrated auto transformer unit;

a second AC generator coupled to the LP spool and comprising a second integrated auto transformer unit having at least two three-phase outputs from the second integrated auto transformer unit;

a first AC/DC converter connected to the at least two three-phase outputs of the first AC generator, and to a first DC bus; and

a second AC/DC converter connected to the at least two three-phase outputs of the second AC generator, and to a second DC bus;

wherein the first and second DC buses are selectively connected.

14. The electrical architecture of claim 13 wherein the second AC generator comprises a constant frequency generator.

15. The electrical architecture of claim 13 wherein the first AC generator comprises a variable frequency generator.

16. The electrical architecture of claim 13 and further comprising a motor starter controller, wherein the first AC generator comprises three main windings coupled with the motor starter controller.

17. The electrical architecture of claim 13 and further comprising a constant speed mechanical drive having an input mechanically coupled to the LP spool and an output mechanically coupled to the second AC generator.

18. The electrical architecture of claim 13 and further comprising an accessory gearbox having an input mechanically coupled to the HP spool and an output mechanically coupled to the first AC generator.

19. The electrical architecture of claim 13 wherein the first AC/DC converter comprises a first rectifier matrix, and the second AC/DC converter comprises a second rectifier matrix.

20. The electrical architecture of claim 17 wherein the first AC/DC converter further comprises a first filter connected to the first rectifier matrix and configured to provide DC output to the first bus, and the second AC/DC converter further comprises a second filter connected to the second rectifier matrix and configured to provide DC output to the second bus.