Systems and methods for starting aircraft engines
First Claim
1. A method for operating a turbofan engine, comprising:
- allowing an unstarted turbofan engine of an aircraft to windmill during flight;
deploying a ram air driven turbine into an airstream adjacent to the aircraft;
extracting electrical power from the ram air driven turbine via an electrical generator coupled to the ram air driven turbine;
starting the turbofan engine by directing the electrical power to a starter motor coupled to the turbofan engine; and
testing at least one of the ram air driven turbine and the electrical generator on the ground by providing electrical power to the electrical generator while the ram air driven turbine is installed on the aircraft so as to operate the electrical generator as a motor to drive the ram air driven turbine.
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Abstract
Methods and systems for starting aircraft turbofan engines are disclosed. A system in accordance with one embodiment includes an electrically-powered starter motor coupled to a turbofan engine to provide power to the turbofan engine during an engine start procedure. The system can further include an on-board, deployable, ram air driven turbine coupled to an electrical generator, which is in turn coupled to the starter motor to provide electrical power to the starter motor. In other embodiments, the ram air driven turbine can be replaced with a fuel cell or a battery. In still further embodiments, a single controller can control operation of both the engine starter and other motors of the aircraft.
181 Citations
8 Claims
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1. A method for operating a turbofan engine, comprising:
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allowing an unstarted turbofan engine of an aircraft to windmill during flight; deploying a ram air driven turbine into an airstream adjacent to the aircraft; extracting electrical power from the ram air driven turbine via an electrical generator coupled to the ram air driven turbine; starting the turbofan engine by directing the electrical power to a starter motor coupled to the turbofan engine; and testing at least one of the ram air driven turbine and the electrical generator on the ground by providing electrical power to the electrical generator while the ram air driven turbine is installed on the aircraft so as to operate the electrical generator as a motor to drive the ram air driven turbine. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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Specification