Rosemount Aerospace Limited

Goodrich Corporation

Darren Glenn Jackson

Mark Ray

Kaare Josef Anderson

Magdi A Essawy

John Albert Severson

Dennis J Cronin

Matthew J Hansen

David George Owens

Galdemir Cezar Botura

Brian Brent Naslund

Jennifer M Alexander

Vincent R LoPresto

Matthew Michael Webb

James Thomas Hindel

John D Winter

Jason Lee Skoglund

Wesley J Schwartz

Jeremy S Burns

Dave Bert Sweet

David Bert Sweet

Vincent R Lopresto

John A Severson

Matt Hansen

A method of monitoring an ice protection system of a rotorcraft or an aircraft includes applying heat to rotating blades of the rotorcraft or the aircraft according to a heater duty cycle and determining an anticipated ice shed time for ice to shed from the rotating blades. Torque of the rotating blades is sensed, and an actual ice shed time for ice to shed from the rotating blades is determined based on the sensed torque. A status of the ice protection system is determined based on the anticipated ice shed time and the actual ice shed time, and the status of the ice protection system is output for consumption by a consuming system.

Heating prognostics system for ice protection system

Apparatus and associated methods relate to determining an effective size, quantity, shape, and type of water particles in a cloud atmosphere based on differences in amplitudes of optical signals backscattered at different backscattering angles. Off-axis backscattering&#x2014;backscattering at angles other than 180 degrees&#x2014;is affected by the effective size, quantity, shape, and type of water droplets. Detected amplitudes of optical signals that are backscattered at different angles are used to indicate the effective size, quantity, shape, and type of water particles in the cloud atmosphere. In some embodiments, optical emitters and detectors are configured to measure amplitudes of optical signals backscattered at backscattering angles of both on-axis&#x2014;180 degrees&#x2014;and off-axis varieties.

Characterization of a cloud atmosphere using light backscattered at two angles

Apparatus and associated methods relate to a system for detecting foreign object debris ingested into an aircraft engine. The system detects such foreign object debris by projecting a beam of light over an inlet of the aircraft engine. When foreign object debris is ingested into the aircraft engine, it intercepts the beam of light and scatters a back-scattered portion of the intercepted beam of light. An optical detector is configured to detect the back-scattered portion of the intercepted beam of light. A processor is configured to determine whether foreign object debris is ingested by the aircraft engine based on a comparison of a threshold value with a signal indicative of the back-scattered portion generated by the optical detector.

Optical detection of foreign object debris ingested by aircraft engine

Apparatus and associated methods relate to determining health of an electrical heater of an air data probe based on a comparison between a calculated expected value and a measured value of an electrical property of the electrical heater. The expected value of the electrical property is calculated based in part on the electrical power provided to the electrical heater and further based in part on the aircraft flight parameters and/or environmental conditions. Such aircraft flight parameters and/or environmental conditions can include at least one of: electric power source status, airspeed, air pressure, altitude, air temperature, humidity, liquid water content, ice water content, droplet/particle size distribution, angle of attack, and angle of sideslip. These aircraft flight parameters and/or environmental conditions are received via an aircraft interface.

Health monitoring of an electrical heater of an air data probe

A system for correcting an air temperature (AT) reading can include a water content sensor configured to measure a water content in an airflow and to output a water content signal indicative thereof, an AT sensor configured to measure an air temperature and output an AT signal indicative thereof, and a correction module operatively connected to the water content sensor and the AT sensor. The correction module can be configured to receive the water content signal and the AT signal and to correct the AT signal based on the water content to output a corrected AT signal.

Air temperature correction

An air data probe system can include a pitot static system configured to sense at least one total pressure value of a flow at one or more locations, at least one static pressure value of the flow at the one or more locations, and, directly or indirectly, at least one differential static pressure value of the flow at the one or more locations. The system can include an angle of slip (AOS) module configured to determine a local angle of slip (LAOS) value at each location based on the at least one total pressure value at each location, the at least one static pressure value at each location, and the at least one differential static pressure value at each location.

Pitot static systems with angle of sideslip determination and compensation

Apparatus and associated methods relate to detecting cloud conditions from a distance by generating a polarized microwave-frequency electromagnetic pulse and evaluating various reflected wave parameters pertaining to a corresponding cloud-reflected microwave-frequency electromagnetic reflection. Various cloud metrics can be calculated using these collected wave parameters. The microwave-frequency pulses can be scanned over multiple dimensions, using a steered beam arrangement which will lead to the ability to scanning a conical sector of the space in front of the aircraft. These collected multi-dimensional wave parameters can then be used to generate multi-dimensional maps of cloud metrics. Such cloud metrics can include relative velocities of moving cloud conditions in the flight direction, particle density distributions, ice/water ratios, estimates of particle side distributions, etc.

Long-range cloud conditions detector

Apparatus and associated methods relate to determining liquid-water concentration in a cloud atmosphere based on a frequency of resonance of a magnetostrictive resonator and/or a temporal variation of the resonant frequency of the magnetostrictive resonator. The magnetostrictive resonator is configured to resonate at a resonant frequency indicative of a measure of ice accumulation upon an exterior surface of the magnetostrictive resonator. When in liquid-water ambient, however, the magnetostrictive resonator has a resonant frequency less than a baseline resonant frequency. When in the liquid-water ambient, the magnetostrictive resonator also has temporal variations in resonant frequency that exceed one part in ten thousand. Using one or both of these resonant-frequency responses to liquid-water ambient, a signal indicative of liquid-water content can be generated.

Method and apparatus of detecting liquid water in a cloud

An aircraft ice protection system () comprises an ice protection device (), an onboard power source (), a supply line () from the power source () to the device (), a controller () which controls the line (), and an optimizer () which conveys operation-optimizing instructions () to the controller (). An ice detector () provides an input () to the optimizer () and this ice-condition input () is used to generate the operation-optimizing instructions ().

Aircraft ice protection optimization based on ice-detection input

Systems and methods for detecting ice particle accumulation is disclosed herein. In one exemplary implementation, a method for detecting ice is described in which a parameter within an interior volume of a heated conduit is measured. The method also includes detecting the presence of an accumulation of ice particles based on the parameter measured within the interior volume of the heated conduit.

Detecting ice particles

An ice detector for an aircraft comprises a strut and probe assembly, and it is positioned on the aircraft so that the pressure field around the ice detector causes a lower temperature region on the probe assembly compared to the aircraft. Ice will therefore form on the probe assembly before it forms on the aircraft to provide an early warning of icing conditions near freezing temperatures.

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Prior Lake, MN, United States of America

Darren Glenn Jackson