Rolls-Royce Corporation

Alstom Technology Limited

General Electric Technology Gmbh

General Electric Company

Lucas Industries Limited

Goodrich Actuation Systems Limited

David Reginald Trainer

Mark Sweet

Francisco Javier Chivite Zabalza

Colin Charnock Davidson

Nnamdi Okaeme

Stephen Andrew Long

Gian Incerpi

Stephen Mark Husband

Omar Fadhel Jasim

Gareth Edward Moore

Luke George

Robert Stephen Whitehouse

Ellis F H Chong

Kevin J Dyke

Lihua Hu

William Crookes

Matthew C Morris

David Peter Scothern

John J A Cullen

Colin Donald Murray Oates

Carl David Barker

Paul R Davies

Colin Oates

Timothy Charles Green

Zafer Jarrah

Michael Marc Claude Merlin

Ruchira Withanage

John James Anthony Cullen

Stuart J Galloway

Matthew S Cartwright

Rajaseker Reddy Ginnareddy

Zhigang Sun

Konstantinos Kampisios

David S Knott

Huw Llewelyn Edwards

David James Powell

John Lewis Outram

Alan J Mitcham

Omar Jasim

Ellis Fui Hen Chong

Andrew Roscoe

Paul Simms

Peter Malkin

Donald Colin Murray Oates

Andrew Nolan

Jonathan Charles Clare

James A Campbell

Andrew Cross

Thomas C J Feehally

Jonathan M Stevens

Michael P Hirst

Konstantin Vershinin

Andre Paulo Canelhas

Oleg Bagleybter

Ellis Fh Chong

Paul Anthony Kendall

Jose Maneiro

Francisco Jose Moreno Munoz

Adam Dysko

Jonathan Christopher Nicholls

Douglas M M Herbert

Adrian Keitley

Andrew John Forsyth

Anthony P O'Carrol

Francisco Javier Chivite-Zabalza

Ralph Feldman

Francisco Jose Moreno Muñoz

Javier Francisco Chivite-Zabalza

Sean Joseph Loddick

Richard C Knight

Ikenna Bruce Efika

Matteo Tomasini

Angus G L Moodie

Andrew M Cross

Ahmed A-m Abdel-Hafez

Andrew Mackay

Matthew Ingham

Dumisani Simfukwe

Harsh Agarwal

Francisco Moreno Munoz

John R Smith

Alessandro Costabeber

Douglas Herbert

Francisco Jose Moreno Munzo

Linhua Hu

Richard Knight

Emmanuel Amankwah

John Cullen

Rajseker Ginnareddy

Kevin Dyke

Diego Soto-Sanchez

Campbell David Booth

Michael Peter Hirst

Thomas Conan Joseph Feehally

Stephen Andrew Rolls-Royce Corporation Long

Angus George Lewis Moodie

Anthony Patrick O'Carrol

There is provided a current limiting diode comprising a gate, a source, and a drain electrically connected to the source by an n-channel or p-channel; wherein the source and the gate are electrically connected by a fill structure comprising a phase-change fill material, and wherein the phase-change fill material is configured to absorb heat from the n-channel or p-channel by changing phase.

Current limiting diode

An aircraft power and propulsion system includes a gas turbine engine having first and second spools, the first spool being a starting spool; first and second DC electrical networks having first and second operating voltages; a first electrical machine joined with the first spool, the first electrical machine having first and a second winding sets; a second electrical machine joined with the second spool; a first, second and third AC:DC converter; and a controllable switching arrangement configured so that a connection to an AC-side of the third AC:DC converter is switchable between a winding of the second electrical machine or the second DC electrical network via an inductor.

Electrically starting a gas turbine engine

A power conversion circuitry configured to transition between modes of operation during an electrical fault, including: switching circuitry configured to control currents flowing along a plurality of current paths between respective pairs of nodes, wherein the paths include first and second transistor-diode pairs; and control circuitry connected to the switching circuitry configured to: configure the switching circuitry to transition, when an electrical fault is detected, to a first mode of operation by configuring the transistors to switch to a non-conducting state so currents flow through the diodes, determine when current begins to flow through a diode, and configure the switching circuitry to transition from the first mode to a fault mode of operation by configuring the transistors to sequentially switch to a conducting state so currents flow through the configured transistors. Also, a method of controlling power conversion circuitry to transition between modes of operation during an electrical fault.

Circuitry and method for transitioning between modes of operation during an electrical fault

A power conversion circuitry configured to detect an electrical fault, and methods of detecting an electrical fault in power conversion circuitry, the power conversion circuitry including: switching circuitry configured to control a current flowing along a current path between first and second nodes of the power conversion circuitry; a current sensor connected to the current path, the current sensor configured to measure a rate of change of the current flowing along the current path; and control circuitry connected to the current sensor and the switching circuitry, the control circuitry configured to: detect an electrical fault if a rate of change of the current measured by the current sensor exceeds a fault threshold, and configure the switching circuitry to adjust current flow in the power conversion circuitry when an electrical fault is detected.

Circuitry and methods for detecting an electrical fault in power conversion circuitry

Reconfigurable permanent magnet electrical machines and aircraft power and propulsion systems comprising such electrical machines are described. In one aspect, an aircraft power and propulsion system comprises: a gas turbine engine; a permanent magnet electrical machine comprising a rotor drivingly coupled to a spool of the gas turbine engine, and a stator comprising windings controllably switchable between a star configuration and a delta configuration; a DC electrical network; an AC:DC power electronics converter, an AC side of which is connected to terminals of the stator windings of the electrical machine and a DC side of which is connected to the DC electrical network; and a control system. The control system is configured to monitor at least one operating condition of the power and propulsion system and to control the switching of the stator windings between the star configuration and the delta configuration based on the at least one operating condition.

Aircraft power and propulsion systems comprising permanent magnet electrical machines

Reconfigurable permanent magnet electrical machines and aircraft power and propulsion systems including the electrical machines. An aircraft power and propulsion system includes: a gas turbine engine; DC electrical network; permanent magnet electrical machine including a rotor drivingly coupled to a spool of the engine, and a stator including windings controllably switchable between a star and a delta configuration; an AC-DC power electronics converter, an AC side is connected to terminals of the stator windings and a DC side is connected to the DC electrical network; an additional electrical power source connected to and controllable to supply electrical power to the DC electrical network; and a control system configured to control the switching of the stator windings between the configurations and to control the additional electrical power source to supply electrical power to the DC electrical network during a time interval when the stator is being switched between the configurations.

A electrical power system comprises: an electrical machine operable to output AC; a DC electrical network; a power electronics converter connected between the AC output of the electrical machine and the DC electrical network and including a plurality of transistors and associated diodes connected in parallel with the transistors; and a controller configured to control switching of the transistors of the converter so that, during normal operation of the electrical power system, the converter rectifies the AC output of the electrical machine to supply the DC electrical network with DC electrical power. The controller is further configured, responsive to a determination to the effect there is a fault in the DC electrical network, to control a voltage source, to inject a voltage to bias the diodes of the converter, and to control the switching of the transistors to control a level of current supplied to the faulted DC electrical network.

Electrical power system converter control

The disclosure relates to an electrical power system with current fault protection provided by current limiting diodes. Example embodiments include an electrical power system comprising: an electrical machine; an AC:DC power electronics converter connected to receive an input AC supply from the electrical machine and provide an output DC supply across first and second output terminals; a DC bus connected to first and second output terminals of the AC:DC power electronics converter; a load connected across the DC bus; a first circuit breaker switch and a first current limiting diode connected in series between the AC:DC power electronics converter and the DC bus; and a second circuit breaker switch and a second current limiting diode connected in series between the DC bus and the load, wherein the first current limiting diode is configured to limit current to a higher level than the second current limiting diode.

Electrical power system

The disclosure relates to an electrical power system for connecting an electrical machine to first and second DC networks operating at different voltages. Example embodiments include an electrical power system comprising: an electrical machine having first and second pluralities of windings; a first AC:DC power electronics converter connected to the first plurality of windings; a second AC:DC power electronics converter connected to the second plurality of windings; a switching controller configured to provide switching signals to the first and second AC:DC power electronics converters to provide a first DC supply at a DC side of the first AC:DC power electronics converter and a second DC supply at a DC side of the second AC:DC power electronics converter.

Aircraft power and propulsion systems and methods thereof; an aircraft power and propulsion system includes: a gas turbine engine having first and second spools; one or more electrical networks; a first electrical machine joined with the first spool; a second electrical machine joined with the second spool; a first power converter having first and second sides; a second power converter having first and second sides; and a controllable switching arrangement in which a connection to the first side of the second power converter is switchable between: a winding of the second electrical machine, or the winding of the first electrical machine.

An electrical power system includes: an electrical machine to output AC; DC electrical network; power electronics converter connected between the AC output of the electrical machine and the DC electrical network and having a phase leg having first and second branches respectively having first and second bi-directional MOSFETs; and controller controlling switching of the first and second bi-directional MOSFETs of each phase leg of the converter so that current is commutated between the phase leg first and second branches rectifying the AC input to DC to supply the DC electrical network with DC electrical power. The controller is responsive to a determination to the effect that there is a fault in the DC electrical network, to control the switching of each phase leg first and second bi-directional MOSFETs to switch the converter into a crow-bar configuration in which electrical machine current does not flow to the DC network.

A power electronics converter comprising: first and second input terminals; first and second DC output terminals; a branch comprising first and second semiconductor switches connected in series between the first and second DC output terminals, the first input terminal connected to a node between the first and second semiconductor switches; a DC link capacitor connected between the first and second DC output terminals; and a reverse biased DC link diode connected across the DC link capacitor.

Power electronics converter

The disclosure relates to electrical converters for use in aircraft electrical power systems and to methods of operating such electrical converters to maintain reliable operation of semiconductor components over varying cosmic radiation levels at altitude. Exemplary embodiments include an electrical converter comprising: a converter circuit having a plurality of semiconductor devices configured to convert an input electrical supply to an output electrical supply; and a controller connected configured to receive an input altitude signal, wherein the controller is further configured to control a temperature of the plurality of semiconductor devices according to the received input altitude signal to reduce an effect of increased incident cosmic radiation on the converter circuit.

Electrical converter

There is provided an electrical power system comprising: a DC voltage source, a DC electrical network, a DC to AC to DC converter having a primary side connected to the DC voltage source and a secondary side connected to the DC electrical network, and a controller configured to control the DC to AC to DC converter, wherein the controller is configured to: monitor an electrical current or voltage between the DC voltage source and the DC electrical network; determine, based on the monitored electrical current or voltage, whether the DC electrical network is in a fault condition; and increase a switching frequency of the primary side of the DC to AC to DC converter in response to a positive determination that the DC electrical network is in a fault condition.

The disclosure relates to an electrical power system for connecting an electrical machine to first and second DC networks operating at different voltages. In an embodiment, an electrical power system comprises: an electrical machine having first, second, third and fourth windings; first, second, third and fourth AC:DC power electronics converters each connected to receive an input AC supply from the respective first, second, third and fourth windings, each AC:DC power electronics converter having first and second DC output terminals connecting the AC:DC power electronics converters to first, second and third DC supply output terminals, wherein the first and second windings are arranged to provide an AC supply to the respective first and second AC:DC power electronics converters in quadrature to each other and the third and fourth windings are arranged to provide an AC supply to the respective third and fourth AC:DC power electronics converters in quadrature to each other.

Growing community of inventors

Derby, United Kingdom

David Reginald Trainer