Rolls-Royce Corporation

Matthew Moxon

Peter Swann

Paul Fletcher

Rory Douglas Stieger

Martin N Goodhand

Mikko Mattila

Martin Goodhand

A hydrogen fueled aircraft including a fuselage and a wing, and at least one fuel tank. The hydrogen fuel tank is mounted to the wing, wherein the fuel tank is mounted above the wing and spaced from an upper surface of the wing by a tank mounting arrangement which does not interfere with the wing upper surface.

Cryogenic fueled aircraft

An aircraft includes a fuselage and a wing, at least one hydrogen fuel tank and a fuel line configured to delivery fuel from the fuel tank to the engine. The fuel tank is installed externally of the fuselage and wing, and comprises an external aeroshell containing a plurality of pressure vessels configured to contain pressurised fuel therein.

An aircraft comprising a wing having a spanwise lift distribution extending from a root to a tip, the lift distribution defining an inboard region defining a positive lift contribution, an outboard region defining a negative lift contribution, and an intermediate region defining a neutral lift contribution, the neutral region being spaced from the tip and from the root. A propulsion system is provided, comprising a wing mounted propulsor. The wing mounted propulsor has a rotational axis (x) positioned substantially at a span of the wing where a value of &#x3b4;Lift/&#x3b4;Span is at a maximum for the span of the wing, and may be located at the intermediate region along the span of the wing.

Wing integrated propulsion system

An aerodrome system for an aerodrome is provided. The aerodrome system comprises a plurality of light emitting elements configured to emit light from a surface of the aerodrome upon which aircraft may take-off, land and manoeuvre; and a controller operatively coupled to each of the light emitting elements so as to selectively control the light emitting elements, wherein the light emitting elements form pixels of a display and the controller is configured to control an image displayed by the display so as to display and demarcate at least one runway for aircraft to take-off or land, wherein the light emitting elements are spaced such that the controller may display the runway with a variable orientation and the controller is further configured to change the image displayed by the display so as to change the orientation of the runway.

Aerodrome system and method

A modular energy storage system within a vehicle, wherein the energy storage system comprises a plurality of discrete energy storage units which are movable within the vehicle and selectively securable in a variety of positions.

Distributed energy storage system

A thermal management system comprises a first heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between a first component and a first working fluid, a first working fluid compressor downstream in first working fluid flow of the first heat exchanger and configured to compress the first working fluid, a second heat exchanger downstream in first working fluid flow of the compressor and configured to exchange heat between the first working fluid and a second working fluid and an expander downstream in first working fluid flow of the second heat exchanger, and configured to expand and cool first working fluid and deliver cooled first working fluid to the first heat exchanger. The system further comprises a third heat exchanger upstream in second working fluid flow of the second heat exchanger, and configured to exchange heat between a second component and the second working fluid.

Thermal management system

A boundary layer propulsor comprises a rotor and a plurality of first aerofoil blades. The rotor has an axis of rotation. The plurality of first aerofoil blades extends radially from the rotor and is arranged in a circumferential array around the axis of rotation. Each of the first aerofoil blades has, in a radially outward sequence, a radially proximal portion, a middle portion, and a radially distal portion. The radially proximal portion has a first cambered cross-section, the middle portion has a second uncambered cross-section, and the radially distal portion has a third cambered cross-section. The first cambered cross-section is cambered in an opposite sense to the third cambered cross-section.

Propulsor

An aircraft has an internal combustion engine and a wing including a hollow structural member. The aircraft has an electrical network including: an electrical motor configured to drive an aircraft propulsor; at least one conductor configured to electrically couple the electrical motor and an electrical storage device; wherein the electrical conductor is formed of the hollow structural member of the aircraft wing.

Aircraft electrical network

A turbomachinery control system for controlling supercritical working fluid turbomachinery. The control system includes a light emitter to project light through working fluid of the turbomachinery toward a primary light detector provided within a line of sight to the emitter. The system further includes one or more secondary light detectors spaced from the line of sight, and a controller determining one or both of an intensity of light detected by the primary detector relative to the detected light intensity by the secondary detector, and wavelength of light detected by the primary detector relative to wavelength of light detected by the secondary detector. The controller determines the working fluid proximity of the critical point based on one or both of the determined relative intensity and determined relative wavelength, and controlling an actuator to control turbomachinery inlet or outlet conditions in accordance with the working fluid determined proximity of the critical point.

Control system for supercritical working fluid turbomachinery

An aircraft has an internal combustion engine and a wing including a hollow structural member. The aircraft has an electrical network including: at least one alternating current electrical generator configured to be driven by the internal combustion engine; an electrical motor configured to drive an aircraft propulsor; at least one conductor configured to electrically couple the electrical motor and the electrical generator; wherein the electrical conductor is formed of the hollow structural member of the aircraft wing.

An aircraft (). The aircraft comprises a plurality of propellers () mounted to wings (). Each propeller comprises at least one blade () coupled to a respective propeller cyclic actuator () configured to cyclically alter the pitch of the respective blade () as the propeller rotates. The aircraft () is configured such that provision of cyclic pitch to the propeller () twists at least a portion of the wing () about a span of the wing () relative to the fuselage (), to thereby adjust the local angle of incidence of the wing ().

Aircraft

An aircraft including trailing edge flaps, a wing mounted propulsor positioned such that the flaps are located in a slipstream of the first propulsor in use when deployed. The aircraft further including a thrust vectorable propulsor configured to selectively vary the exhaust efflux vector of the propulsor in at least one plane. The thrust vectorable propulsor includes a ducted fan configurable between a first mode, in which the fan provides net forward thrust to the aircraft, and a second mode in which the fan provides net drag to the aircraft. The fan is positioned to ingest a boundary layer airflow in use when operating in the first mode.

A method of controlling a rotor tip clearance in a gas turbine engine (). The method comprises determining an engine or component remaining useful life T, and controlling a tip clearance control arrangement () to maintain a rotor tip clearance () at a target tip clearance D. The target tip clearance Dis determined in accordance with a function of remaining engine life T.

Turbine tip clearance control method and system

An aircraft () comprising a fuselage (), the fuselage () comprising at least first and second inwardly tapering portions () extending in a generally rearward direction from an aft end of the fuselage (), each inwardly tapering portion () comprising a boundary layer ingesting propulsor () mounted thereon.

An aircraft comprises at least first and second gas turbine engines arranged in a line extending generally normally to an aircraft longitudinal axis (A), each engine comprising at least one compressor or turbine rotor disc defining a respective rotational plane (D-D). The rotational plane (D-D) of at least one of the rotors of at least one of the engines is angled relative to the aircraft longitudinal line (A) such that a burst disc plane of the respective engine is nonintersecting with another engine.

Growing community of inventors

Derby, United Kingdom

Matthew Moxon