General Electric Company

Mitchell Donald Smith

Barton H Snow

Manxue Lu

David Allen Gutz

James William Bartos

Charles Francis Hanley

Jon Tomas Zumberge

Daniel Lee Immel

James Alan Griffiths

Darryl Brian Price

A distributed control system may include a main processing unit, a distributed control module, and a controllable component. The distributed control module may be configured to receive a nominal command reference from the main processing unit, determine a series of cumulating command references based at least in part on the nominal command reference; and output a series of cumulating control commands to the controllable component. The series of cumulating control commands may be based at least in part on the series of cumulating command references.

Distributed control modules with cumulating command references

A method and system of scheduling a demand for a process inner loop are provided. The loop controller includes an inner loop control system configured to generate a control output signal for a controllable member and a schedule demand module configured to receive parameter values for a controlled variable of a process from a parameter source and to generate a scheduled demand output using a demand schedule. The loop controller also includes a schedule prediction module configured to predict a future value of a scheduling parameter based on a historical performance of the inner loop control system and current system dynamics and to generate a scheduled rate output. The schedule prediction module includes the rate-of-change of a scheduling parameter and a lead time input that defines a look-ahead time period used with the parameter rate signal to determine a future predicted value of the controlled variable.

Method and system for schedule predictive lead compensation

A method and apparatus for local loop closure is provided. The apparatus includes a component for use in a gas turbine engine. The component includes at least one of an actuator and a servo-valve, at least one sensor, and an electronic module comprising controller electronics and memory. The electronic module is configured to receive and process commands for the at least one of an actuator and a servo-valve and queue received commands in an input buffer.

Method and apparatus for local loop closure

A fuel control system for an aircraft gas turbine engine that includes a thrust augmentation system. An augmentor fuel pump is arranged to provide pressurized fuel to an exhaust nozzle throat area actuation system to eliminate the need for a separate hydraulic pump to provide pressurized fluid for exhaust nozzle actuation. An augmentor fuel bypass arrangement is provided to enable the augmentor fuel pump to provide pressurized fuel to the main fuel pressurizing valve and to components operated by the main fuel system in the event of failure of the main fuel pump. The augmentor fuel pump pressure and output flow are controlled as a function of thrust augmentation demand and main fuel system operation. The system provides redundancy by enabling either the main fuel system or the augmentor fuel system to maintain engine operation if one of the fuel systems fails or provides inadequate fuel flow.

Gas turbine engine fuel control method

A cooling air cooling system is selectively operable to reduce fuel gum deposits within the cooling system during gas turbine engine operations. The cooling system includes a recirculating loop that includes at least three heat exchangers in fluid communication with the recirculating loop. A first heat exchanger cools cooling air supplied to the gas turbine engine. A second heat exchanger cools fluid exiting the first of the heat exchangers with fan discharge air prior to the fluid entering the third heat exchanger. A third heat exchanger uses combustor main fuel flow to cool the fluid circulating in the recirculating loop.

Growing community of inventors

Morrow, OH, United States of America

Mitchell Donald Smith