The Boeing Company

Mohammad Ali Heidari

Omid B Nakhjavani

Milan Stefanovic

Andrew Y Na

Anthony K Gilbert

Robert H Willie

Adrian Stanescu

Leonard J Hebert

Naimishkumar Harpal

Parminder Singh

Paul S Park

Mostafa Rassaian

Shahriar Khosravani

Forouzan Behzadpour

James Frederick Ackermann

Eric S Lester

Micah D Druckman

James S Lee

Naveena Mallikarjunaiah

Bradley A Olmstead

Arun Kannayiram Jeyavelu

Ayusman Tripathy

Eric John Zimney

Saba Mahanian

Robert H Willier

Singh Parminder

Andrew Na

Example systems and methods to optimize and integrate of thermal and structural analyses are described herein. An example method includes performing a thermal analysis of a component using a first mesh representing the component to produce a thermal distribution across the component. The first mesh has first nodes based on a first element size. The example method includes using a first mapping file to assign temperature values to second nodes of a second mesh representing the component based on the thermal distribution. The second nodes are based on a second element size different than the first element size. The example method also includes performing a structural analysis of the component using the second mesh and the assigned temperature values to produce gauge sizes for the component and using a second mapping file to assign gauge values to the first nodes of the first mesh based on the gauge sizes.

Optimization and integration of thermal and structural analyses

In one example, a strut for mounting a jet engine to a wing of an aircraft includes a plurality of engine mounts and a space frame truss supported from the wing and including front and aft portions, the front portion being coupled to and supporting the engine mounts, the aft portion extending upwardly and rearwardly from an aft end of the front portion. By removing the aft end of the strut from the core exhaust zone of the engine, substantial reductions in the weight and drag of the strut, and a corresponding increase in the specific fuel consumption of the associated aircraft may be achieved.

Enhanced performance jet engine mounting struts

Methods and apparatus to vary reverse thrust of aircraft engines are disclosed. An example cascade apparatus disclosed herein includes a cascade frame having a first end, a second end, and a fixed structure extending between the first end and second end, where the cascade frame defines a slot. A cascade forms a reverse thrust flow path and at least a portion of the cascade is slidably coupled to the frame via the slot. The cascade slides relative the frame between a first position to produce a first reverse thrust and a second position to produce a second reverse thrust, where the first reverse thrust is different than the second reverse thrust.

Methods and apparatus to vary reverse thrust of aircraft engines

In one example embodiment, a strut for mounting a jet engine to a wing of an aircraft includes a plurality of engine mounts and a space frame truss supported from the wing and comprising front and aft portions, the front portion being coupled to and supporting the engine mounts, the aft portion extending upwardly and rearwardly from an aft end of the front portion. By removing the aft end of the strut from the core exhaust zone of the engine, substantial reductions in the weight and drag of the strut, and a corresponding increase in the specific fuel consumption of the associated aircraft may be achieved.

A system and method for creating an optimized composite laminate structure containing a plurality of plies. The system has a processor and a memory, including an application interface. The application interface, when executed by the processor, is configured to operably: receive an input file having one or more of a maximum number of plies, design variables, material properties, and design constraints; determine an initial layup sequence defining parameters of a fiber orientation angle for each ply, and a total percentage of plies at a given fiber orientation angle; iteratively adjust the parameters, until an optimum set of parameters is obtained that achieves one or more predetermined margins of safety, and that achieves optimization of the composite laminate structure; and generate an output file for creating a layup, according to the parameters. The system further has a layup system for creating the optimized composite laminate structure.

System and method for optimizing composite laminate structures

There is provided a system for reading geometric data from parametric model or a nonparametric model from a CAD model file. The system has a processor and an interface application, which when executed by the processor, is configured to operably receive automatically, using a first interface application, an input file that includes data representing one or more components of a three-dimensional model, and is further configured to operably determine, using the first interface application, a type of a part represented by the three-dimensional model. The first interface application has instructions, one or more algorithms, or a combination thereof, and is further configured to automatically operably identify, select, and group geometric data associated with specific geometric data of the three-dimensional model, based on a set of parametric rules. The processor writes extracted specific geometric data to a first geometry intermediate output file.

System and method for reading geometric data from a computer-aided design (CAD) model

Methods for balancing rotating machinery, such as gas turbine engines, to minimize vibrations. An optimal engine balance solution is obtained using a hybrid optimization technique based on vibration data from one or more vibration sensors and corresponding influence coefficients which quantify the change in vibration level at the vibration sensors due to a unit increase in unbalance level at unbalance source locations. More specifically, balance weight and angular position are determined based on multiple optimization methods which concurrently process the vibration data, the multiple optimization methods comprising local and global optimization algorithms.

Methods for optimized engine balancing based on flight data

A method for manufacturing a bearing housing comprising: selecting a configuration for housing and manufacturing the housing the configuration. The selected housing configuration comprises a bearing section and a base having a cylindrical shape. The bearing section and base are substantially aligned centrally along an axis. A plurality of members extends between the bearing section and the base. The plurality of members has a length and a width, and, in the configuration, each of the plurality of members has a side that is substantially non-perpendicular with respect to the bearing section and the base. At least one of the plurality of members extends at an angle from the bearing section to the base; the plurality of members having a curve relative to the axis; and the width of the plurality of members decreasing or increasing along the length of the plurality of members.

Method of manufacturing a bearing housing for an engine with stress and stiffness control

An apparatus has a tubular body with a channel and a number of stiffeners. The number of stiffeners allows the tubular body to absorb additional mechanical energy through axial compression. Additionally, the number of stiffeners is located on a number of locations for the tubular body. The apparatus also has a plurality of hinges located in part between the number of locations of the number of stiffeners for the tubular body, and also located between end flanges at the end of the tubular body and a stiffener. The number of hinges further define deformable regions. At least one deformable region of the plurality of deformable regions is configured to expand away from the channel in response to the tubular body being compressed in the axial direction.

Load absorption system

The invention described here provides a method for obtaining the 'best' solution to balancing engine vibration where one or more corrective weights are applied to accessible stage of an engine, while other unbalanced stages remain inaccessible, and hence, no balancing weights can be applied there. The method involves placing balancing weights at accessible stages only, but taking into account vibration at such stages which is created by unbalances at the inaccessible stages. The method is practiced by calculating the angular limits for placing a corrective weight onto an engine stage, followed by calculating the minimum and maximum weight magnitude to be placed on the stage so that overall engine vibration remains below a certain desired level (D). Thereafter, the optimum weight and angular position is determined by minimizing D via a procedure of incremental calculations.

Growing community of inventors

Bellevue, WA, United States of America

Mohammad Ali Heidari