The present invention relates to an auxiliary power unit and more particularly to an inlet door therefore.
Aircraft auxiliary power units (APU) are gas turbine engines often located in an aircraft empennage such as an aircraft tail, fuselage wing root or fuselage wheel well area. The APU receives inlet airflow through a forward inlet silencer duct and discharges an exhaust though an acoustic muffler that is mounted to an exhaust duct of the APU to reduce noise associated therewith. The inlet typically includes a hinged door movable between three positions: a closed position, an in-flight position and a ground position.
During aircraft flight, the door extends into the free stream airflow to define a forward facing air inlet scoop. Minimizing the extent to which the door projects into the free stream airflow improves the aerodynamics of the aircraft, reduces the amount of noise that is transmitted to the cabin of the aircraft, and reduces concerns associated with the formation of ice on the door, the inlet silencer duct and plenum.
When the aircraft is on the ground, the inlet door is opened to a fully open position to compensate for the lack of free stream airflow and minimize pressure drop as a significant pressure drop may effect efficient operation of the APU. Such a fully open position, however, directs a fully open forward facing air inlet scoop toward a forward section of the aircraft such that noise may propagate therefrom. The inlet noise typically travels from the compressor through the inlet duct and is deflected from the inlet door toward the forward section of the aircraft. Since the forward section of the aircraft often include passenger doors, personnel cabins, refueling points and baggage doors, audible noise levels experienced by those onboard the aircraft or those on the ground may be increased such that the APU system will typically incorporate an inlet silencer to attenuate the APU noise and compressor tone level. Although effective, such an inlet silencer may increases weight, cost and complexity of the APU system.
An inlet door assembly according to an exemplary aspect of the present invention includes an inlet door rotatable about an axis of rotation.
A method of communicating an airflow to an auxiliary power unit according to an exemplary aspect of the present invention includes rotating an inlet door about an axis of rotation between a closed position and a ground position, an in-flight position rotationally between the closed position and the ground position, the in-flight position communicating airflow through a port in the inlet door.
The various features and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the currently disclosed embodiment. The drawings that accompany the detailed description can be briefly described as follows:
The APU system 12 generally includes an APU inlet assembly 14, an APU 16 and an APU exhaust assembly 18. The APU inlet assembly 14 generally includes an inlet door assembly 20, an inlet silencer duct 22 and an inlet plenum 24 in communication with the APU 16. The inlet door assembly 20 generally includes an inlet door 26 which rotates relative an inlet door frame 28 which is attached to the aircraft skin 30.
Referring to
The inlet door 26 includes a generally arcuate outer surface 40 defined about the axis of rotation A. The generally arcuate outer surface 40 defines one end section 40A to which forms an air scoop like structure. The generally arcuate outer surface 40 transitions into a generally flat outer surface 42. The generally flat outer surface 42 may alternatively or additionally be shaped to correspond with the surface of the aircraft skin 30 when the inlet door 26 is in a closed position (
The inlet door 26 defines a port 44 which is sized to generally correspond with the inlet silencer duct 22. The port 44 may be defined by an inner wall structure 46A, 46B which provides for a smooth airflow therethrough. The port 44 is located through the generally arcuate outer surface 40 such that airflow may be communicated therethrough when in an in-flight position (
When the inlet door 26 is rotated to the closed position (
When rotated to the in-flight position (
When rotated to the ground position (
In operation, the inlet door 26 may be rotated between the closed position (
It should be understood that relative positional terms such as “forward,” “aft,” “upper,” “lower,” “above,” “below,” and the like are with reference to the normal operational attitude of the vehicle and should not be considered otherwise limiting.
It should be understood that although a particular component arrangement is disclosed in the illustrated embodiment, other arrangements will benefit from the instant invention.
Although particular step sequences are shown, described, and claimed, it should be understood that steps may be performed in any order, separated or combined unless otherwise indicated and will still benefit from the present invention.
The foregoing description is exemplary rather than defined by the limitations within. Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. The disclosed embodiments of this invention have been disclosed, however, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described. For that reason the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention.