WO2023074782A1

WO2023074782A1 - Aircraft fuel supply system

Info

Publication number: WO2023074782A1
Application number: PCT/JP2022/040097
Authority: WO
Inventors: 正人 ▲高▼井; 遼祐大島
Original assignee: 川崎重工業株式会社
Priority date: 2021-10-27
Filing date: 2022-10-27
Publication date: 2023-05-04

Abstract

An aircraft fuel supply system according to the one aspect of the present disclosure supplies a hydrogen fuel to a hydrogen-fueled engine installed onboard an aircraft, the aircraft fuel supply system comprising: a fuel tank storing the hydrogen fuel; a pump that feeds out the hydrogen fuel from the fuel tank, the pump feeding out a quantity of the hydrogen fuel according to the rotation rate of a rotating mechanism of the pump; an engine that burns the hydrogen fuel fed out from the pump to provide propulsion to the aircraft; a speed change device that drives the rotating mechanism of the pump so that the rotation rate of the rotating mechanism of the pump is changeable; and a control device that controls the speed change mechanism on the basis of a requested fuel quantity of the engine.

Description

aircraft fuel supply system

The present disclosure relates to an aircraft fuel supply system.

In Patent Document 1, in a fuel supply system for a jet engine used in an aircraft or the like, a flow rate control unit feeds jet fuel discharged from a pump into a device at a set flow rate, while sending surplus jet fuel back to the inlet side of the pump. What was done is disclosed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-197573

The boiling point of hydrogen is extremely low compared to conventionally known jet fuel. For this reason, there is a possibility that the fuel system of Patent Document 1 cannot be used as it is for the fuel supply system of an aircraft equipped with an engine that uses hydrogen as fuel.

Therefore, one aspect of the present disclosure aims to suppress excess hydrogen fuel on the downstream side of a pump in a fuel supply system for an aircraft equipped with an engine that uses hydrogen as fuel.

An aircraft fuel supply system according to an aspect of the present disclosure is a fuel supply system for supplying hydrogen fuel to an aircraft equipped with a hydrogen-fueled engine, the fuel supply system comprising: a fuel tank that stores hydrogen fuel; A pump for taking out hydrogen fuel from the fuel tank, the pump taking out an amount of hydrogen fuel corresponding to the number of revolutions of a rotation mechanism of the pump, and a propulsion force for the aircraft by burning the hydrogen fuel taken out from the pump. a transmission that drives the rotation mechanism of the pump so that the rotation speed of the rotation mechanism of the pump can be changed; and a control device that controls the transmission based on the required fuel amount of the engine. , provided.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, in a fuel supply system for an aircraft equipped with an engine that uses hydrogen as fuel, it is possible to suppress excess hydrogen fuel on the downstream side of the pump.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft fuel supply system according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the fuel supply system shown in FIG. 1 in more detail. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system according to Modification 1. As shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system according to Modification 2. As shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system according to Modification 3. As shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft fuel supply system according to the second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing in more detail the configuration of the fuel supply system shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of an aircraft fuel supply system compared with the embodiment.

(Circumstances leading to the composition of this disclosure)
First, the circumstances leading to the configuration of the present disclosure will be described. In an aircraft, fuel for the engine is pressurized by a pump, and the pressurized fuel is supplied to the engine. In a fuel supply system to an engine in an aircraft, with conventional jet fuel, the pump is driven by the power of the engine. In this type of system, the amount of fuel supplied by the pump may exceed the amount of fuel requested by the engine. In the fuel supply system described in Patent Document 1, when the amount of fuel supplied from the pump exceeds the amount of fuel required by the engine, excess jet fuel downstream of the pump is transferred to the upstream side of the pump through a bypass line. It is possible to return.

In the fuel supply system of a hydrogen aircraft equipped with an engine that uses hydrogen as fuel, for example, liquid hydrogen stored in a fuel tank passes through a fuel supply line of the aircraft, and finally becomes gaseous hydrogen of a predetermined pressure, or , is supplied to the engine's combustor as liquid hydrogen. Further, the liquid hydrogen stored in the fuel tank is converted into gaseous hydrogen by the vaporizer, passes through the fuel supply line of the aircraft, becomes gaseous hydrogen of a predetermined pressure, and is supplied to the engine combustor.

For comparison with embodiments according to the present disclosure, which will be described later, FIG. In fuel supply system 100 , jet fuel is stored in fuel tank 101 and jet fuel is supplied to gas turbine engine 103 by pump 102 . When excess jet fuel to the gas turbine engine 103 occurs, excess jet fuel is supplied from a portion 105 of the fuel supply line downstream of the pump 102 to a portion 104 of the fuel supply line upstream of the pump 102 through the bypass line 106. return.

If such a configuration of a conventional fuel supply system is adopted as it is for an aircraft equipped with an engine that uses hydrogen as fuel, while the hydrogen fuel flows through the bypass line 106, the temperature of the hydrogen fuel rises and expands, resulting in fuel A portion 104 of the supply line upstream of the pump 102 may fail to supply hydrogen fuel to the pump 102 .

For this reason, the present disclosure discloses a system that does not employ the bypass line 106, or even if the bypass line 106 is employed, suppresses the amount of fuel returned to the upstream portion 104 of the fuel supply line from the pump 102 through the bypass line 106. I thought it would be desirable to have a system that could The present disclosure person found the above problem, and in order to solve the above problem, the present disclosure person controlled the rotation speed of the pump according to the required fuel amount of the engine, so that an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel was supplied. I have devised a fuel supply system for supplying fuel to the engine.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft fuel supply system 1A according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 6, which will be described later, dashed lines indicate power transmission paths. The same applies to FIG. 8 described above. The fuel supply system 1A includes a fuel tank 2 that stores hydrogen fuel, a pump 3, and a gas turbine engine 4 that uses hydrogen as fuel. The gas turbine engine 4 may also be referred to simply as the engine 4 hereinafter. Pump 3 supplies hydrogen fuel in fuel tank 2 to engine 4 . The engine 4 burns the hydrogen fuel supplied from the pump 3 to obtain propulsion for the aircraft.

The fuel supply system 1A includes a transmission 5 for changing the rotation speed of the pump 3. The transmission 5 can change the rotation speed of the rotation mechanism of the pump 3 . The transmission 5 drives the rotating mechanism of the pump 3 . In this embodiment, the transmission 5 is a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Further, the transmission 5 changes the speed of the power of the engine 4 and transmits it to the rotating mechanism. Further, the transmission 5 is controlled by a control device 6 (see FIG. 2), which will be described later.

Details of the fuel supply system 1A will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing in more detail the configuration of the fuel supply system 1A shown in FIG.

The gas turbine engine 4 includes a rotating shaft 11, a fan 12, a compressor 13, a combustor 14, a turbine 15, and a casing 16. The rotating shaft 11 extends in the longitudinal direction of the gas turbine engine 4 . The fan 12 is connected to the front portion of the rotating shaft 11 and rotates together with the rotating shaft 11 . Compressor 13 , combustor 14 and turbine 15 are arranged in this order from front to back along rotating shaft 11 . The casing 16 is a tubular body having an axis aligned with the rotation axis of the rotating shaft 11 and accommodates the rotating shaft 11 , the fan 12 , the compressor 13 , the combustor 14 and the turbine 15 .

The gas turbine engine 4 is, for example, a twin-shaft gas turbine engine. The compressor 13 has a low-pressure compressor 13a and a high-pressure compressor 13b arranged behind the low-pressure compressor 13a. The turbine 15 has a low pressure turbine 15a and a high pressure turbine 15b arranged in front of the low pressure turbine 15a. The rotary shaft 11 has a low pressure shaft 11a connecting the low pressure compressor 13a to the low pressure turbine 15a and a high pressure shaft 11b connecting the high pressure compressor 13b to the high pressure turbine 15b. The high-pressure shaft 11b is a tubular shaft having a hollow space inside. The low pressure shaft 11a is inserted through the hollow space of the high pressure shaft 11b. The low-pressure turbine 15a is connected to the fan 12 arranged in front of the compressor 13 via the low-pressure shaft 11a.

The radially outer side of the fan 12 is covered with a tubular fan case 17 . A cylindrical bypass is formed between the casing 16 and the fan case 17 . The air sucked by the fan 12 flows through the bypass passage and is jetted rearward to generate a driving force.

The fuel tank 2 and the pump 3 are connected by a first fuel supply passage 21. The pump 3 and the combustor 14 of the engine 4 are connected by a second fuel supply passage 22 . The first fuel supply path 21 and the second fuel supply path 22 are paths configured by piping, equipment for circulating hydrogen, and the like.

The fuel tank 2 stores liquefied hydrogen as fuel.

The pump 3 takes out hydrogen fuel from the fuel tank 2. The pump 3 has a rotating mechanism, and supplies an amount of hydrogen fuel corresponding to the rotation speed of the rotating mechanism of the pump 3 . The state of hydrogen can be liquid, gas, or supercritical. For example, the hydrogen pressurized by the pump 3 may be liquefied hydrogen or hydrogen gas obtained by vaporizing liquefied hydrogen. The pipes, devices, and the like that constitute the pump 3 as well as the first fuel supply path 21 and the second fuel supply path 22 can adopt structures that correspond to the state of hydrogen flowing through them.

The transmission 5 is a continuously variable transmission. In this embodiment, transmission 5 transmits power from gas turbine engine 4 to pump 3 . That is, the power of the gas turbine engine 4 is transmitted to the rotating mechanism of the pump 3 via the transmission 5 . A power extracting shaft 31 is mechanically connected to the rotating shaft 11 of the engine 4 via a gear 32 .

Specifically, a radially extending power extraction shaft 31 is mechanically connected to the low-pressure shaft 11 a of the gas turbine engine 4 via a bevel gear 32 . That is, the power extraction shaft 31 rotates in conjunction with the low pressure shaft 11a. Note that the power extraction shaft 31 may be mechanically connected to the high pressure shaft 11b and rotated in conjunction with the high pressure shaft 11b. The power extraction shaft 31 is mechanically connected to an input shaft of a continuously variable transmission, which is the transmission 5 . The output shaft 33 of the continuously variable transmission which is the transmission 5 is mechanically connected to the rotation mechanism of the pump 3 . That is, the continuously variable transmission, which is the transmission device 5, changes the speed of the power from the low-pressure shaft 11a of the gas turbine engine 4 to an appropriate rotation speed, and then transmits the changed power to the pump 3 to operate the pump 3. rotationally driven.

The transmission 5 is controlled by the control device 6. The control device 6 suppresses excess hydrogen fuel in the second fuel supply passage 22 downstream of the pump 3 based on the amount of fuel to be supplied to the engine 4, that is, the amount of fuel requested by the engine 4. Thus, the transmission 5 is controlled. As a result, an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel can be supplied to the engine 4 by controlling the rotational speed of the pump 3 according to the amount of fuel requested by the engine 4 .

The required fuel amount of the engine 4, which is the amount of fuel to be supplied to the engine 4, is the amount of fuel required for the operation of the engine 4. For example, the requested fuel amount of the engine 4 is a fuel amount corresponding to the requested output of the engine 4 . The required amount of fuel for the engine 4 may be a specific amount or an amount within a certain range.

The control device 6 includes an arithmetic circuit, a memory circuit, an input/output interface, and the like. For example, an arithmetic circuit includes a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU). The memory circuit includes memories such as RAM and ROM. The memory stores a program for controlling the operation of the transmission 5, and the processor reads out and executes the program stored in the memory to perform various processes. The control device 6 is, for example, a computer.

In this embodiment, the control device 6 controls not only the transmission 5 but also the engine 4 . That is, the control device 6 is an integration of a transmission control device that controls the transmission 5 and an engine control device that controls the engine 4 .

In this embodiment, the controller 6 calculates the required fuel amount of the engine 4 from the engine operating conditions, and controls the transmission 5 based on the calculation result. As a result, the required amount of fuel for the engine 4 can be calculated in advance, and an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel can be supplied to the engine 4 .

In the present embodiment, the engine operating conditions are conditions determined by, for example, the required rotation speed of the engine 4 and the required load of the engine 4 . However, the engine operating conditions are not limited to this. For example, the engine operating condition may be a condition determined by either the required rotation speed of the engine 4 or the required load of the engine 4 . Further, for example, the parameters that define the engine operating conditions may include one or both of the required rotational speed of the engine 4 and the required load of the engine 4, as well as other parameters. Other parameters include the actual rotation speed of the engine 4, the inlet temperature of the compressor 13, the outlet temperature of the compressor 13, the inlet pressure of the compressor 13, the outlet pressure of the compressor 13, the turbine inlet temperature, and the like. . These parameters are detected, for example, by various sensors mounted on the aircraft.

The control device 6 calculates the required fuel amount of the engine 4 to be supplied by the pump 3 from the parameters indicating the engine operating conditions. The control device 6 determines the rotation speed of the rotation mechanism of the pump 3 so that the amount of fuel supplied, which is the discharge amount of the pump 3, becomes an appropriate amount according to the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4 . The control device 6 controls the gear ratio of the transmission 5 so that the rotation mechanism of the pump 3 rotates at the determined number of rotations. The amount of fuel supplied, which is the discharge amount of the pump 3, may be a specific amount or may be an amount within a certain range.

The control device 6 compares, for example, the calculated requested fuel amount of the engine 4 with the current discharge amount of the pump 3 . When the control device 6 determines that the current discharge amount of the pump 3 is smaller than the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4, the control device 6 controls the transmission device 5 so that the discharge amount of the pump 3 increases. Further, when the control device 6 determines that the current discharge amount of the pump 3 is larger than the calculated requested fuel amount of the engine 4, the control device 6 controls the transmission device 5 so that the discharge amount of the pump 3 becomes smaller. In this embodiment, the controller 6 calculates the current discharge amount of the pump 3 from the current rotation speed of the pump 3 .

According to the configuration described above, the control device 6 controls the transmission device 5 in accordance with the required fuel amount of the engine 4 so that the rotation speed of the pump 3 corresponds to the required fuel amount of the engine 4. . Therefore, an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel can be supplied from the pump 3 to the engine 4 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the amount of hydrogen fuel from becoming excessive on the downstream side of the pump 3 .

Also, in the present embodiment, since the transmission 5 is a continuously variable transmission, the gear ratio of the continuously variable transmission can be changed continuously rather than stepwise. That is, the rotation speed of the pump 3 corresponding to the output rotation speed of the continuously variable transmission can be controlled continuously rather than stepwise. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the amount of hydrogen fuel from becoming excessive on the downstream side of the pump 3 .

Also, in the present embodiment, the transmission 5 changes the speed of the power of the engine 4 and transmits it to the rotating mechanism. Since power is extracted from the rotating shaft 11 of the engine 4 and complicated motion control is not required, devices for motion control can be omitted, and the weight of the aircraft can be reduced.

Also, since the transmission 5 is a continuously variable transmission, the weight of the transmission itself can be reduced compared to using other types of transmissions.

(Modification 1)
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system 1B according to Modification 1. As shown in FIG. In addition, in descriptions of Modification 1,

Modifications

2 and 3, and a second embodiment described later, the same reference numerals are given to components that are substantially the same as in the above-described first embodiment, and the description is duplicated. are omitted or simplified.

In Modification 1, a flow rate sensor 23 is arranged in the second fuel supply path 22 . The flow rate sensor 23 detects the amount of hydrogen fuel flowing through the second fuel supply path 22 . For example, the flow rate sensor 23 detects the amount of fuel supplied to the combustor 14 of the engine 4 through the second fuel supply path 22 per unit time. The flow sensor 23 is electrically connected to the controller 6 . Information on the amount of fuel detected by the flow rate sensor 23 is sent to the control device 6 .

That is, in Modification 1, the current discharge amount of the pump 3 can be detected by the flow rate sensor 23 . That is, in the first embodiment, the current discharge amount of the pump 3 is calculated from the current rotation speed of the pump 3, etc., but in the first modification, the current discharge amount of the pump 3 is calculated by the flow rate sensor 23. To detect.

The control device 6 controls the transmission 5 based on the requested fuel amount of the engine 4 and the fuel amount detected by the flow sensor 23 .

The control device 6, for example, calculates the required fuel amount of the engine 4. The control device 6 also receives information on the amount of fuel from the flow sensor 23 . The controller 6 may perform feedback control to control the transmission 5 so that the amount of fuel detected by the flow sensor 23 matches the calculated amount of fuel requested by the engine 4 . As a result, the amount of fuel supplied to the engine 4 can be controlled to fall within an appropriate range.

For example, the control device 6 may perform the same control as in the first embodiment. That is, the controller 6 compares the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4 with the fuel amount detected by the flow sensor 23 . When the controller 6 determines that the amount of fuel detected by the flow rate sensor 23 is smaller than the calculated amount of fuel requested by the engine 4, the controller 6 controls the transmission 5 so that the discharge amount of the pump 3 increases. Further, when the controller 6 determines that the fuel amount detected by the flow sensor 23 is larger than the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4, the controller 6 controls the transmission 5 so that the discharge amount of the pump 3 is reduced. do.

The same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained in the first modification.

In Modification 1, the control device 5 can acquire the current discharge amount of the pump 3 with high accuracy. Therefore, an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel corresponding to the amount of fuel requested by the engine 4 can be supplied from the pump 3 to the engine 4. As a result, the amount of hydrogen fuel on the downstream side of the pump 3 becomes surplus. can be suppressed.

(Modification 2)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system 1C according to Modification 2. As shown in FIG. Modification 2 differs from Modification 1 in that a pressure sensor 24 is arranged in the second fuel supply path 22 in addition to the flow rate sensor 23 .

The pressure sensor 24 detects the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the second fuel supply passage 22 . Pressure sensor 24 is electrically connected to controller 6 . Pressure information detected by the pressure sensor 24 is sent to the control device 6 .

The required fuel pressure of the engine 4, which is the fuel pressure that the pump 3 should supply to the engine 4, is the fuel pressure required for stable operation of the engine 4. The required fuel pressure of the engine 4 may be a specific pressure or may be a pressure within a certain range.

The control device 6 controls the transmission 5 based on the required fuel amount and required fuel pressure of the engine 4, the fuel amount detected by the flow rate sensor 23, and the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24. The control device 6 controls the transmission device 5 so that the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24, that is, the pressure of the hydrogen fuel supplied to the engine 4, is maintained at the required fuel pressure.

For example, the control device 6 monitors whether the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24 is the required fuel pressure. When it is determined that the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24 is not the required fuel pressure, the control device 6 performs feedback control to control the transmission 5 so that the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24 matches the required fuel pressure. can be executed.

When it is determined that the pressure detected by the pressure sensor 24 is not the required fuel pressure, the control device 6 determines whether or not the fuel amount detected by the flow rate sensor 23 matches the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4. Regardless, the transmission 5 is controlled so that the discharge pressure of the pump 3 matches the required fuel pressure.

In the present modified example 2, while supplying an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel according to the required fuel amount of the engine 4, it is possible to adjust the pressure to an appropriate amount according to the required fuel pressure of the engine 4, so from the second fuel supply path 22 Hydrogen fuel can be stably supplied into the combustor 14 .

The flow rate sensor 23 may have the function of detecting the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the second fuel supply path 22 instead of the fuel supply system 1C including the pressure sensor 24 . The control device 6 may control the transmission 5 based on the required fuel amount and required fuel pressure of the engine 4 and the fuel amount and pressure detected by the flow sensor 23 .

(Modification 3)
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of a fuel supply system 1D according to Modification 3. As shown in FIG. Modification 3 differs from Modification 1 in that a fuel control valve 25 is arranged in the second fuel supply path 22 .

The fuel control valve 25 adjusts the amount of hydrogen fuel supplied to the engine 4. The fuel control valve 25 is electrically connected to the control device 6 and controlled by the control device 6 . The fuel control valve 25 is, for example, a flow control valve.

The fuel control valve 25 is arranged in the portion between the pump 3 and the flow rate sensor 23 in the second fuel supply passage 22 . That is, in Modification 3, the flow rate sensor 23 detects the amount of hydrogen fuel passing through the fuel control valve 25, that is, the amount of hydrogen fuel flowing in the portion downstream of the fuel control valve 25 in the second fuel supply path 22. .

The controller 6 controls the transmission 5 and the fuel control valve 25 based on the amount of fuel requested by the engine 4 and the amount of fuel detected by the flow sensor 23 .

For example, the control device 6 controls the fuel control valve 25 so that the amount of fuel detected by the flow rate sensor 23 matches the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4 . Therefore, an appropriate amount of hydrogen fuel can be supplied from the pump 3 to the engine 4 according to the amount of fuel requested by the engine 4 .

Further, the controller 6 controls the transmission 5 so that the fuel amount detected by the flow sensor 23 matches the calculated required fuel amount of the engine 4 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the amount of hydrogen fuel in the portion between the pump 3 and the fuel control valve 25 in the second fuel supply passage 22 from becoming excessive.

(Second embodiment)
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an aircraft fuel supply system according to the second embodiment. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the transmission 7 for changing the rotation speed of the pump 3 is an electric motor. That is, the pump 3 and the electric motor 7 constitute one electric pump.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing in more detail the configuration of the fuel supply system shown in FIG. In this embodiment, since the transmission 7 is an electric motor, the power of the engine 4 is not transmitted to the transmission 7 . The transmission 7 is controlled by the control device 6 . The control device 6 can control the rotation speed of the pump 3 by controlling the rotation speed of the electric motor that is the transmission 7 .

The method of controlling the transmission device 7 by the control device 6 and the method of acquiring the required fuel amount of the engine 4 to be supplied by the pump 3 are the same as in the first embodiment, so descriptions thereof will be omitted.

The same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained in this embodiment as well.

Modifications

1, 2, and 3 described above can also be applied to this embodiment.

With the above configuration, even in a system that does not employ a bypass line, or even if a bypass line is employed, it is possible to suppress the amount of fuel returned to the upstream portion of the fuel supply line from the pump through the bypass line. It can be a system that can That is, it is possible to solve the problem that the temperature of the hydrogen fuel rises while the surplus hydrogen fuel circulates through the bypass line, and the hydrogen fuel expands to prevent the pressure from being increased by the pump.

(Other embodiments)
The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and configurations thereof may be changed, added, or deleted.

The pump may be, for example, a mechanical system, an electric system, or a combination of these systems.

The transmission does not have to be a continuously variable transmission, and may be a stepped transmission. The transmission may or may not use the power of the rotating shaft of the engine. Furthermore, the transmission may be a planetary gear mechanism.

The transmission may be a continuously variable transmission (CVT; Continuously Variable Transmission) powered by the engine, or an infinite transmission (IVT; Infinitely Variable Transmission) including a CVT. The continuously variable transmission is, for example, a toroidal continuously variable transmission. If the pump is driven by engine power, the speed of the pump can be controlled using a transmission such as a CVT. Alternatively, the transmission may be a hydraulic continuously variable transmission. The hydraulic continuously variable transmission includes, for example, a hydrostatic static transmission and a hydraulic mechanical transmission.

The transmission may be built into the pump or may be external to the pump.

In the above embodiment, the control device is a combination of the transmission control device that controls the transmission and the engine control device that controls the engine. The aircraft may also have an engine control unit that In this case, the control device that controls the transmission may receive information indicating the requested fuel amount of the engine from the engine control device without calculating the requested fuel amount of the engine.

The functionality of the elements disclosed herein may be performed by general purpose processors, special purpose processors, integrated circuits, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), conventional circuits, or any of them configured or programmed to perform the disclosed functions. can be implemented using a circuit or processing circuit that includes a combination of A processor is considered a processing circuit or circuit because it includes transistors and other circuits. In this disclosure, a circuit, unit, or means is hardware that performs or is programmed to perform the recited functions. The hardware may be the hardware disclosed herein, or other known hardware programmed or configured to perform the recited functions. A circuit, means or unit is a combination of hardware and software where the hardware is a processor which is considered a type of circuit, the software being used to configure the hardware or the processor.

[Disclosure items]
Each of the following items is a disclosure of a preferred embodiment.

[Item 1]
In an aircraft equipped with a hydrogen-fueled engine, a fuel supply system for supplying hydrogen fuel to the engine,
a fuel tank that stores hydrogen fuel;
a pump for taking out hydrogen fuel from the fuel tank, the pump taking out an amount of hydrogen fuel corresponding to the rotation speed of a rotation mechanism of the pump;
the engine that burns hydrogen fuel taken from the pump to obtain propulsion for the aircraft;
a transmission that drives the rotation mechanism of the pump so that the rotation speed of the rotation mechanism of the pump can be changed;
and a control device that controls the transmission based on the amount of fuel requested by the engine.

[Item 2]
An aircraft fueling system according to item 1, wherein the transmission is a continuously variable transmission.

[Item 3]
3. The aircraft fuel supply system according to item 2, wherein the continuously variable transmission changes the speed of power of the engine and transmits it to the rotating mechanism of the pump.

[Item 4]
An aircraft fueling system according to item 1, wherein the transmission is an electric motor.

[Item 5]
3. Aircraft fueling system according to item 2, wherein the transmission is a hydraulic continuously variable transmission.

[Item 6]
6. An aircraft fuel supply system according to any one of items 1 to 5, wherein the control device calculates the required amount of fuel for the engine from engine operating conditions.

[Item 7]
The aircraft is equipped with an engine control device for controlling the engine in addition to the control device,
6. An aircraft fueling system according to any one of items 1 to 5, wherein the control device receives information indicative of the requested fuel amount of the engine from the engine control device.

[Item 8]
a fuel supply channel that directs hydrogen fuel from the pump to the engine;
Further comprising a flow rate sensor arranged in the fuel supply path for detecting the amount of hydrogen fuel flowing through the fuel supply path,
8. The aircraft fuel supply system according to any one of items 1 to 7, wherein the control device controls the transmission based on the amount of fuel requested by the engine and the amount of fuel detected by the flow rate sensor.

[Item 9]
The flow sensor has a function of detecting the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the fuel supply path, or the fuel supply system further includes a pressure sensor that detects the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the fuel supply path,
The control device controls the transmission based on a required fuel amount and a required fuel pressure of the engine, a fuel amount detected by the flow sensor, and a pressure detected by the flow sensor or the pressure sensor. , item 8.

[Item 10]
10. An aircraft fueling system according to item 8 or 9, wherein the controller calculates the required fuel quantity of the engine from engine operating conditions.

Claims

In an aircraft equipped with a hydrogen-fueled engine, a fuel supply system for supplying hydrogen fuel to the engine,
a fuel tank that stores hydrogen fuel;
a pump for taking out hydrogen fuel from the fuel tank, the pump taking out an amount of hydrogen fuel corresponding to the rotation speed of a rotation mechanism of the pump;
the engine that burns hydrogen fuel taken from the pump to obtain propulsion for the aircraft;
a transmission that drives the rotation mechanism of the pump so that the rotation speed of the rotation mechanism of the pump can be changed;
and a control device that controls the transmission based on the amount of fuel requested by the engine.
The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission is a continuously variable transmission.
The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 2, wherein the continuously variable transmission changes the speed of the power of the engine and transmits it to the rotating mechanism of the pump.
The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission is an electric motor.
The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 2, wherein the transmission is a hydraulic continuously variable transmission.
The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 1, wherein the control device calculates the required amount of fuel for the engine from engine operating conditions.
The aircraft is equipped with an engine control device for controlling the engine in addition to the control device,
6. The aircraft fuel supply system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said control device receives information indicating a required fuel amount of said engine from said engine control device.
a fuel supply channel that directs hydrogen fuel from the pump to the engine;
Further comprising a flow rate sensor arranged in the fuel supply path for detecting the amount of hydrogen fuel flowing through the fuel supply path,
2. The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 1, wherein the controller controls the transmission based on the amount of fuel requested by the engine and the amount of fuel detected by the flow rate sensor.
The flow sensor has a function of detecting the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the fuel supply path, or the fuel supply system further includes a pressure sensor that detects the pressure of hydrogen fuel in the fuel supply path,
The control device controls the transmission based on a required fuel amount and a required fuel pressure of the engine, a fuel amount detected by the flow sensor, and a pressure detected by the flow sensor or the pressure sensor. 9. An aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 8.
10. The aircraft fuel supply system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the control device calculates the required amount of fuel for the engine from engine operating conditions.