US 12,304,615 B2
Aircraft engine
Brendan Michael Freely, Loveland, OH (US); Kurt David Murrow, Springboro, OH (US); and Michael James McMahon, Cincinnati, OH (US)
Assigned to General Electric Company, Evendale, OH (US)
Filed by General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US)
Filed on Sep. 14, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/466,922.
Application 18/466,922 is a continuation of application No. 17/383,031, filed on Jul. 22, 2021, granted, now 11,814,154.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/072,589, filed on Aug. 31, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0415883 A1, Dec. 28, 2023
Int. Cl. B64C 11/30 (2006.01); F01D 5/12 (2006.01); F02C 6/20 (2006.01); F02C 9/00 (2006.01)
CPC B64C 11/305 (2013.01) [F01D 5/12 (2013.01); F02C 6/20 (2013.01); F02C 9/00 (2013.01); F05D 2220/323 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of operating an aircraft engine in a forward thrust configuration coupled to a wing of an aircraft comprising:
setting a pitch of a plurality of rotor blades of a rotor assembly of the aircraft engine at non-uniform pitch angles along a circumferential direction of the aircraft engine such that the plurality of rotor blades define a first pitch at a first position and a second pitch at a second position to increase a ratio of a first airflow over a top of the wing to a second airflow over a bottom of the wing, wherein the second position is 180 degrees offset from the first position, and wherein the first pitch is different from the second pitch;
receiving data indicative of a forward thrust operating condition of the aircraft engine, the aircraft, or both; and
setting the pitch of the plurality of rotor blades to uniform pitch angles along the circumferential direction in response to receiving data indicative of the forward thrust operating condition such that the plurality of rotor blades define substantially the same pitch angles when in the first position as when in the second position.