US 12,319,416 B2
Dual-chemistry propulsion system for electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft
Venkata Prasad Atluri, Novi, MI (US); Madhusudan Raghavan, West Bloomfield, MI (US); Shuonan Xu, Troy, MI (US); and Hanho Yun, Oakland Township, MI (US)
Assigned to GM GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY OPERATIONS LLC, Detroit, MI (US)
Filed by GM Global Technology Operations LLC, Detroit, MI (US)
Filed on Jun. 7, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/834,423.
Prior Publication US 2023/0391460 A1, Dec. 7, 2023
Int. Cl. H02J 7/00 (2006.01); B60L 50/60 (2019.01); B60L 53/00 (2019.01); B60L 58/12 (2019.01); B60L 58/20 (2019.01); B64D 27/24 (2006.01); B64D 27/34 (2024.01)
CPC B64D 27/24 (2013.01) [B60L 50/66 (2019.02); B60L 53/00 (2019.02); B60L 58/12 (2019.02); B60L 58/20 (2019.02); B64D 27/34 (2024.01); B60L 2200/10 (2013.01); B60L 2210/14 (2013.01); B64D 2221/00 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system in an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft comprising:
two or more subsystems, each subsystem of the two or more subsystems including an energy storage systems (ESS), each ESS being coupled to one or more motors that actuate one or more rotors of the eVTOL aircraft:
each ESS comprising one or more energy sub-packs, and
each ESS comprising one or more power sub-packs, wherein the one or more power sub-packs supply more power than the one or more energy sub-packs and the one or more energy sub-packs supply consistent power for a longer duration than the one or more power sub-packs;
each ESS being coupled to the one or more motors via a switch;
a set of one or more inter-subsystem switches, each inter-subsystem switch in the set of inter-subsystem switches connecting adjacent ones of the two or more subsystems while the inter-subsystem switch is in a closed state and isolating the adjacent ones of the two or more subsystems while the inter-subsystem switch is in an open state, and
wherein each of the two or more subsystems is configured to receive power from the ESS of a connected adjacent one of the two or more subsystems through an inter-subsystem switch of the set of inter-subsystem switches;
a controller configured to control the switch of each ESS and the one or more inter-subsystem switches; and
wherein the controller is configured to respond to a fault detected in a first of the two or more subsystems by controlling a first of the one or more inter-subsystem switches closed such that a second of the two or more subsystems is connected to the first of the two or more subsystems via the first of the one or more inter-subsystem switches.