US-20260126110-A1 - SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR HEATING A GEARBOX PRIOR TO FAN ROTATION

Abstract

A turbine engine operable in a cold start condition to prevent wear on components of a gearbox assembly of the turbine engine. The turbine engine includes a gearbox assembly, a pump for directing lubricant to the gearbox assembly, a supply line heating path comprising a heat exchanger, a recirculation bypass path, a valve being positionable between a first position to direct the flow of the lubricant into the supply line heating path and a second position to direct the flow of the lubricant into the recirculation bypass path, and an electronic control unit configured to position the valve between the first position and the second position based on a temperature of the lubricant.

Inventors

• BRANDON W. MILLER
• Andrew Hudecki
• Arthur W. Sibbach
• Kirk D. GALLIER
• Ravindra Shankar Ganiger
• Ryan T. Roehm

Assignees

• GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20260102

Claims (20)

1. 1 . A turbine engine comprising: a gearbox assembly; a sump surrounding the gearbox assembly, the sump receiving heated air to heat the gearbox assembly; and a fan rotor lock inhibiting operation of the gearbox assembly until a temperature of the gearbox assembly is equal to or exceeds a predetermined gearbox temperature threshold.
2. 2 . The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising: a blower for blowing the air; and a heater for heating the air.
3. 3 . The turbine engine of claim 2 , wherein the blower is positioned upstream of the heater.
4. 4 . The turbine engine of claim 2 , wherein the blower is a ground cart air starting system.
5. 5 . The turbine engine of claim 4 , wherein the ground cart air starting system is connected to and in fluid communication with the sump via a connecting member.
6. 6 . The turbine engine of claim 2 , further comprising a filter for filtering particulates from the air prior to entering the sump.
7. 7 . The turbine engine of claim 6 , wherein the filter is located downstream of the heater.
8. 8 . The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the sump comprises a vent operable into an open position to prevent over-pressurization when receiving the heated air.
9. 9 . The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising: a gearbox temperature sensor detecting the temperature of the gearbox assembly; an electronic control unit communicatively coupled to the gearbox temperature sensor and the fan rotor lock, the electronic control unit configured to: transmit a signal to the fan rotor lock to inhibit rotation of the gearbox assembly in response to determining that the temperature of the gearbox assembly, as determined by the gearbox temperature sensor, is less than the predetermined gearbox temperature threshold; and transmit a signal to the fan rotor lock to permit rotation of the gearbox assembly in response to determining that the temperature of the gearbox assembly, as determined by the gearbox temperature sensor, is equal to or greater than the predetermined gearbox temperature threshold.
10. 10 . The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising a fan coupled to the gearbox assembly, the fan rotor lock further inhibiting operation of the fan.
11. 11 . A method of operating a heating system for a turbine engine, the method comprising: directing air to a sump surrounding a gearbox assembly of the turbine engine; heating the air as the air is blown to the sump; and inhibiting operation of the gearbox assembly with a fan rotor lock until a temperature of the gearbox assembly is equal to or exceeds a predetermined gearbox temperature threshold.
12. 12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein directing the air includes blowing the air with a blower.
13. 13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein the blowing occurs prior to the heating the air.
14. 14 . The method of claim 11 , wherein heating the air includes heating the air with a heater.
15. 15 . The method of claim 11 , wherein directing the air includes blowing the air with a ground cart air starting system.
16. 16 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising filtering particulates from the air prior to entering the sump.
17. 17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the filtering occurs after heating the air.
18. 18 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising opening a vent on the sump to prevent over-pressurization when receiving the heated air.
19. 19 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising: detecting the temperature of the gearbox assembly with a gearbox temperature sensor; determining whether the temperature of the gearbox assembly is equal to or exceeds the predetermined gearbox temperature threshold; inhibiting rotation of the gearbox assembly with the fan rotor lock if the temperature of the gearbox assembly is less than the predetermined gearbox temperature threshold; and permitting rotation of the gearbox assembly with the fan rotor lock if the temperature of the gearbox assembly is equal to or exceeds the predetermined gearbox temperature threshold.
20. 20 . The method of claim 11 , further comprising inhibiting operation of a fan coupled to the gearbox assembly.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 18/626,584 filed on Apr. 4, 2024, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD The present specification generally relates to turbine engines and, more specifically, to systems and methods for heating a gearbox of a turbine engine prior to fan rotation. BACKGROUND Gearboxes are widely used in various turbine engine applications based on their torque transmission capability. The efficient operation of these gearboxes relies heavily on effective lubrication to reduce friction, wear, and overheating. During cold starting conditions, lubricant, such as oil, being delivered to various components of an engine, such as the gearboxes, may have an extremely high viscosity. This leads to very high pump power requirements and increased risk of oil flow starvation, especially to the more sensitive parts of the gearbox, such as the journal bearings. Excessive viscosity within the journal bearings of the gearbox may lead to pockets of extremely stiff oil that results in an axis of rotation of a pin guide to move off axis. This leads to an eccentric rotation reducing mechanical clearance between adjacent components and increased wear. Accordingly, a need exists for systems and methods for heating the gearbox prior to allowing the gearbox to rotate to reduce wear and increase a useful life of the gearbox. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The embodiments set forth in the drawings are illustrative and exemplary in nature and not intended to limit the subject matter defined by the claims. The following detailed description of the illustrative embodiments can be understood when read in conjunction with the following drawings, where like structure is indicated with like reference numerals and in which: FIG. 1 schematically depicts a cross-sectional diagram of a turbine engine, taken along a centerline axis of the turbine engine, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 2 schematically depicts a cross-sectional side view of a gearbox assembly for a turbine engine, taken along the centerline axis of the turbine engine, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 3 schematically depicts an embodiment of a lubricant heating system, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 4 depicts a flowchart for operating the lubricant heating system of FIG. 3, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 5 schematically depicts another embodiment of a lubricant heating system, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 6 depicts a flowchart for operating the lubricant heating system of FIG. 5, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 7 schematically depicts another embodiment of a lubricant heating system, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart for operating the lubricant heating system of FIG. 7, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Embodiments described herein are directed to systems and methods for operating a gearbox assembly of a turbine engine in a cold start condition to prevent wear on components of a gearbox assembly of the turbine engine. The turbine engine includes a gearbox assembly, a pump for directing lubricant to the gearbox assembly, a valve located downstream of the pump for controlling a flow of the lubricant, a supply line heating path comprising a heat exchanger, and a recirculation bypass path, wherein the valve controls the flow of the lubricant into one of the supply line heating path and the recirculation bypass path based on a temperature of the lubricant. Whenever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other implementations. Additionally, unless specifically identified otherwise, all embodiments described herein should be considered exemplary. As used herein, the terms “first,” “second,” and “third” may be used interchangeably to distinguish one component from another and are not intended to signify location or importance of the individual components. The terms “forward” and “aft” refer to relative positions within a gas turbine engine or vehicle, and refer to the normal operational attitude of the turbine engine or vehicle. More particularly, forward and aft are used herein to refer to a direction of travel and a direction of propulsive thrust. The terms “upstream” and “downstream” refer to the relative direction with respect to a flow in a pathway. For example, with respect to a fluid flow, “upstream” refers to the direction from which the fluid flows, and “downstream” refers to the direction to whi