Fuel atomization system having a compressor drive means

Claim 2

In combination with a gas turbine engine having a compressor turbine section and a combustion chamber including at least one atomizing nozzle for directing atomized fuel thereto, a fuel atomization system comprising: a compressor fluidly connected to the compressor turbine section for receiving air compressed therein and discharging the air at a higher pressure; means to deliver the higher pressure compressed air discharge by the compressor to the nozzle; means to drive the compressor; means to drivingly interconnect the compressor driving means to the engine; means to sense the speed of the engine to generate a speed signal at a predetermined engine speed; and means responsive to the speed signal to reduce the speed of the compressor driving means.

Claim 3

The combination of claim 1, wherein the interconnecting means comprises: a rotatable shaft connected to the compressor driving means; a low-speed gear coaxially mounted with respect to the shaft; a high-speed gear coaxially mounted with respect to the shaft; clutch means to drivingly interconnect each of the gears to the shaft; and a gear train drivingly interconnecting the gears to the engine such that the low-speed gear rotates at a speed lower than that of the high-speed gear.

Claim 4

The combination of claim 2, wherein the speed signal responsive means comprises: a housing having a bore therein; a differential area piston secured to the shaft and slideably contained within the bore such that the piston divides the bore into two variable volume chambers, the piston being movable between first and second positions; means to fluidly interconnect the variable volume chambers; means to communicate one of the variable volume chambers with a source of fluid under pressure; and conduit means to interconnect the other of the variable volume chambers to the speed sensing means; and wherein the speed sensing means comprises: a rotatable valve drivingly connected to the engine such that the speed of rotation of the valve increases as the engine speed increases, the valve being operatively connected to the conduit means such that when the valve is open the pressure in the other of the variable volume chambers is reduced to permit movement of the piston from the first to the second position; and means to open the valve when the predetermined engine speed is attained, the speed signal being the reduced pressure in the other of the variable volume chambers; and wherein the clutch means comprises: a pair of flanges secured to the shaft such that one of the flanges drivingly engages the high-speed gear when the piston is in the first position and the other of the flanges engages the low-speed gear when the piston is in the second position.