Automatic interface control system

Claim 2

An aircraft automatic interface control system comprising: a turbomachine mounted upon said aircraft to produce a power output and bleed air, said turbomachine having a high pressure spool and a low pressure spool; at least one air conditioning means to receive and condition bleed air from said turbomachine; at least one temperature controlled zone in said aircraft to receive conditioned air from said air conditioning means; and interface control means operably associated with said turbomachine, said air conditioning means, and said temperature controlled zone to provide a demand signal to said air conditioning means and to vary the speed of the low pressure spool of said turbomachine if the air conditioning means cannot satisfy the demand signal.

Claim 3

An aircraft automatic interface control system comprising: a turbomachine mounted upon said aircraft to produce a power output and bleed air, said turbomachine having a high pressure spool and a low pressure spool, said low pressure spool including means to control the speed thereof; at least one air conditioning means to receive and condition bleed air from said turbomachine; at least one temperature controlled zone in said aircraft to receive conditioned air from said air conditioning means and bleed air from said turbomachine; temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone to produce cooling and heating demand signals for each zone; means responsive to the heating demand signal to control the flow of bleed air from said turbomachine to said zone; and interface control means operably associated with said turbomachine, said air conditioning means and said zone temperature control means to receive the cooling and heating demand signals from each of said temperature control means to produce a control signal for said air conditioning means and a speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 4

An aircraft automatic interface control system comprising: a turbomachine mounted upon said aircraft to produce a power output and bleed air, said turbomachine having a high pressure spool and a low pressure spool, said low pressure spool including means to control the speed thereof; at least one air conditioning means to receive and condition bleed air from said turbomachine; at least one temperature controlled zone in said aircraft to receive conditioned air from said air conditioning means and bleed air from said turbomachine; temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone to produce cooling and heating demand signals for each zone; means responsive to the heating demand signal to control the flow of bleed air from said turbomachine to said zone; and interface control means operably associated with said turbomachine, said air conditioning means and said zone temperature control means to receive the cooling and heating demand signals from each of said temperature control means to produce a control signal for said air conditioning means and a speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 5

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 2 wherein said interface control means comprises: a maximum heating discriminator to receive a heating demand signal from the temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone and to select the maximum heating demand signal; a maximum cooling discriminator to receive a cooling demand signal from the temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone and to select the maximum cooling demand signal, said maximum cooling demand signal fed to said air conditioning means; a heating mode speed filter to receive the maximum heating demand signal from said maximum heating discriminator and to produce a speed command signal within prEselected limits; a cooling mode speed filter to receive the maximum cooling demand signal from said maximum cooling discriminator and to produce a speed command signal within preselected limits; a stabilization network to receive the speed command signal from said heating mode speed filter and to produce a compensated heating mode speed command signal; and a speed discriminator to receive the speed command signal from said cooling mode speed filter and the compensated speed command signal from said heating mode speed filter and to select the highest mode speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 6

An aircraft automatic interface control system comprising: a plurality of individual temperature controlled zones within the aircraft; a plurality of air temperature sensors, one temperature sensor sensing the air temperature of each zone to produce a signal indicative thereof; a plurality of air temperature selectors, one temperature selector for each zone to produce a signal corresponding to the air temperature selected for each zone; a plurality of temperature control means, one temperature control means receiving the air temperature sensor signal and the air temperature selector signal from each zone to produce a cooling demand signal and a heating demand signal for each zone; a turbomachine mounted upon said aircraft to produce a power output and bleed air, said turbomachine having a high pressure spool and a low pressure spool, said low pressure spool including means to control the speed thereof; a plurality of air conditioning means to receive and condition bleed air from said turbomachine and to provide conditioned air to each of said temperature controlled zones; a plurality of bleed air control means to receive bleed air from said turbomachine and to mix bleed air with conditioned air from said plurality of air conditioning means before the conditioned air is provided to each of the temperature controlled zones, each of said bleed air control means receiving the heating demand signal from one of said temperature control means; and interface control means operably associated with said turbomachine, said plurality of air conditioning means and said plurality of temperature control means to receive a cooling demand signal and a heating demand signal from each temperature control means to produce a control signal for each of said air conditioning means and a speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 7

An aircraft automatic interface control system comprising: a plurality of individual temperature controlled zones within the aircraft; a plurality of air temperature sensors, one temperature sensor sensing the air temperature of each zone to produce a signal indicative thereof; a plurality of air temperature selectors, one temperature selector for each zone to produce a signal corresponding to the air temperature selected for each zone; a plurality of temperature control means, one temperature control means receiving the air temperature sensor signal and the air temperature selector signal from each zone to produce a cooling demand signal and a heating demand signal for each zone; a turbomachine mounted upon said aircraft to produce a power output and bleed air, said turbomachine having a high pressure spool and a low pressure spool, said low pressure spool including means to control the speed thereof; a plurality of air conditioning means to receive and condition bleed air from said turbomachine and to provide conditioned air to each of said temperature controlled zones; a plurality of bleed air control means to receive bleed air from said turbomachine and to mix bleed air with conditioned air from said plurality of air conditioning means before the conditioned air is provided to each of the temperature controlled zones, each of said bleed air control means receiving the heating demand signal from one of said temperature control means; and interface control means operably associated with said turbomachine, said plurality of air conditioning means and said plurality of temperature control means to receive a cooling demand signal and a heating demand signal from each temperature control means to produce a control signal for each of said air conditioning means and a speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 8

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 4 wherein the temperature control means comprise: first summing means to receive the signal from an air temperature sensor and the signal from an air temperature selector to produce an error signal; a proportional channel and an integrating channel in parallel to receive the error signal from said first summing means to produce the cooling demand signal for said interface control means; a limiter to also receive the cooling demand signal; an air temperature sensor in the conditioned air supplied to the zone to produce a signal indicative thereof; and second summing means to receive the signal from said limiter and the signal from said temperature sensor to produce the heating demand signal.

Claim 9

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 5 wherein the integrating channel comprises in series a null reset integrator, an integrator reset authority limiter, and a third summing means and said proportional channel comprises in series an amplifier and biasing summing means and the third summing means of the integrating channel.

Claim 10

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 4 wherein the interface control means comprises: a maximum heating discriminator to receive a heating demand signal from the temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone and to select the maximum heating demand signal; a maximum cooling discriminator to receivE a cooling demand signal from the temperature control means for each temperature controlled zone and to select the maximum cooling demand signal, said maximum cooling demand signal fed to said air conditioning means; a heating mode speed filter to receive the maximum heating demand signal from said maximum heating discriminator and to produce a speed command signal within preselected limits; a cooling mode speed filter to receive the maximum cooling demand signal from said maximum cooling discriminator and to produce a speed command signal within preselected limits; a stabilization network to receive the speed command signal from said heating mode speed filter and to produce a compensated heating mode speed command signal; and a speed discriminator to receive the speed command signal from said cooling mode speed filter and the compensated speed command signal from said heating mode speed filter and to select the highest mode speed command signal for the low pressure spool of said turbomachine.

Claim 11

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 7 wherein: said maximum heating discriminator comprises a first network of resistances and diodes; said maximum cooling discriminator comprises a second network of resistances and diodes, said heating mode speed filter comprises a network of resistances, an amplifier and a diode; said stabilization network comprises a series connected resistor and capacitor in parallel with a portion of the heating mode speed filter network; said cooling mode speed limiter comprises a network of resistances, an amplifier, a diode, and a zener diode; and said speed discriminator comprises the diode of the heating mode speed filter and the diode of the cooling mode speed filter.

Claim 12

The aircraft automatic interface control system of claim 4 wherein said turbomachine includes: a low pressure spool having a low pressure compressor mounted at one end thereof and a low pressure turbine mounted at the other end thereof, said low pressure turbine having variable nozzles to control the speed of the low pressure spool; a high pressure spool concentrically arranged about said low pressure spool between the low pressure compressor and the low pressure turbine, said high pressure spool having a high pressure compressor at one end of the high pressure spool operably associated with the low pressure compressor and a high pressure turbine at the other end thereof operably associated with the low pressure turbine; and means to extract bleed air from between the low pressure compressor and the high pressure compressor.