USOO6071077A

United States Patent (19) 11 Patent Number: 6,071,077

Rowlands (45) Date of Patent: Jun. 6, 2000
54) SWEPT FAN BLADE 4,726,737 2/1988 Weingold et al..
4,790,724 12/1988 Bousquet et al. .
75 Inventor: Paul A. Rowlands, Bristol, United 5,064,345 11/1991 Kimball.
Kingdom 5.249,922 10/1993 Sato et al..
5,642,985 7/1997 Spear et al..
73 Assignee: Rolls-Royce PLC, London, United FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS
Kingdom
0265335 4/1988 European Pat. Off..
21 Appl. No.: 09/168,968 0 266 298 5/1988 European Pat. Off..
O 385.913 9/1990 European Pat. Off..
22 Filed: Oct. 9, 1998 2-104-975 3/1983 United Kingdom.
2-170-868 8/1986 United Kingdom.
Related U.S. Application Data 2-197-913 6/1988 United Kingdom.
WO 81/OO243 2/1981 WIPO.
63 Continuation-in-part of application No. 08/819,269, Mar.
18, 1997, abandoned. Primary Examiner John Kwon
30 Foreign Application Priority Data Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Oliff & Berridge, PLC
Apr. 9, 1996 GB United Kingdom ................... 96O7316 57 ABSTRACT
(51) Int. Cl." ...................................................... F04D 29/34 A Swept fan blade design for the low pressure compressor
52 U.S. Cl. ................................. 416/223 A; 416/DIG. 2; rotor or fan rotor Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine has
416/DIG. 5 a leading edge Swept forward near the hub up to a first radial
58 Field of Search .......................... 416/223 A, DIG. 5, height, then rearward up to Second radial height and finally
416/DIG. 2 is Swept forward again up to the blade tip. The aerodynamic
effect is to produce a mid-height bias to the airflow enabling
56) References Cited the tip region to be given increased twist and to possess
increased resistance to foreign object damage. The design
U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS also provides a rear radial blade Stacking axis to help reduce
3,989,406 11/1976 Bliss. internal StreSSes due to centrifugal forces.
4,358,246 11/1982 Hanson et al..
4,488,399 12/1984 Robey et al.. 13 Claims, 7 Drawing Sheets

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U.S. Patent Jun. 6, 2000 Sheet 2 of 7 6,071,077

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U.S. Patent Jun. 6, 2000 Sheet 3 of 7 6,071,077

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U.S. Patent Jun. 6, 2000 Sheet 4 of 7 6,071,077

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U.S. Patent Jun. 6, 2000 Sheet S of 7 6,071,077

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U.S. Patent Jun. 6, 2000 Sheet 6 of 7 6,071,077

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 6,071,077
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SWEPT EAN BLADE point on the leading edge. Usually Sweep is employed to
reduce the Velocity of the airflow measured perpendicular to
This is a Continuation-in-Part of application Ser. No. the leading edge to SubSonic levels. This requires the Sweep
08/819,269 filed Mar. 18, 1997 now abandoned. The entire angle of the leading edge to be greater than the complement
disclosure of the prior application is hereby incorporated by of the Mach cone angle. Sweep angle may be defined as the
reference herein in its entirety. acute angle, at a point on the leading edge of a blade,
The invention relates to a Swept fan blade or compressor between a tangent to the leading edge and a line perpen
blade for a ducted fan gas turbine engine. dicular to the relative Velocity vector measured in a common
In particular the invention concerns the design of fan plane containing the tangent, the Velocity vector and the line
blades for a high bypass ratio engine of the kind used to perpendicular thereto.
power modem civil aircraft. A primary function of the fan is The invention and how it may be carried into practice
to generate propulsive thrust by adding energy to air passing
through a fan duct increasing the preSSure and momentum of will now be described in greater detail with reference to a
the air. The performance of Such a rotor is judged by the particular embodiment illustrated in the accompanying
maximum thrust it produces, by way of maximum air flow drawings, in which:
and pressure rise, and the proportion of the energy input to 15 FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a swept blade fan
the fan which is turned into useful thrust, characterised by rotor designed in accordance with the principles of the
the fan adiabatic efficiency. Fan Stability is an important present invention,
design consideration and a Safety margin between the fan FIGS. 2a, 2b, 3a, 3b; and 4a, 4b are side and tip views
working line and its Surge line is allowed to ensure Stable of a simple unswept blade, a rearward Swept blade and a
operation. Therefore, it is Standard practice to design a fan forward Swept blade respectively illustrating the effect of
to achieve a given airflow and preSSure rise at a chosen Sweep on the blade shock waves,
rotational Speed which is below the maximum attainable to FIGS. 5a, 5b and 5c show three orthogonal views of an
provide this Stability margin. individual blade from the rotor of FIG. 1, on the Surface of
In a high bypass ratio engine the fan is highly loaded and which a Square grid pattern has been generated to illustrate
pumps a prodigious quantity of air at maximum speed. To 25 the contours of the blade,
achieve this a typical large engine of current design may FIG. 6 is a view from a blade tip end of stacked aerofoil
have a fan of diameter up to 2 meters or more with individual segments for a single blade from the rotor of FIG. 1 showing
blades of commensurate size. The fan blades provide thrust its change of chord length and Stagger angle with Stacking
in the same way as lift is produced by an aircraft wing except height,
that airspeed increases along the blade leading edge with FIGS. 7a and 7b show contour maps of static pressure on
increasing rotational radius. At Some point along the leading a blade Suction Surface and a corresponding contour map for
edge the relative Velocity becomes SuperSonic and generates relative Mach Nos. for the rotor blade of FIG. 1, and
a leading edge Shock Wave. Also as air is entrained in the FIG. 8 is a table of Sweep angle, Mach angle and Mach
passages between adjacent blades its pressure increases and No at a number of points of Successively greater blade height
at Velocities greater than a critical number the pressure 35 for the blade design of FIG. 1.
disturbances, unable to propagate upstream, produces a Aerodynamic efficiency of the fan blades and thus of the
passage shock wave. fan Stage, as discussed above, is a major fan attribute
Shock waves represent a Source of energy loSS and affecting engine performance and fuel consumption, but
because the fan produces So much of an engine's thrust any Stability is also a major issue that must be addressed in any
improvement in fan rotor efficiency has a significant effect 40 aerodynamic design. Any design must retain an adequate
on engine performance, particularly on fuel consumption. margin between its working line and the Surge line on the
The present invention has for one of its objectives to preSSure ratio against airflow Surface. Surge is precipitated
increase fan rotor efficiency above the levels currently when a Stall occurs in a compressor or fan cell when a
achieved with existing designs and maintaining or improv Sufficient portion of the passage shock front is expelled. A
ing the preSSure rise with no erosion of the Stability margin. 45 design objective is thus to have the passage shock front
It is desired to improve other rotor characteristics, for located Sufficiently far downstream at the design point to
example resistance to foreign object damage at the same protect the Stall margin. Almost inevitably Stability and
time as bringing about these other improvements. efficiency are counteractive and Stability may be bought at
According to the present invention there is provided a fan the expense of efficiency by over-compromise resulting in
Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine comprising a fan 50 lost efficiency while designing for the maximum flow of air
casing having an inner duct wall which in the region of a fan leads to instability.
rotor is convergent in the downstream direction, a fan rotor However, blade design is not a straightforward trade-off
comprising a multiplicity of Swept fan blades Spaced apart between the factors affecting Stability and efficiency and
around a hub mounted concentrically with respect to the fan other variable features and their consequences contribute to
duct, each of Said Swept fan blades having a tip profile which 55 the final form of a particular design.
in revolution conforms to the convergent duct wall, a leading The generation and behaviour of Shock waves in rotors
edge of variable Sweep angle which varies with increasing made of the basic different types of blade having no Sweep,
blade height or distance from the axis of rotation, Said Sweep rearward Sweep, and forward Sweep is illustrated Simply in
angle having a forward Sweep angle in a first height region FIGS. 2a2b; 3a,3b and 4a.4b of the accompanying draw
between a root and a first intermediate radius, a rearward 60 ings. To which further reference will now be made by way
Sweep angle in an intermediate height region between the of Summary of the basic aerodynamic effects of the present
first intermediate radius and a Second intermediate radius, a COCC.
forward Sweep angle in a third height region between the FIGS. 2a and 2b show side and tip views of a
Second intermediate radius and the blade tip, a Stagger angle conventional, unswept rotor blade 20, i.e. a Straight edged
which increaseS progressively with blade height. 65 blade, in these simple diagrams the twist and lean of the
Preferably the Sweep angle of the leading edge is leSS blades is omitted for clarity. In this type of design the
than the complement of the angle of the Mach cone at any aerofoil Sections over most of the blade height operate in a
 6,071,077
3 4
transonic flow regime, that is, the relative Velocity of the air two-dimensional Surface of shock wave 46 tends to shift less
flow with respect to the rotor is SuperSonic when it passes than the shift of the aerofoil segments, i.e. the Sweep of the
over the leading edge 22 of the blade but is decelerated often Shock Surface is less than the Sweep of the leading edge 42.
to SubSonic Speed before passing the trailing edge 24. Much This results in the shock wave being closer to or even in
of this deceleration takes place in a step pressure disconti front of the leading edge 42 near the Suction Surface towards
nuity or Shock front 26 which extends as a two-dimensional the tip of the blade, as shown in FIGS. 4a and 4b.
Surface acroSS a flow channel between adjacent blades, and Surge margin or Stability is another design criterion to be
therefore is bounded on one side by the Suction surface of considered. At the normal operating pressure rise and air
one blade and the preSSure Surface of an adjacent rotor blade. flow rate the rotor must have Sufficient Safety margin to
This discontinuity 26, is known as a passage shock wave. avoid flutter or Surge. This margin is eroded when the
The passage Shock wave adds energy to the air, Some of operating pressure rise is increased. In Such circumstances
which cannot be recovered as thrust, and this energy loSS in the Shock wave is caused to move forwards towards the
the shock wave contributes Significantly to the total ineffi leading edge of the rotor blades. Eventually a limiting point
ciency of the fan rotor. Shock wave theory states that these is reached when the rotor can no longer maintain stable
losses are reduced when the Mach number of the airflow 15 operation and the rotor will either suffer a violent reversal of
immediately ahead of the shock wave, and measured per airflow, known as a Surge, or heavy vibration caused by local
pendicular to the wave front, is reduced. Therefore rotor oscillations in airflow, known as flutter.
efficiency may be increased by leaning the Shock wave So The present invention, however, overcomes these inher
that the air flow meets the discontinuity at a more oblique ent Stability problems of Sweep by employing a number of
angle. The shock wave lean is achieved by Sweeping the Specific novel physical features to move a shock Surface
leading edge of the blades. Two forms of Sweep, forwards rearwards, away from the leading edge, at the blade tip.
and reverse, and the Shock fronts produced thereby are Mechanical loads and distribution caused by the high
illustrated in the side and tip view of FIGS. 3a, 3b and 4a.4b. centrifugal forces produced by high Speed rotor rotations
A simple form of rearward swept rotor blade 30 is have to be taken into account also, and can affect the
illustrated by FIGS. 3a and 3b, any twist and lean of a typical 25 integrity of blade designs. Since the relative Velocity
practical blade is omitted for clarity and Simplicity. In effect between blade and air Stream increases with blade height, as
the Stacked aerofoil Segments of a conventional blade, i.e. well as the rotational Speed, the aerodynamic design changes
compared to the blade of FIGS. 2a, are shifted axially according to the conditions at the design point and this
rearward to provide a Swept leading edge 32 to provide a appears as, in particular, increasing blade twist in addition to
Swept leading edge 32. Forward Sweep is employed near the blade Sweep. Taken together, therefore, any blade design
hub 4 to counteract the rearward Sweep of the outboard possesses a characteristic twist or Stagger which varies with
sections of blade 30 in order to make the design mechani blade height; and a lean in which notional blade chordal
cally feasible. Sections are relatively displaced with blade height to provide
The stacking axis, shown by dashed line 35, thus follows forward or rearward Sweep, as well possibly as circumfer
a curved path with increasing blade height which in a radial 35 ential lean. Thus, the locus of the centres of gravity of
plane curves forward near the hub 4 and then rearwards, Successive chordal cross-sections at increasing blade height
effectively tracking the Sweep of the leading edge 32. normally deviates significantly from a radial path and as a
Clearly, therefore centrifugal forces acting at points along result high internal StreSS levels can be generated. In order
the Stacking axis 35 produce force couples in the radial plane to contain these Stresses blade thickness may have to be
which generate longitudinal stresses in the blade 30. 40 increased, adding mass and tending to exacerbate the prob
Rearward Swept blades producing an oblique shock front lems and possibly detracting from the aerodynamic effi
relative to air Stream flow direction generally exhibit good ciency of the design.
efficiency levels but at the expense of stability as a result of Tolerance to foreign object damage and in particular bird
the Shock front converging with the blade leading edge at Strike, is another important design consideration. Resulting
blade heights towards the tip. Blade integrity levels are 45 damage is caused by the magnitude of impact energy and the
reasonably good although the rearward curve of the locus of amount imparted to the blade which is measured in a
the centres of gravity and preSSure again produces high direction normal to the blade Surface.
StreSS levels. A preferred embodiment of the present invention will
A forward swept blade 40, as illustrated by FIG. 4a and now be described with reference to the accompanying
4b, tends to be very stable because the passage shock front 50 drawings. Referring to the perspective view of a fan rotor in
46 is positioned well back in the throat passage and gener FIG. 1 although this is a view of a fan rotor incorporating
ally its displacement behind the leading edge 42 increases Swept blades in accordance with the present invention. There
with blade height. While the forward Sweep does not nec is shown a circular array of identical fan blades, of which
essarily introduce poor aerodynamic efficiency internal one is referenced at 2, equidistantly spaced apart around the
stress levels resulting from the forward curved locus 45 of 55 periphery of a rotatable hub 4. The manner by which the
the centres of gravity and pressure of Stacked blade Seg blades 2 are mounted on the hub 4 has no significance in the
ments are very high. As a result the blades individually have present context, it is irrelevant whether the blades are
to be Stronger and usually thicker, which tends to increase demountable or permanently fixed to the hub or disc 4, or
weight and the integrity problems. formed integrally therewith.
Also shown in FIGS. 4a and 4b is the position of the 60 No general limitation is intended by, nor should be
Shock Surface 46 near to the Suction Surface. At a given inferred from, this description of an exemplary embodiment.
aerofoil segment at a specific distance from the engine Similarly, the composition and construction of the blades 2
centre line (radial height) the position of the shock wave 46 is outside the Scope of this invention, that is whether the
is a function not only of the shape and position of this blades are Solid or hollow, metal or composite, or monolithic
Segment, but also of the position of the Shock wave on other 65 or fabricated.
Segments i.e. at different radial heights. This means that The hub 4 is rotatable about an axis 6 in the direction of
when a Swept blade is designed as described above, the arrow 8, and this direction of rotation defines for each blade
 6,071,077
S 6
2, its leading edge 10 and trailing edge 12, and the preSSure efficiency of the blade. This distinctive airflow distribution
and Suction surfaces 16, 18 respectively. The blades are is contained within a region relatively close to the front and
ShroudleSS and each therefore has a plain, unshrouded tip 14. rear faces of the rotor, that is within approximately one
The Stacking axis of the blade is generally indicated by the chord length upstream of the leading edge and a similar
broken line 15. Thus the overall appearance of a fan rotor distance downstream of the trailing edge. The airflow in this
incorporating blades designed according to the present region is deflected away from both the hub and the tip, and
invention is illustrated in the perspective view of FIG. 1. follows a curved trajectory towards the mid-height passage
FIGS. 5a, 5b and 5c show three mutually orthogonal region. As a result airspeed of the air Stream in these regions
Views of one of the blades in which a rectangular grid has especially in the tip region close to the fan casing wall is
been Superimposed on the Surfaces of the blade in order to reduced. This allows the Stagger angle of the radially out
highlight its Surface contours. Particularly noticeable are the ermost aerofoil segments of the blade (roughly segments So
two changes of Sign of the Sweep angle of the leading edge; to S) to be increased, that is blade twist is significantly
the way in which the trailing edge and the Stacking axis 15 increased and the Stacking axis is inclined forwards.
of the blade follow the variations and Sign changes of the The inner Surface of the annular fan casing in the region
leading edge; and the increasing twist of the blade with 15 17 immediately encircling the fan rotor is tapered in the
increasing radial height. downstream direction, that is the diameter of the region 17
FIG. 6 shows a view of the blade on a radial axis of is greater on the upstream Side of the fan 1 compared to the
eleven blade Segment profiles references S-S taken at downstream Side. Generally it has the appearance of a short
equidistantly Spaced radial heights from blade root to tip frusto-conical Surface although to avoid aerodynamic tur
which are Superimposed or Stacked one on another to bulence abrupt contour changes are avoided and blended
illustrate the Sweep, lean and twist of the blade at Succes Smoothly with the remaining inner Surface of the casing. An
Sively greater radial heights. angled casing of this kind has long been used by uS to avoid
Referring to FIGS. 5a, 5b, 5c and FIG. 6 the rotor blade complicated aerodynamic interference effects which might
leading edge 10 from the root radially outwards with otherwise be brought about by reflection of the passage
increasing radial height is Swept forward from the hub 4 or 25 Shock waves from the casing wall as has been described in
root segment S (FIG. 6) to a maximum forward segment Ss U.S. Pat. No. 5,642.985. In the present invention the poten
at approximately mid-height from where the leading edge is tial effect of reflected passage shock waves is lessened by the
Swept rearwards through segments S to So. At about 75% reduction of airspeed in the blade tip regions which naturally
of radial height the increasing rearward Sweep is begun to be produces weaker shock waves. Thus, any proclivity to
blended out until at around segment So there is a change of generation of a reflected endwall shock is further reduced by
sign in the inclination of the leading edge 10. Near the blade the effect of the blade design.
tip 14 the inclination of the leading edge changes to forward A further advantage accruing from the invention due to
SWeep in the Segment S. Also between Segments So and the increased twist of the tip region is its improved resistance
S the chord length of the aerofoil Section is increased. The to foreign object damage (FOD). AS previously mentioned,
axial and lateral disposition, i.e. Stacking, of the blade 35 in an FOD strike the energy imparted to, or absorbed by, is
aerofoil segments indicated by the movement of the Stacking determined by the magnitude of the component of the
axis 15 in FIG. 5 is also apparent from FIG. 6 although the relative Velocity vector resolved in a direction perpendicular
axis has been omitted for clarity. The blade tip Segment S to the blade edge or blade Surface at the point of impact. This
is positioned forward of the blade hub Segment S, Such that component of the relative Velocity vector is obtained resolv
the point halfway between the leading edge and the trailing 40 ing the result of a vector addition of the Speed of the object
edge of the tip Segment is axially upstream of a correspond in the direction of travel with the blade speed in the direction
ing point of the hub Segment. It will be apparent that, of rotation. It will be apparent upon consideration that the
although there is considerable movement of the leading and magnitude of this resolved component is reduced by a
trailing edges, there is relatively little axial and lateral greater blade twist angle. The blade thickness is thus able to
(circumferential) movement of the blade segment Stacking 45 be reduced lowering the mass of the section of the blade.
axis over its radial height. The internal StreSS levels arising Consequently the centrifugal forces acting on the blade outer
from centrifugal forces due to rotation are dependent upon region are reduced So the internal StreSS Suffered by the blade
the Separation distance between the Stacking axis 15 and a is reduced. However, it is not a Straightforward matter of
true radius about the rotorS axis of rotation. Thus, the more Simply introducing more blade twist because of the effect on
nearly radial is the Stacking axis the lower are the StreSS 50 blade aerodynamic efficiency. Too much twist would just
levels generated by rotation. reduce the efficiency of the blade to a point where it became
The Stagger angle, or twist, of the blade Segments and too inefficient for practical use, and would cause Stability to
how it increases with radial height between Segments also collapse over a Substantial proportion of the blade height. An
will be apparent from FIG. 6. In comparison with a known, important factor in the Success of the present blade design is
conventional fan rotor of Similar dimensions the Stagger 55 the mid-height bias to the airflow distribution which facili
angle of the mid height segments (roughly from S, to Ss) is tates the reduction of the speed of the airflow at high blade
reduced and the stagger of the tip segments (from Ss to S.) radii thereby permitting the increase of blade twist and the
increased. In the particular blade illustrated the Stagger of reversal of leading edge Sweep angle, characteristics which
the mid-height Section is in the range approximately 30 to give the blade design a distinctive appearance. Thus, a
approximately 55 relative to the airflow direction, while the 60 radially outer region of the blade including the tip region is
Stagger of the tip region increases from the approximately particularly distinctive, most noticably it has a forward
55° angle to almost 70 also relative to the airflow direction Sweep angle, increased blade twist and forward lean of the
at the tip. This feature produces a distinct mid-height bias to Stacking axis. Because of the Smooth blended nature of the
the airflow distribution across the span of a blade, with the changes it is not possible to precisely define the inner radial
result that airflow through the mid-height regions of the flow 65 limit of this region, although approximately it accounts for
passage is increased and the airflow through the tip regions about 15% but may be up to about 20% of the radially
is reduced. This has an advantageous effect on the overall outermost portion of the blade. In this blade tip region the
 6,071,077
7 8
Sweep of the leading edge changes from rearward Sweep to blade design which may embody the invention defined in the
forward Sweep. Furthermore, as a result of Some of the following claims.
improvements the blade tip region is leSS Susceptible to What is claimed is:
foreign object damage, as explained below. Consequently, 1. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine, com
the blade tip region may be reduced in thickness. So it is a 5 prising
further characteristic of the blade's appearance that the tip a fan casing having an inner duct wall which in a fan rotor
region, when compared with a known blade designed for region is convergent in the downstream direction; and
Similar engine size and mass flow, is significantly thinner. a fan rotor including a multiplicity of Swept fan blades
Because of the correlation between blade speed (i.e. Spaced apart around a hub mounted concentrically with
linear speed as opposed to rotational speed) and radial respect to the fan duct, each of Said Swept fan blades
distance from the axis of rotation impact energy also tends having a tip profile which in revolution is convergent So
to increase with blade height. Thus, the greater angle of twist as to Substantially correspond to the convergent duct
and any reduction of relative Speed between an object and a wall, a leading edge of variable Sweep angle which
blade that can be achieved Serves to lessen impact energy Varies with increasing blade height or distance from the
and the Severity of consequential damage. At blade heights 15 axis of rotation, Said Sweep angle having a forward
towards the tip where relative Speed is maximium the Sweep angle in a first height region between the root
amount of energy transferred to a blade by impact with a and a first intermediate radius, a rearward Sweep angle
foreign object in a direction normal to the blade Surface is in an intermediate height region between the first
reduced by the increased angle of blade twist. intermediate radius and a Second intermediate radius, a
Further to the features described above the stability of the forward Sweep angle in a third height region between
Swept blade is maintained by employing only modest the Second intermediate radius and the tip of the blade,
amounts of Sweep, when compared to previous designs, a Stagger angle which increases progressively with
which tend to Set the Sweep angle to be greater than the blade height.
complement of the Mach cone angle at a given position on 2. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
the aerofoil Segment, usually the leading edges although 25 claimed in claim 1 wherein the blade has a tip region of up
other additional positions, e.g. minimum Suction Surface to about 20% of blade height characterised in that the stagger
Static pressure points, have been Stipulated. angle increases to approximately 70 at the tip relative to the
AS mentioned above, in operation, each blade creates a airflow direction.
Shock wave front which at design Speed is a predetermined 3. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
distance behind the leading edge. Also on the Suction Surface claimed in claim 2 wherein a blade tip region of up to about
of the blade the Segment profiles combine to create a 20% of the height of the blade the Sweep of the leading edge
Spanwise extending line of minimum Static pressure points. changes from rearward Sweep to forward Sweep.
FIG. 7a shows a plot of static pressure contours (isobars) on 4. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
the Suction Surface of a fan blade according to the invention, claimed in claim3 wherein the blade is further characterised
and in the airflow regions immediately upstream of the 35 in that the Stagger angle of the mid-height region of the blade
leading edge 10 and downstream of the trailing edge 12. The is in the range from approximately 30 to approximately 55
eleven segment profiles of FIG. 6 are indicated by horizontal relative to the airflow direction.
lines S-S, that is the lines So referenced which are parallel 5. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
to the airflow direction indicated by an arrow. Apparent are claimed in claim 1 wherein the Sweep angle of the leading
preSSure gradients in the axial or airflow direction which 40 edge of a Swept fan blade at a point on the leading edge is
reveal the spanwise distribution of the line of minimum less than the complement of the angle of a Mach cone at any
Static pressure points, in front of the Shock wave on the blade other point on the leading edge of the blade at greater radius
Surface marking the abrupt transition between SubSonic and from the root.
SuperSonic flow. The distribution of isobars also reveals the 6. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
mid-height bias in the airflow over the blade surface and the 45 claimed in claim 1 wherein the shape of the pressure Surface
tip region reduction. of a Swept fan blade and the Suction Surface thereof creates,
FIG. 7b shows corresponding contours of relative Mach in use, a line of minimum Static pressure points on the
number for airflow over the blade Suction Surface. These Suction Surface of the blade, Said line of minimum Static
clearly show the abrupt transitions at the blade leading edge preSSure points is inclined with respect to the axial direction
and at the blade Surface where the passage shock wave meets 50 at a Sweep angle which varies with span height of the blade,
the Surface. On the left hand, Vertical axis the plane Section and has a negative value in a region of SubSonic flow over
numberS S-S are inscribed for easy cross-reference the leading edge.
between drawings. The leading edge 10 of the blades is 7. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine as
inscribed for ease of reference and by comparison of the claimed in claim 6 wherein the Sweep angle of the line of
position of the Step in the pressure contours the relative 55 minimum preSSure points at a point on the line is less than
location of the shock front on the blade Surface can be the complement of the angle of a Mach cone at any other
observed. Again the reduction of airflow in the tip region point on the line.
adjacent the casing wall can also be discerned. 8. A fan Stage of a ducted fan gas turbine engine that is at
FIG. 8 contains a table showing Sweep Angle, Mach least in part rotatable about an axis of rotation and defines a
angle, i.e. the angle of the Mach cone, and Mach No for both 60 downstream direction along the axis of rotation, comprising:
the line of minimum Static pressure points and at the blade a fan casing that defines an inner duct wall having a fan
Section profile Segment S-S. The changes of the leading rotor region, the inner duct wall of the fan casing at the
edge Sweep angle will immediately apparent from the col fan rotor region being convergent;
umn headed “SWEEP ANGLE. a hub disposed concentrically relative to the fan casing;
The Swept blade design described above is presented as 65 a fan rotor that includes multiple Swept fan blades, the
an exemplary embodiment of the invention. It will be Swept fan blades being Spaced apart around the hub,
appreciated that the described design is not the only Swept each of the multiple Swept fan blades having:
 6,071,077
9 10
a tip profile that is convergent So as to Substantially 10. The fan stage according to claim 8, wherein the inner
correspond to the convergent inner duct wall of the duct wall of the fan casing at the fan rotor region is
fan casing: Substantially convergent in the downstream direction.
a leading edge that defines a variable Sweep angle in a 11. The fan Stage according to claim 8, wherein the tip
direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation, the profile of the multiple swept fan blades are substantially
leading edge including: convergent in the downstream direction.
an inner region adjacent the hub, the inner region
defining a forward Sweep angle; 12. The fan Stage according to claim 8, wherein the inner
an intermediate region between the inner region and duct wall of the fan casing at the fan region is not parallel
the fan casing, the intermediate region defining a 1O to the tip profile of each of the multiple swept fan blades.
rearward Sweep angle, and 13. The fan Stage according to claim 8, wherein each of
an outer region between the intermediate region and the multiple Swept fan blades includes a hub contacting
the fan casing, the outer region defining a forward Surface that extends further than the tip profile along the axis
Sweep angle. of rotation.
9. The fan stage according to claim 8, wherein the 15
intermediate region extends further than the inner region
along the axis of rotation.