SHAFT COUPLING

摘要

1284709 Coupling turbine rotors GENERAL MOTORS CORP 19 April 1971 [14 May 1970] 21586/71 Heading F2U [Also in Division F1] The invention relates to a gas turbine engine and to means for connecting the turbine and compressor shafts together. The engine shown comprises a compressor shaft 10 and a turbine shaft 11, both of the shafts being hollow and the turbine shaft being received within the compressor shaft, the shafts being interconnected by a spline connection 21, 22. The turbine shaft is internally threaded at 26 and the compressor shaft is internally threaded at 23, and a coupling member 30 which has external screw-threads 31, 32 is engaged within the shafts with the threads 23, 31 in engagement and the threads 26, 32 in engagement. The coupling member 30 has spaced internal flanges 33, 36 the flange 33 being formed with narrow grooves 35 and wide grooves 34 and the other flange being formed with splines 36. The lock coupling 40 is formed with external sets of splines 41, 44, the splines 41 being adapted to engage the internal splines 36 in the coupling member 30 and the splines 44 being adapted to engage internal splines 25 formed on an inwardly directed flange 24 on the compressor shaft 10. A helical spring 42 is arranged to hold the parts in engagement, the spring bearing at one end against flange 43 of the lock coupling and at the other end against a T-section ring which is located by means of a split-ring 38 engaged in a groove in the coupling member 30. The parts are assembled by means of a tubular wrench member 50 formed with lugs 51, 52 which pass through the narrow recesses 35, 46. In Fig. 2 the compressor and turbine shafts 10, 11 are in splined engagement at 36, 41, and the wrench 50 is in position with the lugs 52 in engagement with the recesses 34 in flange 33 of coupling member 30. Upon rotation of the wrench the screw-threads 32 engage threads 26 and threads 31 engage threads 23, the axial movement of the coupling member 30 acting to compress the spring 42, Fig. 3 (not shown). Upon axial removal of the wrench, the lock coupling 40 is caused to move to the right under action of the spring 42 whereby the splines 41, 36 move back into full engagement and the splines 44 on the lock coupling 40 move to the right to engage the splines 25 on the internal flange 24 of the compressor shaft 10.