Rolls-Royce selected to develop robust electrical power system for future energy-optimized aircraft

Rolls-Royce today announced that it has been selected to design and develop a robust electrical power system (REPS) as part of the Integrated Vehicle Energy Technology component and subsystem development (INVENT-SDD). The $690,000 contract, awarded by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), funds the development of critical INVENT subsystem technologies, and is the third occasion in 15 months in which LibertyWorks® has been selected for AFRL programs.

Phil Burkholder, Chief Operating Officer for LibertyWorks, said: “We are delighted to have been chosen to develop one of the critical INVENT subsystems. We are closely working with airframe primes to provide an integrated power solution that will be compatible not only with existing jet engines, but will also support next-generation aircraft.”

The REPS initiative includes increasing power, improving efficiencies, and reducing lifecycle costs. The intent is to generate less heat, increase fuel efficiency and enable electricity capacity for various systems to meet the increasing demands of existing and future onboard systems.

Next steps will involve an assessment of all three critical technologies and integrated ground demonstrations of the consensus architecture for energy-optimized aircraft. Work will be undertaken by the company’s LibertyWorks research unit in Indianapolis, Indiana.