Patent ID: 8256720
Filing Date: 2012-09-04
Classification: B63B,B64C,C21D,C22C,C22F,F04C,F05B,F05C,F15D,Y02T

Abstract:
1. A smart vortex generator to be placed on a body surface, which makes a boundary to a flow of fluid, thereby suppressing a flow separation, which occurs at the body surface, and thereby demonstrating a multi-directional characteristic depending on a temperature change of the fluid, the smart vortex generator comprising: a main body disposed on the body surface, at least a part of the main body comprising a shape memory alloy; and the smart vortex generator is configured so that, depending on a temperature increment/decrement of the fluid, a form of the main body changes between (1) a first form, which is capable of suppressing a flow separation by a vortex generation, and (2) a second form, which is capable of suppressing a turbulent flow, by a phenomenon that the shape memory alloy undergoes a phase transformation between a high-temperature-side stable phase, which is stable on a higher temperature side, and a low-temperature-side stable phase, which is stable on a lower temperature side.