Generator

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a generator that is driven by utilizing water pressure. [Solution] A drive mechanism of this generator 122 comprises: a pair of bellows pump chambers 102, 112 in which bellows pumps 101, 111 are disposed; a windmill 121 which rotates by using air sent from the bellows pumps, which expand and contract; and a generator 122 which is directly connected to the windmill 121. The bellows pump chambers 102, 112 are disposed in water, opening / closing doors 103, 113 of the bellows pump chambers are alternately opened and closed, and air flows into a windmill chamber from the bellows pump of the bellows pump chamber in which the opening / closing door is open. In a windmill chamber 120 in which the windmill 121 is disposed, switching plates 123, 124 that switch a flow passage of air are provided so that the windmill 121 and the generator 122 rotate in the same direction regardless from which of the bellows pump chambers 102, 112 the air enters.

Description

generator

[0001] The present invention relates to a generator having a novel drive mechanism that uses water pressure to rotate a wind turbine that drives the generator.

[0002] Conventionally, known generators include high-speed generators driven by gas or steam turbines, low-speed generators driven by water wheels, synchronous generators using various engines as prime movers, low-speed generators driven by wind turbines, etc. Furthermore, Patent Document 1 (JP 2007-82386 A) listed below describes a generator that rotates using the torque of a disk.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-82386

[0004] A generator generally comprises a coil formed by winding a conductor, a magnet placed in the coil close to the coil, a rotating shaft that rotates the magnet around the center of the coil, and a drive means for rotating the rotating shaft. Electricity is generated by the current flowing in the coil due to electromagnetic induction as the magnet moves relative to the coil. The current generated in the coil is conducted through an electric wire connected to the coil and stored in, for example, a capacitor. In such a generator, it is important that the magnet rotates efficiently.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a generator of a novel structure in which a wind turbine that drives the rotating shaft of the generator is rotated using water pressure.

[0006] The present invention provides a generator equipped with a drive mechanism for driving the generator's rotating shaft, the drive mechanism including a pair of containers each equipped with an openable / closable door for selecting the inflow of water, a displacement member located at the boundary between the water that has entered the containers and the air in the containers and that moves or deforms within the containers in response to the pressure difference between the water pressure in the containers and the air pressure in the containers, and a windmill chamber in which a windmill that rotates the generator's rotating shaft is disposed. The windmill rotates by being forced by air that flows into the windmill chamber alternately from each of the containers as the displacement member moves or deforms within the containers, and a switching plate is disposed in the windmill chamber for switching the air flow path so that the windmill rotates in the same direction regardless of which of the pair of containers the air flows into. Furthermore, at least the pair of containers are disposed below the water surface.

[0007] In the generator of the present invention, a pipe is installed between each of the pair of containers and the wind turbine chamber, through which air flows from the containers into the wind turbine chamber and through which air passes after rotating the wind turbine in the wind turbine chamber.

[0008] In the generator of the present invention, each of the pair of containers is provided with a drain tower for draining water from the container when the opening / closing door is closed.

[0009] In the generator of the present invention, the doors of the pair of containers are opened and closed alternately.

[0010] In addition, in the generator of the present invention, the displacement member comprises a bellows pump that stores air in the container, and the bellows pump deforms due to the pressure difference between the water pressure in the container and the air pressure in the bellows pump.

[0011] In the generator of the present invention, the displacement member comprises a moving member that moves while contacting the inner wall of the container, the moving member comprising a ring-shaped packing made of an elastic member, a support ring that supports the ring-shaped packing so that the outer periphery of the ring-shaped packing is in elastic contact with the inner wall of the container, and a disk-shaped member connected to the support ring via a cylindrical member, the outer periphery of the disk-shaped member being close to the inner wall of the container but not in contact with the inner wall. This moving member moves within the container in response to the pressure difference between the water present above the disk-shaped member and the air present below the disk-shaped member.

[0012] In the generator of the present invention, the wind turbine chamber and the generator are disposed underwater together with the pair of containers.

[0013] In the generator of the present invention, the pair of containers may be disposed below the water surface, and the wind turbine chamber and the generator may be disposed above the water surface.

[0014] In this case, a first building and a second building that house the vessels are installed underwater, a tower-like structure is installed on the roofs of the first and second buildings, and a third building that houses the wind turbine room and generator is installed so as to straddle the two ends of the tower-like structure that protrude above the water surface. The pipes and the drainage tower that protrude from the first and second buildings are located inside the tower-like structure.

[0015] According to the present invention, the wind turbine that drives the rotating shaft of the generator can be rotated using water pressure.

[0016] 1 is a first cross-sectional view of a first embodiment in which a bellows pump chamber, a wind turbine chamber, and a generator are arranged underwater. FIG. 2 is a second cross-sectional view of the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first state of a switching plate that switches the air flow path of the wind turbine chamber. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second state of the switching plate. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which a bellows pump chamber, a wind turbine chamber, and a generator of the first embodiment are arranged underwater. FIG. 6 is a first cross-sectional view of a second embodiment in which a pair of bellows pump chambers are arranged underwater and a wind turbine chamber and a generator are arranged above water. FIG. 7 is a second cross-sectional view of the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a building that houses the bellows pump chamber of the second embodiment and a building that houses the wind turbine chamber and the generator. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment that includes a moving member that moves in contact with the inner wall of the container. FIG. 10 is an exploded view (a) and a side view (b) of the moving member. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a modified example of the moving member.

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0018] (First embodiment) As shown in Figure 1, a generator equipped with a drive mechanism of the first embodiment includes a bellows pump chamber 102 in which a bellows pump 101 is arranged, a bellows pump chamber 112 in which a bellows pump 111 is arranged, and a windmill chamber 120 in which a windmill 121 that rotates a generator 122 is housed.

[0019] The bellows pump chambers 102, 112, the windmill chamber 120 and the generator chamber 130 (FIG. 3) housing the generator 122 are located below the water surface (300).

[0020] The bellows pump chamber 102 is provided with an electrically operated door (sliding door) 103 that opens and closes the inflow path for water into the pump chamber, and the bellows pump chamber 112 is provided with an electrically operated sliding door 113 that opens and closes the inflow path for water into the pump chamber. The sliding doors 103 and 113 each alternately open and close the inflow path, and are controlled so that when one is open, the other is closed.

[0021] In addition, a pipe 104 through which air flows is provided between the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 102 and the windmill chamber 120, and similarly, a pipe 114 through which air flows is provided between the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 112 and the windmill chamber 120.

[0022] Furthermore, the bellows pump chamber 102 has a drain tower 105 which serves as a drain path for water in the bellows pump chamber 102 when the sliding door 103 is closed, and the bellows pump chamber 112 has a drain tower 115 which serves as a drain path for water in the bellows pump chamber 112 when the sliding door 113 is closed. The drain tower 105 extends upward from the upper end of the bellows pump chamber 102, with the tip of the drain tower 105 exposed above the water surface 300. Similarly, the drain tower 115 extends upward from the upper end of the bellows pump chamber 112, with the tip of the drain tower 115 exposed above the water surface 300. Therefore, the water discharged from the drain towers 105, 115 mixes with the water surrounding the bellows pump chambers 102, 112 after being discharged into the air.

[0023] 1, in this drive mechanism, when the sliding door 113 of the bellows pump chamber 112 is closed and the sliding door 103 of the bellows pump chamber 102 is opened, water around the bellows pump chamber 102 flows into the bellows pump chamber 102. Therefore, the bellows pump 101 is compressed by the water pressure of the flowing-in water, and the air in the bellows pump 101 is sent to the wind turbine chamber 120 through the pipe 104.

[0024] The windmill chamber 120 is provided with a windmill 121 that rotates due to the air flowing in, flow path plates 125, 126 that regulate the air flow path so that the air flowing in flows around the windmill 121, and a pair of flow path switching plates 123, 124 that switch the air flow path so that the air flowing in from the bellows pump chamber 102 to the windmill chamber 120 flows along the flow path plate 125 and the air flowing in from the bellows pump chamber 112 to the windmill chamber 120 flows along the flow path plate 126.

[0025] Flow path switching plates 123 and 124 rotate around fulcrums 128 and 129, respectively, in conjunction with the movement of sliding doors 103 and 113. As shown in Fig. 1, when sliding door 103 is open and sliding door 113 is closed, flow path switching plates 123 and 124 block the flow path along flow path plate 126, allowing air flowing in from bellows pump chamber 102 to flow along flow path plate 125. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the state of flow path switching plates 123 and 124 at this time.

[0026] 3, the rotating shaft of the wind turbine 121 is directly connected to the rotating shaft 127 of the generator 122 housed in the power generation chamber 130. Therefore, when the wind turbine 121 is rotated by the air flowing into the wind turbine chamber 120, the rotating shaft 127 of the generator 122 rotates, and electricity is generated.

[0027] After rotating the windmill 121 in the windmill chamber 120, the air flows through the pipe 114 into the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 112. As a result, the bellows pump 111 in the bellows pump chamber 112 expands, and the water inside the bellows pump chamber 112, with the sliding door 113 closed, is discharged into the air through the drain tower 115.

[0028] 2, when the sliding door 103 is closed and the sliding door 113 is opened, the water around the bellows pump chamber 112 flows into the bellows pump chamber 112. Therefore, the water pressure of the flowing water compresses the bellows pump 111, and the air in the bellows pump 111 is sent into the wind turbine chamber 120 through the pipe 114.

[0029] When the sliding door 113 is open and the sliding door 103 is closed, the flow path switching plates 123, 124 of the wind turbine chamber 120 switch the air flow path so that the air flowing from the bellows pump chamber 112 into the wind turbine chamber 120 flows along the flow path plate 126. The perspective view of Figure 4 shows the state of the flow path switching plates 123, 124 at this time. Therefore, the wind turbine 121 rotates in the same direction as in Figure 1 due to the air flowing from the bellows pump chamber 112 into the wind turbine chamber 120, and the rotating shaft of the generator 122 also rotates in the same direction, allowing power generation to continue.

[0030] The air that has rotated the windmill 121 flows through the pipe 104 into the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 102. As a result, the bellows pump 101 in the bellows pump chamber 102 expands, and the water inside the bellows pump chamber 102, with the sliding door 103 closed, is discharged into the air through the drain tower 105.

[0031] In this manner, in this drive mechanism, the wind turbine 121 continues to rotate in the same direction whether air flows into the wind turbine chamber 120 from the bellows pump chamber 102 or from the bellows pump chamber 112. Therefore, the rotating shaft 127 of the generator 122 also rotates in the same direction, and power generation is performed continuously.

[0032] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the state in which the bellows pump chambers 102, 112, the wind turbine chamber 120, and the generator chamber 130 of the generator according to the first embodiment are placed underwater.

[0033] Second Embodiment As shown in FIG. 6, in a drive mechanism of a second embodiment, a pair of bellows pump chambers 102, 112 are disposed below the water surface 300, and a wind turbine chamber 120 together with a generator 122 are disposed above the water.

[0034] A pipe 104 through which air flows is provided between the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 102 and the windmill chamber 120, and similarly, a pipe 114 through which air flows is provided between the lower end of the bellows pump chamber 112 and the windmill chamber 120.

[0035] The operation of the drive mechanism of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6 , when the sliding door 113 of the bellows pump chamber 112 is closed and the sliding door 103 of the bellows pump chamber 102 is opened, the bellows pump 101 is compressed by the water pressure of the water flowing into the bellows pump chamber 102, and the air in the bellows pump 101 is sent to the windmill chamber 120 through the pipe 104.

[0036] The air that flows into the wind turbine chamber 120 is guided by the flow path switching plates 123 and 124 and flows along the flow path plate 125 , and this air rotates the wind turbine 121 , causing the generator 122 to generate electricity.

[0037] The air that has rotated the windmill 121 flows through the pipe 114 into the bellows pump chamber 112, causing the bellows pump 111 in the bellows pump chamber 112 to expand. As a result, the water inside the bellows pump chamber 112, with the sliding door 113 closed, is discharged into the air through the drain tower 115.

[0038] Next, when the sliding door 103 of the bellows pump chamber 102 closes and the sliding door 113 of the bellows pump chamber 112 opens, the bellows pump 111 is compressed by the water pressure of the water that has flowed into the bellows pump chamber 112, and the air in the bellows pump 111 is sent into the windmill chamber 120 through the pipe 114, as shown in Figure 7.

[0039] The air that flows into the wind turbine chamber 120 is guided by the flow path switching plates 123 and 124 and flows along the flow path plate 126 , and this air rotates the wind turbine 121 , causing the generator 122 to generate electricity.

[0040] The air that has rotated the windmill 121 flows through the pipe 104 into the bellows pump chamber 102, causing the bellows pump 101 in the bellows pump chamber 102 to expand. As a result, the water inside the bellows pump chamber 102, with the sliding door 103 closed, is discharged into the air through the drain tower 105.

[0041] In the second embodiment, since the generator 122 is located on the water, it is easier to safely extract the electricity generated by the generator 122 than in the first embodiment, and maintenance work on the generator 122 is also easier than in the first embodiment.

[0042] 8 illustrates an example of an installation form of the generator and the drive mechanism in the second embodiment. Here, a rectangular parallelepiped first building 151 that houses the bellows pump chamber 102 and a rectangular parallelepiped second building 152 that houses the bellows pump chamber 112 are installed separately underwater on foundations provided on the bottom of the water, and tower-like structures 161 and 162 are installed on the roofs of the first building 151 and the second building 152, respectively.

[0043] A third building 153 is constructed so as to straddle the two tips of these structures 161, 162 that protrude above the water surface, and the wind turbine room 120 and generator 122 are housed inside this third building 153.

[0044] In addition, the pipe 104 connecting the bellows pump room 102 and the windmill room 120, and the drainage tower 105 extending from the bellows pump room 102 to above the water surface are arranged inside a tower-structured structure 161 installed on the roof of the first building 151, and the pipe 114 connecting the bellows pump room 112 and the windmill room 120, and the drainage tower 115 extending from the bellows pump room 112 to above the water surface are arranged inside a tower-structured structure 162 installed on the roof of the second building 152.

[0045] This structure makes it possible to stabilize the wind turbine room 120 and the generator room 130 that are placed on the water.

[0046] (Third embodiment) In a drive mechanism of a third embodiment, as shown in Fig. 9, a pair of movable member housing chambers 402, 412 housing movable members 500 are disposed underwater, and a windmill chamber 120 for a windmill 121 that rotates a generator 122 is disposed above water. The configuration of the windmill chamber 120 is the same as in Figs. 6 and 7. Furthermore, the movable member housing chambers 402, 412 have opening / closing doors 103, 113 and drainage towers 105, 115, similar to the bellows pump chambers 102, 112 in Figs. 6 and 7, and also have pipes 104, 114 between them and the windmill chamber 120.

[0047] As shown in Figure 10(a) (exploded view) and Figure 10(b) (side view), the movable member 500 accommodated in the movable member accommodating chamber 402, 412 has a ring-shaped gasket 502 formed of an elastic material, a support ring 503 that supports the ring-shaped gasket 502 so that the outer periphery of the ring-shaped gasket elastically contacts the inner wall of the movable member accommodating chamber 402, 412, and a disk-shaped member 505 connected to the support ring 503 via a cylindrical member 504.

[0048] The outer periphery of the disk-shaped member 505 is close to, but does not contact, the inner wall of the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412. However, the disk-shaped member 505 is connected to the ring-shaped packing 502 via the cylindrical member 504 and the support ring 503, and this ring-shaped packing 502 is in contact with the inner wall of the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412, so the water and air inside the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412 are separated by the disk-shaped member 505.

[0049] If the disk-shaped member 505 were to come into direct contact with the inner wall of the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412, smooth movement of the movable member 500 within the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412 could not be expected. However, in this drive mechanism, only the elastic ring-shaped gasket 502 is in contact with the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412, so smooth movement of the movable member 500 within the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412 is possible.

[0050] 9, in this drive mechanism, when the sliding door 113 of one movable member housing chamber 412 is closed, the sliding door 103 of the other movable member housing chamber 402 is open, so that water enters the movable member housing chamber 402 and the water pressure pushes down the movable member 500 in the movable member housing chamber 402. As a result, air below the movable member 500 is sent into the wind turbine chamber 120 through the pipe 104.

[0051] The air that flows into the wind turbine chamber 120 is guided by the flow path switching plates 123 and 124 and flows along the flow path plate 125 , and this air rotates the wind turbine 121 , causing the generator 122 to generate electricity.

[0052] The air that has rotated the windmill 121 flows through the pipe 114 into the movable member housing chamber 412 and pushes up the movable member 500 inside the movable member housing chamber 412. As a result, water inside the movable member housing chamber 412 with the sliding door 113 closed is discharged into the air through the drain tower 115.

[0053] Next, when the sliding door 113 of the movable member storage chamber 412 opens and the sliding door 103 of the movable member storage chamber 402 closes, water enters the movable member storage chamber 412 and the water pressure pushes down the movable member 500 in the movable member storage chamber 412, resulting in the air below the movable member 500 being sent into the windmill chamber 120 through the pipe 114.

[0054] The air that flows into the wind turbine chamber 120 is guided by the flow path switching plates 123 and 124 and flows along the flow path plate 126 , and this air rotates the wind turbine 121 , causing the generator 122 to generate electricity.

[0055] The air that has rotated the windmill 121 flows through the pipe 104 into the movable member housing chamber 402 and pushes up the movable member 500 inside the movable member housing chamber 402. As a result, water inside the movable member housing chamber 402 with the sliding door 103 closed is discharged into the air through the drain tower 105.

[0056] In this generator drive mechanism, the amount of movement of the movable member 500 within the movable member housing chambers 402, 412 is large, so the amount of air sent into the wind turbine chamber 120 is significantly increased compared to the drive mechanisms shown in Figures 6 and 7. This causes the wind turbine 121 to rotate more powerfully, improving the power generation efficiency of the generator 122.

[0057] It should be noted that there is a possibility that some of the water that has entered the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412 from the sliding doors 103, 113 may slip through between the inner wall of the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412 and the ring-shaped packing 502, and accumulate in the space below the disk-shaped member 505. For this reason, as shown in Figure 9, it is desirable to provide water drain pipes 403, 413 and suction pumps 404, 414 for removing water that has accumulated in the movable member accommodating chambers 402, 412, and to operate the suction pumps 404, 414 as appropriate to drain the water.

[0058] 11, the arrangement of the ring-shaped packing 502, the support ring 503, the cylindrical member 504, and the disk-shaped member 505 in the moving member 500 may be reversed from that in FIG.

[0059] In addition, Figure 9 shows an example in which a pair of movable member housing chambers 402, 412 that house the movable member 500 are placed underwater and the wind turbine chamber 120 is placed above the water, but as in Figure 1, the pair of movable member housing chambers 402, 412 that house the movable member 500 and the wind turbine chamber 120 may both be placed underwater.

[0060] The generator of the present invention is capable of rotating the windmill that drives the rotating shaft of the generator using water pressure, and can be widely used as a clean means of power generation.

[0061] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 101 Bellows pump 102 Bellows pump room 103 Sliding door (opening / closing door) 104 Pipe 105 Drainage tower 111 Bellows pump 112 Bellows pump room 113 Sliding door 114 Pipe 115 Drainage tower 120 Windmill room 121 Windmill 122 Generator 123 Flow path switching plate 124 Flow path switching plate 125 Flow path plate 126 Flow path plate 127 Rotation axis 128 Fulcrum 129 Fulcrum 130 Power generation room 151 First building 152 Second building 153 Third building 161 Tower-shaped structure 162 Tower-shaped structure 300 Water surface 402 Movable member housing room 403 Water drain pipe 404 Suction pump 412 Movable member housing room 413 Drain pipe 414 Suction pump 500 Moving member 502 Ring-shaped packing 503 Support ring 504 Cylindrical member 505 Disk-shaped member

Claims

1. A generator equipped with a drive mechanism for driving the rotating shaft of the generator, wherein the drive mechanism comprises: a pair of containers each equipped with an opening / closing door for selecting the inflow of water; a displacement member located at the boundary between the water that has entered the containers and the air in the containers, which moves or deforms within the containers in accordance with the pressure difference between the water pressure in the containers and the air pressure in the containers; and a windmill chamber in which a windmill that rotates the rotating shaft of the generator is disposed; wherein the windmill rotates by being forced to rotate by air that flows into the windmill chamber alternately from each of the containers as the displacement member moves or deforms within the containers; and wherein a switching plate is disposed in the windmill chamber for switching the air flow path so that the windmill rotates in the same direction regardless of which of the pair of containers the air flows into; and wherein at least the pair of containers are disposed below the water surface.

2. A generator as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that a pipe is installed between each of the pair of containers and the wind turbine chamber, through which air flows from the containers into the wind turbine chamber and through which air passes after rotating the wind turbine in the wind turbine chamber.

3. A generator according to claim 2, wherein each of the pair of containers has a drain tower for draining water from the container when the opening and closing door is closed.

4. A generator according to claim 3, characterized in that the opening and closing doors of the pair of containers are opened and closed alternately.

5. A generator according to claim 4, wherein the displacement member comprises a bellows pump that accommodates the air in the container, and the bellows pump is deformed by the pressure difference between the water pressure of the water in the container and the air pressure in the bellows pump.

6. A generator as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the displacement member comprises a moving member that moves while contacting the inner wall of the container, the moving member comprising a ring-shaped packing formed of an elastic member, a support ring that supports the ring-shaped packing so that the outer periphery of the ring-shaped packing is in elastic contact with the inner wall of the container, and a disk-shaped member connected to the support ring via a cylindrical member, the outer periphery of the disk-shaped member being close to the inner wall of the container but not in contact with the inner wall, and the moving member moves within the container in response to the pressure difference between the water present above the disk-shaped member and the air present below the disk-shaped member.

7. A generator according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the wind turbine chamber and the generator are disposed underwater together with the pair of containers.

8. A generator according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the pair of containers are disposed below the water surface, and the wind turbine chamber and the generator are disposed above the water surface.

9. A generator as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that a first building and a second building housing each of the vessels are installed underwater, a tower-like structure is installed on the roof of the first building and the second building, a third building housing the wind turbine room and generator is installed so as to straddle the two tips of the tower-like structure protruding above the water surface, and the pipes and drainage tower protruding from each of the first building and the second building are arranged inside the tower-like structure.

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