Automatic Pitch Turbine for Bidirectional Wave Energy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional turbines fail to generate useful power from sea waves due to the bidirectional force caused by changing water levels, leading to constant direction changes in rotation, which results in inefficient power production and high maintenance requirements in existing solutions such as check valve systems, Well's turbine, and variable pitch turbines with complex control systems.
Innovation Solution
A bidirectional flow turbine with an automatic pitch adjustment mechanism, where blades mounted on a shaft with ball bearings change their pitch up to 45 degrees in response to air flow direction changes, ensuring unidirectional rotation and high efficiency by mimicking a flag on a pole, reducing the need for complex control systems and minimizing maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a normal turbine is used to capture bidirectional force from sea waves, then the turbine structure is simple, but the turbine cannot produce useful power because it constantly changes rotation direction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional turbine approach by using a check valve system that allows flow in only one direction through the turbine, regardless of the bidirectional nature of sea wave force. The check valve ensures unidirectional flow through the turbine blades, enabling the turbine to rotate consistently in one direction and produce useful power from the bidirectional force source.
Solution Approach 2:
The check valve acts as an intermediary component between the bidirectional force source and the turbine. It mediates the bidirectional flow by allowing force to drive the turbine in only one direction, converting the problematic bidirectional input into a usable unidirectional output for power generation.
2Productivity
If a check valve system is used to rectify bidirectional force, then the turbine can produce unidirectional rotation, but the system has too many moving parts requiring much maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The check valve system is designed to automatically respond to bidirectional force changes without external control. The check valve self-activates based on flow direction, and the turbine automatically adjusts its operation accordingly, eliminating the need for complex electronic or mechanical control systems and reducing maintenance requirements.
3Productivity
If a Well's turbine is used to rotate in one direction with bidirectional air flow, then unidirectional rotation is achieved, but the efficiency is low due to high angle of attack and higher drag coefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a variable pitch turbine design where the blade pitch angle can be dynamically adjusted in response to changing bidirectional force conditions. This allows the turbine to optimize its angle of attack for maximum efficiency at different operating conditions, overcoming the fixed-angle limitation of the Well's turbine and reducing energy losses.
4Productivity
If a variable pitch turbine with electronic and mechanical control system is used, then the turbine can turn in the same direction with bidirectional force, but the control system is complex and requires much maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The variable pitch mechanism is designed to automatically adjust blade pitch angles in response to bidirectional force changes without requiring complex electronic or mechanical control systems. The turbine self-regulates its operation based on flow conditions, eliminating the need for external control infrastructure and reducing maintenance requirements.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The turbine effectively converts bidirectional sea wave force into unidirectional rotation, maintaining high efficiency and reducing maintenance needs, capable of producing power continuously and in the megawatt range, with automatic pitch adjustment ensuring consistent operation.
Implementation Method 1
the blade is mounted on a shaft, through ball bearings
Implementation Method 2
a turbine that will produce useful mechanical force from the dynamic force of the sea wave
Data Source
AI summary
A turbine that will produce useful mechanical force from the dynamic force of the sea wave. This is done by rectifying the bidirectional force obtained from such wave. This turbine will produce a unidirectional rotation from the bidirectional force of the wave. The turbine will adjust the pitch of its blades automatically as the air flow inside the pipe changes direction, The air flow will change the pitch of the blade, because the blade is mounted on a shaft through ball bearings. Because the blade is acting like a flag on a pole that has a long tail and also the blade has a long tail and will always change its direction in accord to the direction of the air flow.