Wind Turbine Blade Shear Web Positioning Guide
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ensuring the correct position of shear webs during the manufacture of wind turbine blades is challenging, especially when bonding them to the leeward shell, as the mould is in a closed configuration, leading to potential misalignment due to movement or displacement during mould closure.
Innovation Solution
The method involves attaching guide blocks with transversely oriented guide surfaces to the inner surface of the leeward half shell, which guide and direct the shear webs into the correct position as the half shells are brought together, preventing movement and ensuring a strong bond.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the shear webs are bonded to the leeward shell when the mould is closed, then the bonding process can be completed for both half shells, but the shear webs may move or displace during mould closure resulting in misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
Guide blocks are introduced as intermediary elements between the shear webs and the leeward shell. These guide blocks have guide surfaces that physically constrain the shear webs during mould closure, preventing displacement while allowing the bonding process to proceed. The guide blocks act as temporary mediators that ensure precise positioning without interfering with the final bond structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide blocks are attached to the leeward shell in advance, before the bonding operation. This preliminary action establishes the positioning constraints beforehand, so that when the shear webs are introduced and the mould is closed, the shear webs are automatically guided into the correct position without requiring adjustment during the bonding process.
2Ease of operation
If the shear webs are bonded to the windward shell with the mould open, then the positioning is straightforward and accessible, but the shear webs cannot be simultaneously positioned on the leeward shell which requires mould closure
Solution Approach 1:
The guide blocks serve as intermediary reference structures that bridge the accessibility problem. By attaching guide blocks to the leeward shell, the invention creates accessible positioning references on both the windward and leeward sides. The guide blocks translate the inaccessible inner surface positioning task into an accessible outer surface guiding task, allowing operators to easily position shear webs while maintaining precision relative to both half shells.
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
This approach ensures accurate positioning and bonding of shear webs, preventing misalignment and ensuring a strong bond between the shear webs and the leeward shell, even during mould closure, thereby enhancing the structural integrity of the wind turbine blade.
Implementation Method 1
Adhesive such as epoxy is applied along these mounting flanges 22 in order to bond the shear webs 16 to the respective half shells 12a, 12b
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
Figure 1c~2a
Figure 2b~2c
AI summary
A method of making a wind turbine blade, and the turbaine blade resulting form the process, is described in which correct alignment of the shear webs (42a, 42b) upon mould (30) closing is ensured. The method involves providing a first half shell (32a) and a second half shell (32b) to be joined together to form the wind turbine blade. A first edge (46) of a shear web (42) is attached to an inner surface (36a) of the first half shell (32a). A shear web mounting region is defined on an inner surface (36b) of the second half shell (32b). At least one guide block (60a, 60b) is attached to the inner surface (36b) of the second half shell (32b) adjacent to the shear web (42) mounting region. The guide block (60a, 60b) has a guide surface (70) oriented transversely to the inner surface of the second half shell (36b). Upon mould (30) closing, the first and second half shells (32a, 32b) are brought together whilst a second edge (52) of the shear web (42) is guided over the guide surface (70) of the mounting block (60a, 60b) towards the shear web mounting region defined on the inner surface (36b) of the second half shell (32b).