Cable-Stayed Wind Turbine with Combined Foundation
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Solution Overview
Problem
High hub heights in wind turbines require additional stability measures, such as thicker tower walls or separate stay cable foundations, increasing costs and material usage in wind energy farms.
Innovation Solution
A wind energy farm design where at least one type of wind turbine with higher hub height is stabilized using three stay cables connected to a combination foundation that also serves as a foundation for another type of wind turbine, reducing the need for separate stay cable foundations and allowing closer spacing for optimized energy production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the thickness of tower walls is increased to ensure stability of high towers, then the stability of the tower is improved, but the amount of material used and manufacturing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the foundation of one wind turbine with the stay cable foundation of another wind turbine into a single shared foundation structure. This merging eliminates the need for separate stay cable foundations, reducing material usage while maintaining the stability of high towers through stay cables.
Solution Approach 2:
The foundation structure serves multiple functions: it acts as both the foundation for a wind turbine and as the stay cable foundation for another wind turbine. This multi-functionality reduces the total number of foundations required and decreases material consumption while ensuring tower stability.
2Stability of the object's composition
If separate stay cable foundations are provided for high hub height wind turbines, then the stability of the tower is improved, but the installation costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the foundation of one wind turbine with the stay cable foundation of another, eliminating the need for separate stay cable foundations. This reduces installation costs while maintaining tower stability through the shared foundation structure and stay cables.
Solution Approach 2:
The shared foundation structure performs multiple functions: supporting one wind turbine and serving as the stay cable foundation for another. This multi-functionality reduces the total number of foundations required, thereby reducing installation costs while ensuring stability.
3Productivity
If wind turbines are positioned closer together to maximize land use, then the power production per unit area is improved, but the wake effects between turbines increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different hub heights to different wind turbines within the farm. This creates local variation in turbine characteristics, allowing closer spacing while minimizing wake effects. The higher hub height turbines are positioned to avoid the wake zones of lower hub height turbines, optimizing land use while reducing energy loss.
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 design reduces installation costs and maximizes power production per unit area by minimizing wake effects and utilizing space efficiently, while maintaining tower stability with reduced material usage.
Implementation Method 1
Each stay cable being connected at one end to the tower of the at least one first wind turbine and at the other end to a stay cable foundation
Implementation Method 2
When the incoming wind acts on the wind turbine blades, the wind turbine blades cause the hub to rotate, thereby extracting energy from the wind
Data Source
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AI summary
A wind energy farm (1) comprising at least one first wind turbine (2) and at least one second wind turbine (3) is disclosed. Each wind turbine (2, 3) comprises a tower (7) mounted on a foundation, and at least one rotor (9) with a hub carrying a set of wind turbine blades (10). The at least one first wind turbine (2) is provided with at least three stay cables (4), each stay cable (4) being connected at one end to the tower (7) of said at least one first wind turbine (2) and at the other end to a stay cable foundation. At least one of the stay cable foundations and the foundation of one of said at least one second wind turbines (3) of the wind energy farm (1) are combined into a single combination foundation.