Collapsible Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Tower
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing large wind turbines have fixed towers that pose structural resistance and stability issues, high visual impact, and increased transportation and maintenance costs due to their immobile nature, making them unsuitable for populated areas and offshore installations.
Innovation Solution
A collapsible vertical axis wind turbine with a metal structure that uses a simplified mechanism of 5 rotation shafts, tension cables actuated by motors and pulleys for easy expansion and collapse, along with a stabilizing system of braces and movable guides to ensure stability and reduce visual impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a fixed tower structure is used for large wind turbines, then structural stability is maintained, but visual impact increases and transportation costs rise
Solution Approach 1:
The tower structure is designed to be collapsible rather than fixed, allowing it to transition between an expanded operational state and a collapsed storage state. This dynamic capability reduces visual impact when not in use while maintaining structural stability during operation through proper engineering of the collapsible mechanism.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If a collapsible mechanism is implemented, then visual impact is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tower is divided into multiple sections that can be collapsed independently or collectively. This segmentation allows the structure to be broken down into manageable segments that can be stored compactly, reducing visual impact while keeping each individual segment's complexity manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The collapsible tower sections are designed to nest within each other when collapsed, similar to nested dolls. This nesting arrangement minimizes the space required for storage and transport while maintaining the structural integrity needed for operational stability.
3Quantity of substance
If the tower is made collapsible, then transportation costs are minimized, but structural resistance decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The tower employs a dynamic collapsible design that maintains full structural resistance when in the expanded operational position. The collapse mechanism is engineered so that structural integrity is preserved during operation, while allowing for efficient packing during transport to reduce material usage overhead.
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 collapsible design reduces visual impact by 80%, minimizes transportation costs, facilitates maintenance, and allows for smaller, cost-effective foundations, making it suitable for offshore installations and reducing the risk of part detachment during strong winds.
Implementation Method 1
The simplest system possible has been chosen as a drive mechanism for the collapse and expansion, based on tension cables actuated by motors with reel and pulleys
Implementation Method 2
a two-bladed vertical axis wind turbine capable of transforming the kinetic energy of the wind into electric energy
Data Source
AI summary
Vertical axis wind turbine, indistinctly applicable in land or sea, the main characteristic of which is its low visual impact due to the collapse of its tower and rotor as required by environmental or meteorological conditions.It is constituted by a structure that includes a base (3, 5), a plurality of supporting arms (10, 13), an elevation set (6, 7, 8) and a drive shaft (17) that acts on the generating elements (29) arranged at the base. Said structure supports a rotor (1) and its corresponding blades (2), attached by means of motorized shafts (20) that collapse and expand the blades (2) over the rotor (1).Whenever the electric motor (6) winds the tensioning element (8) attached to two pairs of lower arms (10), they rotate at their base and intermediate point and raise, during their movement, the upper arms (13) and the drive shaft (17). The entirety of this structure is secured with braces (21, 24), which act on the upper and lower part of their corresponding arms (10, 13), achieving a safe collapse and expansion.