Configurable Yoke Lifting Device for Wind Turbine Rotation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current lifting devices for wind turbine components, such as blades and towers, face limitations in rotating these components up to 180 degrees due to increasing weight and size, requiring manual intervention for larger and heavier components, which restricts the crane's reach and angle of rotation.
Innovation Solution
A configurable lifting device with a yoke that can adjust its width and anchor points' distance from the central axis, allowing for multiple configurations (closed, extended, and intermediate) to accommodate various component sizes and rotation angles, utilizing movable arms and a tagging system for controlled rotation around a vertical axis.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional fixed yoke lifting equipment is used for heavier and larger components, then the crane's reach and rotation angle are limited, but manual intervention is required to complete rotation
Solution Approach 1:
The yoke is designed with movable arms that can dynamically change configuration between closed and extended states, allowing the anchor points distance from the central axis to be adjusted. This dynamic adaptability enables the same lifting equipment to handle components of varying sizes and weights while maintaining full 180-degree rotation capability through tagline wires without manual intervention.
2Length of moving object
If the yoke width is increased to accommodate larger components, then the rotation angle is limited by crane reach, but if reduced it cannot accommodate larger components
Solution Approach 1:
The yoke incorporates movable arms that can extend and retract, dynamically adjusting the yoke width and anchor points distance from the central axis. This allows the system to accommodate larger components when needed while maintaining the ability to achieve full 180-degree rotation by retracting to a compact configuration, resolving the trade-off between size accommodation and rotation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The distance between anchor points and the central axis is made variable through the movable arm mechanism. By changing this parameter dynamically, the system can optimize for either component accommodation or rotation angle depending on the operational requirements, eliminating the fixed trade-off present in traditional designs.
3Ease of operation
If tagline wires are used for rotation control, then rotation is limited by crane inclination and reach, but manual intervention is needed for full 180 degrees
Solution Approach 1:
The movable arms dynamically adjust the anchor points position relative to the central axis, optimizing the tagline wire leverage for different rotation stages. This dynamic configuration enables the tagline wires to effectively control the full 180-degree rotation even for heavier components, eliminating the need for manual intervention while maintaining ease of operation.
Data Source
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AI summary
A lifting device (1) for a wind turbine component (10) comprises : a yoke (15) for connecting the wind turbine component (10) to a crane (11), the yoke (15) including at least one anchor point (P1, P2) connectable to a forcing system (21, 22) for pushing or pulling the yoke (5) in order to rotate the yoke (15) around a central axis (Y) of the yoke (15). The yoke (5) is configurable in at least a first closed configuration, wherein in the first closed configuration the at least one anchor point (P1, P2) is at a first distance (R1) from the central axis (Y) of the yoke (15), and at least a second extended configuration, wherein in the second extended configuration the at least one anchor point (P1, P2) is at a second distance (R2) from the central axis (Y) of the yoke (15) greater than the first distance (R1).