Stackable Oven Units for Wind Turbine Blade Preform Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for manufacturing preform building elements for wind turbine blades are cumbersome, requiring complex molds with integrated heating and cooling systems, leading to low productivity and high equipment costs due to long processing times and the need for multiple molds.
Innovation Solution
An oven arrangement comprising multiple stackable oven units with independent heating and cooling capabilities, allowing for flexible adaptation to the number of preform building elements to be fabricated, reducing process time and equipment costs by enabling simultaneous heating of multiple elements in smaller, individually controlled units.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If complex molds with integrated heating and cooling systems are used for manufacturing preform building elements, then the preform building elements can be heated and cooled in the same mold, but the processing time becomes excessively long and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the manufacturing process into two separate stages: heating in a mold and cooling in a separate storage facility. The mold is used only for heating and forming the preform building elements, while cooling occurs independently in storage facilities. This segmentation eliminates the need for complex integrated cooling systems in the mold and significantly reduces processing time, as the mold is not occupied during the cooling phase.
2Productivity
If a large number of molds are used to fabricate multiple preform building elements in parallel, then production capacity increases, but equipment costs and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention transitions from horizontal expansion (adding more molds) to vertical utilization (reusing the same mold multiple times). By implementing a sequential process where molds are reused after heating, the system achieves high production capacity without increasing the number of molds. Multiple preform building elements are produced by cycling molds through repeated heating operations while cooling occurs independently in storage facilities.
3Device complexity
If the mold occupies the preform building element during both heating and cooling, then the process is simplified, but the mold is blocked for extended periods reducing productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the cooling function from the mold, separating it into an independent process that occurs in storage facilities. The mold's role is limited to heating and forming, while cooling happens independently afterward. This extraction eliminates the time the mold would be blocked during cooling, significantly increasing productivity without complicating the heating process.
4Ease of manufacture
If molds with integrated heating and cooling systems are used, then single-mold processing is achieved, but energy consumption increases and equipment costs rise
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the thermal processing into distinct heating and cooling phases occurring in different locations. Heating occurs in the mold with controlled energy input, while cooling occurs independently in storage facilities using passive or low-energy methods. This segmentation optimizes energy consumption by applying energy only where and when needed, rather than maintaining integrated heating and cooling systems throughout the entire process.
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 solution significantly reduces processing time, minimizes energy consumption, and lowers equipment costs by allowing for efficient, flexible, and independent control of heating processes, while avoiding the need for complex molds and reducing downtime.
Implementation Method 1
each oven unit comprises at least one heating means... Heating the preform building material in each oven unit for a duration and/or with a temperature or temperature profile assigned to the preform building material
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
Oven arrangement, adapted to heat preform building material (21) arranged on a plurality of transportable, plate-like carriers (20) for producing preform building elements (44) used for building a rotor blade of a wind turbine, comprising at least two oven units (2, 3, 15), wherein each oven unit (2, 3, 15) has a housing (4) adapted to receive one or more carriers (20) with at least one closable opening (5) for loading and unloading the carriers (20), wherein the housings (4) of the oven units (2, 3, 15) are stackable in such manner that the openings (5) are arranged above each other on one side of the stack, wherein each oven unit (2, 3, 15) comprises at least one heating means (33) and/or wherein each oven unit (2, 3, 15) is connectable to a mutual heat supplying means (7).