Tower Crane Guide Frame for Wind Turbine Blade Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Tower cranes with structural guying face limitations in guiding long objects like rotor blades at high heights due to low cable pull forces and space constraints, especially in areas like forests, restricting wind turbine assembly to low wind speeds.
Innovation Solution
A tower crane design featuring a U-shaped guide frame anchored to the tower with adjustable positioning cables, two-cable winches, and telescoping struts for stable vertical movement, allowing independent cable adjustment and weight compensation, enabling stable guidance of long objects regardless of ground space and allowing higher wind speeds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If rotor blades are guided by ropes from the ground during assembly, then the assembly can be performed with simple equipment, but the cable pull forces are very low and only very low wind speeds can be permitted
Solution Approach 1:
The guide frame is positioned at height on the tower structure rather than on the ground, transitioning the guidance system from ground level to aerial level. This dimensional change allows the positioning cables to exert effective control forces on rotor blades during assembly, overcoming the low cable pull force limitation of ground-based systems while maintaining operational simplicity.
2Ease of operation
If cables are guided from the ground, then the equipment setup is simple, but there are often space problems when guiding the cables from the ground
Solution Approach 1:
The cable guidance system is relocated from the ground plane to the vertical dimension by positioning the guide frame on the tower structure at height. This eliminates the need for ground space to guide cables, allowing assembly operations in locations with limited ground area such as forest areas, while maintaining the simplicity of cable guidance through the aerial guide frame.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the guide frame is made stable and U-shaped to encompass the tower, then the guidance stability is improved, but the weight of the guide frame becomes quite high
Solution Approach 1:
The guide frame is divided into multiple segments or components that can be assembled together. This segmentation allows the heavy, stable U-shaped guide frame to be transported and installed in sections, reducing the practical handling difficulty while maintaining the overall stability and weight necessary for effective rotor blade guidance at height.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention concerns a tower crane comprising a tower consisting of at least one tower component, in particular a lattice part and construction guying with at least one stay pole for horizontally anchoring the tower on a construction. According to the invention, the tower comprises a vertically movable guide frame, at least one positioning cable being displaceably secured on the guide frame. The present invention further concerns a method of mounting a wind turbine rotor blade.