Direct-Drive Wind Turbine Generator Bearing Layout for Easy Disassembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Direct driven wind turbines have complex structures, leading to high manufacturing and assembly costs, as well as difficult maintenance and servicing due to their intricate design.
Innovation Solution
A generator design for direct driven wind turbines featuring a compact structure with a generator rotor and stator, supported by front and rear bearings that allow radial force transmission and axial displacement, enabling modular assembly and disassembly, and a support device to dissipate bending moments, along with a hollow cylindrical base portion for stable power transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a complicated structure is used in direct driven wind turbines, then the generator can achieve stable power transmission and support the main shaft, but the manufacturing and assembly costs increase and maintenance becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The generator is divided into modular components including a generator rotor with hollow cylindrical base portion, generator stator, generator housing, and separate bearing assemblies. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured independently and assembled systematically, reducing overall complexity while maintaining functional integrity and reliable power transmission from the main shaft.
Solution Approach 2:
The hollow cylindrical base portion of the generator rotor serves multiple functions: it provides structural support for the generator rotor, transmits power from the main shaft, and accommodates the front and rear generator bearings within its structure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, simplifying the overall structure while ensuring reliable power transmission.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a complicated structure is used in direct driven wind turbines, then the generator can provide adequate support and stability, but the assembly and manufacturing processes become more costly and complex
Solution Approach 1:
The generator components are designed as separate modular units that can be manufactured using standard industrial processes and then assembled together. The generator rotor, stator, housing, and bearings are independently manufactured and then connected through standardized interfaces, making the manufacturing process more accessible and cost-effective while maintaining generator stability through proper structural design.
Solution Approach 2:
The generator housing combines multiple functions into a single structural element: it supports the generator stator, encloses the bearing assemblies, and provides mounting points for the entire generator assembly on the wind turbine housing. This merging of functions reduces the total number of parts needed while ensuring generator stability through integrated structural support.
3Reliability
If the generator has a complex design with multiple components, then it can achieve reliable operation, but maintenance and servicing require significant effort and specialized procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The generator is designed with clearly segmented modular components including the generator rotor on the main shaft, generator stator in the housing, and separate bearing assemblies. This segmentation allows maintenance personnel to access and service individual components independently, such as replacing bearings or inspecting the rotor-stator interface, without having to disassemble the entire generator system, thereby facilitating easier maintenance while maintaining reliable operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The front and rear generator bearings are designed as extractable components that can be removed from the generator housing and serviced or replaced independently. The hollow cylindrical base portion of the generator rotor provides access points for bearing installation and removal, allowing maintenance personnel to extract and service bearing components without dismantling the entire generator assembly, thus improving ease of repair.
4Volume of moving object
If the generator components are tightly integrated, then the system achieves compact design, but disassembly for maintenance becomes complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The generator maintains compactness through the integration of the generator stator within the generator housing and the arrangement of front and rear bearings along the hollow cylindrical base portion. However, the segmented design with standardized interfaces and access points allows each component to be systematically disassembled in reverse order of assembly, making maintenance straightforward despite the compact integrated appearance.
Solution Approach 2:
The generator stator is nested within the generator housing, and the bearing assemblies are positioned within the structure of the hollow cylindrical base portion. This nested arrangement achieves compact design by utilizing the internal space efficiently, while the hierarchical structure allows components to be disassembled in a systematic manner from the outer housing inward, facilitating maintenance without requiring complete disassembly of all components simultaneously.
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 simplifies manufacturing, assembly, maintenance, and servicing by reducing the number of components, allowing for easy assembly and disassembly, and enhancing the stability and compactness of the generator, thereby reducing overall system complexity and costs.
Implementation Method 1
a generator configured to convert kinetic energy of a main shaft (140) of the wind turbine into electrical energy
Data Source
AI summary
A generator for a direct driven wind turbine configured to convert kinetic energy of a main shaft of the wind turbine into electrical energy. The generator includes a generator rotor connectable to the main shaft of the wind turbine and a generator stator, the generator includes a generator housing on which the generator stator is arranged. The generator housing includes a front side facing towards a rotor head of the wind turbine in an installed state of the generator and a rear side facing away from the rotor head in the installed state of the generator. The generator includes at least one front generator bearing arranged at the front of the generator housing and a rear generator bearing arranged at the rear of the generator housing.