Wind Turbine Rotor Blade Access Cover With Holder-Lock Closure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wind turbine rotor blades face challenges in securely closing the access opening of the base plate during maintenance, often requiring complex clamping mechanisms that are unreliable and require precise dimensioning, making them cumbersome and less universally applicable.
Innovation Solution
A wind turbine rotor blade design featuring a holder and lock mechanism that ensures a positive hold of the cover relative to the base plate through a predetermined movement, allowing for secure closure without the need for complex clamping, and includes a locking mechanism that prevents accidental disengagement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If clamping mechanisms are used to close the access opening, then the cover can be secured to the base plate, but the device complexity increases and the installation becomes cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The closure mechanism is divided into two independent functional components: a holder that provides form-fitting retention and a lock that prevents backward movement. This segmentation allows each component to be simple while together they achieve secure closure without complex clamping mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the essential function of securing the cover from complex clamping mechanisms and implements it through a simplified holder-lock system. The holder provides the primary retention function through form-fitting design, while the lock adds only the necessary prevention of accidental opening, removing unnecessary complexity
2Reliability
If clamping mechanisms are used to secure the cover, then the cover can be attached to the base plate, but the ease of operation decreases due to multiple manual steps required
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the attachment function (holder) from the locking function (lock), the system allows for intuitive two-step operation: first the cover is guided into the holder for form-fitting attachment, then the lock is engaged to prevent accidental opening. This is simpler than coordinating multiple clamping points simultaneously
Solution Approach 2:
The holder is designed to automatically provide form-fitting retention as the cover is brought into position, without requiring manual adjustment or coordination of multiple clamping elements. The system serves itself through the geometric design of the holder and cover interface
3Reliability
If clamping elements are used that grip behind the floor slab, then the cover can be secured, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase for coordinating component dimensions
Solution Approach 1:
The holder is designed as a separate component with a form-fitting geometry that interfaces with the cover in a predetermined direction. This segmentation allows the holder to be manufactured independently with standard tolerances, as the form-fitting design provides self-alignment and reduces sensitivity to dimensional variations
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the dimension-critical function from the clamping mechanism and places it in the form-fitting holder design, which can be manufactured with standard tolerances. The lock mechanism then adds the security function without requiring precise coordination with the base plate thickness, as it operates independently to prevent backward movement
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3a~3b
Figure 4~5
AI summary
Wind turbine rotor blade with a base plate which has a passage opening, and a cover with which the passage opening can be closed, characterized by • a holder which is designed such that a movement of the cover relative to the base plate in a predetermined direction parallel to the plane of the base plate causes a positive hold of the cover on the base plate, and • a lock which blocks a movement of the cover in the direction opposite to the predetermined direction.