Wind Turbine Jacking Tool for Rotatable Member Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for maintaining wind turbine components within the nacelle are costly and time-consuming due to the difficulty in supporting and aligning heavy, rotatable members during maintenance, often requiring large cranes and resulting in misalignment of rotational axes.
Innovation Solution
A jacking tool system that includes support pins with bearings, allowing for axial movement and rotation of internal rotatable members within the nacelle, secured through threaded connections and hydraulic actuators, to maintain alignment and facilitate maintenance without removing components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If current methods are used to maintain heavy rotatable members during maintenance, then the rotational axis alignment is maintained, but the process is costly and time-consuming requiring large cranes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a support tool as an intermediary device between the rotatable member and the housing. This support tool includes a support element that contacts the rotatable member and a positioning element that engages with the housing, thereby maintaining rotational axis alignment without requiring external cranes or lifting equipment during maintenance operations
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the alignment and support function from heavy external cranes and integrates it into a compact support tool that can be positioned within the housing itself. This eliminates the need for large external equipment while maintaining precise rotational axis alignment during maintenance
2Manufacturing precision
If the rotatable member is supported to maintain position, then alignment is preserved, but the member cannot rotate to facilitate coupling/decoupling
Solution Approach 1:
The support tool is designed with dynamic characteristics that allow it to adapt to different operational states. The support element can accommodate both stationary support (when alignment is critical) and rotational movement (when coupling/decoupling is needed), transitioning between these states as maintenance requirements change
Solution Approach 2:
The support tool is divided into distinct functional elements: a support element for maintaining position and alignment, and a positioning element for engagement with the housing. This segmentation allows each element to perform its specific function independently, enabling both alignment maintenance and rotational freedom when needed
3Ease of operation
If the support tool allows rotation of the rotatable member, then coupling/decoupling is facilitated, but precise alignment may be lost
Solution Approach 1:
The support tool acts as a precise intermediary that maintains the rotational axis alignment even during rotation operations. The positioning element engages with features on the housing to constrain the support tool's position, ensuring that as the rotatable member rotates, it does so around the correct rotational axis without misalignment
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
Enables in-situ maintenance of wind turbine components, reducing costs and time by maintaining the position and allowing rotation of internal rotatable members, thus preventing misalignment and simplifying the maintenance process.
Implementation Method 1
The bearing of the support pin is configured to contact the internal rotatable member to support the internal rotatable member relative to the outer housing, and to allow the internal rotatable member to rotate within the outer housing
Data Source
AI summary
A jacking tool (70, 162, 174) for a wind turbine component (60) having an outer housing (62) and an internal rotatable member (64) disposed in the outer housing (62) and rotatable about a rotational axis (66) is disclosed. The jacking tool (70, 162, 174) includes a support pin (74, 164, 176) having a proximal end and a distal end that includes a bearing (112). The support pin (74, 164, 176) is configured to be selectively movable relative to the outer housing (62). The bearing (112) is configured to contact the internal rotatable member (64) to support the internal rotatable member (64) relative to the outer housing (62), and to allow the internal rotatable member (64) to rotate within the outer housing (62) while being supported by the jacking tool (70, 162, 174).