Wind Turbine Rotor Axis Tilting for Collision Avoidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current wind turbines face challenges in efficiently adjusting their rotor axis to optimize energy capture across varying wind speeds and require complex and costly crane operations for maintenance and dismantling, leading to increased downtime and operational inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
A wind turbine design that allows for tilting and rotating the turbine through an angular range of 0 to 120 degrees, enabling optimal alignment with the wind and facilitating assembly/disassembly without the need for cranes, using a pivoting device with cable support and a traversing mechanism for vertical displacement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the rotor axis is tilted by a fixed angle (4° to 8°) to avoid collision between rotor blades and tower, then collision safety is improved, but energy capture efficiency deteriorates due to reduced rotor surface area facing the wind
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor axis tilt angle is changed from a fixed static value to a dynamic variable that can be adjusted in real-time. The control system continuously monitors wind speed and automatically adjusts the tilt angle: at low wind speeds (0-10 m/s), the tilt angle is reduced or set to zero to maximize energy capture; at high wind speeds, the tilt angle is increased to prevent rotor-blade-to-tower collision. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by optimizing both safety and efficiency under different operating conditions.
2Manufacturing precision
If complex crane operations are used for maintenance and dismantling, then assembly precision and safety are improved, but operational time and costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The wind turbine is equipped with self-service capabilities through integrated hoisting and positioning mechanisms. The machine carrier includes a traversing mechanism with cable support that enables the rotor and drive train to be moved vertically and positioned precisely without external cranes. The system can perform maintenance, assembly, and dismantling operations autonomously by lowering components to ground level or intermediate positions, eliminating dependency on external heavy lifting equipment and reducing maintenance downtime.
3Productivity
If the rotor is positioned in front of the tower to optimize wind flow, then energy capture is improved, but the distance between rotor blade and tower decreases at high wind speeds increasing collision risk
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor position relative to the tower is dynamically adjusted based on wind speed conditions. At low to moderate wind speeds, the rotor maintains its optimal position in front of the tower for maximum energy capture. When wind speeds increase to dangerous levels, the control system activates the tilting mechanism to increase the rotor axis tilt angle, which automatically increases the clearance between the rotor blades and tower, thereby reducing collision risk while maintaining operational continuity.
4Reliability
If the rotor axis tilt angle is increased to prevent collision at high wind speeds, then collision safety is improved, but the load on the drive train increases due to changing center of gravity position
Solution Approach 1:
The control system employs feedback mechanisms to monitor wind speed, rotor position, and drive train load continuously. When the rotor axis tilt angle is increased to prevent collision, the feedback system detects the resulting load changes and compensates by adjusting operational parameters such as rotor speed, blade pitch angle, or power output. This closed-loop control ensures that collision safety is maintained while drive train loads are kept within safe operational limits through real-time parameter optimization.
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
This design enhances energy capture by dynamically adjusting the rotor axis to different wind conditions and simplifies maintenance by allowing ground-level assembly and disassembly, reducing downtime and operational costs.
Implementation Method 1
a cable support arranged at the top of the tower for horizontally and vertically moving the rotor
Implementation Method 2
a pivoting device with cable support
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
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AI summary
The invention relates to a wind power installation (1) having a rotor (4), which comprises two or optionally more rotor blades (5) and which is rotatably mounted so as to rotate about a rotor rotation axis (2), the rotor being connected to a generator for generating electrical power and the rotor and the generator forming part of a turbine (T) that is mounted on a turbine support (3, 40), and the turbine support being rotatably mounted on a support structure (7). The turbine is movably mounted in the turbine support by means of a bearing device such that the spatial position of the turbine (T) in the turbine support can be modified and a pivoting range of the turbine (T) can have a first and a second angle range relative to a plane of reference according to a pivoting range of the rotor rotation axis (2), and the entire pivoting range is at least 120°. The invention further relates to a method for operating the wind power installation and to measures associated with the assembly or disassembly of the wind power installation (1).