Wind Turbine Tower Assembly with Adjustable Tapered Upper Section
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wind turbine towers require redesign for varying site conditions and loading, making it difficult to adjust hub heights efficiently without additional manufacturing steps and platform redesigns.
Innovation Solution
A tower assembly with an adjustable upper section featuring a tapering first tower portion and a uniform cylindrical second portion, allowing for height adjustments by adding or removing removable tower cans, and optionally including a transitional section and platform for flexible configuration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional tower sections with uniform cylindrical walls are used, then manufacturing is simplified, but tower height cannot be adjusted for different site conditions without redesign
Solution Approach 1:
The tower is divided into modular sections: a base tower section with uniform cylindrical wall and an adjustable upper tower section with tapering wall thickness. This segmentation allows the upper section to be adjusted for different heights while the base section maintains simple uniform manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The upper tower section is designed with variable wall thickness that can be adjusted dynamically. The tapering wall portion allows the tower height to be modified by adding or removing tower sections, enabling adaptation to different site conditions without redesigning the entire tower.
2Productivity
If tower height is increased to harvest higher wind speeds, then energy production increases, but material costs increase due to thicker radial thickness required
Solution Approach 1:
The tower wall thickness is varied locally rather than uniformly. The upper tower section has a tapering wall thickness that is thicker at the base and thinner at the top, providing the necessary strength at each location while minimizing overall material usage compared to a uniformly thick tower of the same height.
3Quantity of substance
If tower height is decreased to save material costs, then material costs are reduced, but the tower cannot withstand site and component loading
Solution Approach 1:
The tower wall thickness is optimized locally at each height position. The tapering profile ensures that the wall is sufficiently thick at the base to handle maximum loads, while gradually reducing thickness upward where loads are lower, thus minimizing material while maintaining structural integrity.
4Adaptability or versatility
If tower sections are designed with different radial thicknesses for different sites, then site-specific optimization is achieved, but assembly and identification become difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The tower is segmented into standardized modular sections with uniform external dimensions. This allows different combinations of sections to achieve different heights and configurations while maintaining consistent connection interfaces, simplifying assembly and identification at the wind farm.
Data Source
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AI summary
A tower assembly having an adjustable height includes at least one base tower section having a cylindrical base wall defining an overall length extending from a first end to a second end. The cylindrical base wall defines an outer diameter that is uniform along the entire length. The tower assembly also includes an upper tower section arranged atop the base tower section. The upper tower section includes a first tower portion integral with a second tower portion. The first tower portion includes a first tower wall portion defining a first length extending from a first end to a second end and includes a tapering cross-section from the first end to the second end. The second tower portion includes a second tower wall portion defining a second length extending from a first end to a second end and defines a uniform cylindrical cross-section from the first end to the second end.