Wind Turbine Tower Cable Pipes for Clamp-Free High-Voltage Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The handling and installation of high-voltage cables in wind turbine towers is time-consuming and hazardous, with risks of fire spread and cable damage due to the need for numerous clamps and lack of fire protection, and the risk of cable fall due to brake system failures.
Innovation Solution
The use of pipes within the tower to guide high-voltage cables, eliminating the need for clamps and providing fire-safe protection, with spacers maintaining cable separation and flexible attachment to accommodate tower bending and thermal expansion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If high-voltage cables are clamped to cable ladder using numerous clamps, then cable stability is improved, but installation time and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cable support function from the cable ladder system and relocates it to dedicated support structures (clamps mounted on tower walls or platform beams). This separation allows the cable ladder to serve only as a guiding framework while the actual support is provided by strategically positioned clamps, reducing the total number of clamps needed from hundreds to just a few dozen.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable support system is segmented into discrete support points distributed along the cable path rather than continuous clamping. Each support point is independently positioned on structural elements (tower walls, platform beams), creating a modular support system that reduces overall complexity and installation time while maintaining cable stability.
2Ease of operation
If brake system is used to hold high-voltage cable, then cable positioning is improved, but safety risk increases due to potential brake failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a passive support system where cables are continuously supported by multiple clamps mounted on fixed structural elements throughout the tower and platform. This distributed support arrangement ensures that even if one support point fails, the cable remains supported at other points, providing inherent redundancy and eliminating the single-point failure risk associated with brake systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable support system is designed to be self-supporting through its distributed clamp arrangement on rigid structural elements. The system does not require active braking or locking mechanisms; instead, the cable's own weight is continuously counterbalanced by the gravitational force acting on multiple fixed support points, creating a inherently safe passive support system.
3Power
If multiple high-voltage cables are installed in tower, then power output capability is improved, but fire risk and cable interaction increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cable routing system by providing separate cable ladders or separate conduit paths for different high-voltage cables. This physical separation through dedicated pathways prevents fire spread between cables and reduces electromagnetic interference, while still allowing multiple cables to be installed within the tower structure to maintain high power output capability.
Data Source
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AI summary
A tower (6) or tower section (7, 8, 9) of a wind turbine (1), comprising: a tower wall (47) enclosing a tower inner volume (46), a first pipe (14) arranged inside the tower inner volume (46) and extending in the vertical direction (L) of the tower (6) or tower section (7, 8, 9), and a first high-voltage cable (114) extending through the first pipe (14). In this manner, the high-voltage cable is guided efficiently through the tower or tower section, avoiding the need for clamping the same at close intervals.