Clamping apparatus for positioning a main bearing of a wind turbine during an installation and/or repair procedure
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsDarrick Adam Vanderwalker, Kevin Tyler Eherts
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A clamping apparatus for positioning a main bearing of a wind turbine includes a push component arranged between a main flange of a main shaft of the wind turbine and a cover of the main bearing. Further, the clamping apparatus includes a spacer plate located within a gap between the cover and the main bearing. As such, the push component is configured to apply a force to the cover so as to push the spacer plate against the main bearing such that the main bearing is pushed into and secured in place.
Claims19
A system for positioning a main bearing of a wind turbine during an installation and/or repair procedure, the system comprising:
- a wind turbine comprising a main shaft with a main bearing mounted thereto, the main bearing comprising a cover, the main shaft comprising a main flange, the cover and the main bearing having a gap defined therebetween, the cover comprising a rotor-side surface and a generator-side surface;
- a clamping apparatus comprising a push component arranged between the main flange of the main shaft and the cover of the main bearing and a spacer plate positioned between the generator-side surface of the cover and the main bearing, the push component and the spacer plate being aligned along a longitudinal axis of the main shaft;
- wherein the push component applies a force to the rotor-side surface of the cover so as to push the spacer plate against an outer race of the main bearing such that the main bearing is pushed into and secured in place during an installation and/or repair procedure.
A method for positioning a main bearing of a wind turbine during an installation and/or repair procedure, the method comprising:
- installing a push component of a clamping apparatus between a main flange of a main shaft of the wind turbine and a cover of the main bearing, the cover and the main bearing having a gap defined therebetween, the cover comprising a rotor-side surface and a generator-side surface;
- installing a spacer plate of the clamping apparatus between the generator-side surface of the cover and the main bearing;
- and
- applying a force to the rotor-side surface of the cover via the push component so as to push the spacer plate against the main bearing such that the main bearing is pushed into and secured in place.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.