Integrated vertical axis wind power generation system
AssigneeWiSys Technology Foundation, Inc.
InventorMd Maruf Hossain
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention provides a system of wind turbines connected to a single unit electric generator to produce electrical power whereby the wind turbine blades rotate coaxially with a main rotor shaft instead of perpendicular to the shaft axis. In this respect, the wind turbine rotor can face the wind from any direction and does not need to be pointed into the wind to be effective, thus, eliminating the need for a yaw system. Moreover, translation of mechanical to torque of the main rotor drive allows the drive components such as the gearbox and generator to be placed near the ground of each wind turbine improving accessibility for maintenance.
Claims14
A wind turbine system comprising:
- two or more wind turbines arranged in series along a horizontal axis extending along a ground, each wind turbine comprising a rotor shaft extending along a vertical axis perpendicular to the horizontal axis, rotor blades supported by the rotor shaft and configured to rotate about the vertical axis, and a base positioned below the rotor shaft and supporting the rotor shaft above the ground independent of the other wind turbines;
- a mechanical coupling including at least one gear connecting the rotor shafts of the two or more wind turbines to each other to further transmit rotation of the rotor shafts;
- a common drive shaft extending between the rotor shafts of the two or more wind turbines along the horizontal axis and receiving a combined rotation of the rotor shafts;
- and
- a tube extending along the horizontal axis and supporting lateral extension of the common drive shaft within the tube, the tube communicating with the ground at multiple points along the horizontal axis;
- wherein the tube is positioned at least partially underground;
- and
- wherein the ground absorbs vibrational forces of the common drive shaft along a length of the tube.
A method of generating energy, comprising:
- arranging two or more wind turbines in series along a horizontal axis extending along a ground, each wind turbine comprising a rotor shaft extending along a vertical axis perpendicular to the horizontal axis, rotor blades supported by the rotor shaft and configured to rotate about the vertical axis, and a base positioned below the rotor shaft and supporting the rotor shaft above the ground;
- mechanically coupling by at least one gear the rotor shafts of the two or more wind turbines to each other to further translate rotation of the rotor shafts to a common drive shaft extending between the rotor shafts of the two or more wind turbines along the horizontal axis and receiving a combined rotation of the rotor shafts, the common drive shaft housed within a tube extending along the horizontal axis and extending laterally within the tube, the tube communicating with the ground at multiple points along the horizontal axis, wherein the tube is positioned at least partially underground, and wherein the ground absorbs vibrational forces of the common drive shaft along a length of the tube;
- and
- mechanically connecting an electrical generator to the common drive shaft wherein energy generated by each wind turbine is accumulated by an electrical generator.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.