Active lift control device and method
AssigneeArctura, Inc.
InventorsNeal E. Fine, John A. Cooney, Jr.
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A lift control device actively controls the lift force on a lifting surface. The device has a protuberance near a trailing edge of its lifting surface, which causes flow to separate from the lifting surface, generating regions of low pressure and high pressure which combine to increase the lift force on the lifting surface. The device further includes a means to keep the flow attached around the protuberance or to modify the position of the protuberance in response to a command from a central controller, so as to provide an active control of the lift between a maximum value and a minimum value.
Claims6
A lift control device for actively controlling lift of a lifting surface when the lift control device is mounted to the lifting surface, the lifting surface being part of a blade of a wind turbine and movable relative to a fluid medium so as to define a leading edge and a trailing edge, the lifting surface also having a pressure surface thereof and a vacuum surface thereof, the leading edge and the trailing edge running along a span of the lifting surface, the trailing edge having a length and defining a longitudinal axis, the lift control device comprising:
- a longitudinally disposed vane, the vane having a base and a length;
- a set of hinges affixed to the base of the vane;
- wherein the base is configured to be mounted to the pressure surface of the lifting surface of the blade of the wind turbine, near the trailing edge of the lifting surface of the blade of the wind turbine, via the set of hinges along the base, the set of hinges defining a pivot about which the vane is rotatable, the vane creating a region of separated flow downstream of the vane, such region having the effect of increasing lift produced by the lifting surface of the blade of the wind turbine when the vane is at a non-zero angle with respect to the pressure surface of the lifting surface of the blade of the wind turbine;
- a motor, mountable to the lifting surface of the blade of the wind turbine and coupled to vane, the motor configured to adjust angular orientation of the vane about the pivot, the angular orientation controlling the extent of lift increase produced by the vane;
- and
- a controller, coupled to the motor, and configured to control rotation of the motor and therefore angular orientation of the vane about the pivot, so that the controller controls lift of the lifting surface by controlling angular orientation of the vane.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.