Wind turbine safety system and methods
AssigneeMariah Power, Inc.
InventorChristopher W. Gabrys
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A wind turbine for extracting energy from the wind and providing electrical energy to a load. The wind turbine may include a rotor arranged to drive a generator, and an electronic controller for connecting the generator to an electrical load. The electronic controller operates to reduce the tip speed ratio of the turbine rotor as wind speed increases. The rotor is designed have a power coefficient at low values of tip speed ratios that becomes negative for wind speeds exceeding a predetermined wind speed value. The electronic controller cooperates with the turbine rotor such that the turbine rotor looses a positive power coefficient and the wind turbine slows when wind speeds exceed the predetermined wind speed value.
Claims20
A wind turbine, comprising:
- a rotor configured to rotate about a vertical axis;
- a generator driven by rotation of the rotor;
- a controller operatively coupled to the rotor and generator, the controller being operable to monitor a rotation speed of the rotor and control the generator to reduce the rotation speed of the rotor when the rotation speed exceeds a predetermined level.
A method of controlling rotation speed of a wind turbine, the method comprising:
- providing a wind turbine having a rotor, a generator and a controller;
- rotating the rotor with wind energy;
- rotating at least a portion of the generator with the rotor to create an electrical current;
- controlling the generator with the controller to modify a rotation speed of the rotor when the rotation speed exceeds a predetermined level.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.