Wind turbine blade with lightning protection
AssigneeVestas Wind Systems A/S
InventorsDamien Rajasingam, Toby Collard
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method of making a wind turbine blade (10) having a metallic lightning receptor (110) is described. The method comprises configuring a wind turbine blade (10) mould assembly (100) such that a clearance region (120) is defined between a mould surface (116) of at least one mould half (112, 114) and a majority of a metallic lightning receptor component (110) when the mould assembly (100) is closed, such that contact between that mould half (112, 114) and the metallic lightning receptor component (110) is substantially avoided. In certain embodiments of the invention, one or both mould halves (112, 114) are truncated such that the metallic lightning receptor component (110) projects from the mould (100) when the mould (100) is closed.
Claims22
A method of making a wind turbine blade, the method comprising:
- providing a mould assembly having first and second mould halves, each mould half comprising a mould surface, the mould assembly having an open position in which the mould halves are spaced apart, and a closed position in which the mould halves are brought together;
- making a first half shell of the wind turbine blade in the first mould half and making a second half shell of the wind turbine blade in the second mould half when the mould assembly is in the open position, each half shell comprising a composite material;
- integrating a metallic lightning receptor component with the first half shell;
- configuring the mould assembly such that a clearance region is defined between the mould surface of the second mould half and the metallic lightning receptor component when the mould assembly is in the closed position, such that contact between the second mould half and the metallic lightning receptor component is substantially avoided;
- closing the mould assembly;
- and
- joining the first and second half shells together.
A mould assembly for a wind turbine blade, the mould assembly comprising:
- a first mould half for moulding a first half shell of the wind turbine blade and a second mould half for moulding a second half shell of the wind turbine blade, each half shell comprising a composite material, the mould assembly having an open position in which the mould halves are spaced apart, and each mould half comprising a mould surface and a closed position in which the mould halves are brought together, wherein, in use, a metallic lightning receptor component is integrated with the first half shell and the mould assembly is configured such that a clearance region is defined between the mould surface of the second mould half and the metallic lightning receptor component when the mould assembly is in the closed position, such that contact between the mould surface of the second mould half and the metallic lightning receptor component is substantially avoided.
(canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.