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US 8,262,363 B2Granted
Blade having a damping element and method of fabricating same
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsBrandon Gerber, Nicholas K. Althoff, Benoit Petitjean
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A blade for a wind turbine includes a body adapted for movement in response to wind flow past the blade body. The body has an inner surface defining an interior chamber and an opposite outer surface. At least one damping element extends from the inner surface of the body. The at least one damping element is configured to facilitate reducing an amount of noise generated by and propagating through the blade.
Claims18
A blade for a wind turbine, said blade comprising:
- a body adapted for movement in response to wind flow past said blade body, said body comprising an outer skin, an inner skin and an air gap defined between said inner and outer skins;
- and
- at least one acoustical damping element coupled to and extending from said inner skin of said body, said at least one acoustical damping element configured to facilitate reducing an amount of noise generated by and propagating through said blade.
A wind turbine comprising:
- a tower;
- a nacelle coupled to said tower;
- and
- a rotor coupled to said nacelle, said rotor comprising a hub and at least one blade extending outwardly from said hub, said blade comprising a body adapted for movement in response to wind flow past said body to produce rotation of the rotor, said body comprising an outer skin, an inner skin and an air gap defined between said inner and outer skins.
1 more element
A method of fabricating a blade for a wind turbine, said method comprising:
- fabricating a body having an inner surface that defines an interior chamber;
- fabricating said body with an outer skin, an inner skin and an air gap located between said inner and outer skins;
- and
- affixing at least one acoustical damping element to said inner surface of said body.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.