Abrasion sensing device, wind turbine generation apparatus including the same, and abrasion sensing method
AssigneeNtn Corporation
InventorTomoya Sakaguchi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
When it is determined that a blade is rotating, a control device operates a braking device, and acquires a rotation angle (first rotation angle) from a rotation angle sensor. Then, the control device reverses a nacelle and acquires again a rotation angle (second rotation angle) from the rotation angle sensor. Then, the control device determines whether or not the difference between the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle is greater than a threshold value. When it is determined that the rotation angle difference is greater than the threshold value, the control device determines that a gear or a bearing of a gearbox is worn out.
Claims15
An abrasion sensing device sensing abrasion of one of a gear and a bearing of a gearbox provided in a wind turbine generation apparatus,
- said wind turbine generation apparatus including
- a blade converting wind force into rotary force,
- a main shaft receiving said rotary force from said blade,
- said gearbox speeding up rotation of said main shaft,
- a power generator connected to an output shaft of said gearbox, and
- a nacelle storing said main shaft, said gearbox and said power generator, and being rotatably supported at an upper part of a support,
- said abrasion sensing device comprising:
- a braking device for holding the output shaft of said gearbox in a non-rotating state;
- a rotation angle sensor for detecting a rotation angle of said main shaft;
- a control unit for reversing, by changing a wind receiving state by said blade, the direction of the rotary force exerted on said main shaft by wind force;
- and
- a determination unit determining presence/absence of abrasion of one of said gear and said bearing by comparing a first detected value of said rotation angle sensor before reversing the direction of said rotary force by said control unit and a second detected value of said rotation angle sensor after reversing the direction of said rotary force by said control unit while said braking device is being operated.
An abrasion sensing method for sensing abrasion of one of a gear and a bearing of a gearbox provided in a wind turbine generation apparatus,
- said wind turbine generation apparatus including
- a blade converting wind force into rotary force,
- a main shaft receiving said rotary force from said blade,
- said gearbox speeding up rotation of said main shaft,
- a power generator connected to an output shaft of said gearbox,
- a nacelle storing said main shaft, said gearbox and said power generator, and being rotatably supported at an upper part of a support,
- a braking device for holding the output shaft of said gearbox in a non-rotating state, and
- a rotation angle sensor for detecting a rotation angle of said main shaft,
- said abrasion sensing method comprising the steps of:
- operating said braking device;
- detecting a first rotation angle indicating the rotation angle of said main shaft;
- reversing, by changing a wind receiving state by said blade, the direction of rotary force exerted on said main shaft by wind force;
- detecting a second rotation angle indicating the rotation angle of said main shaft after reversing the direction of said rotary force;
- and
- determining presence/absence of abrasion of one of said gear and said bearing by comparing said first rotation angle and said second rotation angle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.