초록 ▼

A windmill for generating electricity is described, which contains several improvements that enable the blades of the windmill to be much wider than conventional electricity-generating windmill blades. The rotor containing the blades will also change direction to capture the largest amount of wind e

A windmill for generating electricity is described, which contains several improvements that enable the blades of the windmill to be much wider than conventional electricity-generating windmill blades. The rotor containing the blades will also change direction to capture the largest amount of wind energy available. The windmill includes a “shroud” surrounding the blades, which increases the wind velocity through the blades. Support structures for the windmill are described, and also a method of using the windmill to store electricity to use later is shown. The windmill is more stable than conventional windmills. A method of using a windmill to generate electricity is also described.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A machine for generating electricity comprising the following components: a pedestal (11); a pedestal base (26);one or more primary generators (25) located in or below said pedestal base (26); said primary generators (25) being capable of generating electricity;a windmill (16);one or more upper b

1. A machine for generating electricity comprising the following components: a pedestal (11); a pedestal base (26);one or more primary generators (25) located in or below said pedestal base (26); said primary generators (25) being capable of generating electricity;a windmill (16);one or more upper bearings (81);said windmill (16) comprising said pedestal (11); and also comprising a main turbine shaft (53); said main turbine shaft further comprising a turbine shaft back end (52); and a turbine shaft crown (54); and a turbine shaft front end (61);an intersection node (76) where said pedestal (11) intersects with said main turbine shaft (53);and said windmill (16) also further comprising a rotor assembly sleeve (55) that surrounds a portion of said main turbine shaft (53) between said turbine shaft crown (54) and said intersection node (76); wheresaid rotor assembly sleeve (55) is capable of receiving and transmitting mechanical energy transmitted to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) by the rotation of partitioned blades (15);and a rotating power transfer sleeve (27) which surrounds a portion of said pedestal (11) between said pedestal base (26) and said intersection node (76); where said rotating power transfer sleeve (27) is connected to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) and is capable of receiving and transmitting mechanical energy transmitted to said rotating power transfer sleeve (27) by said rotor assembly sleeve (55);said windmill further comprising a raceway (14);where said raceway (14) is a ring with a large hollow space in its center, where said large hollow space is the turbine blade area (10); and is open all the way through the raceway (14);said windmill (16) further comprising a rotor (39); said rotor (39) further comprising said partitioned blades (15);each said partitioned blade (15) further comprising a blade spar (19) that extends from said turbine shaft (53) through a length of said partitioned blade (15) to a blade tip (58) of said partitioned blade;said windmill (16) further comprising a blade connection cable (59) that surrounds said blade tips (58) and connects to all of said blade tips (58) in the rotor (39);said windmill (16) further comprising blade spar struts (86) that begin at said turbine shaft front tip (61) and extend to points on each blade spar that are between the turbine shaft (53) and the blade tip (58) which is connected to that blade spar (19);where said blade spar struts (86) provide structural support to said blade spars (19);where, in response to wind hitting said partitioned blades (15), said partitioned blades (15) turn, thus imparting mechanical energy to said partitioned blades (15), which then transmits said mechanical energy to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) and said main turbine shaft (53), so that said mechanical energy is transmitted to said rotating power transfer sleeve (27); which in turn transfers said mechanical energy to said primary generators (25), which generate electricity. 2. The machine of claim 1 further comprising a counterweight (57) attached to said main turbine shaft (53) at a point between said intersection node (76) and said turbine shaft front end (61); said counterweight (57) helping to correct any imbalance between a weight of the components of the invention on one side of the intersection node (76) and a weight of the components of the invention on another side of the intersection node (76). 3. The machine of claim 1 further comprising one or more lower pedestal support poles (72) that rest on the ground and provide structural support to said pedestal (11). 4. The machine of claim 1, further comprising that the machine is placed inside a gap within another structure, where wind can directly hit the partitioned blades (15) of the machine;one or more direction control motors (80) located in or below said pedestal base (26). 5. The machine of claim 1, further comprising a direction control motor (80) located in or below said pedestal base (26);a lower bearing (110) located in or below said pedestal base (26); said upper bearing (81) being on top of said pedestal (11) and permitting said pedestal (11) to rotate; and,said machine for generating electricity also comprising that said direction control motor (80) can cause said pedestal (11) to rotate, thus causing said windmill (16) to also rotate with said pedestal as its axis of rotation; said rotation being facilitated by said lower bearing (110) directly below said pedestal (11) and said upper bearing (81) directly above said pedestal (11); said rotation changing the direction in which said partitioned blades (15) face, thus allowing said partitioned blades to intercept the largest amount of wind energy that is available. 6. The machine of claim 5, further comprising that the primary generators (25) are controlled by a computer that is capable of at least one of the following; a) calculating the optimal orientation for the partitioned blades (15) to face so that they capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;b) controlling the direction control motor (80) so that it turns the pedestal (11) to position the raceway (14) and partitioned blades (15) to capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;(c) managing primary generator torque and speed;(d) controlling each primary generator and managing generator back torque;(e) converting variable frequency power provided by the primary generators to 60 Hz AC electricity synchronized to grid power from an electrical power grid;(f) controlling reactive power measured by the primary generators;(g) controlling an output from each primary generator;(h) controlling the output of all primary generators together;(i) sensing wind direction when connected to an anemometer, and using information about the wind direction to calculate the optimal “angle of attack” for each of blade sub-sections (17) of each of the partitioned blades (15). 7. The machine of claim 1, further comprising; a hollow shroud (67) surrounding space immediately before and behind the raceway (14) shaped approximately like an hourglass, which has holes for the pedestal (11) to pass through, and which has an opening to the front of the raceway (14), and an opening to the back of the raceway (14), allowing wind to pass through both openings; and which is centered on, and connected to, said raceway (14); where the lower surface of said shroud (67) extends from the raceway to the ground at a 45 degree angle, both to the back of the raceway and to the front of the raceway, but said shroud (67) terminates before it reaches the ground; and the upper surface of said shroud (67) also extends upward from the raceway; both to the back of the raceway and to the front of the raceway at a 45 degree angle, so that both the opening in the shroud (67) to the back of the raceway (14) and the opening in the shroud (67) to the front of the raceway (14) are wider than the raceway (14);and said machine also comprises shroud unfurling struts (68) which extend from the raceway (14) away from, and to the back of the raceway (14) at approximately a 45 degree angle downwards, throughout the length of the shroud; and, in addition, said shroud unfurling struts (68) that extend at a 45 degree angle upwards, and also away from, and to the front of the raceway (14) throughout the length of the shroud;and said shroud unfurling struts (68) also extend from the raceway (14) at approximately a 45 degree angle downwards and to the front of, the raceway (14) and, in addition, said shroud unfurling struts (68) also extend from the raceway (14) at a 45 degree angle upwards, and to the front of, the raceway (14), and said shroud unfurling struts (68) help to keep the shroud (67) deployed in a configuration where the shroud extends outwards to the back of the raceway (14), with its upper surface inclined up at a 45 degree angle, and its lower surface inclined down at a 45 degree angle, and where said shroud also extends outwards to the front of the raceway (14) with its upper surface inclined up at a 45 degree angle and its lower edge inclined down at a 45 degree angle. 8. The machine of claim 1, further comprising: a lightweight rigid nozzle (85) that extends outwards from the raceway (14) and has a hole for the pedestal (11) to pass through;where said rigid nozzle (85) has an opening to the front of the raceway (14), and an opening to the back of the raceway (14), allowing wind to pass through both openings;and where said rigid nozzle (85) expands its diameter as it extends out to the back of the raceway (14); and out to the front of the raceway (14) so that said rigid nozzle (85) appears to have the shape of a nozzle, when the rigid nozzle (85), raceway (14) and windmill (16) are viewed from the left or the right, and said rigid nozzle (85) also appears to have the shape of a nozzle, when said rigid nozzle (85), raceway (14) and windmill (16) are viewed from directly above or directly below;and, whether viewed from directly above, directly below, to the left, or to the right, the narrowest part of the rigid nozzle (85) is the part closet to the raceway (14) and the widest parts of the rigid nozzle (85) are the parts furthest away from said raceway (14). 9. The machine of claim 1, said raceway (14) being connected to said pedestal (11) by an upper raceway holding post (45) which connects between the pedestal (11) and the raceway (14) at the highest part of said raceway (14); and a lower raceway holding post (44) which connects between the pedestal (11) and the raceway (14) at the lowest part of said raceway (14). 10. The machine of claim 1, further comprising at least one of: a raceway support cable (50) that begins in said turbine shaft crown (54) and ends by connecting to said raceway (14) and that provides structural support to said raceway (14); and,a raceway support strut (51) that extends from said turbine shaft crown (54) to said raceway (14) and provides structural support to said raceway (14). 11. A machine for generating electricity comprising the following components: a raceway (14); where such raceway is a ring with a large hollow space in its center, where said large hollow space is the turbine blade area (10); and is open all the way through the raceway (14);a rotor (39) further comprising one or more partitioned blades (15);a main turbine shaft (53);said main turbine shaft (53) further comprising a turbine shaft back end (52) and a turbine shaft front end (61);said main turbine shaft (53) protruding through said raceway (14) so that the turbine shaft back end (52) is to a back of the raceway (14) and the turbine shaft front end (61) is to a front of the raceway (14);one or more primary generators (25) capable of generating electricity;one or more blade coordination cables (22) extending out of said turbine shaft back end (52);one or more blade coordination motors (23), each of which is contained within said turbine shaft back end (52) and connected to one or more of said coordination cables (22);said partitioned blades (15) each further comprising: a blade tip (58);a blade spar (19) which extends outward from said main turbine shaft (53) towards an outer edge of said turbine blade area (10);one or more ribs (18) which protrude outward from said blade spar (19);one or more blade sub-sections (17), each of which is attached to one of the ribs (18);each said rib (18) being coated with semi-flexible foam (20) which is further covered by a flexible epoxy coating (21); such coating offering some protection for said rib (18); while also allowing movement of blade sub-sections (17) that are attached to said rib (18) relative to the rib (18);said blade coordination motors (23) each controlling one of the coordination cables;and said coordination cables (22) each being attached to one of the ribs so that said blade coordination motors (23) can control said ribs (18) through said coordination cables (22) and can control the positioning of said blade sub-sections (17) via said ribs (18);said machine further comprising a processor capable of controlling said blade coordination motors (23) and, in response to data about a wind direction and strength, causing said blade coordination motors (23) to move said coordination cables (22), thus changing the “angle of attack” of said blade sub sections (17);the connection between said blade spars (19) and said main turbine shaft (53) causing said main turbine shaft (53) to generate mechanical energy when the blade sub-sections (17) move in response to wind hitting them;said machine further comprising a rotor assembly sleeve (55) connected to said turbine shaft (53) so that mechanical energy is transferred from said turbine shaft (53) to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) when said mechanical energy is generated by said turbine shaft;and mechanical energy can be transferred from said blade spars (19) to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) when said blade spars (19) rotate;said machine further comprising a rotating power transfer sleeve (27) connected to said rotor assembly sleeve so that mechanical energy may be transferred from said rotor assembly sleeve (55) to said power transfer sleeve (27);said machine further comprising that said rotating power transfer sleeve (27) is connected to said primary generators (25) so that when energy is transferred from said rotating power transfer sleeve (27) to said primary generators (25), said primary generators (25) generate electricity. 12. The machine of claim 11, further comprising a blade connection cable (59) that surrounds said blade tips (58) and connects to each of said blade tips (58), thus providing further structural support to the machine. 13. The machine of claim 12, further comprising: a pedestal (11) and a pedestal base (26) and lower pedestal support poles (72) and an intersection node (76); said pedestal (11) extending upward from said pedestal base (26) to said intersection node (76) where it intersects with said main turbine shaft (53), and said pedestal continuing to extend upwards beyond the height of the highest point on said raceway (14);said intersection node (76) being the point where said pedestal (11) intersects with said turbine shaft (53); said pedestal (11) being connected to said raceway by a lower raceway holding post (44) which connects from said pedestal (11) to the lowest part of said raceway (14) and an upper raceway holding post (45) that connects from said pedestal (11) to the highest part of said raceway, so that said pedestal (11) provides structural support to said raceway (14);said lower pedestal support poles (72) intersecting with said pedestal (11) and providing structural support to said pedestal (11);said pedestal base (26) providing structural support to said pedestal;said rotating power transfer sleeve (27) surrounding that portion of said pedestal (11) which is between the intersection node (76) and the pedestal base (11);said primary generators being located either within or below said pedestal base (26). 14. The machine of claim 13 further comprising: a turbine shaft crown (54), raceway support cables (50), raceway support struts (51), blade spar struts (86), a lower bearing (110), an upper bearing (81) and one or more direction control motors (80);where said turbine shaft crown (54) is on the tip of said turbine shaft (53), next to said turbine shaft back end (52) but further away from said raceway (14) than said turbine shaft back end (52);where said raceway support cables (50) begin in said turbine shaft crown (54) and extend to said raceway (14); thus providing structural support for said raceway (14) and said turbine shaft (53); where said raceway support struts (51) begin in said turbine shaft crown (54) and extend to said raceway (14), also providing structural support to said raceway (14) and said main turbine shaft (53);where each of said blade spar struts (86) begins in said turbine shaft front end (61) and extends to a point on one of the blade spars (19) that is between said main turbine shaft (53) and said blade tip (58);where said upper bearing (81) is at the top of said pedestal (11) and said lower bearing (110) is at the bottom of said pedestal (11);where said direction control motor (80) can cause said pedestal (11) to rotate along said upper bearing (81) and lower bearing (110), thus causing said main turbine shaft (53) and said raceway (14) to rotate with said pedestal (11);so that said partitioned blades (15) may be rotated to intercept the largest amount of wind energy that is available. 15. The invention of claim 14, further comprising: upper scaffolding (112) connected to said upper bearing (81), which connects to and provides support to said upper bearing (81) from above, and still allows said pedestal to rotate along said bearing; and, additionally comprising two or more support towers (114), which connect to and provide structural support to said upper scaffolding (112), thus also providing support for the upper bearing (81), pedestal (11) and other components which are attached to said pedestal, and which provide sufficient support to said bearing (81) that said pedestal (11) can remain upright. 16. The invention of claim 14, further comprising; a hollow shroud (67) surrounding space immediately before and behind the raceway (14) which has a hole for the pedestal (11) to pass through, where said hollow shroud (67) has an opening to the front of the raceway (14), and an opening to the back of the raceway (14), allowing wind to pass through both openings; where the lower surface of said shroud (67) extends from the raceway to the ground at a 45 degree angle, both to the back of the raceway and to the front of the raceway, but said shroud (67) terminates before it reaches the ground; and the upper surface of said shroud (67) also extends upward from the raceway; both to the back of the raceway and to the front of the raceway at a 45 degree angle, so that both the opening in the shroud (67) to the back of the raceway (14) and the opening in the shroud (67) to the front of the raceway (14) are wider than the raceway (14);and said machine also comprises shroud unfurling struts (68) which extend from the raceway (14) away from, and to the back of the raceway (14) at approximately a 45 degree angle downwards, throughout the length of the shroud; and, in addition, said shroud unfurling struts (68) extend at a 45 degree angle upwards, and also away from, and to the front of the raceway (14) throughout the length of the shroud; and said shroud unfurling struts (68) also extend from the raceway (14) at approximately a 45 degree angle downwards and to the front of, the raceway (14) and, in addition, said shroud unfurling struts (68) also extend from the raceway (14) at a 45 degree angle upwards, and to the front of, the raceway (14), and said shroud unfurling struts (68) help to keep the shroud (67) deployed in a configuration where the shroud extends outwards to the back of the raceway (14), with its upper surface inclined up at a 45 degree angle, and its lower surface inclined down at a 45 degree angle, and in a configuration where said shroud also extends outwards to the front of the raceway (14) with its upper surface inclined up at a 45 degree angle and its lower edge inclined down at a 45 degree angle, and further comprising shroud unfurling struts (68) that extend from said turbine shaft crown (54) to the back ends of said shroud and from said turbine shaft front end (61) to the front ends of said shroud (67), thus keeping said shroud configured in the desired shape. 17. The invention of claim 14, further comprising; a nozzle-shaped shroud (100) surrounding space immediately before and behind the raceway (14) which has holes for the pedestal (11) to pass through, and where said nozzle-shaped shroud expands its diameter as it extends out to the back of the raceway (14); and out to the front of the raceway (14); so that said nozzle-shaped shroud (100) appears to have the shape of a nozzle; when the nozzle-shaped shroud (100), and raceway (14) are viewed from the left or the right, and said nozzle-shaped shroud (100) also appears to have the shape of a nozzle, when said nozzle-shaped shroud (100), and raceway (14) and are viewed from directly above or directly below; and, whether viewed from directly above, directly below, to the left, or to the right, the narrowest part of the nozzle shaped shroud (100) is the part closet to the raceway (14) and the widest parts of said nozzle-shaped shroud (100) are the parts furthest away from said raceway (14);and also comprising nozzle-shaped shroud struts (105) which extend from the raceway (14) outward from the back of the raceway (14) and the front of the raceway (14), and which help to keep the nozzle-shaped shroud (100) deployed in a configuration where it appears to be a nozzle when the nozzle-shaped shroud (100), and raceway (14) are viewed from the left, from the right, from directly up, and from directly down,and where said nozzle-shaped shroud becomes narrower in its portions that are closest to the raceway, to the point that it is pressed against the outer edge of said raceway so that wind flowing through the shroud must pass through the raceway. 18. The machine of claim 14, further comprising that the blade coordination motors (23) are controlled by a computer that is capable of at least one of the following; a) calculating the optimal positions for the blade sub-sections {17) to capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;b) controlling the blade coordination motors (23) so that they control the coordination cables (22) to position the blade subsections (17) to capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;c) communicating with a computer connected to an anemometer, to learn the optimal positions for the blade sub-sections (17) to be located in, so that they capture the largest amounts of wind energy available. 19. The machine of claim 14, further comprising that the direction control motor (80) and the primary generators (25) are controlled by a computer which is capable of doing at least one of the following; a) calculating the optimal orientation for the partitioned blades to (15) to face so that they capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;b) controlling the direction control motor (80) so that it turns the pedestal (11) to position the raceway (14) and partitioned blades (15) to capture the maximum possible amount of wind energy;(c) managing primary generator torque and speed;(d) controlling each primary generator and managing generator back torque;(e) converting variable frequency power provided by the primary generators to 60 Hz AC electricity synchronized to grid power from an electrical power grid;(f) controlling reactive power measured by the primary generators;(g) controlling an output from each primary generator;(h) controlling the output of all primary generators together;(i) sensing wind direction when connected to an anemometer, and using information about the wind direction to calculate the optimal “angle of attack” for each of the blade sub-sections (17) of each of the partitioned blades (15). 20. A machine for generating electricity comprising the following components: one or more primary generators (25) capable of generating electricity, located at or near ground level; a pedestal (11) capable of rotation;a means for providing motive power for rotation of said pedestal;a means of supporting said pedestal so that said pedestal stays upright; a main turbine shaft perpendicular to said pedestal;said main turbine shaft further comprising a turbine shaft crown (54), a turbine shaft back end (52), and a turbine shaft front end (61);a rotor assembly sleeve (55) surrounding said main turbine shaft (53);an intersection node (76) where said main turbine shaft intersects said pedestal;a rotating power transfer sleeve (27) surrounding a part of said pedestal below said intersection node, and connected to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) so that said rotor assembly sleeve can transmit mechanical energy to said rotating power transfer sleeve;at least one rotor (39), which comprises at least one partitioned blade (15);each said partitioned blade (15) further comprising a blade spar (19) that extends from said turbine shaft (53) through a length of said partitioned blade (15) to a blade tip (58) of said partitioned blade;and each said partitioned blade further comprising; a blade spar (19) which extends outward from said main turbine shaft (53) towards outer edge of said turbine blade area (10);one or more ribs (18) which protrude outward from said blade spar (19);one or more blade sub-sections (17), each of which is attached to one of the ribs (18) and can be moved along said rib;and said machine further comprising blade spar struts (86) that begin at said turbine shaft front tip (61) and each extend to a point on a each blade spar that is between the turbine shaft (53) and the blade tip (58) which is connected to that blade spar (19);where said blade spar struts (86) provide structural support to said blade spars (19);and said machine further comprising a means for moving each of said partitioned blades (15) by moving the blade spar (86) that said partitioned blade is attached to;and said machine further comprising a means for moving each of said blade sub-sections (17) along the rib(s) that it connects to, when desired by the users, and a power source for said means for moving the blade sub-sections,and said machine also comprising a means for determining wind speed and communicating this information to said means for moving each of said blade sub-sections, so that said blade sub-sections can be positioned to catch the optimal amount of wind energy;where, in response to wind hitting said partitioned blades (15), said partitioned blades (15) turn, thus imparting mechanical energy to said partitioned blades which then transmits said mechanical energy to said rotor assembly sleeve (55) and said main turbine shaft (53), which transmit said mechanical energy to said rotating power transfer sleeve (27); which in turn transfers said mechanical energy to said primary generators (25), which generate electricity.