WO2001023757A1

WO2001023757A1 - Steerable fluid current-powered turbine

Info

Publication number: WO2001023757A1
Application number: PCT/CA2000/001155
Authority: WO
Inventors: Denis Guay
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-09-29
Filing date: 2000-09-29
Publication date: 2001-04-05
Anticipated expiration: 2002-03-29
Also published as: AU7502300A; CA2290196A1

Abstract

A steerable fluid current powered turbine is disclosed herein. The fluid current powered turbine may be used, for example, to operate in the wind. It comprises a base that houses a generator assembly, a rotatable shaft having a plurality of blades fixedly mounted thereto, a cylindrical enclosure having an air inlet and outler, and a steering assembly to position the inlet according to the direction of the wind. The inlet is configured to compress the entering air. The fluid current-powered turbine includes a current direction sensor and a controller to maximize the force of the fluid current impinging on the blades.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION

STEERABLE FLUID CURRENT-POWERED TURBINE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to turbines. More specifically, the present invention is concerned with a steerable turbine powered by fluid currents.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Various wind turbines used for converting fluid current energy, such as wind energy, to a rotary motion are known. Conventional wind turbines usually include a rotatable shaft, a base or stand to hold up the shaft and a plurality of blades fixedly mounted to the shaft. Under the force of the wind, the blades cause the rotation of the shaft and the rotational movement can be transformed into electricity or other forms of energy.

In order to maximize the force of the wind onto the blades, the orientation of the shaft can be varied so as to maximize the effective surface of the blades. Conventionally, the shaft and blades assembly is in a form similar to a wind vane and thus can automatically self-align itself in the direction of the dominating wind. A drawback of such self-aligning wind turbines is that the blades are hit from all sides by the wind and thus are subject to turbulence, which decreases the efficiency of the turbine.

Furthermore, since the size of the blades is usually proportional to the desired amount of energy to be produced the turbine is therefore often bulky.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

More specifically, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a steerable fluid current-powered turbine comprising: a base; a shaft rotatably mounted to the base; a generally cylindrical enclosure coaxially mounted about the shaft; the enclosure including peripheral inlet and outlet so positioned to form a channel through the enclosure; the cylindrical enclosure being rotatable about the shaft; and a plurality of blades mounted to the shaft so as to be substantially positioned in the channel.

Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading of the following non restrictive description of preferred embodiments thereof, given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the appended drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational partly sectional view of a steerable current-powered fluid turbine according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 1 ;

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the fluid turbine of Figure 1 , illustrating the turntable; and

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of Figure 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Turning now to the appended Figures 1 to 5, a steerable fluid current-powered turbine 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described. For illustration purposes only, the steerable fluid current-powered turbine 10 is illustrated herein as a vertical axis wind turbine. It is to be noted that the appended drawings schematically illustrate the turbine 10.

The wind turbine 10 comprises a base 12, housing a generator assembly 14, a vertical rotatable shaft 16, a plurality of blades

18 fixedly mounted to the shaft 16, a cylindrical enclosure 20, a steering assembly 22 (Figure 4), a current direction sensor 23 and a controller 25.

The base 12 is advantageously in the form of a hollow structure and is configured and sized to host the generator assembly 14, part of the steering assembly 20 and the controller 25. The base 12 also allows the overall height of the wind turbine 10 to be increased, which may be advantageous.

Turning now more specifically to Figure 1 , the generator assembly 14 includes a cogwheel 24 and four generators 26, each having a gear 28 rotatably mounted to one of the generators 26. The gears 28 are so configured and sized as to cooperate with the teeth of the cogwheel 24.

Each generator 26 advantageously includes alternators (not shown).

The generator assembly 14 is also connected to or includes other conventional circuitry for producing electricity from the rotational motion of the shaft 16. Since these elements are believed to be well known in the art, they will not be further described herein. Similarly, the generators 26 are believed to be well known to a person of ordinary skills in the art and thus will not be described in further detail herein.

Although the generator assembly 14 is described having four generators 14, it is believed within the reach of someone skilled in the art to conceive a generator assembly having less or more generators.

The shaft 16 is fixedly mounted to the cogwheel 24 at the center thereof and includes six pairs of blades 18 (only one blade of each pair being shown in Figure 3). The blades 18 are fixedly mounted to the shaft 14 via a hub 30 secured to the shaft 14 and coaxial thereto. The diameter of the hub 30 is advantageously greater or equal to the diameter of each blade 18 to provide a greater lever force on the blades 18.

Although the blades 18 are advantageously hemispherical in shape, the wind turbine 10 can be provided with blades having other shapes without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Similarly, the number of blades 18 may also vary.

The cylindrical enclosure 20 is coaxially mounted about the shaft 16. The cylindrical enclosure 20 is sized to snugly fit around the blades 18 without touching them. The enclosure 20 includes a domed roof 31. The enclosure 20 includes a peripheral fluid inlet 32 and a peripheral fluid outlet 34, each generally extending along the height of the blades 18 so as to maximize the delivery and the evacuation of fluid, in the form of wind, to and from the blades 18. The fluid inlet and outlet are so positioned to form a channel through the enclosure.

More specifically, with reference to Figure 3, the inlet 32 is defined by a first aperture 36 in the enclosure 20, and by two triangular shaped wind barriers 38 and 40 extending outwardly from the enclosure 20. The configuration of the wind barriers 38 and 40 helps decrease turbulence in the aperture 36.

The relative position of the two barriers 38 and 40 and the angles of their inside walls 42 and 44 both create a first wind channel having a gradually decreasing section. This channel helps compress the air before it enters the inlet 32.

As can be seen in Figure 3, the inside walls of the barriers 38 and 40 can optionally be telescopic (see dotted line) to provide for an increased delivery of air to the inlet 32.

The outlet 34 is in the form of a second aperture 43 in the enclosure 20 and includes two outwardly flaring side walls 46 and 48 that form a second channel for the air, having a gradually increasing section.

It is to be noted that the configuration of the enclosure 20 and of the inlet 32 and outlet 34 may vary.

Turning now to Figures 4 and 5, the steering assembly 22 will now be described in more detail. The steering assembly 22 includes a turntable 50 and a driving mechanism 52 used to rotate the turntable 50 about the shaft 16.

The turntable 50 rests on a plurality of bearings 54 that are so positioned in a circular track 56 as to assist the rotation of the turntable 50 about the shaft 16. Since the cylindrical enclosure 20 is mounted on top of the turntable 50, the angular position of the inlet 32 may vary along a 360 degree radius.

The driving mechanism 52 includes a drive chain (not shown) secured to the peripheral edge of the turntable 50, two opposite gears 58 and 60 cooperating with the drive chain and a motor 62 to rotate the turntable 50 via the two gears 58 and 60. More specifically, the driving mechanism 52 includes two rotatable shafts 64 and 66 transferring the rotational force of the motor 62 to both gears 58 and 60. The driving mechanism also includes an inverter, in the form of a gear assembly 68, inverting the direction of rotation of the gear 60.

It is to be noted that other driving mechanisms can also be provided to rotate the turntable 50 without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

The steering mechanism 22 is connected to the controller 25 via conventional connecting means, such as electric wires, and is commanded therefrom.

The wind turbine 10 also advantageously includes a fluid current sensor 23, in the form of a wind vane connected to the controller 25 via conventional connecting means such as electric data cable 27 (Figure 1). Alternatively, the current sensor 23 may be replaced by a receiver configured to upload data from a remote weather station or satellite. Other fluid current sensors may also be used.

The controller 25 may take many forms, including a personal computer or a dedicated electronic circuitry, programmed to receive information from the wind vane and to command the operation of the steering mechanism 22 so as to orient the position of the inlet 32 to maximize the delivery of air therein.

The position of the inlet 32 may be adjusted according to preset criteria related to the direction and force of the wind.

In operation, the wind direction is detected by the wind vane 23 and sent to the controller 25 which energizes the motor 62 of the steering mechanism 52 to position the inlet 32 for a maximum delivery of wind to the blades 18. Moreover, the enclosure 20 and more specifically the inlet 32 are configured and sized to optimize the intake volume of air.

It is to be noted that the controller may also be connected to other servers to receive data about the amount of energy generated by the generators 26 and the energy required by the user to thereby optimize the energy output.

The air enters the inlet 32 and is forced onto the blades by the enclosure 20. The air then pushes onto the blades 18 that rotate the shaft 16 and then the cogwheel 24, inducing an electrical current in the four generators 26. The air is discharged in the atmosphere through the outlet 34.

With relation to wind turbines in the prior-art with equivalent blade sizes, the enclosure 20 improves the efficiency of the conversion of the wind forces to a rotational force of the shaft 16.

It is to be noted the inlet 32 is so configured and sized as to maximize the contact of wind on each blade 18 and minimize turbulence. Indeed, the arc length of the first aperture 36 is about the same as the arc length between two adjacent blades 18. The inside wall 44 of the wind barrier 38 also advantageously extends tangentially from the first aperture 36.

It is also to be noted that the inlet 32 is also configured and sized so as to compress the air before it contacts the blades 18, thereby increasing the energy contained in the air reaching the blades 18.

The steering assembly 52 may advantageously include an emergency brake (not shown) to stop the blade should certain predetermined conditions arise. The number of generators 26 may obviously vary. According to a most preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is a plurality of groups of generators, each group being configured to convert energy under a predetermined range of load. Depending on the detected force of the wind, a specific group of generator may then be used. According to this embodiment, the efficiency of the fluid turbine is less affected by the force of the fluid.

Since a fluid turbine may be relatively compact and does not need to be anchored to the ground, it can be mounted on a vehicle, such as a van.

Moreover, due to the fact that a fluid turbine according to the present invention does not need a gear box or transmission between the cogwheel 24 and the shaft 16, friction is minimized and therefor the efficiency of the turbine is increased.

It is believed within the reach of someone of ordinary skills in the art to modify the wind turbine 10 for operation in the water, for example at the bottom of the sea, using the ocean current as the power fluid.

The fluid powered turbine of the current invention may be used in many applications, such as electricity generation, water filtration, water pumping, etc. When the fluid turbine is used in conjunction with water, the energy produced by the rotation of the blades 18 may be used, for example, to pump the water from one location to another to filter the water. Such water turbine may use, for example, the tide of the sea or the current of a river.

Obviously, some modifications have to be made to the fluid turbine illustrated in the appended figures to be operated underwater. These modifications are however believed to be within the reach of one skilled in the art. For example, some components have to be sealed. In addition, it may be advantageous to provide a grating in front of the inlet to prevent fishes, algae or other marine elements to prevent the blades from rotating.

Although the present invention has been described hereinabove by way of preferred embodiments thereof, it can be modified without departing from the spirit and nature of the subject invention, as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine comprising: a base; a shaft rotatably mounted to said base; a generally cylindrical enclosure coaxially mounted about said shaft; said enclosure including peripheral inlet and outlet so positioned to form a channel through said enclosure; said cylindrical enclosure being rotatable about said shaft; and a plurality of blades mounted to said shaft so as to be substantially positioned in said channel.

2. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein said generally cylindrical enclosure snugly fit around said plurality of blades.

3. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein each of said inlet and said outlet extends along the height of said plurality of blades.

4. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein at least one of said inlet and outlet includes a wind barrier extending outwardly therefrom.

5. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 4, wherein said wind barrier is telescopic.

6. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 4, wherein at least one of said inlet and outlet includes two wind barrier extending outwardly on both lateral side therefrom so as to form a wind channel having a gradually inwardly decreasing section.

7. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a steering assembly configured to rotate said enclosure about said shaft.

8. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 7, further comprising a controller configured to received weather data from a remote weather station and for operating said steering assembly according to said data.

9. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 7, further comprising a current direction sensor and a controller connected to the current direction sensor for operating said steering assembly according to a detected current direction.

10. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 9, wherein said current direction sensor is in the form of a wind vane connected to said controller.

11. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 7, wherein said steering assembly includes a turntable mounted to said base and a driving mechanism so configured as to rotate the turntable about said shaft; said enclosure being mounted to said turntable.

12. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a generator assembly cooperating with said shaft to produce energy.

13. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 12, wherein said generator assembly includes a cogwheel fixedly mounted to said shaft and at least one generator having a rotatable element configured to cooperate with said cogwheel.

14. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 13, wherein said at least one generator cooperates with said cogwheel via gears.

15. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 13, wherein said at least one generator includes an alternator.

16. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein said blades are hemispherical in shape.

17. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein said plurality of blades is mounted to said shaft via a hub secured to said shaft.

18. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 17, wherein said hub is generally cylindrical and has a diameter that is at least equal to the length of at least one of said plurality of blades.

19. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine as recited in claim 1 , wherein said shaft is vertical.

20. A steerable fluid current-powered turbine comprising: a support means; a shaft rotatably mounted to said support means; a plurality of blades mounted to said shaft; and enclosing means for enclosing said plurality of blades; said enclosing means being mounted to said support means; said enclosing means including peripheral inlet and outlet so positioned as to form a channel through said enclosing means; said plurality of blades being positioned in said channel; said enclosing means being rotatable about said shaft.