Renewables & Environment - Oak Park, Michigan, United States
An exciting new type of wind turbine has been invented that offers several improvements over current designs. It received a US Patent in 2011. Additional resources are being sought to perform research and development necessary to produce a six foot diameter turbine, M6. Following validation of the M6, design and fabrication will begin on the M20. It will be a 20 foot diameter model for sale to the small wind market. This market consists of farms, schools, small factories, homes, mining camps and remote military operations.It is estimated that the M20 Wind Turbine will have a production of 6 Kilowatts per hour in winds averaging 25 mph.• It features a horizontal axle which sits square to the wind under normal operation. This configuration allows for dual generators powered off each end of the axle.• The dual permanent magnet generators allow the capture of power from higher wind speeds. As the first generator approaches its maximum power output, the second generator is clutched in to harvest energy from winds speeds too high for other turbines.• The blades are less expensive than the shaped blades of other turbines. They are cut from sheet material such as aluminum. Blades are given their patented shape at installation. An equation in the patent describes the form. • A front mounted shield increases power production dramatically. The wind tends to move any rotor in either direction. Normally, it is only the shape of the blades that determines which way it will move and how much energy it can capture. The rigid shield blocks the unproductive half of the wind allowing the productive forces to dominate.• All turbines need to respond to changes in wind velocity and direction. This is done by rotating about the vertical or yaw axis. Here the yaw axis is also used to control the speed of rotation. By changing the yaw angle, expensive propeller pitch controls are no longer needed.
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