| Frontier Wind, LLC Patent applications |
| Patent application number | Title | Published |
|---|
| 20100266408 | Methods and System for Providing Power and Signals in a Turbine - Power and signals may be transmitted from a root portion of an extendable rotor blade to a moving tip portion using a slide block and a slide channel. The slide block is configured to fit within the slide channel and includes a conductive element that comes into contact with a conductive element of the slide channel. The tip portion may be attached to the slide block such that as the slide block moves along the slide channel, the tip portion is extended or retracted accordingly. The conductive elements may be fixed within each of the slide block and slide channel so that when the tip portion is retracted or extended, the conductive elements do not move. | 10-21-2010 |
| 20100266405 | Pressure Based Load Measurement - A system and method for a pressure based load measurement system are provided. The system includes two pressure orifices arranged on a top surface and a bottom surface of an airfoil. The pressure differential between these two points is determined and an estimate of the aerodynamic load generated by the airfoil is determined from a linear correlation between pressure differential and load. The location of the orifices may be optimized using analytical or experimental techniques and a least squares empirical curve fit may be used to fit the data collected. | 10-21-2010 |
| 20100260603 | Variable Length Wind Turbine Blade Having Transition Area Elements - A wind turbine blade having a longitudinal axis is provided. The wind turbine blade includes a root portion and a tip portion. The root portion has a supported end and an unsupported end. The tip portion is configured to be slidably received within the unsupported end of the root portion. A transverse gap is defined between the root portion and the tip portion. A transition element is affixed to the unsupported end of the root portion such that the transition element at least partially bridges the transverse gap. The wind turbine blade may further include blade cleaning elements and/or sensing elements, particularly in the vicinity of the transition element. | 10-14-2010 |
| 20100196159 | Mass-Centralizing Blade Extension Drive Mount Locations for a Wind Turbine - Drive units for variable-length rotor blades are located so as to move mass closer to the center of a wind turbine rotor. In some cases, drive units are located within a root portion of a base blade of a blade assembly. In other cases, drive units are located outside of the blade assemblies. In some such cases, drive units are contained within separate couplers used to connect blade assemblies to a wind turbine rotor hub. In other cases, one or more drive units are located within a rotor hub. | 08-05-2010 |
| 20100158687 | Control Modes for Extendable Rotor Blades - A wind turbine may be controlled in a variety of manners to optimize operating parameters. In one arrangement, for example, the length or the pitch of a wind turbine rotor blade may be adjusted to avoid harmonic resonance frequencies. In another example, the length of a rotor blade may be modified to reduce noise or to optimize profits or both. The controls may be based on data from various types of sensors including accelerometers, sound meters, strain gauges and the like. Actuation of extendable rotor blades can rotate wind turbine rotors without wind or generator pulsing affording multiple advantages. A battery test control may also be used to determine the operational readiness of a battery useful for a variety of purposes in a turbine. | 06-24-2010 |
| 20090285682 | Wind Turbine With Deployable Air Deflectors - An apparatus and system for compensating for various load situations in a turbine includes the use of one or more deployable devices configured to extend an air deflector outwardly from a surface of a rotor blade. The air deflector may subsequently be retracted into the rotor blade once the load falls below a certain threshold. Mechanisms for extending and retracting the air deflector may include pneumatic, hydraulic and/or electromechanical devices. Air deflectors are generally configured to modify the air flow around the rotor blade to increase or decrease power generation, or reduce loads so that the risk of potential damage to components of the wind turbine is minimized. Deflectors may be positioned at various chordwise stations including leading-edge, mid-chord, and trailing-edge locations on the upper and lower surfaces at spanwise positions. Accordingly, a plurality of devices can be actuated to aerodynamically control rotor performance and loads based on wind conditions. | 11-19-2009 |
| 20090284016 | Wind turbine with gust compensating air deflector - An apparatus and system for counteracting wind gusts and other high load situations in a wind turbine includes the use of one or more gust counteracting devices configured to extend an air deflector outwardly from a surface of a turbine rotor blade. The air deflector may subsequently be retracted into the rotor blade once the wind gust has subsided or once the load falls below a certain threshold. Mechanisms for extending and retracting the air deflector may include pneumatic or hydraulic systems and/or electromechanical devices. Air deflectors are generally configured to normalize air flow around the rotor blade so that the risk of potential damage to components of the wind turbine is minimized. In one arrangement, the gust counteracting device may be located at a leading section of the turbine blade. Additionally or alternatively, the device may be modular in nature to facilitate the removal and replacement of the device. | 11-19-2009 |
