WIND-DRIVEN GENERATOR

AEROGENERATEUR

English Abstract

A wind-driven apparatus for generating power has a housing provided with an
inlet and
outlet at the upstream and downstream ends respectively. Louvers are provided
at the inlet for
controlling the volume of air which flows through the inlet. Air within the
housing activates a fan
and one or more gates and windows, also within the housing act, as a by-pass
for diverting a
selected portion of the flow of air away from the fan. The fan is connected to
and drives a
generator.

Claims

I claim:
1. A wind-driven power generating apparatus including: a housing having
upstream and
downstream ends and an inlet disposed at the upstream end for receiving a flow
of air from
outside said housing; means for controlling the volume of air which flows
through said inlet; a fan
mounted for rotation within said housing and caused to rotate by said flow of
air; a by-pass for
diverting a selected portion of said flow of air away from said fan; and a
generator operatively
connected to said fan for rotation thereby.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said controlling means includes a
plurality of spaced
louvers movable to alternatively increase and diminish the flow of air which
flows therebetween.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 further including a duct through which air from
said inlet flows
to said fan, said duct tapering downstream of said housing, said by-pass being
mounted to said
duct.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said duct is a funnel having a frusto-
conical component
which tapers downstream of said housing and which terminates at a hollow
cylindrical component
which extends further downstream, said fan being mounted within said
cylindrical component and
being spaced radially inward therefrom.
5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said by-pass is a window adapted to open
and close in
order to divert a selective portion of said flow of air away from said fan.
6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said by-pass is a window formed in said
frusto-conical
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component and adapted to open and close in order to divert a selective portion
of said flow of air
away from said fan.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 further including a plurality of baffles disposed
in the flow of air
upstream of said fan.
8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said baffles are arranged in a plurality
of rows each
extending transversely of the direction of the flow of air, the baffles in
each said row downstream
of the most upstream row diverting the flow of air from the row closest
thereto upstream thereof.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said housing has an interior wall which
defines a
passage through which air flows, said apparatus further including a gate
extending transversely of
the direction of the flow of air and selectively movable toward and away from
said interior wall in
order to direct the flow of air alternatively toward the centre of said
housing and toward the outer
wall of said housing respectively
10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said housing has an interior wall which
defines a
passage through which air flows, said apparatus further including a pair of
gates which extend
transversely of the direction of the flow of air and which are disposed on
opposite sides of said
fan. said sates being selectively movable toward and away from said interior
wall in order to
direct the flow of air alternatively toward the centre of said housing and
toward the outer wall of
said housing respectively.
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Description

CA 02487663 2004-11-17
FIELD OF THE 1NVENTION
This invention relates to an apparatus for generating power by means of wind
and more
particularly to an apparatus in which the flow of air activates a generator.
The apparatus has
means for controlling the volume of air which passes through the apparatus as
well as means for
diverting a selected portion of air within the apparatus from activating the
generator.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Generators which harness the energy from moving air to produce power are well
known.
For example, it is also known to mount generators on motor vehicles and to
activate them by fans
which are positioned in the stream of air through which the vehicles pass as
they move forward.
The fans are known to be positioned on the roof of the vehicles, beneath their
front hoods or
wherever else they will be exposed to the wind. Electrical energy produced by
the generators are
used to charge the batteries of the vehicles.
A shortcoming of many known wind-powered generators is that there is little or
no ef
fective way to control the flow of air which activates the generator. Such
control is necessary
because the force of a wind, if it is toa strong or varies too widely over a
short period of time, can
damage or impair the effectiveness of the generator. Such force, however,
inherently varies
widely. The strength of the wind will depend on a number of factors such as
the speed of the
vehicle and the strength of the wind through which the vehicle is travelling.
As well the wind force
will vary if the wind is gusty and if the vehicle is not travelling at a
constant velocity. These

CA 02487663 2004-11-17
variations must be moderated or dampened if a generator is to operates
efficiently.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
I have invented a wind-driven power generating apparatus which has a simple
but very
effective means for controlling the strength of the wind which activates it.
By means of louvers,
gates and windows, I control the volume of the stream of air which activates
the generator and
the pressure of air within the apparatus. Briefly my apparatus includes a
housing having upstream
and downstream ends and an inlet disposed at the upstream end for receiving a
flow of air from
outside the housing. There is means for controlling the volume of air which
flows through the
inlet and there is a fan mounted within the housing. There is also a by-pass
for diverting a selected
portion of the flow of air away from the fan and a generator operatively
connected to the fan for
rotation by the fan.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The wind-driven power generating apparatus of my invention is described with
reference
to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view, partly cut away, of the apparatus;
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the housing within which a second embodiment
of the
apparatus is mounted;
Figure 3 is a schematic plan view of the interior of the second embodiment of
the
apparatus;
2

CA 02487663 2004-11-17
Figure 4 is a perspective view, in enlarged scale, of baffles with which the
apparatus of
Figures 2 and 3 is provided;
Figure 5 is an elevation of gates with which the apparatus of Figures 2 and 3
is provided;
and
Figure 6 is an another elevation of the gates of Figure 5.
Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the description of
the drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to Figures 1, the wind-driven apparatus of my invention,
generally 10, has
a cylindrical housing 12 having upstream and downstream ends 14, 16,
respectively. An inlet 18 is
formed at the upstream end for receiving a flow of air from outside the
housing..
A number of louvers 20 are mounted on the inlet. The louvers are pivotal from
open to
closed positions so that the volume of air which flows into the housing can be
controlled. The
apparatus for causing the louvers to pivot is conventional and is not
described herein.
The housing has a hollow cylindrical inner wall 22 in which is mounted a duct
24 for
directing or restricting the flow of air through the housing. The duct has a
frusto-conical portion
26 which commences at the inner wall, closes downstream and terminates at a
hollow cylindrical
portion 28 which extends further downstream. A by-pass in the form of windows
30 open and
close openings in the frusto-conical portion of the baffle. The apparatus for
operating the gates is
conventional and is not illustrated.
3

CA 02487663 2004-11-17
A fan 34 is mounted centrally for rotation within the cylindrical portion of
the duct. The
fan is caused to rotate by air which flows through the inlet. Mounted
downstream of the fan is a
conventional generator 36 which is connected to the fan by rod 38. The rod is
mounted in
bearings and transfers rotary motion from the fan to the generator. The
generator acts as a source
of electrical current and may be electrically connected by means of cable 40
to the battery (not
illustrated) of a motor vehicle in order to recharge the battery.
Air which flows through the housing discharges through outlet 16.
With reference to Figures 2 and 3, the wind-driven apparatus is mounted within
a housing
44 having flat lower and upper walls 44a,b and curved side walls 46. The
housing has an inlet 48
for a stream of air and an outlet 50. A fan 52 and a generator 54 are mounted
in the interior of the
housing. The fan and generator have the same structure as the fan and
generator of the first
embodiment of the apparatus illustrated in Figure 1.
With reference to Figures 3 and 4, mounted upstream of the fan is a number of
baffles 60
arranged in parallel rows oriented transversely to the direction of flow of
air indicated by arrows
64. Each baffle has a triangular cross-section and is mounted such that one of
its vertices 66 forms
the leading edge of the bai~le and is first to contact the air after it flows
past the louvers at the
inlet of the apparatus.
The bai~les act to retard the flow of air. To this end, there is a bai~le in
the second row 68
downstream of the space between adjacent spoilers in the first or upstream row
70. Similarly,
4

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there is a bai~le in the third or downstream row 72 downstream of the space
between adjacent
bai~les in the second row. Thus there is no straight passage of air through
the rows. The air as it
flows through the rows of baffles will be diverted and hence its rate of flow
will inevitably be
reduced by the baffles. In other words, the baffles in each row downstream of
the most upstream
row 70 divert the. flow of air from the row closest thereto upstream thereof.
With reference to Figures 5 and 6, on either side of fan 52 is a gate 80. The
gates are
mounted on tracks (not illustrated) and are movable in the direction of arrows
82 toward and
away from the fan. Each gate has an inside concave edge 84 and an outer convex
edge 86. The
inner edge conforms to the shape of the outer wall 88 of the fan housing while
the outer edge 86
conforms to the shape of the outer wall 90 of the housing of the housing.
The gates serve to direct the flow of air toward the central area of the
interior of the
housing or away from the central area and toward the outer wall of the
housing. The position of
the gates will determine where the air flows and what the pressure of the air
is within the housing.
The position can be adjusted by means (not illustrated) from outside the
housing.
The apparatus illustrated in Figure 1 is particularly suitable for use in a
motor vehicle
while the apparatus illustrated in the remaining Figures is particularly
suitable for use in a light
aircraft.
_ __. _.._. __... a _:: ~ .

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It will be understood of course that modifications can be made in the wind-
driven
apparatus of the invention without departing from the scope and purview of the
invention as
defined in the appended claims.
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Representative Drawing