Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Description
TRIANGULAR OCTAHEDRAL SUPPORT STRUCTURE FOR
WIND ROTOR OF WIND TURBINE
Technical Field
[1] The present invention relates, in general, to a support structure for
supporting a
wind rotor rotated by wind force, and more particularly, to a triangular
octahedral
support structure for the wind rotor of a wind turbine, capable of securing
sufficient
space in which the wind rotor is mounted and supported using a small number of
members and providing a firm structure.
Background Art
[2] In general, as resources such as petroleum, coal, natural gas, etc. are
exhausted by
industrial development and population growth, wind turbines, which generate
electricity using wind force, are being thoroughly studied as an alternative
energy
source.
[3] FIG. 1 illustrates a general wind turbine. Referring to FIG. 1, the
general wind
turbine comprises a wind rotor 10 having a plurality of blades generating a
rotational
force caused by wind force, a generator 20 producing electric power using the
rotational force of the wind rotor 10, and a support structure 30 supporting
the wind
rotor 10 and the generator 20.
[4] However, in order to stably maintain conditions for electric power
generation, the
wind rotor must be located at a high altitude, where a constant flow is
maintained. This
requires that the wind rotor be located at a very high position. Thus, high
installation
expenses are required, and the danger of collapse is high. In addition, there
is great
difficulty in the maintenance/repair of various main parts. Further, in light
of the
structure of the wind rotor, the minimum speed of wind must range from about 5
m/sec
to about 6 m/sec in order to smoothly generate electricity. In areas where the
wind is
relatively weak and the direction of the wind frequently changes, it is
difficult to
expect electricity to be generated with satisfactory efficiency. Moreover,
when a
typhoon or windstorm occurs, the operation of the wind rotor must be stopped
in order
to prevent the parts from being damaged.
[5] Subsequently, a vertical wind turbine, capable of generating electricity
in an area
where the pressure of wind is low and the direction of the wind frequently
changes, has
been devised. FIG. 2 illustrates a vertical wind turbine. Referring to FIG. 2,
the vertical
wind turbine is designed so that a wind rotor is vertically installed on the
support
structure 30. This wind turbine has an advantage in that electricity can be
generated in
topographical conditions unfavorable for the generation of electricity,
compared to the
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wind turbine described with reference to FIG. 1.
[6] However, in order to smoothly rotate the vertical wind turbine, the wind
rotor must
be supported at upper and lower portions thereof by the support structure. The
support
structure is structurally complicated, and various materials and a large
installation
space are required in order to maintain sufficient rigidity.
Disclosure of Invention
Technical Problem
[7] Accordingly, the present invention has been made in an effort to solve the
problems
occurring in the related art, and an object of the present invention is to
provide a
triangular octahedral support structure for the wind rotor of a wind turbine,
the con-
figuration of which is simplified by minimizing the number of constituent
members,
which uses space with increased efficiency, and which has a firm structure.
[8] Another object of the present invention is to provide a triangular
octahedral support
structure for the wind rotor of a wind turbine, which supports a plurality of
wind rotors
in an easier manner when the wind rotors are installed adjacent to each other.
Technical Solution
[9] In order to achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the
present
invention, there is provided a triangular octahedral support structure for the
wind rotor
of a wind turbine, which comprises:
[10] an upper end support, which is disposed above the wind rotor, rotatably
supports an
upper end of a rotary shaft, installed vertically so as to pass through the
center of the
wind rotor, and has a triangular plane structure;
[11] a lower end support, which is disposed below the wind rotor, rotatably
supports a
lower end of the rotary shaft, installed vertically so as to pass through the
center of the
wind rotor, and has an inverse triangular plane structure directly below the
upper end
support; and
[12] a set of connectors, which interconnect respective apexes of the upper
and lower
end supports to form six triangular faces such that one of the apexes of
either one of
the upper and lower end supports is connected to two of the apexes of the
other
support.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[13] FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating an ordinary wind turbine in the
related art;
[14] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a vertical wind turbine in the
related art;
[15] FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a support structure according
to an
exemplary embodiment of the present invention;
[16] FIG. 4 is a front view of FIG. 3;
[17] FIG. 5 is a plan view of FIG. 3;
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[18] FIG. 6 is a view illustrating the state in which a wind rotor is
supported by a support
structure;
[19] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an upper end support of the
present
invention;
[20] FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating another example of an upper end
support of
the present invention;
[21] FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a lower end support of the
present
invention;
[22] FIG. 10 is a side view illustrating a used state of support structures of
the present
invention; and
[23] FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating another used state of support
structures of the
present invention.
[24] <Description of symbols of the main parts in the drawings>
[25] 100: support structure 110: upper end support
[26] 111: first frame 112: first joint block
[27] 113: first bearing block 114: first auxiliary frame
[28] 115: first fastening block 120: lower end support
[29] 121: second frame 122: second joint block
[30] 123: second bearing block 124: second auxiliary frame
[31] 125: second fastening block
Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention
[32] Reference will now be made in greater detail to an exemplary embodiment
of the
invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. If
detailed
descriptions of known function and construction are determined to
unnecessarily
obscure the subject matter of the present invention, they will not be given.
[33] FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a support structure according
to an
exemplary embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a front view of FIG.
3. FIG.
is a plan view of FIG. 3. Referring to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the support structure
100
according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention composes an
upper
end support 110, a lower end support 120, and a set of connectors 130. This
support
structure 100 is provided with two triangular faces, which are formed by the
upper end
support 110 and the lower end support 120, and six other triangular faces,
which are
formed by the connector set 130 connecting the upper end support 110 and the
lower
end support 120, thereby having eight triangular faces. In this manner,
because each
face has a triangular structure, the support structure 100 has a firm
structure using a
small number of members, and has a structure in which it is easy to secure
space in
which to mount a wind rotor 200.
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[34] FIG. 6 illustrates the state in which a wind rotor is supported by a
support structure.
Referring to FIG. 6, the wind rotor 200, supported by the support structure
100, is
provided with a plurality of blades 220 outside a cylinder 210. This cylinder
210 has
the shape of a changgu (an hourglass-shaped drum), the center of which is
recessed.
The blades 220 are made of cloth, and thus are designed to passively unfold
according
to the wind direction or to be brought into close contact with the cylinder
210. This
wind rotor 200 produces electric power by rotating the cylinder 210 using the
blades
220, to which the wind force is applied, and by transmitting the resultant
rotational
force to a generator (not shown) through a rotary shaft 230.
[35] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an upper end support. Referring
to FIG. 7,
the upper end support 110 is disposed at the upper end of the wind rotor 200,
thereby
supporting the upper end of the rotary shaft 230. The upper end support 110
comprises
first frames 111, first joint blocks 112, a first bearing block 113, first
auxiliary frames
114, and first fastening blocks 115. The number of first frames 111 is three,
and the
three first frames 111 are disposed to have an equilateral triangular
structure. The
number of first joint blocks 112 is three, and the three first joint blocks
112 are
disposed at the apexes of a triangle formed by the first frames 111. Thus,
each of the
first joint blocks 112 connects two of the first frames 111 that intersect
each other. At
this time, the connection between the first joint blocks 112 and the first
frames 111 can
be achieved through typical welding. The first bearing block 113 is disposed
at the
center of gravity of the triangle formed by the first frames 111, and is
provided therein
with a bearing for rotatably supporting the upper end of the rotary shaft 230.
The first
auxiliary frames 114 extend from the first joint blocks 112 to the first
bearing block
113 so as to support the first bearing block 113. The first fastening blocks
115 are
installed on the first auxiliary frames 114, and are provided with fastening
holes 151-1,
each of which vertically passes through each of the first auxiliary frames
114. In the
case in which two or more support structures 100 are stacked, the fastening
holes
151-1, which vertically pass through the first auxiliary frames 114, allow the
two or
more support structures 100, located at upper and lower positions, to be
fastened with
bolts.
[36] Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the upper end support 110 has a
structure in
which the upper and lower portions thereof are opened by coupling beam-like
members. However, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the upper end support 110 has a
structure
in which the upper and lower portions thereof are closed by coupling
triangular flat
plates.
[37] FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a lower end support. Referring
to FIG. 9,
the lower end support 120 comprises second frames 121, second joint blocks
122, a
second bearing block 123, second auxiliary frames 124, and second fastening
blocks
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125. Meanwhile, the configurations of the second frames 121, the second joint
blocks
122, the second bearing block 123, the second auxiliary frames 124, and the
second
fastening blocks 125 are the same as those of the upper end support 110,
described
with reference to FIG. 7, and so a detailed description thereof will be
omitted.
However, a triangle formed by the lower end support 120 is oriented opposite
to that
formed by the upper end support 110 having the same size. More specifically,
the
center of the triangle formed by the upper end support 110 is vertically
located above
that of the triangle formed by the lower end support 120. However, the
triangle formed
by the upper end support 110 has point symmetry with respect to the triangle
formed
by the lower end support 120. Accordingly, when the upper end support 110 and
the
lower end support 120 are viewed from the top in the state where the upper end
support
110 overlaps the lower end support 120, they form a star shape, as seen in
FIG. 3.
[38] Referring to FIG. 3 again, the connector set 130 serves to connect the
upper end
support 110 and the lower end support 120, and consists of six rods so as to
connect
the upper end support 110 and the lower end support 120. Meanwhile, the six
rods are
constructed so that two rods extending from any apex of any one of the upper
and
lower end supports 110 and 120 are connected to two apexes of the other
support. As
one example, first ends of the two rods are fixed to any one apex of the upper
end
support 110, and the second ends of the two rods are fixed to two apexes of
the lower
end support 120. Due to this connector set 130, the support structure 100 has
six
triangular faces formed by a combination of the six rods constituting the
connector
130, the first frames 111 of the upper end support 110, and the second frames
121 of
the lower end support 120.
[39] The operation of the present invention, as described above, will be
described below.
[40] In the support structure 100 of the present invention, the upper and
lower ends of
the rotary shaft 230, which vertically passes through the center of the wind
rotor 200,
are supported by the upper end support 110 and the lower end support 120. At
this
time, the rotary shaft 230 is connected with the generator (not shown), so
that it is
supplied with the rotational force of the wind rotor, thereby producing the
electric
power.
[41] Meanwhile, the support structure 100 is composed of eight triangular
faces, and
thus has a firm structure that is highly resistant to buckling and twisting.
The space in
which the wind rotor 200 is mounted can have a greater volume, compared to the
space
formed by an ordinary quadrilateral structure.
[42] FIG. 10 illustrates a structure in which wind rotors are disposed using
support
structures. Referring to FIG. 10, the support structures 100 can be installed
to be
vertically stacked at upper and lower positions. At this time, support
structures 100 that
are disposed adjacent to each other can be firmly fixed by bolts inserted
through the
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fastening holes 115-1 of the first and second fastening blocks 115 and 125 and
by nuts
N fastened on the bolts. Meanwhile, each wind rotor 200, supported by a cor-
responding support structure 100, is connected to one rotary shaft 230. Thus,
the
rotational force generated from the plurality of wind rotors 200 is collected
and
transmitted to the generator, so that efficiency with which electricity is
generated can
be increased.
[43] FIG. 11 illustrates another structure in which wind rotors are disposed
using support
structures. Referring to FIG. 11, the support structures 100 are installed
adjacent to
each other on the same horizontal plane by joint frames 140, so that a wind
force
power generation complex can be created. At this time, the joint frames 140
extend
from the first and second frames of the upper and lower end supports 110 and
120 of
the support structure 100, and are thereby connected with the upper and lower
end
supports 110 and 120 of the support structure 100. Further, the joint frames
140 extend
parallel to the upper and lower end supports 110 and 120, and thereby connect
two of
the support structures 100 that are adjacent to each other. Thus, the
plurality of support
structures 100 have a regular arrangement, and are interconnected by the joint
frames
140, so that they can maintain a more firmly supported state.
[44] In the drawings and the specification, typical exemplary embodiments of
the
invention have been disclosed, and although specific terms are employed, they
are used
in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for the purposes of
limitation, the
scope of the invention being set forth in the following claims. As described
above, the
support structure for the wind rotor of the present invention has a simple
structure that
comprises the triangular upper and lower end supports, and the connectors
inter-
connecting the apexes of the two supports, so that it can provide high
rigidity and
spatial utility using the minimum amount of materials. Furthermore, a
plurality of
support structures can be installed in a stacked structure or in a regularly
arranged
structure when interconnected adjacent to each other, so that a wind force
power
generation complex can be easily created.
