WO2012025667A1 - Wind power plant structure - Google Patents

Wind power plant structure Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2012025667A1
WO2012025667A1 PCT/FI2011/050725 FI2011050725W WO2012025667A1 WO 2012025667 A1 WO2012025667 A1 WO 2012025667A1 FI 2011050725 W FI2011050725 W FI 2011050725W WO 2012025667 A1 WO2012025667 A1 WO 2012025667A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
outer ring
main bearing
rotor
wind power
power plant
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/FI2011/050725
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Vesa Tarula
Kalle Sivill
Antti Rautio
Juhani Jokinen
Original Assignee
Winwind Oy
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Winwind Oy filed Critical Winwind Oy
Priority to EP11819470.3A priority Critical patent/EP2609328A4/en
Publication of WO2012025667A1 publication Critical patent/WO2012025667A1/en

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Classifications

    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D15/00—Transmission of mechanical power
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D9/00—Adaptations of wind motors for special use; Combinations of wind motors with apparatus driven thereby; Wind motors specially adapted for installation in particular locations
    • F03D9/20—Wind motors characterised by the driven apparatus
    • F03D9/25—Wind motors characterised by the driven apparatus the apparatus being an electrical generator
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D1/00—Wind motors with rotation axis substantially parallel to the air flow entering the rotor 
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D15/00—Transmission of mechanical power
    • F03D15/10—Transmission of mechanical power using gearing not limited to rotary motion, e.g. with oscillating or reciprocating members
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D80/00—Details, components or accessories not provided for in groups F03D1/00 - F03D17/00
    • F03D80/70—Bearing or lubricating arrangements
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F03—MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; WIND, SPRING, OR WEIGHT MOTORS; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F03D—WIND MOTORS
    • F03D9/00—Adaptations of wind motors for special use; Combinations of wind motors with apparatus driven thereby; Wind motors specially adapted for installation in particular locations
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
    • F16C—SHAFTS; FLEXIBLE SHAFTS; ELEMENTS OR CRANKSHAFT MECHANISMS; ROTARY BODIES OTHER THAN GEARING ELEMENTS; BEARINGS
    • F16C33/00—Parts of bearings; Special methods for making bearings or parts thereof
    • F16C33/30—Parts of ball or roller bearings
    • F16C33/58—Raceways; Race rings
    • F16C33/581—Raceways; Race rings integral with other parts, e.g. with housings or machine elements such as shafts or gear wheels
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
    • F16H—GEARING
    • F16H1/00—Toothed gearings for conveying rotary motion
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F05—INDEXING SCHEMES RELATING TO ENGINES OR PUMPS IN VARIOUS SUBCLASSES OF CLASSES F01-F04
    • F05B—INDEXING SCHEME RELATING TO WIND, SPRING, WEIGHT, INERTIA OR LIKE MOTORS, TO MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS COVERED BY SUBCLASSES F03B, F03D AND F03G
    • F05B2240/00—Components
    • F05B2240/60—Shafts
    • F05B2240/61—Shafts hollow
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F05—INDEXING SCHEMES RELATING TO ENGINES OR PUMPS IN VARIOUS SUBCLASSES OF CLASSES F01-F04
    • F05B—INDEXING SCHEME RELATING TO WIND, SPRING, WEIGHT, INERTIA OR LIKE MOTORS, TO MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS COVERED BY SUBCLASSES F03B, F03D AND F03G
    • F05B2260/00—Function
    • F05B2260/40—Transmission of power
    • F05B2260/403—Transmission of power through the shape of the drive components
    • F05B2260/4031—Transmission of power through the shape of the drive components as in toothed gearing
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
    • F16C—SHAFTS; FLEXIBLE SHAFTS; ELEMENTS OR CRANKSHAFT MECHANISMS; ROTARY BODIES OTHER THAN GEARING ELEMENTS; BEARINGS
    • F16C19/00—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement
    • F16C19/22—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings
    • F16C19/34—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings for both radial and axial load
    • F16C19/38—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings for both radial and axial load with two or more rows of rollers
    • F16C19/383—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings for both radial and axial load with two or more rows of rollers with tapered rollers, i.e. rollers having essentially the shape of a truncated cone
    • F16C19/385—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings for both radial and axial load with two or more rows of rollers with tapered rollers, i.e. rollers having essentially the shape of a truncated cone with two rows, i.e. double-row tapered roller bearings
    • F16C19/386—Bearings with rolling contact, for exclusively rotary movement with bearing rollers essentially of the same size in one or more circular rows, e.g. needle bearings for both radial and axial load with two or more rows of rollers with tapered rollers, i.e. rollers having essentially the shape of a truncated cone with two rows, i.e. double-row tapered roller bearings in O-arrangement
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
    • F16C—SHAFTS; FLEXIBLE SHAFTS; ELEMENTS OR CRANKSHAFT MECHANISMS; ROTARY BODIES OTHER THAN GEARING ELEMENTS; BEARINGS
    • F16C2360/00—Engines or pumps
    • F16C2360/31—Wind motors
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
    • F16H—GEARING
    • F16H1/00—Toothed gearings for conveying rotary motion
    • F16H1/02—Toothed gearings for conveying rotary motion without gears having orbital motion
    • F16H1/04—Toothed gearings for conveying rotary motion without gears having orbital motion involving only two intermeshing members
    • F16H1/06—Toothed gearings for conveying rotary motion without gears having orbital motion involving only two intermeshing members with parallel axes
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
    • Y02E10/70—Wind energy
    • Y02E10/72—Wind turbines with rotation axis in wind direction

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a wind power plant structure as defined in the preamble of claim 1.
  • a rotating rotor is coupled with a shaft that is bear- ing-mounted to the shell of the wind power plant.
  • the shaft is then connected to a generator disposed on the shell through a gearbox, mostly a single- or multiple- step planetary gearbox.
  • the objective of the invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the prior art as brought out above.
  • the objective of the invention is to further lighten and simplify the structures in wind power plants and thereby to enable economically profitable construction, maintenance and servicing of even larger power plants.
  • the wind power plant structure includes a substantially horizontal-axis rotor with a hub and blades supported thereto.
  • a shell i.e. a nacelle
  • it encompasses a main bearing between the rotor and the shell by which the rotor is rotated, and at least one generator coupled to the rotor, or possibly another device for recovering the rotational energy of the rotor.
  • the main bearing includes an inner ring mounted in its position on the shell, an outer ring mounted to the hub of the rotor, and a bearing between the inner ring and the outer ring.
  • the outer ring is provided with toothing coupled with the generator.
  • the main idea of the invention is a shaft-free rotor structure wherein the rotor is directly mounted to the outer ring of the main bearing and, similarly, the generator is disposed in a direct power transmission connection to this rotational part of the main bearing.
  • a structure resembling a bearing known as a toothed directional bearing is used as the load-carrying main bearing of the rotor as well as the gear of the first step of a step-up transmission .
  • the hub of the rotor or the outer ring of the main bearing must have a suitable projecting ring portion that enables their direct coupling to each other.
  • Another alternative is to mount the outer ring of the main bearing to the hub of the rotor through a coupling ring, i.e. a suitable spacer.
  • the essential feature in both embodiments is that the hub of the rotor and the outer ring of the main bearing constitute a single and integral rotational assembly.
  • the main bearing is a bearing carrying the bending moment load by itself, such as a double row tapered roller bearing .
  • the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing is most suitably disposed on the outer surface thereof.
  • One or more generators can thus be directly coupled to the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing through a gear disposed on the shaft thereof. It is also possible to use a suitable step-up transmission between the generator and the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing in order to raise the rotational speed of the generator.
  • the wind power plant structure according to the inven- tion provides considerable advantages as compared with the prior art.
  • the structure according to the invention enables the construction of a 6M wind power station in which the combined weight of the power unit and the shell nearly corresponds to the current 3M machines.
  • the greater the power class the more advantageous is the structure according to the invention in comparison with the current structure comprising a planetary transmission.
  • the invention provides a cost-effective structure, as therein are combined, i.e. provided from one monolithic piece, a large gear to be hardened by heat treatment and a large outer race of the main bearing to be hardened by heat treatment. This way, the two expensive and time- consuming heat treatments can be made simultaneously for one and the same piece.
  • Another advantage is the low amount of material needed for the circular gear with the large hole in comparison with the conventional gear with a smaller hole to be mounted on the shaft .
  • An economically significant alternative especially in extremely large units, for example in more than 20MW power plants, is to provide the toothing of the outer ring in the bearing from several separate segments that are mounted to the outer surface of the outer ring to form a continuous toothed ring.
  • the forces provided from the rotor through the main bearing are applied directly to the shell through the bearing and are not transmitted through a transmission, i.e. the gearbox of the generator coupling to the outer ring of the main bearing, in which case the gearbox is preferably manufactured with the rigidity required by the bearings of the output shafts without unnecessarily heavy structures.
  • Deformations of the tooth contacts in the toothed transmission derive from elasticity of the rolling elements in the main bearing and from elasticity of the gearbox and the bearing of the output shafts. In the inventive structure, these can be relatively easily brought to a level that enables a good tooth contact in different situations and thereby max- imizes the power transferred by the toothed transmission .
  • One advantage in comparison with the known structures is the large non-rotational hole in the middle of the structure, i.e. the shell and the bearing, which enables a nearly upright walking to the hub of the rotor.
  • This central opening of the shell does not constitute an obstacle for example to the mechanical blade turn- ing systems, ventilation or air-assisted blade heating or even large heating cables. From easy access to the structure follows easy serviceability of the power transmission between the main bearing and the generators .
  • the large and rigid main bearing of the rotor is also very well suited for the bearing of an input gear of the generator, whether directly disposed on the shaft of the generator or coupled to the generator through suitable transmissions, because the load-carrying capacity of the main bearing is very high i'n comparison to the loads generated by the toothing. For this reason, the position and number of output shafts can be freely selected and they need not be positioned sym- metrically to achieve force balance. Similarly, at low power, only a necessary number of generators can be loaded in order to maximize efficiency without the risk of damages to the durability of the bearings caused by irregularly distributed forces.
  • the shell 3 of a wind power plant is bearing-mounted on top of the mast 13 of the wind power plant by a vertical-axis bearing (not shown in the figure) substantially to rotate in the horizontal plane.
  • the shell 3 is a tubular structure constituting an angle of approximately 90 degrees, the lower end of the shell being bearing- mounted to the upper end of the mast 13, as stated above, and the inner ring 6 of a main bearing 4 in the power plant being rigidly mounted to the other end of the shell that is also circular in shape.
  • the inner ring is formed by two halves, i.e. ring parts 14 and 15, that are mounted to each other and to the upper end of the shell by bolts 16.
  • the main bearing In addition to the inner ring 6, the main bearing
  • the main bearing carrying the bending moment load by itself may also be for example a three row roller bearing, four point ball bearing, plain or crossed roll bearing or a combination thereof.
  • a circular coupling ring 10 is mounted to the outer ring 7, to the front surface thereof, i.e. to the side surface disposed away from the shell 3, and the hub 2 of a rotor is mounted to the circular outer surface of the coupling ring.
  • the hub 2 of the rotor, the coupling ring 10 and the rotating outer ring 7 of the main bearing 4 are bolted together by bolts 17 to form an integral and collectively rotational assembly.
  • a generator is supported and mounted to the shell 3 and rotated via a shaft 11 projecting from one end thereof.
  • the shaft 11 is bearing-mounted next to the outer ring 7 of the main bearing 4 via a sup- porting frame 18 supported on the shell 3.
  • the shaft 11 of the generator includes a gear 12 and it is disposed in a power transmission connection to a toothing 9 disposed on the outer surface of the outer ring 7 in the main bearing 4.
  • the figure only illustrates one generator, but there may be one or several of them around the main bearing.
  • the large-diameter main bearing and the shaft of the generator form a distinct force path for each generator independently of the others, it is possible freely to select the number and size of the generators to be used as well as their location on the ring according to need. Similarly, at low power, only some of the generators can be used with good efficiency.
  • the shaft of the generator and the projecting extension thereof can be disposed in a direct toothed contact to the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing.
  • a step-up transmission 19 such as a gearbox or the like, suitable to be used in conjunction with the generator, on a supporting frame 18, by which the rotational speed of the generator can be raised to a desired level.
  • the generators can be loaded com- pletely independently of each other. This also enables individual servicing and repair procedures of the gen- erators and power transmissions. As the generators and step-up transmissions are disposed outside the load- carrying shell, they are free of all external loads.
  • the solution also provides an easy passageway to the hub directly through the load-carrying tubular shell structure. This is of significant use in terms of cooling, servicing and passing of instrumentation.

Abstract

The invention relates to a wind power plant structure including a rotor (1) with a hub (2) and blades supported thereto; a shell (3); a main bearing (4) between the rotor and the shell; and at least one generator (5) coupled to the rotor. According to the invention, the main bearing (4) includes an inner ring (6) mounted in its position on the shell (3); an outer ring (7) mounted to the hub (2) of the rotor; and a bearing (8) between the inner ring and the outer ring. Furthermore, the outer ring encompasses a toothing (9) coupled with the generator (5).

Description

WIND POWER PLANT STRUCTURE FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a wind power plant structure as defined in the preamble of claim 1.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Traditionally, in horizontal-axis wind power plants, a rotating rotor is coupled with a shaft that is bear- ing-mounted to the shell of the wind power plant. The shaft is then connected to a generator disposed on the shell through a gearbox, mostly a single- or multiple- step planetary gearbox. As the size of wind power plants is continuously growing to several megawatts and power plants of even tens of MW are being designed, the increase in size and weight of the power plants has become the greatest problem. These problems have already been reduced for example in the wind power plants disclosed in publications EP 0811764 (Aerodyn) and US 6304002 (Dehlsen) , which aim at simplifying the shafts, bearings and gearboxes of the turbine or at least providing them as a more compact assembly. The corresponding technology has also been described in patent US7069802 (Clipper) . Also, the durability of the complicated planetary gearboxes is questioned as the powers of the power plants are raised to several megawatts. OBJECTIVE OF THE INVENTION
The objective of the invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the prior art as brought out above. In particular, the objective of the invention is to further lighten and simplify the structures in wind power plants and thereby to enable economically profitable construction, maintenance and servicing of even larger power plants.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The wind power plant structure according to the invention includes a substantially horizontal-axis rotor with a hub and blades supported thereto. In addition, it includes a shell, i.e. a nacelle, to be rotated horizontally, i.e. about a vertical axis, at one end of the power plant tower. Furthermore, it encompasses a main bearing between the rotor and the shell by which the rotor is rotated, and at least one generator coupled to the rotor, or possibly another device for recovering the rotational energy of the rotor. Accord- ing to the invention, the main bearing includes an inner ring mounted in its position on the shell, an outer ring mounted to the hub of the rotor, and a bearing between the inner ring and the outer ring. In addition, the outer ring is provided with toothing coupled with the generator.
Thus, the main idea of the invention is a shaft-free rotor structure wherein the rotor is directly mounted to the outer ring of the main bearing and, similarly, the generator is disposed in a direct power transmission connection to this rotational part of the main bearing. In other words, a structure resembling a bearing known as a toothed directional bearing is used as the load-carrying main bearing of the rotor as well as the gear of the first step of a step-up transmission .
One option is directly to mount the rotational outer ring of the main bearing to the hub of the rotor. In this case, the hub of the rotor or the outer ring of the main bearing must have a suitable projecting ring portion that enables their direct coupling to each other. Another alternative is to mount the outer ring of the main bearing to the hub of the rotor through a coupling ring, i.e. a suitable spacer. However, the essential feature in both embodiments is that the hub of the rotor and the outer ring of the main bearing constitute a single and integral rotational assembly.
In the structure according to the invention, the main bearing is a bearing carrying the bending moment load by itself, such as a double row tapered roller bearing .
The toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing is most suitably disposed on the outer surface thereof. One or more generators can thus be directly coupled to the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing through a gear disposed on the shaft thereof. It is also possible to use a suitable step-up transmission between the generator and the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing in order to raise the rotational speed of the generator.
The wind power plant structure according to the inven- tion provides considerable advantages as compared with the prior art.
The structure according to the invention enables the construction of a 6M wind power station in which the combined weight of the power unit and the shell nearly corresponds to the current 3M machines. The greater the power class, the more advantageous is the structure according to the invention in comparison with the current structure comprising a planetary transmission. As for the manufacturing technique, the invention provides a cost-effective structure, as therein are combined, i.e. provided from one monolithic piece, a large gear to be hardened by heat treatment and a large outer race of the main bearing to be hardened by heat treatment. This way, the two expensive and time- consuming heat treatments can be made simultaneously for one and the same piece. Another advantage is the low amount of material needed for the circular gear with the large hole in comparison with the conventional gear with a smaller hole to be mounted on the shaft .
An economically significant alternative especially in extremely large units, for example in more than 20MW power plants, is to provide the toothing of the outer ring in the bearing from several separate segments that are mounted to the outer surface of the outer ring to form a continuous toothed ring.
In the inventive structure, the forces provided from the rotor through the main bearing are applied directly to the shell through the bearing and are not transmitted through a transmission, i.e. the gearbox of the generator coupling to the outer ring of the main bearing, in which case the gearbox is preferably manufactured with the rigidity required by the bearings of the output shafts without unnecessarily heavy structures. Deformations of the tooth contacts in the toothed transmission derive from elasticity of the rolling elements in the main bearing and from elasticity of the gearbox and the bearing of the output shafts. In the inventive structure, these can be relatively easily brought to a level that enables a good tooth contact in different situations and thereby max- imizes the power transferred by the toothed transmission .
One advantage in comparison with the known structures is the large non-rotational hole in the middle of the structure, i.e. the shell and the bearing, which enables a nearly upright walking to the hub of the rotor. This central opening of the shell does not constitute an obstacle for example to the mechanical blade turn- ing systems, ventilation or air-assisted blade heating or even large heating cables. From easy access to the structure follows easy serviceability of the power transmission between the main bearing and the generators .
The large and rigid main bearing of the rotor is also very well suited for the bearing of an input gear of the generator, whether directly disposed on the shaft of the generator or coupled to the generator through suitable transmissions, because the load-carrying capacity of the main bearing is very high i'n comparison to the loads generated by the toothing. For this reason, the position and number of output shafts can be freely selected and they need not be positioned sym- metrically to achieve force balance. Similarly, at low power, only a necessary number of generators can be loaded in order to maximize efficiency without the risk of damages to the durability of the bearings caused by irregularly distributed forces.
LIST OF FIGURES
In the following section, the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawing that illustrates a sectional view of one wind power plant structure according to the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In the structure illustrated in the figure, the shell
3 of a wind power plant is bearing-mounted on top of the mast 13 of the wind power plant by a vertical-axis bearing (not shown in the figure) substantially to rotate in the horizontal plane. The shell 3 is a tubular structure constituting an angle of approximately 90 degrees, the lower end of the shell being bearing- mounted to the upper end of the mast 13, as stated above, and the inner ring 6 of a main bearing 4 in the power plant being rigidly mounted to the other end of the shell that is also circular in shape. In this embodiment, the inner ring is formed by two halves, i.e. ring parts 14 and 15, that are mounted to each other and to the upper end of the shell by bolts 16. In addition to the inner ring 6, the main bearing
4 includes a circular outer ring 7 surrounding it, and a bearing 8 therebetween, such as a double row tapered roller bearing. This way, the outer ring 7 is able freely to rotate on the bearing 8 around the inner ring 6. The main bearing carrying the bending moment load by itself may also be for example a three row roller bearing, four point ball bearing, plain or crossed roll bearing or a combination thereof.
A circular coupling ring 10 is mounted to the outer ring 7, to the front surface thereof, i.e. to the side surface disposed away from the shell 3, and the hub 2 of a rotor is mounted to the circular outer surface of the coupling ring. This way, the hub 2 of the rotor, the coupling ring 10 and the rotating outer ring 7 of the main bearing 4 are bolted together by bolts 17 to form an integral and collectively rotational assembly. In the figure, a generator is supported and mounted to the shell 3 and rotated via a shaft 11 projecting from one end thereof. The shaft 11 is bearing-mounted next to the outer ring 7 of the main bearing 4 via a sup- porting frame 18 supported on the shell 3. The shaft 11 of the generator includes a gear 12 and it is disposed in a power transmission connection to a toothing 9 disposed on the outer surface of the outer ring 7 in the main bearing 4. As the rotor 1 and the hub 2 are thus rotated, the outer ring 7 of the main bearing 4 rotates as well, rotating the shaft 11 of the generator and thereby the generator 5 itself.
The figure only illustrates one generator, but there may be one or several of them around the main bearing. As the large-diameter main bearing and the shaft of the generator form a distinct force path for each generator independently of the others, it is possible freely to select the number and size of the generators to be used as well as their location on the ring according to need. Similarly, at low power, only some of the generators can be used with good efficiency.
In the embodiment illustrated in the figure, the shaft of the generator and the projecting extension thereof can be disposed in a direct toothed contact to the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing. However, it is also possible to support a step-up transmission 19, such as a gearbox or the like, suitable to be used in conjunction with the generator, on a supporting frame 18, by which the rotational speed of the generator can be raised to a desired level.
As mentioned above, the generators can be loaded com- pletely independently of each other. This also enables individual servicing and repair procedures of the gen- erators and power transmissions. As the generators and step-up transmissions are disposed outside the load- carrying shell, they are free of all external loads. The solution also provides an easy passageway to the hub directly through the load-carrying tubular shell structure. This is of significant use in terms of cooling, servicing and passing of instrumentation.
The invention is not limited merely to the examples referred to above; instead, many variations are possible within the scope of the inventive idea defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A wind power plant structure including a rotor (1) with a hub (2) and blades supported thereto; a shell (3) ; a main bearing (4) between the rotor and the shell; and at least one generator (5) coupled to the rotor, characteri zed in that the main bearing
(4) includes an inner ring (6) mounted in its position on the shell (3); an outer ring (7) mounted to the hub (2). of the rotor; and a bearing (8) between the inner ring and the outer ring, and that the outer ring encompasses a toothing (9) coupled with the generator
(5) .
2. The wind power plant structure according to claim 1, characterized in that the outer ring (7) of the main bearing (4) is directly mounted to the hub (2) of the rotor (1) .
3. The wind power plant structure according to claim 1, cha racte r i z ed in that the outer ring (7) of the main bearing (4) is mounted to the hub of the rotor through a coupling ring (10) .
4. The wind power plant structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the main bearing (4) is a bearing carrying the bending moment load by itself, such as a double row tapered roller bearing.
5. The wind power plant structure according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characteri zed in that the toothing (9) of the outer ring (7) is disposed on the outer surface thereof.
6. The wind power plant structure according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the generator (5) is directly coupled to the toothing (9) of the outer ring in the main bearing via a gear (12) disposed on the shaft (11) thereof.
7. The wind power plant structure according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that a step-up transmission is included between the generator and the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing in order to raise the rotational speed of the generator .
8. The wind power plant structure according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characteri zed in that it includes two or more generators coupled to the toothing of the outer ring in the main bearing.
PCT/FI2011/050725 2010-08-26 2011-08-18 Wind power plant structure WO2012025667A1 (en)

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EP11819470.3A EP2609328A4 (en) 2010-08-26 2011-08-18 Wind power plant structure

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FI20105890A FI123019B (en) 2010-08-26 2010-08-26 Wind Turbine Construction
FI20105890 2010-08-26

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WO2012025667A1 true WO2012025667A1 (en) 2012-03-01

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JPWO2014097428A1 (en) * 2012-12-19 2017-01-12 三菱重工業株式会社 Renewable energy generator
EP3141743A1 (en) * 2015-09-09 2017-03-15 Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Wind turbine hub arrangement
CN111263857A (en) * 2017-09-21 2020-06-09 Imo控股有限责任公司 Main bearing unit for a rotor shaft of a wind turbine and wind turbine

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CN111263857A (en) * 2017-09-21 2020-06-09 Imo控股有限责任公司 Main bearing unit for a rotor shaft of a wind turbine and wind turbine
CN111263857B (en) * 2017-09-21 2022-02-18 Imo控股有限责任公司 Main bearing unit for a rotor shaft of a wind turbine and wind turbine

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
FI123019B (en) 2012-10-15
EP2609328A4 (en) 2014-12-17
FI20105890A0 (en) 2010-08-26
EP2609328A1 (en) 2013-07-03
FI20105890A (en) 2012-02-27

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