WINDMILL UTILIZING A FLUID DRIVEN PUMP

• Main Author: PLANT, JR. WILLIAM R
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 05.11.2009
• Subjects: BLASTING; CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION ORPROCESSING OF GOODS; CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORSOR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS; CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS; CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER; ELECTRICITY; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERATION; HEATING; LIGHTING; MACHINES OR ENGINES FOR LIQUIDS; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; OR A REACTIVE PROPULSIVE THRUST, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PRODUCING MECHANICAL POWER; REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGYGENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE; WEAPONS; WIND MOTORS; WIND, SPRING WEIGHT AND MISCELLANEOUS MOTORS

A windmill apparatus includes tower, a tower-mounted hydraulic pump driven by windmill blades, and hydraulic lines connected to a ground storage tank and to a number of separate generator units. Each generator unit includes a hydraulic pump and an electrical generator. In operation, upon startup, as the wind propels the propeller-driven pump the hydraulic fluid circulates freely until a pre-set pressure is achieved, upon which a diverter valve diverts all the fluid pressure to the first generator unit. When the first generator unit is powered sufficiently to achieve a stable output voltage, a subsequent one of the remaining generator units is powered up until its output voltage is stabilized, with this process continuing as long as there is a surplus of hydraulic power available to power up additional units to take full advantage of all of the available wind power.