VARIABLE SPEED WIND TURBINE HAVING A CONSTANT SPEED GENERATOR

A variable speed wind turbine including a variable speed rotor, a large constant speed generator, and a small variable speed generator is characterized by a three-shaft variable ratio gearbox connecting the shaft of the rotor with the two generator shafts. The variable ratio gearbox is an epicyclic...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author PAVLAK ALEXANDER J
Format Patent
LanguageEnglish
Published 16.09.2010
Subjects
CONTROL OR REGULATION OF ELECTRIC MOTORS, ELECTRIC GENERATORSOR DYNAMO-ELECTRIC CONVERTERS
CONTROLLING TRANSFORMERS, REACTORS OR CHOKE COILS
CONVERSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC POWER
ELECTRICITY
GENERATION
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Summary:A variable speed wind turbine including a variable speed rotor, a large constant speed generator, and a small variable speed generator is characterized by a three-shaft variable ratio gearbox connecting the shaft of the rotor with the two generator shafts. The variable ratio gearbox is an epicyclic gearbox which enables the combination of the high performance of a variable speed rotor with the low cost of a large constant speed generator. The torque of the small variable speed generator controls the rotor speed. Variable frequency power conditioning cost is less than that of a prior art variable speed wind turbine, reduced by the ratio of the rated capacity of the small generator to total rated capacity. Also, the small generator enables efficient low wind velocity energy capture. The low rotational inertia of the small variable speed generator further reduces drive train dynamic stress.
Bibliography:Application Number: US20090401978