Patent Application
20110084486
The present invention relates to a wind turbine generator that generates power using a wind turbine converting wind of natural energy into a rotative force and, in particular, to an off-shore wind turbine generator and an off-shore wind farm installed off shore or on shore.
A wind turbine generator that generates power using wind power of natural energy has been conventionally known. In this type of wind turbine generator, a nacelle disposed on a support column is provided with a rotor head to which wind turbine blades are attached, a main shaft coupled so as to rotate together with the rotor head, a gearbox coupled to the main shaft rotating when the wind turbine blades receive wind power, and a generator driven by shaft output power of the gearbox. In the thus-configured wind turbine generator, the rotor head, which has the wind turbine blades converting wind power into a rotative force, and the main shaft rotate to produce shaft output power, and the shaft output power whose rotational speed has been increased via the gearbox coupled to the main shaft is transferred to the generator. Thus, power generation can be performed in which the shaft output power obtained by converting wind power into a rotative force is used as a drive source of the generator, and wind power is used to power the generator.
Note that a plant in which a plurality of wind turbine generators are installed is called a wind farm.
It is expected that such wind turbine generators will be increasingly installed off shore or on shore in the future. A conventional wind turbine generator installed off shore (off-shore wind turbine generator) has only a function of observing the wind direction and the wind speed, in addition to the power generator function achieved by the wind turbine.
On the other hand, as a system for monitoring or searching for an object floating, drifting, or sailing on the ocean, a system for searching for the victim of distress using a monitoring apparatus, such as a laser radar, while processing positioning waves received from a GPS (Global Positioning System) navigation satellite and confirming the position of a rescue ship and the sailing record thereof has been disclosed (for example, see Patent Citation 1).
Since the above-described conventional off-shore wind turbine generator has only the function of observing the wind direction and the wind speed, it is difficult to monitor the main body of the wind turbine itself. In particular, because an off-shore wind turbine generator or an off-shore wind farm is installed at the edge of the country in many cases, it is difficult to continuously monitor the situation of (damage to) the main body of the wind turbine itself because of the conditions of the installation site.
On the other hand, rainfall observation around the off-shore wind turbine generator using a weather radar is difficult because there is no appropriate off-shore place to securely install the weather radar. Thus, at present, observation data obtained by a radar installed on the ground is used instead, but it is desirable to make an operational plan or execute operational control for the off-shore wind turbine generator based on the actual, most accurate weather data on site.
Furthermore, in many cases, the installation site of the off-shore wind turbine generator is located in an area where there are not many people, and it is difficult to find a ship in distress or the like in such an area.
In light of this background, in an off-shore wind turbine generator or an off-shore wind farm, it is desirable that accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like be obtained and reflected in an operational plan etc. for the wind turbine generator.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an off-shore wind turbine generator and an off-shore wind farm capable of obtaining accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like.
In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention employs the following solutions.
According to the present invention, there is provided an off-shore wind turbine generator that generates power by driving a generator mechanism through rotation of a rotor head to which wind turbine blades are attached, the off-shore wind turbine generator including monitoring means for monitoring the wind turbine generator itself and the surrounding circumstances.
According to this off-shore wind turbine generator, because the monitoring means for monitoring the wind turbine generator itself and its surrounding circumstances is included, accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like can be obtained. Information obtained by the monitoring means is sent to a control room located at an appropriate place near the off-shore wind turbine generator and used.
In the off-shore wind turbine generator of the present invention, it is preferable that the monitoring means include at least one of a radar, a laser radar, and a camera. It is preferable that monitoring means having a wide monitoring range be used as a continuous monitoring device during usual monitoring, and monitoring means having a narrow monitoring range be selectively used depending on the situation.
In this case, the radar can monitor a range of several kilometers to several tens of kilometers, and a marine radar or a weather radar may be employed.
Further, the laser radar can monitor a range up to several kilometers, and a marine radar may be employed.
Furthermore, the camera can monitor a range up to several hundred meters, and a visible-light camera or an infrared camera may be employed.
In the off-shore wind turbine generator of the present invention, it is preferable to further include movable means for allowing the monitoring means to monitor an area of 360 degrees. Thus, wide-range monitoring can be efficiently performed by the smallest number of monitoring means.
In the off-shore wind turbine generator of the present invention, it is preferable that the radar, the laser radar, and the camera, which serve as the monitoring means, be installed outside a noise occurrence area where noise is produced by the rotation of the wind turbine blades. Preferable specific examples of a position outside the noise occurrence area include a position that is located on the top of a supporting member provided on the upper surface of a nacelle and that is higher than the wind turbine blades, a position that is located on a support column of the wind turbine generator and that is lower than the wind turbine blades, and a position that is located on a horizontal shaft protruding from a rotor head end portion or a nacelle end portion.
In the off-shore wind turbine generator of the present invention, it is preferable that the radar, the laser radar, and the camera, which serve as the monitoring means, be installed on a nacelle, and noise removal means for removing the noise produced by the rotation of the wind turbine blades be further provided. Thus, modification of the structure of the wind turbine is unnecessary, and accurate radar observation can be performed.
In the off-shore wind turbine generator of the present invention, it is preferable to further include alarm/warning means for the surroundings. Thus, an alarm or warning can be swiftly issued in an abnormal situation.
In this case, examples of preferable alarm/warning means include audio means, such as a speaker or a siren, and visual means, such as a warning light. When a whistle that sounds due to the rotation of the wind turbine blades is provided at an appropriate place on the wind turbine blades, and an airflow path thereof is opened or closed as needed, the whistle can be alarm/warning means that does not require power other than that for the opening/closing operation.
According to the present invention, there is provided an off-shore wind farm including a plurality of off-shore wind turbine generators having a mixture of an off-shore wind turbine generator according to any one of the above-described off-shore wind turbine generators of the present invention and an ordinary off-shore wind turbine generator that does not have the monitoring means, in which the ordinary off-shore wind turbine generator is disposed in a monitorable area of the off-shore wind turbine generator.
According to this off-shore wind farm, the ordinary off-shore wind turbine generator is arranged in the monitorable area of the off-shore wind turbine generator; thus, the number of monitoring means can be reduced.
In the off-shore wind farm of the present invention, it is preferable that the ordinary off-shore wind turbine generator be disposed at a position where a plurality of the off-shore wind turbine generators can monitor the ordinary off-shore wind turbine generator. Thus, the monitoring reliability and the accuracy of monitoring information can be improved.
According to the above-described present invention, in the off-shore wind turbine generator or the off-shore wind farm, accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like can be obtained and reflected in an operational plan etc. for the wind turbine generator. Furthermore, in the off-shore wind farm, mutual monitoring between adjacent off-shore wind turbine generators can be performed.
Since the monitoring means is fixedly installed off shore, the accuracy of sea monitoring using the radar or the like can be improved, and it can also be used to search for a ship in distress or the like.
An off-shore wind turbine generator and an off-shore wind farm according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
A plurality of wind turbine blades 5 are attached to the rotor head 4 in a radiating pattern around the rotational axis thereof. As a result, the force of wind striking the wind turbine blades 5 from the rotational-axis direction of the rotor head 4 is converted into a force causing the rotor head 4 to rotate about the rotational axis.
The power-generating facility 1 is provided with a monitoring apparatus 10, shown in
The monitoring apparatus 10 includes three types of devices, namely, a radar 11, a laser radar 12, and a camera 13. In this case, the radar 11 having the widest monitoring range is used as a continuous monitoring device that continuously monitors the surroundings, and the laser radar 12 and the camera 13 are used as selective monitoring devices that are selectively used when needed.
Monitoring information obtained by the monitoring apparatus 10 is sent, for example, to a control room 20 that is provided on the land or the like close to the installation site of the power-generating facility 1. During usual monitoring, monitoring information obtained when only the radar 11 is operated is delivered to the control room 20. However, in a case where an abnormality is recognized in the monitoring information obtained by the radar 11 or in a case where an abnormal signal is output from the power-generating facility 1, a switch signal is output as needed from the control room 20 to select and switch to monitoring executed by the laser radar 12 or the camera 13, serving as the selective monitoring device. As a result, the selected one of the laser radar 12 and the camera 13 is operated and delivers monitoring information to the control room 20.
Based on the monitoring information delivered from the monitoring apparatus 10, the control room 20 executes operational control and an operational plan for the power-generating facility 1, reports, as needed, an abnormality to related/cooperating organizations 30, and then receives instructions therefrom. Specific examples of the related/cooperating organizations 30 include relevant authorities for the ocean area around the installation site of the power-generating facility 1, nearby ships, and neighboring local governments.
The monitoring apparatus 10 executes monitoring for 24 consecutive hours, and monitoring information thereof is delivered to the control room 20 and is recorded therein.
The three types of devices constituting the above-described monitoring apparatus 10 will be specifically described here.
The radar 11 is used as the continuous monitoring device for executing usual monitoring and has the widest monitoring range (several kilometers to several tens of kilometers) among the three types of devices. As the radar 11, a marine radar or a weather radar can be used, for example. Of those radars, the marine radar is suitable for searching for and monitoring by a ship, such as a rescue ship, and the weather radar is suitable for local weather observation in an ocean area around the installation site of the power-generating facility 1. Although the weather radar has an observation range narrower than a general weather radar installed on the land, it can accurately observe local precipitation etc. for torrential rain in the surrounding ocean area by setting the resolution higher.
As shown in
Specifically, the installation position of the radar 11 is set at the outside of an area where noise of electromagnetic waves reflected on the rotating wind turbine blades 5 is produced (outside of a noise occurrence area).
Further, the radar 11 has movable means provided to allow a range of 360 degrees to be monitored around the power-generating facility 1. Therefore, the radar 11 can monitor as wide as 360 degrees around the power-generating facility 1.
When the radar 11 is installed at a position lower than the position of a lowermost end of the rotating wind turbine blades 5, it is also outside the noise occurrence area; but the radar 11 is desirably installed at the highest possible position when wide-range monitoring is taken into account.
Next, an installation position of the radar 11 according to a first modification will be described with reference to
In this modification, the radar 11 is installed on the upper surface of the nacelle 3. Since this installation position is located in an area where noise is produced by the rotation of the wind turbine blades 5, noise removal means that removes noise from the periodicity of the wind turbine blades 5 is provided in the radar 11.
This installation structure of the radar 11 is advantageous in terms of cost because a change in the structure of the power-generating facility 1, such as attaching the above-described supporting member 7 thereto, is not necessary. Further, since noise produced by the rotation of the wind turbine blades 5 is removed by the noise removal means, accurate radar observation can be performed.
Next, installation positions of radars 11 according to a second modification will be described with reference to
In this modification, the radars 11 are attached, one each, on a horizontal shaft 8 protruding from a front end face of the rotor head 4 and on a horizontal shaft 8 protruding from a rear end face of the nacelle 3. The horizontal shafts 8 are fixed shafts independent of the rotation of the wind turbine blades 5 and the rotor head 4. Specifically, the radars 11 secured to the horizontal shafts 8 do not rotate together with the wind turbine blades 5 and can monitor their surroundings while keeping the same positions.
With this installation, the radar 11 that is installed at a front end portion of the rotor head 4 can monitor forward without being influenced by the wind turbine blades 5 rotating at the back, and the radar 11 that is installed at a rear end portion of the nacelle 3 can monitor backward without being influenced by the wind turbine blades 5 rotating at the front. Therefore, the pair of radars 11 can monitor a wide range around the power-generating facility 1.
In the off-shore wind farm, to be described later, the radar 11 can also be installed on only one of the front end face of the rotor head 4 and the rear end face of the nacelle 3. In that case, when the power-generating facilities 1 are arranged in a zigzag manner, a wide view can be secured for the wind farm as a whole.
Next, the laser radar 12 is a device installed for selective monitoring and has an intermediate monitoring range (up to approximately several kilometers) among the three types of devices. It is preferable that a marine radar be used as the laser radar 12 because the laser radar 12 is used for ocean monitoring. The laser radar 12 usually monitors another adjacent or close wind turbine generator 1 in the off-shore wind farm to visually see whether it has been damaged. Further, if a search for a ship in distress or the like is needed, monitoring and searching for the monitoring object can be performed through a manual operation from the control room 20.
The above-described laser radar 12 is preferably installed outside the noise occurrence area, similarly to the radar 11. Since the laser radar 12 has a high directivity and has a monitorable distance that is not as long as that of the radar 11, as shown in
In this case, the laser radar 12 is installed on an installation platform 9a of a movable mechanism 9 that revolves around the support column 2, and thus the monitoring direction can be freely changed as needed. The movable mechanism 9 used for the laser radar 12 may be shared with the above-described radar 11 and the camera 13, to be described later, and the above-described radar 11 and the camera 13 may also be installed in line on the installation platform 9a. This allows a reduction in cost.
Furthermore, as shown in
Next, the camera 13 is a device installed for selective monitoring and has the narrowest monitoring range (up to approximately several hundred meters) among the three types of devices. A visible-light camera, an infrared camera, or the like can be used as the camera 13. The camera 13 usually monitors another adjacent or close wind turbine generator 1 in the off-shore wind farm, similarly to the laser radar 12, and can visually monitor it and determine from a clearer image whether it has been damaged. Further, if a search for a ship in distress or the like is needed, monitoring and searching for the monitoring object can be performed through a manual operation from the control room 20.
The installation position of the camera 13 is not particularly restricted, but it is preferably installed at the same position as the laser radar 12, for example. Specifically, as shown in
Furthermore, as shown in
According to this power-generating facility 1, the monitoring apparatus 10 for monitoring the power-generating facility itself and its surrounding circumstances is included; thus, accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like can be obtained. The information obtained by the monitoring apparatus 10 is sent to the control room 20 located at an appropriate place near the power-generating facility 1 and used. Then, when an abnormality is reported to the related/cooperating organizations 30 as needed, appropriate instructions can be obtained to take prompt action.
In the above-described embodiment, the monitoring apparatus 10 includes all of the radar 11, the laser radar 12, and the camera 13; however, the number of devices to be included can be appropriately changed depending on various conditions, such as the intended purpose or installation environment, and just one or more devices among the above-described three types of devices needs to be included. If a plurality of devices are included, it is preferable that a device having a wide monitoring range be used as a continuous monitoring device during usual monitoring, and monitoring means having a narrow monitoring range be selectively used depending on the situation.
Further, it is desired that movable means, such as the movable mechanism 9, be provided for each of the devices constituting the monitoring apparatus 10 so as to ensure the widest possible monitorable area, preferably, a 360-degree monitorable area.
Next, off-shore wind farms according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described based on
Off-shore wind farms 50 and 50A shown in
In the off-shore wind farm 50 composed of the monitoring wind turbines 51 and the ordinary wind turbines 52, the ordinary wind turbines 52 are arranged in the monitorable areas of the monitoring wind turbines 51.
In an example arrangement in the wind farm 50 shown in
In an example arrangement in the wind farm 50A shown in
In the above-described embodiment, it is preferred that the power-generating facilities 1 include alarm/warning means for the surroundings. Specific examples of the alarm/warning means will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the off-shore wind farm, the alarm/warning means just needs to be provided in the whole farm.
In alarm/warning means shown in
Further, alarm/warning means shown in
Further, alarm/warning means shown in
According to the above-described off-shore wind turbine generator and off-shore wind farm of the present invention, accurate information about the situation of the wind turbine itself, surrounding weather conditions, and the like can be obtained by the monitoring apparatus 10 and can be reflected in the operational plan etc. for the power-generating facility 1.
In the off-shore wind farm, mutual monitoring between adjacent power-generating facilities 1 can be performed.
Further, since the monitoring apparatus 10 is fixedly installed off shore, the accuracy of sea monitoring using the radar or the like is improved, and it can be used to search for a ship in distress or the like.
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and, for example, the shape or the type of the wind turbine blades can be appropriately modified without departing from the scope thereof.
This application is national phase of, and claims priority from, International Application Number PCT/JP2008/068396 filed Oct. 9, 2008.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2008/068396 | 10/9/2008 | WO | 00 | 12/15/2010 |
