General Electric Company

Jacob Johannes Nies

Wouter Haans

Jan Erich Hemmelmann

Afroz Akhtar

Axel Braicks

Madireddi Vasu Datta

Shanmuga-Priyan Subramanian

Bharat S Bagepalli

Patrick Lee Jansen

Christof Martin Sihler

Hartmut Andreas Scholte-Wassink

Stephen Bertram Johnson

Till Hoffmann

Adam Daniel Minadeo

James Henry Madge

Eric Steven Buskirk

Murtuza Lokhandwalla

Gary Randall Barnes

John Paul Davis

Priyangu Chunilal Patel

Blake Weldon Wilson

Eugenio Yegro Segovia

Raed Zuhair Hasan

Bart Jan Veldkamp

Aaron Wertz

Pedro Luis Benito Santiago

Peter Rogall

Stefan Rieken

Christian Haag

Edwin Hidding

Patrick Achenbach

Ciro Cerretelli

Uli Ramm

Miguel Bartolome Lopez

Ulf Axelsson

Matteo Bellucci

Mikael Lindberg

Alvaro Jaime Calle Garrido

Kevin M Vandevoorde

Christoph Hessel

Mikael Björk

Kristina Anne Cruden

Arthur Lawrence Romano

Tahir Hassan Malik

The present subject matter relates to a gearbox system for a wind turbine. The gearbox may have a gearbox housing defining an inner gearbox volume. The gearbox system further comprises at least one reservoir for storing lubricant and a lubricant provision arrangement. In addition, a lubricant return arrangement is provided. Thus, the gearbox system comprises a lubrication cycle, in particular a closed lubrication cycle, wherein lubricant is provided from the reservoir through the lubricant provision arrangement to lubrication locations of the gearbox, and is subsequently returned to the reservoir passing through the lubricant return arrangement. Furthermore, the gearbox system includes an aeration arrangement which is connected to the gearbox volume and which has specifically configured restriction means. In order to obtain a beneficial operational behavior of the gearbox system, the gearbox system, in particular the reservoir, the pump, the lubricant provision arrangement and/or the aeration arrangement, is/are configured such that a lubricant flow, having an appropriate pressure and flow rate, is provided from the reservoir to each lubrication location, when the pump is operative; further, the gearbox volume gets flooded with lubricant from the reservoir, when the pump is or becomes inoperative.

Gearbox system for a wind turbine, wind turbine with a gearbox system, and method for operating a gearbox system

A bearing assembly for a drivetrain of a wind turbine includes at least one shaft having a circumferential outer surface. The bearing assembly also includes a bearing housing arranged circumferentially around the circumferential outer surface of the shaft. The bearing housing having at least deformation such that the bearing housing and the shaft have a corresponding deformation around a toroidal axis such that interfacing surfaces of the bearing housing and the shaft flex together and remain parallel during operation of the drivetrain, thereby distributing operational loads of the drivetrain. The bearing assembly further includes a bearing housed at least partially within the bearing housing and engaging the circumferential outer surface of the shaft.

Journal bearing housing and shaft for a wind turbine drivetrain having corresponding deformation

A method for installing a plurality of rotor blades to a rotatable hub secured atop a tower of a wind turbine includes providing a counterweight assembly having, at least, a mounting assembly and a counterweight mass secured at a distal end of the mounting assembly. The method also includes securing the mounting assembly at a first position on the hub of the wind turbine such that the counterweight mass biases the hub to rotate about its rotation axis in a first direction. Further, the method includes consecutively installing the plurality of rotor blades onto the hub of the wind turbine. Moreover, the method includes adjusting a position of the counterweight mass between each consecutive installation of the plurality of rotor blades to continuously change a center of gravity of the hub and maintain a balanced rotor of the wind turbine during installation of the plurality of rotor blades.

Counterweight assembly for use during single blade installation of a wind turbine

Methods for forming rotor blades, rotor blade mold assemblies, and cores for rotor blade mold assemblies are disclosed. A method includes providing a first shell substrate on a first mold, providing a generally hollow core on the first shell substrate, providing a second shell substrate on the generally hollow core, and providing a second mold on the second shell substrate. The method further includes flowing a resin into a mold interior defined between the first mold and the second mold.

Rotor blade mold assembly and method for forming rotor blade

A carrier and at least one pin shaft of a gearbox of a wind turbine and method of manufacturing same includes forming the carrier and the pin shaft(s) as a single part or separate components. Further, the method includes forming one or more voids in the pin shaft(s) and/or the carrier via additive manufacturing. As such, the void(s) is configured to increase flexibility of the pin shaft(s)/carrier so as to improve a load distribution thereof.

Gear assembly for a wind turbine gearbox having a flexible pin shaft and carrier

A method of locking a rotor of a wind turbine, the method including positioning of the rotor in a locking position; applying a rotor lock; forcing the rotor to turn in a first direction; and, applying a rotor brake.

Wind turbine and locking method

A system and method for lubricating gears in a wind turbine blade pitch drive are provided, wherein the pitch drive comprises a drive pinion gear with gear teeth that engage a pitch bearing gear coupled to a respective wind turbine blade. A grease distributor is configured to mount onto and rotate with the pinion gear, and is configured to deliver grease from an external grease supply to at least one valley defined between adjacent teeth of the pinion gear in a contact area of the pinion gear with the bearing gear without the distributor contacting inter-engaging teeth of the bearing gear.

System and method for lubricating gears in a wind turbine

A transport frame for a nacelle/rotor hub unit of a wind turbine is provided, wherein the unit comprises a wind turbine nacelle and a wind turbine rotor hub mounted to the nacelle, the transport frame comprising a main beam for supporting the weight of the nacelle/rotor hub unit; first and second lateral stabilization elements; a holding fixture for fixing the nacelle/rotor hub unit to the transport frame; a first attachment point for a lifting appliance, the first attachment point being provided at a first end of the main beam; a second attachment point for the lifting appliance, the second attachment point being provided at the first lateral stabilization element; and a third attachment point for the lifting appliance, the third attachment point being provided at the second lateral stabilization element.

Transport frame for nacelle/rotor hub unit of a wind turbine, method of transporting and mounting a nacelle/rotor hub unit

A method of assembling an air distribution system for use in a rotor blade of a wind turbine. The rotor blade includes a sidewall at least partially defining a cavity extending from a blade root towards a blade tip. The method includes positioning at least a portion of a manifold within the cavity and coupling the manifold to the sidewall. The manifold extends from the blade root towards the blade tip and has a root end and an opposing tip end. A passage is defined from the root end to the tip end. A flow control device is coupled to the manifold root end and configured to channel air through the manifold. A bypass flow assembly is coupled to the manifold and configured to channel air through the air distribution system with the flow control device in a non-operating configuration.

Systems and methods for assembling an air distribution system for use in a rotor blade of a wind turbine

A bearing is provided having a first race, a second race and one or more rolling elements. The bearing includes an alternate load path for extreme loads, and the alternate load path is formed between the first race and the second race. At least a portion of the extreme loads is diverted away from the rolling elements.

Bearing with alternative load path for extreme loads

A method and associated system are provided for bonding component parts of a wind turbine blade along a bond line. A barrier is placed within an internal cavity of the blade at a defined bond line width along the length of the bond line. A plurality of spaced apart external access ports are defined along the bond line into the internal cavity. A bond paste is sequentially injected into the plurality of access ports to fill the bond line.

Method and system for bonding wind turbine blades

A method of operating a wind turbine having at least one rotor blade and an active flow control (AFC) system is provided. The at least one rotor blade has at least one aperture defined through a surface thereof, and the AFC system is configured to modify aerodynamic properties of the rotor blade by ejecting gas through the aperture. The method includes operating the wind turbine in a normal mode, determining whether an estimated insect density value surrounding the wind turbine is above an insect density threshold value based on a measured environmental condition, and changing a mode of the wind turbine from the normal mode to a cleaning mode different than the normal mode based on the estimated insect density value. The cleaning mode includes adjusting at least one operation parameter of the wind turbine based on the estimated insect density value such that fouling of the aperture is reduced.

Method for operating a wind turbine with reduced blade fouling

A drivetrain for a wind turbine includes a gearbox and a generator. The gear box includes a housing and an output shaft that is rotatably coupled within the housing, wherein the gearbox further includes at least one bearing positioned between the housing and the output shaft. The generator includes a stator coupled to the housing such that the stator is positioned radially inward from the housing, and a rotor coupled to the output shaft such that the rotor is positioned radially inward from the stator.

Drivetrain system for a wind turbine generator and method of assembling the same

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Zwolle, Netherlands

Jacob Johannes Nies