Vestas Wind Systems A/s

Peter Frans Thomsen

Anton Bech

Adrian Botwright

Troels Vahle

Kristoffer Lolk Fredriksen

Mark Hancock

Lucia Quintana

Jacob Antonsen

Michael Kastrup

Martin Damm

Carsten Jasper

Claus Svend Simonsen

Birger Keseler

Martin Dam

Lucía Quintana

A method of making a wind turbine blade is described. The blade comprises first () and second () half shells bonded together and a shear web () bonded inside the shells. Prior to joining the shells together, the shear web is positioned in one of the shells. A plurality of bars () are attached to the shear web and engaged with a plurality of mounts () in order to support and stabilise the shear web relative to that shell. The shells are then arranged one above the other whilst the bars remain attached to the shear web. The bars continue to support the shear web whilst the shear web is aligned with the other shell. The bars are then detached from the shear web and the shells are brought together to bond the shells to each other and to bond the shear web between the shells.

Relating to wind turbine blade manufacture

Transport frame and method; the transport frame having a longitudinal, lateral and upright extent, and being configured for receiving a tip or root portion of a longitudinally extending wind turbine blade, said frame being stackable with similar frames, said frame comprising four upright frame struts which together define a generally cuboid internal space having a longitudinal extent between two pairs of said upright struts; said frame having, within said generally cuboid internal space, a tip or root saddle assembly comprising a saddle with a support surface shaped to receive a respective blade root or tip; said frame furthermore having four top shoulders and four feet, said feet of said frame being conformed to be stackable on corresponding said shoulders of another frame; and wherein said frame, proximate one or more said top or bottom corner thereof, comprises a retractable arm arrangement; wherein said frame further comprises, proximate at least one said top or bottom corner thereof, a claw arrangement; said retractable arm arrangement being configured to fixingly engage a corresponding claw arrangement at an adjacent similar frame in a stacked arrangement of the frames.

Transport frame for a wind turbine blade

Transport frame pair configured for transporting a wind turbine blade, said frame pair comprising a tip frame and a root frame, each said tip and root frame being stackable with identical frames for blade transport or storage, each one of said tip and root frame comprising four upright frame struts which together define a generally cuboid internal space having a longitudinal extent between two pairs of said upright struts; said tip frame comprising a tip saddle assembly within said generally cuboid internal space, and said root frame comprising a root saddle assembly within said generally cuboid internal space, and wherein said root frame is configured to prohibit a translation movement of said root saddle assembly in a longitudinal direction of a blade supported in a root saddle of said root saddle assembly; and wherein said tip frame allows a translation movement of said tip saddle assembly in a longitudinal direction of a blade supported in a tip saddle of said tip saddle assembly. The longitudinal extent of the root frame may be more than twenty percent greater than the longitudinal extent of the tip frame.

Transport frames for a wind turbine blade

For fixating a blade segment () of a rotor blade of a wind turbine to a mould (), in which the blade segment is manufactured, a fixing device () is provided comprising a first portion () for selectively applying a clamping force on the fixating extension and a second portion () for fixating the fixing device to the mould. In the fixing device () one of the first and second portions comprises a cylinder portion () with a threaded structure, and a threaded abutment structure () encircling the cylinder portion and engaging its threaded structure. The respective other portion comprises an aperture () and a recess with a second abutment structure () within the aperture. The aperture () is adapted to receive the cylinder portion () such that the cylinder portion () protrudes the aperture () along its cylinder axis, and the second abutment structure () is adapted to engage and exert a force on the threaded abutment structure () in a direction parallel to the cylinder axis. One of the first and second portions () comprises a lateral opening () allowing a retaining web () of the respective other portion to abut therein.

Fixing device for fixating a segment of a wind turbine blade to a mould

Transport frame and method; the transport frame having a longitudinal, lateral and upright extent, and configured for transporting a root end of a longitudinally extending wind turbine blade having a root face with protruding stud-bolts, said frame comprising a root saddle, said frame further comprising a releasable interface clamp configured for fixing a said blade root in said frame, said interface clamp extending from a forward nose through a rear hinge point in said root frame and, said interface clamp comprising a body with a forward abutment surface and a bearing surface rearward of said abutment surface, said body being hingedly movable into or out of engagement with one or more stud bolts protruding from the root face of a blade when positioned in said saddle, said interface clamp having a retracted position with its body away from said blade root face and away from said protruding stud-bolts, said interface clamp having an engagement position in which its said bearing surface extends transverse and adjacent to one or more said stud-bolts such that a tightening force applied to a said bearing surface pushes said abutment surface against said root face.

Apparatus for manipulating a wind turbine blade and method of blade handling An apparatus for manipulating a wind turbine blade having fixed lifting points () on the blade has a blade turner base (), a frame like support structure () carried on the base and connecting structures such as brackets () which engage in the lifting points () on the blade extending into openings in the blade, the support structure () having a part-circular portion or periphery at which it connects to the base, being movably supported on the base so as to rotate relative thereto about a substantially horizontal axis in order to vary the orientation of a blade supported thereon.

Apparatus for manipulating a wind turbine blade and method of blade handling

The present invention relates to a method of stacking wind turbine blades for sea transport. An improved way of arranging blades for sea transport, where less structural framework is needed, would be advantageous. Structural framework not only causes additional cost, but also takes up additional time for arranging the blades for transport. The invention involves a method of stacking wind turbine generator blades for sea transportation, the method involving attaching a blade root support frame to a root flange of the blade, is supported by at least two legs located as at least one leg on each transverse side of a root end of the blade, and attaching a blade spanwise support frame to a spanwise portion of the blade, and where the spanwise support frame includes least two legs located as at least one leg on each transverse side of the blade, where the legs of the root support frame and the spanwise support frame extend both downwards and upwards and are adapted to have lengths downwards and upwards in order that at least two blades are stackable on top of each other, and wherein a stacking support structure for the blades consists of mainly the support frames, when the at least two blades are transported at sea.

Stacking wind turbine blades for sea transport

A wind turbine bladeis formed with structures allowing its lifting by a lifting apparatus, the blade comprising upper and lower blade shells and an internal load-bearing structure comprising an internal sparor internal webs, a plurality of lifting pointsarranged about the blade center of gravity, comprising openings for receiving lifting membersof a lifting apparatus insertable therein into structuressecured to the load-bearing structure, and with a locking connection being established between the lifting membersand the load-bearing structure

Wind turbine blade structures, lifting assemblies and methods of blade handling

A method of transporting a blade for a wind turbine generator, includes attaching a blade root support frame to a root flange of the blade and attaching a blade spanwise support frame to a spanwise portion of the blade, connecting a first wheel base to the spanwise support frame, and connecting a transport unit to the root support frame. In another aspect, the blades may be stacked by use of the support frames without use of further equipment.

Transport and stacking of wind turbine blades

The invention proposes a device () and a method for storing and transporting a wind turbine blade (). The blade () is inserted between an upper structure () and a lower structure () applying a clamping force on the blade surface. The magnitude of the clamping force can be adjusted by way of a device () comprising an elastic member () arranged between the upper structure () and the lower structure () during operation. The magnitude of the elastic force exerted by the elastic element () is proportional to the magnitude of the clamping force. Furthermore, the magnitude of the elastic force linearly depends on the amount of compression of the elastic element () with respect to a characteristic rest length.

Growing community of inventors

Ringkøbing, Denmark

Peter Frans Thomsen