General Electric Company

Peter James Fritz

Shu Ching Quek

Waseem Ibrahim Faidi

Kevin George Harding

Stefan Herr

Peggy Lynn Baehmann

Scott Gabell Riddell

Nilesh Tralshawala

Changting Wang

Guiju Song

Aparna Chakrapani Sheila-Vadde

Chandra Sekher Yerramalli

Thomas Miebach

Li Tao

Bradley Graham Moore

Debasish Mishra

Richard Hardison

Stephane Renou

Philippe Giguere

Steven Haines Olson

Jeffrey Eric Bergman

Uli Ramm

Xinjun Wan

Raul Munoz Medina

A rotor blade assembly for a wind turbine and a method for increasing a loading capability of a rotor blade within a maximum load limit for a wind turbine are disclosed. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade having surfaces defining a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge extending between a tip and a root. The rotor blade assembly further includes an extension connected to a surface of the rotor blade, the extension having at least one design characteristic configured for increasing a loading capability of the rotor blade within a maximum load limit for the wind turbine. The design characteristic is one of extension length, extension width, extension curvature, span-wise extension location, chord-wise extension location, or extension angle with respect to a chord line of the rotor blade.

Extension for rotor blade in wind turbine

A system and method for performing an external inspection on a rotor blade of a wind turbine are disclosed. The system may generally include a frame configured to extend at least partially around an outer perimeter of the rotor blade and a sensing device coupled to the frame. Additionally, first and second spacer arms may extend from the frame. The first spacer arm may be configured to contact a pressure side surface of the rotor blade. The second spacer arm may be configured to contact a suction side surface of the rotor blade.

System and method for performing an external inspection on a wind turbine rotor blade

A wind turbine blade includes an upper shell member and a lower shell member joined at leading and trailing edges of the blade with a bond material. Portions of the bond material are externally exposed. The bond material has surface characteristics of at least one of a Shore D hardness value of greater than about 80 durometer or a Young's modulus stiffness value of greater than about 5 GPa. A protective coating is applied over the upper and lower shell members and exposed portions of the bond material.

Wind turbine blades with a hardened substrate construction

A method of non-destructive testing that employs composite systems that include a curable resin and detectable particles that have a property that can be distinguished from a property of the resin is disclosed. Array probes useful in the method also are disclosed.

Method for non-destructive testing of composite systems

A system and method for inspecting a wind turbine for indications is disclosed. The method includes providing an inspection system spaced from the wind turbine, appraise a rotor blade of the wind turbine, and inspecting the rotor blade for indications. The inspection system includes an observation system and an inspection device, the observation system including an appraisal device and an automated scanning device, the appraisal device configured to provide an image of at least a portion of the rotor blade, the automated scanning device configured to rotate about at least one axis, shifting the image.

System and method for wind turbine inspection

A system and method for inspecting a wind turbine for indications is disclosed. The method includes providing an inspection system on a tower of the wind turbine, the inspection system including a climbing device and an inspection device, the climbing device including a traction apparatus configured to engage the tower and a drive mechanism configured to drive the climbing device. The method further includes rotating a rotor blade of the wind turbine such that the rotor blade is approximately parallel to and proximate the tower, operating the inspection system to traverse the tower, and operating the inspection system to inspect the rotor blade for indications.

A wind turbine rotor blade includes a plurality of lightning receptors configured along either or both of the pressure side or suction side of the blade. At least one looped lightning conductive circuit is provided, with the lightning receptors configured in communication with a respective lightning conductive circuit. The lightning conductive circuit has terminal ends that extend through the root for connection of each terminal end with a grounding system within the wind turbine. The looped lightning conductive circuit provides a redundant path to each lightning receptor for conducting a lightning strike to ground.

Wind turbine rotor blades with enhanced lightning protection system

A rotor blade assembly is disclosed. The rotor blade assembly includes a rotor blade and a blade extension. The rotor blade has a pressure side, a suction side, a leading edge, and a trailing edge extending between a tip and a root. The rotor blade further has an aerodynamic profile. The blade extension is mounted to the rotor blade. The blade extension includes a cutaway mounting portion for mounting the blade extension to the rotor blade such that the blade extension is generally flush with at least one of the pressure side or the suction side of the rotor blade. The cutaway mounting portion defines a notch configured to locate the blade extension relative to the rotor blade.

Blade extension for rotor blade in wind turbine

Disclosed is a blade including a blade body including a leading edge and a trailing edge, and at least one trailing edge cavity defined by a blade area disposed in at least partial alignment with the trailing edge, the at least one cavity extending a desired depth into said blade body in a direction of the leading edge.

Wind turbine blade

A system and method for performing a continuity test on a lightning conduction system of a wind turbine are disclosed. The system generally includes a testing device having a blade ring configured to be positioned around at least a portion of an outer perimeter of a rotor blade of the wind turbine. A carriage may be attached to the testing device and a cable may be attached to the carriage. The cable may generally extend between a first anchor point and a second anchor point, wherein the anchor points are spaced apart from one another such that a lightning receptor of the lightning conduction system is disposed between the anchor points. Additionally, the cable may be coupled between the anchor points such that, as the cable is displaced, the testing device is moved to a position at which an electrically conductive member of the testing device contacts the lightning receptor.

System and method for performing a continuity test on a lightning conduction system of a wind turbine

A rotor blade assembly having an access window and methods for assembling a rotor blade are disclosed. The rotor blade assembly may generally include a first shell component and a second shell component. The first shell component may be secured to the second shell component. Additionally, an access region may be defined in the first shell component and/or the second shell component. The access region may generally be configured such that an access window is defined in the rotor blade assembly. The access window may be configured to provide access to the interior of a portion of the rotor blade assembly.

Growing community of inventors

Greenville, SC, United States of America

Peter James Fritz