General Electric Company

General Electric Renovables Espana, S.l.

Stefan Rieken

Jacob Johannes Nies

Yu Wang

Weiguo Zhang

Rong Li

Detlef Menke

Peter Rogall

Patrick Achenbach

Axel Braicks

Edwin Hidding

Shijiang Liu

Chenggang Huang

Hans Henning Lütze

Dietmar Meyer

Alex Braicks

Hans Henning Luetze

A rotor assembly for a wind turbine includes a rotor blade extending between a blade root and a blade tip, a rotatable hub, a pitch bearing arranged between the rotor blade and a hub of the wind turbine, and a stiffener ring. The pitch bearing has an outer race, an inner race rotatable relative to the outer race, and a plurality of roller elements arranged between the outer race and the inner race. The stiffener ring is arranged between one of the inner race or the outer race of the pitch bearing and the blade root. Further, the stiffener ring has a symmetrical shape so as to provide uniform stiffness to the pitch bearing so as to provide a uniform stiffness to the pitch bearing.

Rotor assembly having a pitch bearing with a stiffener ring

The present disclosure is directed to a lubrication system for a gearbox that is part of a drivetrain assembly, e.g. of a wind turbine. The lubrication system includes a ring assembly having a first ring and a detached, second ring. The first and second rings are configured to fit within a gap located between a planetary gear system and a gearbox housing of the gearbox, e.g. due to operational and/or system tolerances. When installed, the first and second rings of the ring assembly are arranged together so as to form at least one opening therebetween, thereby being configured to direct a lubricant from the gearbox housing to the planetary gear system.

Gearbox lubrication system

A light intensity detection system for a wind turbine including a single light sensor adapted to measure the intensity of light, a housing for protecting the single light sensor from environmental influences, and a driving mechanism configured to allow the single light sensor to receive light from a first direction at a first time and from a second direction at a second time.

Wind turbine shadow flicker protection system having a driving mechanism allowing a single light sensor to receive light at different times and directions

A wind turbine which is composed of several subunits is provided. Each of the several subunits includes a controller. Each of the controllers is adapted to operate in a cooperative mode and in an isolated mode. In the cooperative mode, one of the controllers operates as a master controller and the remaining controllers operate as slave controllers. In the isolated mode, each subunit is exclusively controlled by its respective controller, wherein each of the controllers acts as an independent master controller for its subunit. Further, a method for operating a wind turbine which includes at least two subunits is provided. Each of the at least two subunits includes at least one sensor, at least one actuator and a controller. The method for operating the wind turbine is carried out independently in each subunit and includes detecting at least one sensor signal; and determining and transferring a command to at least one actuator. Further, a segmented computer program for controlling a wind turbine which includes at least two subunits is provided.

Wind turbine arranged for independent operation of its components and related method and computer program

The present patent application concerns wind turbine having a rotor with a first rotor blade and a pitch control system with a controller and a first drive system for adjusting a pitch angle of the first rotor blade, wherein the drive system is adapted to transform rotational energy of the rotor blade rotating about its longitudinal axis into another form of energy such that a counter torque against the rotating direction is induced. Further, it concerns a method for controlling a pitch velocity of a rotor blade of a wind turbine, the wind turbine comprising at least one drive system for adjusting a pitch angle of said rotor blade, the drive system being adapted to operate in a active mode, wherein the drive system rotates the rotor blade, and in a passive mode, wherein the drive system exerts a counter force against the rotating direction, when the rotor blade being rotated by another force than the force of the drive system, wherein the pitch velocity is controlled by operating the drive system in said passive mode when the pitch of the rotor blade is changed from a first position to a second position.

Speed controlled pitch system

A wind farm with at least two wind turbines () connected to a power grid is provided, said wind farm further comprising a control unit () connected to said at least two wind turbines (), and a sensor unit () connected to said power grid and said control unit (), wherein said sensor unit () is adapted to measure the grid frequency of said power grid and to transmit said measured grid frequency to said control unit (), and wherein said control unit () is adapted to control the output of real power of said wind farm according to said measured grid frequency. Furthermore, a method for operating a wind farm is proposed, said method comprising the steps of measuring the grid frequency with a sensor unit, transmitting said measured grid frequency to a centralized control unit, determining whether the measured grid frequency lies outside a predetermined range, and, if the measured grid frequency lies outside said predetermined range, selecting at least one out of the at least two wind turbines comprised in said wind farm by said centralized control unit and regulating the power output of said selected at least one wind turbine.

Wind farm and method for operating same

Growing community of inventors

Lathen, Germany

Stefan Rieken