Low-profile power-generating wind turbine

摘要

A wind turbine is disclosed which uses energy in air moving relatively toward the turbine to focus and increase the velocity of air entering a turbine inlet air flow passage. The inlet flow passage discharges focused and accelerated air to blades of a rotor where the blades interact with that air to turn the rotor. Rotor motion can be used to operate an electrical generator. The plane of rotation of the rotor can be at substantially right angles to the plane of the passage inlet opening. Baffles in the flow passage and stator vanes adjacent the rotor blades cause the mass flow of the accelerated air to be substantially uniform, and desirably directed, throughout the rotor's blade area. The turbine is compact and operates quietly.

主权项

1. A wind turbine comprising:
an ambient air inlet flow passage extending between an inlet end having an inlet opening of relatively large area and an outlet end having an outlet opening of relatively small area, wherein the inlet end is substantially perpendicular to the outlet end; a rotor located proximate to the outlet opening and rotatable about an axis substantially aligned with the outlet end of the inlet flow passage, the rotor including an array of radially extending blades regularly spaced about the rotor axis and defining an annular area, the blades configured to rotate about the rotor axis when subject to airflow moving through the inlet flow passage; an output shaft coupled to the rotor to transmit mechanical energy from the rotor to a generator; a primary partition extending between the inlet opening and the outlet opening, the primary partition defining an upper passage configured to direct airflow to a forward half of the annular area of the rotor and a lower passage configured to direct airflow to a rearward half of the annular area the rotor such that the distribution of airflow across the rotor blades is substantially uniform; a plurality of upper secondary partitions extending between the inlet opening and the outlet opening, the upper secondary partitions dividing the upper passage into a plurality of substantially equal upper airflow subdivisions; and a plurality of lower secondary partitions extending between the inlet opening and the outlet opening, the lower secondary partitions dividing the lower passage into a plurality of substantially equal lower airflow subdivisions.