WO2024104537A1

WO2024104537A1 - A transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components during transport

Info

Publication number: WO2024104537A1
Application number: PCT/DK2023/050262
Authority: WO
Inventors: Niels MØLLER MADSEN; Douglas Guthrie
Original assignee: Vestas Wind Systems A/S
Priority date: 2022-11-15
Filing date: 2023-11-01
Publication date: 2024-05-23

Abstract

A transporting kit (2) for supporting wind turbine components (3) during transport is disclosed The transporting kit (2) comprises at least two vibration damping units (4) and at least one support beam (5). Each vibration damping unit (4) comprises a mounting interface (12) configured to allow the vibration damping unit (4) to be mounted on a transport carrier (1). The at least one support beam (5) is configured to support a wind turbine component (3) being transported, each support beam (5) being detachably connected to two vibration damping units (4). The transporting kit (2) according to the invention provides a modular design, allowing the transporting kit (2) to be applied for a broad variety of types of transport carriers (1) at for a broad variety of types of wind turbine components (3), using only very few standard parts.

Description

A TRANSPORTING KIT FOR SUPPORTING WIND TURBINE COMPONENTS DURING

TRANSPORT

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components, such as drivetrain components or powertrain components, during transport. The transporting kit according to the invention protects the components from vibrations during transport, and has a modular design allowing it to be used for a broad variety of types of transport carriers as well as for a broad variety of types of wind turbine components.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

During transport of wind turbine components, the wind turbine components may be subjected to vibrations, e.g. due to irregularities or bumps on a road or rail track along which the wind turbine component is transported. Such vibrations may cause damage to the wind turbine component, and it is therefore desirable to reduce or dampen the vibrations being transferred to the wind turbine component. This is particularly relevant in the case that the wind turbine component being transported is delicate with regard to vibration impact and/or in the case that the wind turbine component is of high value. This is, e.g., the case for wind turbine components which form part of a drivetrain or a powertrain of the wind turbine, such as gearboxes, generators, etc., and/or for other kinds of wind turbine components with movable parts.

Various attempts have previously been made to protect wind turbine components from vibration induced damage during transport. For instance, powered turner drives have been applied for slowly turning, e.g., a main shaft, in order to avoid focusing vibration damage at point locations within a component with movable parts. Furthermore, passive vibration dampers, e.g. in the form of resilient pads or spring-based dampers, have been applied. Finally, active vibration dampers, e.g. in the form of hydro-pneumatic suspensions, have been applied. Common to these solutions is that they are all designed to match a specific type of transport carrier and/or a specific type of component to be transported. Accordingly, customized vibration damping equipment needs to be designed and manufactured for each type of transport carrier and for each type of component to be transported. This adds to the costs of the vibration damping equipment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of embodiments of the invention to provide a transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components during transport which can be manufactured in a cost effective manner.

It is a further object of embodiments of the invention to provide a transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components during transport which can be applied for a broad selection of various transport carriers and for a broad selection of various wind turbine components.

The invention provides a transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components during transport, the transporting kit comprising:

- at least two vibration damping units, each vibration damping unit comprising a mounting interface configured to allow the vibration damping unit to be mounted on a transport carrier, and

- at least one support beam configured to support a wind turbine component being transported, each support beam being detachably connected to two vibration damping units.

Thus, the invention provides a transporting kit for supporting wind turbine components during transport. In the present context the term 'transporting kit' should be interpreted to mean equipment which is applied during transport, but which is neither forming part of the transport carrier, e.g. a vessel or a vehicle, preforming the actual transport, nor forming part of the component being transported. Accordingly, the transporting kit forms an interface between the transport carrier and the component being transported by means of the transport carrier, and the transporting kit, thus, supports the component during transport. 'Detachably connected' may alternatively be understood as 'detachably connectable', which is found to mean the same.

In the present context the term 'wind turbine component' should be interpreted to mean a component which forms part of a wind turbine, such as a gearbox, a part of a gearbox, a generator, a shaft, a bearing, a transformer, a wind turbine blade, a hub, and/or any other suitable kind of wind turbine component.

The transporting kit comprises at least two vibration damping units and at least one support beam. Each vibration damping unit comprises a mounting interface configured to allow the vibration damping unit to be mounted on a transport carrier. This allows the at least two vibration units to be mounted on a transport carrier, independently of each other. Accordingly, the vibration units can be mounted on the transport carrier in a manner and at positions which match the design of the specific transport carrier, and the transporting kit does not dictate any requirements regarding how to position the at least two vibration units relative to each other. Furthermore, the number of vibration units to be mounted on the transport carrier may be selected in a manner which matches the transport carrier as well as the specific component to be transported, as long as at least two vibration units are applied.

The at least one support beam is configured to support a wind turbine component being transported. Accordingly, the at least one support beam forms the interface towards the component, i.e. the component is carried by the at least one support beam during transport.

Each support beam is further detachably connected to two vibration damping units. Accordingly, when the transporting kit is in use, the at least two vibration damping units are mounted on the transport carrier, each of the at least one support beam is connected to two vibration damping units, and the wind turbine component is arranged on the at least one support beam in such a manner that the at least one support beam supports or carries the wind turbine component. Accordingly, the wind turbine component is positioned on the transport carrier, via the vibration damping units, and therefore vibrations which are introduced in the transport carrier as a consequence of the transport carrier moving along a road, an offroad surface, a rail track, etc., are dampened before they can reach the wind turbine component. As a result, the wind turbine component is protected against vibration induced damage.

Since the at least one support beam is detachably connected to the at least two vibration damping units, the transporting kit can easily be assembled and disassembled at the transport carrier. This provides a modular design which allows the transporting kit to be configured in accordance with the design and specifications of the transport carrier, as well as in accordance with the type, design, dimensions, specifications, etc., of the wind turbine component to be transported, using only a limited number of standard parts. This provides a transporting kit which can be applied for a broad variety of types of transport carriers as well as for a broad variety of types of wind turbine components, without requiring a vast number of customized parts.

For instance, when a transporting kit is required for a specific transport of a specific wind turbine component, an appropriate number of vibration damping units is selected. Furthermore, an appropriate number of support beams, each with an appropriate length, is selected. The vibration damping units are then mounted at appropriate positions on the transport carrier which is supposed to perform the transport of the wind turbine component. The at least one support beam is then attached to the vibration damping units in such a manner that each support beam is attached to two vibration damping units. Finally, the wind turbine component is positioned on the at least one support beam.

The modular design of the transporting kit further allows it to be transported back from a destination of the wind turbine component, without taking up significant space in the return transport carrier.

The at least one support beam may be connected to the two vibration damping units via connecting portions arranged at or near extremities of the support beam. According to this embodiment, the at least one support beam extends essentially from a first vibration unit to a second vibration unit, e.g. along a longitudinal direction defined by the support beam. The vibration damping is thereby transferred to the support beam via the extremities of the support beam. This provides a very stable vibration damping and it may further ensure that the wind turbine component is kept substantially level during the transport. When the transporting kit is mounted on a transport carrier, the at least one support beam may, e.g., be positioned in such a manner that the longitudinal direction defined by the support beam extends along a substantially transverse direction of the transport carrier, e.g. substantially transversely to a transport direction of the transport carrier.

The at least two vibration damping units may comprise a hydro pneumatic suspension. In the present context the term 'hydro pneumatic suspension' should be interpreted to mean a suspension which applies a hydraulic and/or a pneumatic principle for providing vibration damping. According to this embodiment, the vibration damping of the wind turbine component is provided in a gentle manner.

The hydro pneumatic suspensions of the vibration damping units may be fluidly connected, or fluidly connectable to a common fluid supply. The common fluid supply may, e.g., be an oil supply or an air supply. According to this embodiment, only one single fluid supply is required in order to ensure that all of the vibration damping units receive fluid to ensure appropriate operation thereof. The vibration damping units may be connected to the common fluid supply in parallel. In this case it is ensured that the vibration damping units receive substantially identical volumes of fluid. This ensures that the vibration damping provided by the vibration damping units in combination is substantially uniform.

As an alternative, each vibration damping unit may be provided with a separate fluid supply. Alternatively or additionally to hydro pneumatic suspensions, the vibration damping units may include other kinds of vibration damping mechanisms, such as mechanical springs, shock absorbers, etc.

The at least two vibration damping units may comprise a movable parallelogram frame structure. According to this embodiment, it can be ensured that a surface of the vibration damping unit on which the support beam rests can be kept substantially level while moving up and down in order to provide vibration damping. This prevents that a wind turbine component supported by the support beam is tilted as a result of the vibration damping.

The at least two vibration damping units may be configured to provide tunable vibration damping. According to this embodiment, the vibration damping provided by the vibration damping units can be adjusted or tuned, e.g. in order to match actually occurring vibrations, and thereby accurately mitigate the vibrations. This could, e.g., be obtained by adjusting a fluid supply to the vibration damping units, e.g. by appropriately controlling a pump driving the fluid supply.

For instance, the actually occurring vibrations may be measured, and the vibration damping units may be controlled or operated in response to the measured vibrations, and in such manner that the vibrations are counteracted.

The mounting interfaces of the at least two vibration damping units may be configured to allow the vibration damping units to be mounted on a side surface of the transport carrier. According to this embodiment, the vibration damping units are arranged on side surfaces of the transport carrier, rather than on a substantially horizontal transport surface. This allows the wind turbine component to be positioned closer to such a horizontal transport surface, thereby reducing the total height of the transport carrier with the wind turbine component positioned thereon. This may ensure that clearance requirements along the transport route are met.

The wind turbine component may be a drivetrain or a powertrain, or a part of a drivetrain or a powertrain. For instance, the wind turbine component may be a gearbox, a part of a gearbox, a generator, a main bearing, a drive shaft, or any other suitable wind turbine component which forms part of the drivetrain or powertrain of a wind turbine.

Wind turbine components which form part of the drivetrain or powertrain of a wind turbine are often valuable, and it is therefore particularly relevant to protect such wind turbine components from vibration induced damage during transport. Furthermore, such wind turbine components normally comprise movable parts, and therefore they are particularly vulnerable with regard to vibrations. It is therefore particularly relevant to apply a transporting kit according to the present invention when transporting drivetrain or powertrain components.

The transport carrier may be a railway carriage. Railway transport is particularly prone to inducing vibrations in the transported goods, and it is therefore particularly relevant to apply a transporting kit according to the present invention when the wind turbine component is transported by means of a railway carriage.

As an alternative, the transport carrier may be a vehicle, such as a land-based vehicle, e.g. a truck. In some regions roads may be very uneven or bumpy, or regular roads may not even be available along the entire transport route. In this case it is relevant to apply a transporting kit according to the present invention.

As another alternative, the transport carrier may be a seagoing vessel, such as a barge or a ship, or any other kind of transport carrier being suitable for transporting a wind turbine component.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of transport carrier carrying a transporting kit according to an embodiment of the invention and a wind turbine component, Figs. 2-5 illustrate various parts of the transporting kit of Fig. 1,

Figs. 6 and 7 show a vibration damping unit for a transporting kit according to an embodiment of the invention, and

Fig. 8 shows a fluid supply for vibration damping units of a transporting kit according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a transport carrier 1, in the form of a railway carriage. The transport carrier 1 has a transporting kit 2 according to an embodiment of the invention mounted thereon, and a wind turbine component 3 is carried by the transport carrier 1, via the transporting kit 2. The wind turbine component 3 may, e.g., be a drivetrain component, such as a gearbox, a generator, a bearing, etc. In Fig. 1, the wind turbine component 3 is illustrated as a generic box-shaped element.

The transporting kit 2 comprises six vibration damping units 4 mounted on the transport carrier 1, and three support beams 5, one of which is visible. Each support beam 5 is connected to two of the vibration damping units 4, in such a manner that the support beam 5 interconnects the two vibration damping units 4, via its end positions. A carrying frame 6 is supported by the support beams 5, and the wind turbine component 3 is supported by the carrying frame 6.

Thus, the wind turbine component 3 is positioned on the transport carrier 1, via the transporting kit 2, notably via the vibration damping units 4. This allows for damping, and possibly elimination, of vibrations transferred from the transport carrier 1 to the wind turbine component 3. Accordingly, the wind turbine component 3 is protected against vibration induced damage during transport.

The vibration damping units 4 are all fluidly connected, in parallel, to a common fluid supply, including a pump 7 and a fluid reservoir (not visible). Accordingly, the vibration damping units 4 include hydro pneumatic suspensions. Due to the separate vibration damping units 4 and support beams 5, the transporting kit 2 illustrated in Fig. 1 has a modular design, allowing the transporting kit 2 to be applied to a broad variety of types of transport carriers 1, as well as to a broad variety of types of wind turbine components 3, using only very few standard components. This reduces the stock required in order to provide the transporting kits 2, thereby reducing the manufacturing costs, while providing a high level of flexibility.

The transporting kit 2 will be described in further detail below with reference to Figs. 2-5.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a part of the transport carrier 1 of Fig. 1 with the six vibration damping units 4 and the pump 7 mounted thereon. It can be seen that each vibration damping unit 4 comprises a hydraulic piston 8 connected to a parallelogram frame 9. Thus, when the hydraulic piston 8 is operated, the upper leg of the parallelogram frame 9 moves up or down, but remains substantially parallel to an upper transporting surface of the transport carrier 1. This allows a load, e.g. the wind turbine component 3 shown in Fig. 1, to be kept substantially level while the vibration damping is performed during transport of the load.

The hydraulic pistons 8 of all of the vibration damping units 4 are fluidly connected, in parallel, to the pump 7, via fluid supply lines 10. Thereby the hydraulic pistons 8 receive substantially identical volumes of fluid, and the vibration damping provided by the vibration damping units 4 in combination is substantially uniform.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the transport carrier 1 of Figs. 1 and 2. However, as compared to Fig. 2, in Fig. 3, the three support beams 5 have been attached to the vibration damping units 4, at the upper leg of the parallelogram frame 9. Accordingly, the support beams 5 remain substantially parallel to the transporting surface of the transport carrier 1 while the vibration damping is performed. This prevents tilting of a load carried by the support beams 5.

Fig. 4 is an exploded view of the transport carrier 1 and the transporting kit 2 of

Figs. 1-3, including the vibration damping units 4 mounted on the transport carrier 1 as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the support beams 5 and the carrying frame 6.

Fig. 5 shows the transport carrier 1 of Figs. 1-4, with the vibration damping units 4 and the support beams 5 mounted thereon, and the carrying frame 6, carrying the wind turbine component 3, is in the process of being lowered towards the transport carrier 1 and the support beams 5.

Figs. 6 and 7 are detailed views of a vibration damping unit 4 for a transporting kit according to an embodiment of the invention. The transporting kit may, e.g., be the transporting kit 2 illustrated in Figs. 1-5. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the vibration damping unit 4, and Fig. 7 is a side view of the vibration damping unit 4.

The vibration damping unit 4 of Figs. 6 and 7 comprises a hydraulic piston 8 being fluidly connected to a fluid supply (not shown) via fluid supply line 10. The hydraulic piston 8 is connected to a parallelogram frame 9 comprising a top leg 9a and two side legs 9b, the top leg 9a being connected to each of the side legs 9b via hinges 11a and to the hydraulic piston 8 via hinge lib. Finally, the vibration damping unit 4 is mounted on the transport carrier 1 via hinges 11c and a mounting interface 12. The hydraulic piston 8 can be operated in order to cause the vibration damping unit 4 to provide vibration damping.

Thus, when the hydraulic piston 8 is operated in such a manner that the piston 8 is pushed towards the parallelogram frame 9, the upper leg 9a moves in an upwards direction, while the side legs 9b rotate in hinges 11a and 11c. This causes the upper leg 9a to remain level and substantially parallel to a transport surface of the transport carrier 1.

Similarly, when the hydraulic piston 8 is operated in such a manner that the piston 8 is pulled away from the parallelogram frame 9, the upper leg 9a moves in a downwards direction, while remaining substantially parallel to the transport surface of the transport carrier 1. In Fig. 7, a support beam 5 mounted on the top leg 9a of the parallelogram frame 9 is illustrated.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a vibration damping unit 4 of a transporting kit 2 according to an embodiment, mounted on a transport carrier 1 and having a support beam 5 connected to the upper leg 9a of the parallelogram frame 9 of the vibration damping unit 4. Fig. 8 further shows the pump 7 of the fluid supply and the fluid supply lines 10.

Claims

1. A transporting kit (2) for supporting wind turbine components (3) during transport, the transporting kit (2) comprising:

- at least two vibration damping units (4), each vibration damping unit (4) comprising a mounting interface (12) configured to allow the vibration damping unit (4) to be mounted on a transport carrier (1), and

- at least one support beam (5) configured to support a wind turbine component (3) being transported, each support beam (5) being detachably connected to two vibration damping units (4).

2. A transporting kit (2) according to claim 1, wherein the at least one support beam (5) is connected to the two vibration damping units (4) via connecting portions arranged at or near extremities of the support beam (5).

3. A transporting kit (2) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the at least two vibration damping units (4) comprise a hydro pneumatic suspension (8).

4. A transporting kit (2) according to claim 3, wherein the hydro pneumatic suspensions (8) of the vibration damping units (4) are fluidly connected to a common fluid supply (7).

5. A transporting kit (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least two vibration damping units (4) comprise a movable parallelogram frame structure (9).

6. A transporting kit (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least two vibration damping units (4) are configured to provide tunable vibration damping.

7. A transporting kit (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the mounting interfaces (12) of the at least two vibration damping units (4) are configured to allow the vibration damping units (4) to be mounted on a side surface of the transport carrier (1).

8. A transporting kit (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the wind turbine component (3) is a drivetrain or a part of a drivetrain.

9. A transporting kit (2) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the transport carrier (1) is a railway carriage.

10. A transporting kit (2) according to any of claims 1-8, wherein the transport carrier (1) is a vehicle.