Energy storage system with elevator lift system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11525437-B2
Application number	US-202217584849-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 26, 2022
Priority date	Feb 2, 2021
Publication date	Dec 13, 2022
Grant date	Dec 13, 2022

Abstract

An energy storage and delivery system includes an elevator operable to move blocks from a lower elevation to a higher elevation to store energy and from a higher elevation to a lower elevation to generate electricity. A winch assembly is movably coupled to a cable that is coupled to the elevator. The winch assembly has planetary gear assemblies, brakes that selectively engage at least a portion of the planetary gear assemblies, and a spool coupled to the cable. A drive shaft extends between a motor-generator and the winch assembly. A brake is operable so that the spool rotates to reel-in the cable to raise the elevator to move a block from a lower elevation to a higher elevation to store energy or so that the spool rotates to reel-out the cable to lower the elevator to move a block from a higher elevation to a lower elevation to generate electricity.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An energy storage and delivery system, comprising:
one or more modules, each module comprising:
a plurality of blocks,
a frame having a vertical height, the frame including
an elevator shaft, and
an elevator movably disposed in the elevator shaft, the elevator sized to receive and support one or more blocks therein and operable to move one or more of the plurality of blocks between a lower elevation and a higher elevation,

a winch assembly movably coupled to a cable that is coupled to the elevator, the winch assembly comprising one or more planetary gear assemblies, one or more brakes and a spool coupled to the cable;

a motor-generator; and
a drive shaft having an end coupled to the motor-generator and an opposite end coupled to the winch assembly,
wherein the winch assembly further comprises a brake disc concentric with the drive shaft and wherein the one or more planetary gear assemblies includes a first planetary gear assembly and a second planetary gear assembly, the first planetary gear assembly disposed axially between the brake disc and the second planetary gear assembly, the second planetary gear assembly disposed axially between the first planetary gear assembly and the spool, the first planetary gear assembly including a first sun gear, a first pair of planet gears, and a first ring gear, the second planetary gear assembly including a second sun gear, a second pair of planet gears and a second ring gear, the drive shaft fixedly coupled to the first sun gear, the second sun gear and the spool, the brake disc fixedly coupled to the first pair of planet gears, and the first ring gear fixedly coupled to the second pair of planet gears, and
wherein at least one of the one or more brakes of the winch assembly is operable so that the spool can either rotate to reel-in the cable to raise the elevator to move one or more of the plurality of blocks from a lower elevation to a higher elevation to store energy, or rotate to reel-out the cable to lower the elevator to move one or more of the plurality of blocks from a higher elevation to a lower elevation to generate electricity.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more brakes includes a first brake operable to selectively engage the brake disc, a second brake operable to selectively engage the first ring gear and a third brake operable to selectively engage the second ring gear.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein operating the first brake to disengage the brake disc, operating the second brake to disengage the first ring gear, and operating the third brake to engage the second ring gear stops rotation of the spool.

4. The system of claim 2 , wherein operating the first brake to engage the brake disc, operating the second brake to disengage the first ring gear, and operating the third brake to disengage the second ring gear rotates the spool in a reverse direction to reel-out the cable to lower the elevator.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein operating the first brake to disengage the brake disc, operating the second brake to engage the first ring gear, and operating the third brake to disengage the second ring gear rotates the spool in a forward direction to reel-in the cable to raise the elevator.

6. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a damper coupled to the cable, the damper configured to absorb at least a portion of a force applied to the cable.

7. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a linear actuator coupled to the cable, the linear actuator configured to expand or contract to allow adjustment in a vertical position of the elevator to facilitate picking-up or dropping-off of the block.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more modules are two modules, and wherein the drive shaft couples to the winch of a first of the two modules and to the winch of a second of the two modules.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the winch of the first module and the winch of the second module are operable to simultaneously lift a block in the first module and lower a block in the second module.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the frame has a lower deck and an upper deck spaced vertically above the lower deck, and wherein the elevator shaft is disposed between a left column and a right column of the frame that extend between the lower deck and the upper deck.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the elevator is operable to raise one or more blocks from a location in the left column above the lower deck to a location above the upper deck over the left column and to move one or more blocks from a location in the right column above the lower deck to a location above the upper deck over the right column to thereby store an amount of electrical energy corresponding to a potential energy amount of said one or more raised blocks, and wherein the elevator is operable to lower one or more blocks from a location above the upper deck over the left column to a location within the left column above the lower deck and to move one or more blocks from a location above the upper deck over the right column to a location within the right column above the lower deck under a force of gravity to thereby generate an amount of electricity for each of the one or more lowered blocks via the electric motor-generator electrically coupled to the elevator.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the elevator is operable to move the plurality of blocks between the location in the left column or in the right column above the lower deck and the location above the upper deck over the left column or over the right column so that an average distribution of load on the frame of the module remains substantially constant.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the frame includes a plurality of columns of reinforced steel and concrete pillars.

Assignees

• Energy Vault Inc

Inventors

• Pedretti Andrea
• Hänni Roland Markus

Classifications

• F03G3/00 Primary

  Other motors, e.g. gravity or inertia motors · CPC title

• B66C23/28

  constructed to operate at successively higher levels · CPC title

• B66C13/28 Primary

  utilising regenerative braking for controlling descent of heavy loads and having means for preventing rotation of motor in the hoisting direction when load is released · CPC title

• F03G3/094

  specially adapted for potential energy power storage stations; combinations of gravity or weight motors with electric motors or generators · CPC title