Main laminate for a wind turbine blade and associated method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12270382-B2
Application number	US-202218285685-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 3, 2022
Priority date	May 4, 2021
Publication date	Apr 8, 2025
Grant date	Apr 8, 2025

Abstract

A main laminate for a wind turbine blade, a wind turbine blade, and methods for manufacturing such components are disclosed. The main laminate extends along a longitudinal direction and comprising a connector element comprising a conductive mesh portion and an elongated connector part, wherein a connector part length is longer than an edge distance between the conductive mesh portion and a first edge, and wherein a secondary connector portion of the elongated connector part is bendable around a bend axis substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing for a wind turbine blade, the method comprising:
providing a blade shell extending in a longitudinal direction from a root to a tip, the blade shell having an outside surface for forming an outer surface of the wind turbine blade and an inner side opposite the outside surface;
providing a main laminate, the main laminate extending along a longitudinal direction and comprising:
a plurality of fibre elements, wherein each of the plurality of fibre elements comprises conductive fibres arranged along the longitudinal direction, the plurality of fibre elements collectively extends from a first end to a second end along the longitudinal direction and between a first edge and a second edge along a transversal direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the plurality of fibre elements collectively forms a top surface between the first edge and the second edge, a thickness direction is perpendicular to the transversal direction and the longitudinal direction; and
a connector element comprising a conductive mesh portion and an elongated connector part, the elongated connector part extends between a primary connector part end and a secondary connector part end, the primary connector part end being coupled with the conductive mesh portion, the elongated connector part extending at a connector part length from the conductive mesh portion to the secondary connector part end, the elongated connector part having a primary connector portion towards the primary connector part end and a secondary connector portion between the primary connector portion and the secondary connector part end, the conductive mesh portion being arranged at a portion of the top surface at an edge distance from the first edge, and the elongated connector part extending from the primary connector part end in the transversal direction towards the first edge, wherein the connector part length is longer than the edge distance, and the secondary connector portion of the elongated connector part being bendable around a bend axis parallel to the longitudinal direction, wherein the secondary connector portion of the elongated connector part is bent around the bend axis, such that the elongated connector part forms a bend of more than 45° degrees;

positioning the main laminate on the inner side of the blade shell, such that a longitudinal axis of the blade shell is parallel with the longitudinal direction, and such that the top surface of the plurality of fibre elements faces away from the inner side of the blade shell; and
straightening the elongated connector part to reduce the bend, such that the elongated connector part extends across the first edge of the plurality of fibre elements of the main laminate and the secondary connector portion connects to an inside surface part of the inner side of the blade shell.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the elongated connector part is a braid cable.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the conductive mesh portion has a mesh thickness in the thickness direction and the elongated connector part has a connector part thickness in the thickness direction, wherein the connector part thickness is larger than the mesh thickness.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the conductive mesh portion has a mesh width in the longitudinal direction and the elongated connector part has a connector part width in the longitudinal direction, wherein the connector part width is smaller than the mesh width.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the connector element comprises a plate element, the plate element being arranged at the secondary connector part end, the plate element being adapted to be coupled with a lightning receptor of the wind turbine blade and/or to be connected to a down conductor of the wind turbine blade.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein the plate element is welded to the secondary connector part end.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the connector element comprises a plug or socket element, the plug or socket element being arranged at the secondary connector part end, the plug or socket element being adapted to engage with a corresponding plug or socket element connected with a lightning receptor of the wind turbine blade and/or connected with a down conductor of the wind turbine blade.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of fibre elements are pultruded fibre elements extending along the longitudinal direction.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the conductive fibres of the plurality of fibre elements are carbon fibres.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the main laminate comprises a primary intermediate fibre layer comprising conductive fibres, wherein the primary intermediate fibre layer is arranged between the conductive mesh portion and the top surface of the plurality of fibre elements.

11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the main laminate comprises a secondary intermediate fibre layer comprising conductive fibres, wherein the secondary intermediate fibre layer is arranged between the primary intermediate fibre layer and the top surface of the plurality of fibre elements, and wherein the conductive fibres of the primary intermediate fibre layer are arranged along one or more primary intermediate fibre directions and the conductive fibres of the secondary intermediate fibre layer are arranged along one or more secondary intermediate fibre directions, and wherein at least one of the one or more secondary intermediate fibre directions are different than the one or more primary intermediate fibre directions.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the main laminate comprises a primary top fibre layer comprising conductive fibres, wherein the conductive mesh portion is arranged between the primary top fibre layer and the top surface of the plurality of fibre elements.

13. The method according to claim 12 , wherein the main laminate comprises a secondary top fibre layer comprising conductive fibres, wherein the secondary top fibre layer is arranged between the primary top fibre layer and the conductive mesh portion, and wherein the conductive fibres of the primary top fibre layer are arranged along one or more primary top fibre directions and the conductive fibres of the secondary top fibre layer are arranged along one or more secondary top fibre directions, and wherein at least one of the one or more secondary top fibre directions are different than the one or more primary top fibre directions.

14. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the elongated connector part forms a bend of more than 90° degrees.

15. A method for manufacturing a main laminate for a wind turbine blade, the method comprising:
providing a plurality of fibre elements, wherein each of the plurality of fibre elements comprises conductive fibres;
arranging the plurality of fibre elements such that the conductive fibres are arranged along a longitudinal direction, and such that the plurality of fibre elements collectively extend from a first end to a second end along the longitudinal direction and between a first edge and a second edge along a transversal direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, the plurality of fibre elements collectively forms a top surface between the first edge and the second edge, a thickness direction is perpendicular to the transversal direction and the longitudinal direction;
providing a connector element comprising a conductive mesh portion and a elongated connector part, the elongated connector part extends between a primary connector part end and

Assignees

• Lm Wind Power As

Inventors

• Razeghi Rama
• Jørgensen Jeppe Bjørn
• Todd Paul
• Eirikksson Boas

Classifications

• F03D80/301 Primary

  Lightning receptor and down conductor systems in or on blades · CPC title

• F03D1/0681 Primary

  Spar caps · CPC title

• F05B2280/6013

  Fibres · CPC title

• F05B2230/50

  Building or constructing in particular ways · CPC title

• F03D1/0675

  of the blades · CPC title