Underwater device and method for controlling posture of underwater device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016201641-A1
Application number	US-201514875824-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 6, 2015
Priority date	Apr 22, 2013
Publication date	Jul 14, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

This underwater device is twin-motor underwater floating-type power generation device that is provided with: a device main body that is equipped with a pair of pods that have a turbine, and with a connecting beam that connects these pods together in parallel with each other; a sinker; and tether cables that tether the device main body to the seabed via this sinker. The respective turbines of the pods are each provided with variable pitch turbine blades. This device is also provided with a depth meter that detects deviation in posture in the roll direction that is generated in the pair of pods, and a posture controller that controls the pitch of the variable pitch turbine blades of the respective turbines so as to nullify any deviation in posture in the roll direction that has been generated in the pair of pods and has been detected by the depth meter.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An underwater device comprising:
a plurality of turbines that rotate underwater; and a posture controller that controls posture in a roll direction by controlling rotations of the plurality of turbines, wherein the posture controller controls the posture in a roll direction by controlling the torque that is generated in each one of the plurality of turbines in accordance with the rotations of the plurality of turbines.

2 . The underwater device according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of turbines are each provided with variable pitch turbine blades, and the posture controller controls the torque that is generated in each one of the plurality of turbines by controlling the pitch of the variable pitch turbine blades.

3 . The underwater device according to claim 1 , wherein
the underwater device is an underwater tethered-type ocean current power generation device that is provided with a plurality of power generation units which have the plurality of turbines that are rotated by sea currents, and which generate power using the rotation of the plurality of turbines, and each turbine in the plurality of power generation units is provided with variable pitch turbine blades, and wherein there are provided: a tilt detection device that detects any deviation in the posture of the plurality of power generation units that is generated in the roll direction; and the posture controllers that control the pitch of the variable pitch turbine blades of the respective turbines in the plurality of power generation units so as to nullify any deviation in the posture in the roll direction that has been generated in the plurality of power generation units and has been detected by the tilt detection device.

4 . The underwater device according to claim 3 , wherein
a flow conditions measuring device that ascertains the flow conditions of an ocean current running towards the plurality of power generation units and outputs these flow conditions to the posture controller is placed on an upstream side of the plurality of power generation units that are tethered to the seabed, and, based on measurement results obtained from the flow conditions measurement device, pitch control is performed by the posture controller on the variable pitch turbine blades of the respective turbines of the plurality of power generation units in order to forestall in advance the possibility of any change occurring in the posture of the plurality of power generation units in the roll direction.

5 . The underwater device according to claim 4 , wherein an acoustic Doppler current profiler that is able to measure flow velocity distributions in a depth direction is used as the flow conditions measuring device, and a plurality of these acoustic Doppler current profilers are placed on an upstream side of the plurality of power generation units.

6 . The underwater device according to claim 4 , wherein a buoy that measures flow conditions is used as the flow conditions measuring device, and a plurality of these buoys are placed on an upstream side of the plurality of power generation units.

7 . A method for controlling the posture of an underwater device in which, by controlling the torque that is generated in each one of a plurality of turbines that rotate underwater in accordance with the rotations of the plurality of turbines, the rotations of the plurality of turbines are controlled and the posture thereof in a roll direction is controlled.

8 . The method for controlling the posture of an underwater device according to claim 7 , wherein the plurality of turbines are each provided with variable pitch turbine blades, and the torque that is generated in each one of the plurality of turbines is controlled by controlling the pitch of the variable pitch turbine blades.

9 . The method for controlling the posture of an underwater device according to claim 7 , wherein the underwater device is an underwater tethered-type ocean current power generation device that is provided with a plurality of power generation units which have the plurality of turbines that are rotated by sea currents, and which generate power using the rotation of the plurality of turbines, and
the turbine blades of each turbine in the plurality of power generation units are variable pitch turbine blades, and pitch control of the variable pitch turbine blades of the respective turbines in the plurality of power generation units is performed so as to nullify any deviation in the posture in the roll direction that has been generated in the plurality of power generation units.

Assignees

• Ihi Corp

Inventors

• Handa Norihisa
• Nagaya Shigeki
• Yamane Yoshiyuki
• Ito Akio

Classifications

• F03B17/061 Primary

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• F05B2270/11

  to maintain desired vehicle trajectory parameters · CPC title

• F03B15/00 Primary

  Controlling (controlling in general G05 {; regulation of plants characterised by the use of siphons F03B13/086}) · CPC title

• F03B13/10

  Submerged units incorporating electric generators or motors · CPC title

• F05B2270/806

  Sonars · CPC title