Abstract:
A vertical axis wind turbine includes a wind guide module installed at the periphery of a vane module for turning axially, and a magnetic field module and a coil module installed at the periphery of a turntable of the vane module for generating induced electromotive forces, such that when the vane module is rotated by the action of air current, the magnetic field module is driven to rotate a coil of the coil module generates an electric current by the magnetic induction of the magnetic element of the magnetic field module. In particular, the whole vertical axis power generator can guide and concentrate the surrounding air current at flaps of the vane module by the action of the wind guide module, so that the vane module is capable of starting an operation easily, providing a high operating performance, and featuring an easy manufacture.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a wind turbine for electric power generation, in particular to the vertical axis wind turbine capable of starting an operation easily, providing a high operating performance, and featuring an easy manufacture. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Fuels and electricity become increasingly expensive due to the petrochemical energy shortage, and people pay more attention to the importance of environmental protection due to the greenhouse effect of the earth, and power saving and carbon reduction become an urgent and important issue of the related industry. To overcome the future energy problems, each country aggressively develops substitute energy sources, particularly pollution-free green energies and power generations such as hydroelectric generation, wind generation, solar generation and tidal generation of electricity by using natural forces. 
     Since the wind generation is inexhaustible and involves less pollution and complies with the concept of environmental protection, wind generation equipments for driving a vane module of a power generator to operate is mainly divided into two types, respectively: a horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) and a vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT). However, the vane length and the tower height of a general horizontal axis wind turbine reach up to tens of meters, not only having the disadvantages of a complicated structure, a high equipment cost, and a severe installation environment condition, but also causing noises and nuisances to the neighborhood during the power generation. The HAWT power generation systems gradually shift from land to sea, since it is not easy to obtain the installation locations on land. In non-monsoon or maritime climatic areas, the horizontal axis wind turbine cannot become popular or maximize the advantages of green energy. 
     Compared with the horizontal axis wind turbine, the vertical axis wind turbine has the advantages of small volume, low manufacturing cost, low threshold wind speed, small noise and little light pollution, so that the VAWT power generation systems have a broader prospect of market applications. In recent years, many compact VAWT wind generation equipments are introduced to the market. 
     Similar to the conventional vertical axis wind turbine, the vertical axis wind turbine comprises a rotary base with an axis of rotation, and a plurality of flaps disposed around the periphery of the base for receiving the effect of air current to produce the kinetic power of driving and rotating the base, and the effect of whether to concentrate the surrounding air current at the flaps is a key factor of affecting the operating performance of the vertical axis wind turbine. Therefore, most of the conventional vertical axis wind turbine can improve the operating performance by changing the shape of the flaps. 
     However, the design of the flap will tend to be developed with a large size and high complexity, not only increasing the level of difficulty of manufacturing the flaps, but also increasing the weight of the rotated vertical axis wind turbine significantly. As a result, the difficulty of starting the rotation is increased, and the improvement of the performance is very limited. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide vertical axis wind turbine capable of starting an operation easily, providing a high operating performance, and featuring an easy manufacture. 
     To achieve the aforementioned objective, the present invention provides a vertical axis wind turbine, comprising: a vane module, a wind guide module, a magnetic field module, and a coil module; wherein the vane module has a turntable for turning axially, a plurality of flaps coupled to the top of the turntable and disposed with an predetermined interval apart from one another and around the turntable, and a center shaft disposed at the center position of the vane module; the wind guide module has a plurality of baffles installed around the external periphery of the flaps and maintaining a predetermined interval from the flaps, a set of a stand for mounting the baffles, and the set of the stand having an upper frame, a lower frame, a plurality of link rods coupled between the upper frame and the lower frame, and a plurality of footers installed at the lower frame; the magnetic field module has a plurality of magnetic elements fixed along an edge of the turntable; and the coil module is electrically coupled to the external periphery of the turntable and maintaining a predetermined interval from the magnetic elements. 
     With the aforementioned structure and characteristics, the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention can be installed at a position for receiving an air current during use, and the coil module is electrically coupled to a power supplying object, so that when the vane module is rotated by the action of the air current, the magnetic field module is driven to rotate to produce a relative motion of the magnetic element and the coil, and the coil produces an electric current by the magnetic induction of the magnetic element. Particularly, the vertical axis power generator can guide and concentrate the surrounding air current at relative positions of the flaps at the inner ring by the action of the wind guide module, so that the vane module can be started easily to obtain a better operating performance, and the invention can skip the complicated structural design of the flaps for an easier manufacture of the vertical axis wind turbine. 
     More specifically, the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention can guide and concentrate the surrounding air current at relative positions of the flaps at the inner ring, not only skipping the complicated structural design of the flaps for an easier manufacture and decreasing the weight of the vane module for an easy start of the operation and a better operating performance, but also integrating the magnetic field module onto the turntable of the vane module directly to reduce the overall volume of the vertical axis wind turbine significantly in order to overcome the environment limitations of installing the vertical axis wind turbine. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a vertical axis wind turbine in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of a vertical axis wind turbine in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of a vertical axis wind turbine in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic view showing the relative positions of a magnetic field module and a coil module of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a vane module in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of a vertical axis wind turbine in accordance with the second preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The aforementioned and other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become clearer in light of the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment of this invention described in connection with the drawings. It is intended that the embodiments and drawings disclosed herein are to be considered illustrative rather than restrictive. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 1 to 3  for a perspective view, an exploded view and a top view of a vertical axis wind turbine in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the present invention respectively, the vertical axis wind turbine comprises a vane module  10 , a wind guide module  20 , a magnetic field module  30 , and a coil module  40 . 
     The vane module  10  has a turntable  11  for turning axially, a plurality of flaps  12  installed at the top of the turntable  11  and disposed with a predetermined interval apart from each other around the turntable  11 , and a center shaft  15  disposed at the center position of the vane module  10  for increasing the structural stability of the whole vane module  10 . In a preferred embodiment as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the vane module  10  has a first upper frame body  13  coupled to the top of all flaps  12 , a first lower frame body  14  for coupling the bottom of all flaps  12 , and the first upper frame body  13  is comprised of an inner ring  131  and an outer ring  132 , and a support bar  133  is coupled between the inner ring  131  and the outer ring  132  for installing the flaps  12 , and the first lower frame body  14  is comprised of an inner ring  141  and an outer ring  142 , and support bar  143  is coupled between the inner ring  141  and the outer ring  142  for installing the flaps  12 , and the first upper frame body  13  and the first lower frame body  14  are coupled to the center shaft  15 . 
     The wind guide module  20  has a plurality of baffle  21  installed at the external periphery of the flaps  12  and maintaining a predetermined interval from the flaps  12 , and the wind guide module  20  has a set of a stand  24  for fixing the baffles  21 , and the stand  24  has an upper frame  241 , a lower frame  242 , and a plurality of link rods  243  coupled between the upper frame  241  and the lower frame  242 , wherein the upper frame  241  and the lower frame  242  are in an octagonal shape, and a plurality of footers  244  is installed at the lower frame  242 . In the preferred embodiment as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the wind guide module  20  has a second upper frame body  22  for coupling the top of all baffles  21  and a second lower frame body  23  for coupling the bottom of all baffles  21 , and the second upper frame body  22  is comprised of an inner ring  221  and an outer ring  222 , and a support bar  223  is coupled between the inner ring  221  and the outer ring  222  for installing the baffles  21 ; the second lower frame body  23  is comprised of an inner ring  231  and an outer ring  232 , and a support bar  233  is coupled between the inner ring  231  and the outer ring  232  for installing the baffles  21 ; and the upper frame  241  and the lower frame  242  of the set of the stand  24  are coupled to the second upper frame body  22  and the second lower frame body  23  respectively. 
     The magnetic field module  30  has a plurality of magnetic elements  31  fixed to an edge of the turntable  11 , and the coil modules  40  has a plurality of coils  41  electrically coupled to the external periphery of the turntable  11  and maintaining a predetermined interval from the magnetic element  311 . In the preferred embodiment, the magnetic element  31  of the magnetic field module  30  is a permanent magnet. 
     In an embodiment of the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention, the turntable of the vane module is axially installed on a main structural body of an installation location, and the wind guide module is fixed to the external periphery of the vane module relative to the main structural body of the installation location, and the magnetic field module and the coil module are installed for performing a wind generation. 
     Of course, the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  can further comprise a bezel  50 , wherein the turntable  11  of the vane module  10  is axially installed at the center position of the bezel  50  and rotated with respect to the bezel  50 . The bezel  50  has an accommodating space  51  for accommodating the turntable  11 , and the coils  41  of the coil module  40  can be mounted onto a sidewall of the accommodating space  51  of the bezel  50  to reduce the total volume of the vertical axis wind turbine significantly, so as to overcome the environment limitations of installing the vertical axis wind turbine. 
     In an application of the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention, the vertical axis wind turbine is installed at a position capable of receiving the action of air current, and the coil module is electrically coupled to a power supplying object, so that when the vane module  10  is rotated by the action of the air current, the magnetic field module  30  can be driven to rotate, and the magnetic element  31  and the coil  41  produce relative motions (as shown in  FIG. 4 ), and the coils  41  produce an electric current by the magnetic induction of the magnetic element. Particularly, the vertical axis power generator under the action of the wind guide module  20  guides and concentrates the surrounding air current at relative positions of the flaps  12  at the inner ring, so that the vane module  10  can be started and operated easily to obtain a better operating performance. In addition, the complicated structural design of the flaps  10  can be skipped to make the manufacture of the vertical axis wind turbine easier. 
     In a preferred embodiment of a vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , the vane module  10  has the first upper frame body  13  for coupling the top of all flaps  12  and the first lower frame body  14  for coupling the bottom of all flaps  12 , as well as having at least one connecting frame body  16  installed between the first upper frame body  13  and the first lower frame body  14  for coupling all flaps  12 . Similarly, the first upper frame body  13  is comprised of an inner ring  131  and an outer ring  132 , and a support bar  133  is installed between the inner ring  131  and the outer ring  132  for installing the flaps  12 . The first lower frame body  14  is comprised of an inner ring  141  and an outer ring  142 , and a support bar  143  is coupled between the inner ring  141  and the outer ring  142  for installing the flaps  12 . The at least one connecting frame body  16  is comprised of an inner ring  161  and an outer ring  162 , and a support bar  163  is coupled between the inner ring  161  and the outer ring  162  for installing the flaps  12 . Similarly, the first upper frame body  13 , the at least one connecting frame body  16 , and the first lower frame body  14  are coupled to the center shaft  15  to enhance the overall structural stability of the vane module  10 . 
     Of course, the vane module  10  of the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention can have plurality of cables  17  installed between the first upper frame body  13  and the first lower frame body  14  regardless of whether or not the vane module  10  has the at least one connecting frame body  16  installed between the first upper frame body  13  and the first lower frame body  14  for coupling all flaps  12 . When the vertical axis wind turbine is operated, the tension and the outwardly extending angle of all cables  17  can be adjusted to achieve the effect of maintaining the structural strength of the vane module  10 . 
     In the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6 , the wind guide module  20  has a second upper frame body  22  for coupling the top of all baffles  21  and a second lower frame body  23  for coupling the bottom of all baffles  21 . The second upper frame body  22  is comprised of an inner ring  221  and an outer ring  222 , and a support bar  223  is coupled between the inner ring  221  and the outer ring  222  for installing the baffles  21 . The second lower frame body  23  is comprised of an inner ring  231  and an outer ring  232 , and a support bar  233  is coupled between the inner ring  231  and the outer ring  232  for installing the baffles  21 . The vertical axis wind turbine further has a set of a stand  24  for fixing the wind guide module  20 , and the set of the stand  24  has an upper frame  241  coupled to the second upper frame body  22 , a lower frame  242  coupled to the second lower frame body  23 , a plurality of link rods  243  coupled between the upper frame  241  and the lower frame  242 , and a plurality of footers  244  disposed at the lower frame  242 , so as to enhance the overall structural strength of the vertical axis wind turbine, and facilitate the installation flexibly. 
     It is noteworthy that the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention uses the wind guide module  20  to guide and concentrate the surrounding air current at the flaps  12  at the inner ring to produce an aerodynamic effect, so as to simplify the structural design of the flaps  12  significantly. Basically, each flap  12  is an aluminum extrusion strip with a predetermined length, and each baffle  21  is an aluminum extrusion strip with a predetermined length to produce the aerodynamic effect, not only reducing the material and manufacturing cost significantly, but also assisting the reduction of the total weight of the vertical axis wind turbine. 
     In actual experiments, each flap  12  has an aluminum extrusion cross-section which is an arc cross-section with a predetermined curvature, and each baffle  21  has an aluminum extrusion cross-section which is an arc cross-section with a predetermined curvature, and the wind guide module  20  has the same number of flaps  12  as the number of baffles  21  to achieve the effects of better efficiency and quieter operation. 
     Compared with the conventional structures, the vertical axis wind turbine of the present invention can guide and concentrate the surrounding air current at the flaps at the inner ring under the action of the wind guide module, not only skipping the complicated structural design of the flaps to make the manufacture of the vertical axis wind turbine easier, but also reducing the total weight of the vane module to provide an easier start of the operation and a better operating performance, as well as integrating the magnetic field module onto the turntable of the vane module directly to reduce the total volume of the vertical axis wind turbine and overcome the environment limitations of installing the vertical axis wind turbine. 
     While the invention has been described by means of specific embodiments, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention set forth in the claims.