Patent ID: 8108997

Claim:
A method for replacing a first object in an apparatus at an elevated location, wherein the first object anchors a first end of an essentially horizontal shaft in the apparatus and wherein a weight of a second object at a second, opposite end of the shaft tends to destabilize the shaft from its essentially horizontal position when the first object is not present, said method comprising: lifting a shaft-restraining member or members to the apparatus; fastening the shaft-restraining member or members to the apparatus to thereby restrain the shaft from tilting when the first object is removed from the apparatus; removing the first object from the apparatus with the shaft-restraining member or members fastened to the apparatus; re-anchoring the first end of the shaft with a replacement object; and removing the shaft-restraining member or members from the apparatus after the shaft is re-anchored by the replacement object, wherein the apparatus is a wind turbine, the first object is a gearbox, the second object is a rotor of the wind turbine, and the replacement object is a replacement gearbox.