Patent ID: 8669671

Claim:
A system for continuous generation of rated electric power from a wind farm comprising: multitude of wind driven pump units; each comprising a rotor-driven pump through a shaft and a fixed ratio gearbox mechanism; with respective inlets and outlets of rotor-driven pumps connected in parallel to respective principle conduits of non-pressurized flow and pressurized flow; and a brake mechanism to stop rotor motion in case of high winds to avoid damage; multitude of hydraulic motors, or turbines, driven by pressurized hydraulic flow retrieved from said principle conduit of pressurized hydraulic flow through a valve means; with the respective inlets and outlets of said hydraulic motors, or turbines, connected in parallel to the respective principle conduits of non-pressurized flow and pressurized flow; with a shaft of each said hydraulic motor, or turbine, made to move at constant speed by a variable valve device which is actuated in response to monitored speed deviations of said shaft from a predetermined rated desired speed; and with conduits of non-pressurized hydraulic flow at the outlet of said hydraulic motors, or turbines, serving to recycle hydraulic flow back to the inlets said rotor-driven pumps of said wind-pump units through said principle conduit of non-pressurized flow; a valve means at an inlet and outlet of each wind driven pump to enable the temporary isolation of a specific wind-pump unit from the rest of the wind farm for maintenance and/or repair; a start up valve means to enable the initial build up of pressurized flow in said principle conduit of pressurized flow, with a minimum resistance to rotor motion, before such pressurized flow is diverted to the operation of said hydraulic motor(s), or turbine(s); one or more rated electric generators per each said hydraulic motor, or turbine, connected to said hydraulic motor, or turbine, by means of a gearbox of fixed ratio transmission and a clutch mechanism, whereby, said generators can be engaged, alternately or simultaneously, with the shaft of said hydraulic motor, or turbine, by a predetermined sequence as a function of wind power availability, thereby, enabling continuous generation of rated electric power over a wide wind regime; monitoring means of wind velocity and direction, hydraulic pressure and flow in hydraulic conduits; speed of hydraulic motors, turbines, rated electric power output of generators; and computer control means which determine the sequence of operations in the entire system whereby said hydraulic motor(s), or turbine(s), and rated generator(s) are actuated, alternately and/or simultaneously, to enable continuous rated electric power generation over a wide wind regime with high energy conversion efficiency due to attainment of rotor(s) speed(s) in the tip-speed-ratio range of high power coefficient.