Patent ID: 8882465

Claim:
A method of operating a wind machine, the method comprising: engaging a drive transmission between a first shaft of the wind machine and a second shaft for an electrical generator so as to allow the first shaft to selectively drive the second shaft when the wind machine is operating in a power generation mode; engaging the second shaft to drive the electrical generator; adapting a fan blade head of the wind machine to be movable between a first position in which the blades of the wind machine are inclined at a controllable angle, and a second position in which the blades of the wind machine are substantially vertical; and providing the wind machine with a mode selector for placing the machine in the power generation mode or a wind generation mode in response to a detection of ambient wind conditions; a horizontal axis rotation mechanism that adjusts the tilt or inclination of the blades of the fan according to the selected mode of operation; and a vertical axis rotation mechanism including an automatic control system for rotating the fan blade head at a selectively controllable speed, and at a selectively controllable periodic interval, about a vertical axis independently of the fan speed when the machine is in the wind generation mode; the method farther comprising: rotating the fan blade head at a selected speed and periodic interval about the vertical axis when the machine is in the wind generation mode.