July 7, 2011: <Vertical wind turbines: An old engineering dream> - the Agile wind tower is coming - flexible rotor + generator + compressed air tank.
(orig. German: Vertikale Windräder: Ein alter Ingenieurstraum)
aus: Tagesanzeiger online; 7.7.2011;
http://www.tagesanzeiger.com/zuerich/unterland/Vertikale-Windraeder-Ein-alter-Ingenieurstraum/story/14490530

Two Swiss Gearlooses, Mr. Karl Bahnmüller and Mr. Patrick Richter, have invented the wind tower, and we wish them good luck in getting it ready for series production. Who invented it? The Swiss. Seek and you shall find!

Translation from Deepl:

<By Christoph Landolt.

Two people from Zurich want to produce electricity around the world with their wind towers. Energy specialists consider their concept worthy of consideration.>

The Agile wind tower by Karl Bahnmüller and Patrick Richter

The wind tower with a horizontal wind mill inside by Karl Bahnmüller and Patrick Richter [1] The comparison between wind turbine and wind tower, scheme: The Agile wind tower needs only 1/3 of the space, in combination with a generator and electricity storage on the ground and a compressed air tank for wind in peak periods. [2] The wind council in the wind tower has adjustable rotor blades, scheme  [3]

<Egon Lang, professor of energy technology at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), was also skeptical at first. "Vertical wind power plants are nothing new; their advantages and disadvantages have been known for decades." There are good reasons why the rotors of conventional wind power plants rotate around a horizontal axis at a lofty height: Higher is better. At 150 meters, the wind blows much stronger than further down, where the rotors of vertical wind towers turn. The technical literature therefore says that vertical models can achieve at most 75 percent of the efficiency of horizontal wind turbines.

Karl Bahnmüller and Patrick Richter, the two inventors behind the company Agile Wind Power AG, want to turn the market for wind turbines around. They have also presented their idea to researchers such as ETH Professor Lino Guzzella or Lang from the ZHAW. The latter has great confidence in the inventors: "The concept is promising." Richter and Bahnmüller can't outsmart physics, but their concept has some additional advantages, as Lang explains in an interview with Tagesanzeiger.com.

Also a battery

[Rotor + generator on the ground + compressed air tank].

Countless engineers have tried their hand at vertical wind turbines, with manageable success. In 1925, for example, Finnish naval officer Sigurd Savonius developed a system using rotors shaped like tubes cut in half. Frenchman George Darrieus patented his system five years later, in which rotor blades converge in an arc at the top and bottom of the shaft. Both systems work, but provide little power.

Richter and Bahnmüller believe the Agile wind tower can catch on. Unlike horizontal-axis wind turbines, the generator is not housed in a nacelle a hundred meters up, but on the ground. This not only makes maintenance easier. "We plan to combine the wind tower with an energy storage system," Richter says. Instead of feeding electricity directly into the grid, Richter wants to compress air into a tank [compressed air]. When energy is in demand and prices are high, the compressed air could be turned into expensive peak electricity.

This, according to ETH professor Lino Guzzella, is the real strength of the Agile system. Wind power plants supply energy only 40 percent of the time, and this can be efficiently stored with compressed air.

Folding rotors

"The idea is ingenious," says ZHAW professor Lang. But the coupling with an energy storage system is not the only innovation that Richter and Bahnmüller want to help achieve a breakthrough. Also new is the idea of changing the position of the rotor blades during rotation. Richter and Bahnmüller have patented this system worldwide. "In vertical wind turbines, one half of the rotors moves with the wind, while the other half moves against it," explains energy specialist Lang. In conventional models, this causes a lot of energy to dissipate.

By setting the rotor blades in the style of an airplane wing or a sail, the two inventors can solve this problem. The blades in the wind are positioned transversely to maximize drag. Meanwhile, the other blades, which move against the wind, are pitched to create lift. Lang compares to a sailing ship that can also be steered against the wind.
However, the two professors also see this folding mechanism as the biggest obstacle for the Agile wind tower. They fear that the service life of the parts is short because of the flapping motion. In any case, it is worthwhile to continue the development, says Guzzella. Ultimately, however, the technical design will determine whether the new vertical wind turbine stands a chance against conventional models, he says. "Today's power plants already use the wind very, very well." (Tagesanzeiger.com/Newsnetz)>

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Switzerland 1.8.2011: Preparation for the small wind turbine on a farm in the Frick Valley:
The wheel of time turns with the wind
(orig. German: Das Rad der Zeit dreht mit dem Wind)
http://bazonline.com/basel/land/Das-Rad-der-Zeit-dreht-mit-dem-Wind/story/19638916

A small wind turbine like this one should also generate energy in Frick Valley [4]

<By Franziska Laur.

On a Fricktal farm, the rough wind will soon be used to produce electricity - with one of Switzerland's first small wind turbines.

Such a wind turbine is soon to be mounted on the roof of the riding arena in Zeiningen.

Anyone who visits the Schib family's Tschopperthof in Zeiningen from time to time knows that a rough wind blows there. Literally. And Erich Schib wanted to take advantage of it. "My father said 30 years ago that the constant wind on the farm had to be used," he says. That's why a small wind turbine is now to produce electricity on the roof of the riding arena.

Recently, the favor of the hour beckoned. The family heard of an electrician on the German side who supplies and installs such wheels - at an affordable price of just over 7000 euros. Now the building application is still open until August 8.

Legal obstacles

In Switzerland, it is one of the first small wind turbines of this kind to be installed. But this could soon change. "Since Fukushima, demand has skyrocketed," says Dirk Süss of Enflo Windtec in Kreuzlingen, which distributes the wheel. Until now, the company has delivered mainly to Germany, Spain and the Benelux countries. Depending on local wind strength, the product can supply one-quarter to one-half of a normal household's consumption, Süss says.

But because the Schib family's indoor riding arena is outside the building zone, the canton must also give its blessing for the wind turbine to be installed. At the Department of Construction, Transport and Environment of the Canton of Aargau, it is one of the first building applications for such a micro wind turbine on the table. "In principle, we support the use of renewable energies," says Sascha Amhof, section head of the department for building permits. In the case of Zeiningen, a site outside the building zone is involved. "Zoning conformity for wind turbines outside the building zone cannot be affirmed." Therefore, no ordinary building permit could be granted.

However, since a property already exists in the present case, the right to grandfathering applies. In addition, there are no overriding interests against the construction of a micro wind turbine, especially since it is hardly noticeable in the landscape and is mounted on an existing building similar to a solar system. Thus, one could say yes to such an application with a clear conscience. The final decision, however, lies with the municipality. According to Zeiningen's municipal clerk Marius Fricker, the municipality is also open to the request.

Solar power is sold

Two years ago, the Schib family had the roof of the riding hall fitted with a photovoltaic system. This is 430 square meters in size and, with its 32,000 kilowatt hours per year, covers the consumption of eight to ten households. The family has invested around a quarter of a million francs. "I sell this production. But since we need quite a lot of electricity on the farm, we also wanted to contribute to our own electricity consumption - hence the wind turbine," says Erich Schib.

The environmental science graduate manages the farm and the boarding horses with his wife Nicole, father Robert Schib lends a hand where necessary and breeds horses, and brother Dieter Schib gives riding lessons. And there is one thing in particular that makes the Tschopperthof so appealing: the love of nature is not just talked about, it is lived every day. (Basler Zeitung)>

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Altstätten (Switzerland, St. Gallen) 10.3.2014: Wind generator with wind buckets "Aroto" - combined with solar plant optimal
Self-developed: Clever wind generators from the Rhine Valley; 10.3.2014;
(orig. German: Selbst entwickelt: Clevere Windgeneratoren aus dem Rheintal)
http://www.20min.com/schweiz/ostschweiz/story/29880804

Wind-Kleinkraftwerk mit Windlöffeln "Aroto" mit Solaranlage oben drauf [5]

World first from the Rhine Valley: An SME produces compact wind turbines for self-sufficient power supply. The main customer is to be Africa.

The wind turbines produced by G&S World Bridge Trading in Altstätten weigh a light 250 kilos. They supply electricity at a wind speed of just 10 kilometers per hour - in other words, a light breeze. Compared to conventional wind turbines, the small energy factories have several advantages, according to the manufacturers: The frost- and heat-resistant Aroto produces energy regardless of wind direction - and thanks to so-called "wind spoons," it's also completely silent. And while wind turbines have to be shut down during storms, an "Aroto" simply keeps working.

"Anyone who mounts three Arotos on their roof will have a completely self-sufficient supply of electricity," says CEO Georges Gamper. This is interesting for countries without a functioning power grid, such as South Africa: "There, an Aroto pays for itself within three years," says the 61-year-old.

Farmers' associations in South Africa have already assured him that they will buy large quantities. The Rhine Valley innovation is also set to triumph in other countries such as Nigeria. The Aroto can be supplemented with solar panels as desired. "This is ideal for Africa in particular," says Gamper.
 
Everything produced in-house

The Altstätt-based company produces the 35 different system components in-house. "We don't want to be dependent on suppliers," explains the trained carpenter.

Everything from the wind bucket to the generator was developed in Altstätten. Gamper's business partner Sigfried Schmitt had the idea six years ago. At that time, the two founded their company, with the vision of a self-sufficient wind power plant already clearly in mind. In April, they want to go into series production with it. Gamper: "Soon we will be producing 1000 units a month." The price of an Aroto module with nine wind spoons is 8600 francs.

The first system is already in operation on the roof of a house in Widnau. "I expect this combined system to supply around half of our electricity needs," says the homeowner.

(tso)>

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Video 2022 appr.: Wind turbine 3-140m high without big rotor blade: with vibration energy - small wind turbine 2m high in the garden, at the highway or railroad line with electricity by the driving wind:
This invention will bring wind turbines back to the past
(orig. German: Diese Erfindung wird Windturbinen in die Vergangenheit zurückversetzen)
Video auf YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OZJWRvoi7o8  
Video auf Bitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/video/qbdkH8d1HHjV/  

Video: This invention will take wind turbines back in time (8'25'')
(orig. German: Diese Erfindung wird Windturbinen in die Vergangenheit zurückversetzen)
YouTube-Kanal: aTech DE - hochgeladen ca. 2022

 

Erfinder 01: Die Firma Vortex in Mailand (Italien): grosse vertikale Windturbinen mit Vibrationsenergie ohne Rotorblätter 3m bis 140m hoch
Inventor 01: The company Vortex in Milan (Italy): large vertical wind turbines with vibration energy without rotor blades 3m to 140m high.
Here is the company Vortex in Milan: https://vortexbladeless.com/  

Video minutes:

David Jannies (4'29'') - marketed by Vortex company (5'52'') - the 3m high turbines are barely audible in cities [because city noise masks turbine hum] (5'46'') - maintenance costs are much cheaper without rotor blades (5'54'') - Vortex company is based in Milan (6'10'') - goal is a wind turbine 140m high with 1 megawatt capacity (6'21''). Vortex is a startup company with 6 people (6'33'').

  
Vertical wind turbine with vibration energy, scheme  [6] - Vertical wind turbine with vibration energy, cross section, scheme [7]

     
Project vertical wind turbine with vibration energy 140m high [8] - Wind turbine with vibration energy 3m high on house wall [9] -

  
Wind turbine with vibration energy 3m high at the chimney [10] - Project: Vertical wind turbine park with vibration energy [11].

  
Project: wind turbine with vibration energy 140m high with 1 gigawatt power [12].
Project vertical wind turbine farm with vibration energy on the sea [13]

Inventor 02: The company Alpha 311 in Canons (GB): small vertical wind turbines 2m high at the house, at the roof, at the highway etc.
Here is the company Alpha 311 in GB with the small wind turbines 2m high at highways etc.: https://alpha-311.com/  

The turbine is 2m high made of recycled plastic (6'50''). These 2m tall vertical wind turbines can be attached to street lamps and all cars passing by will move the turbines with the driving wind (6'57''). You can also put these turbines on highways (7'7'') [or railroad lines]. The company is from Great Britain (7'11''). One small wind turbine can produce as much electricity as 20 solar panels (7'15'').

There are materials which come from recycled material, the materials are less expensive, are more environmentally friendly, and are much cheaper (7'36'').

  
Small, vertical wind turbine for the garden [13] - Small, vertical wind turbines on the highway with driving wind [14].

  
Small wind turbines on roofs [15] - Small wind turbine on roof gable [16].

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Sep 11, 2022: The Vertical Wind Turbine as a vibrating rod from Vortex:
This vibrating rod is 2x more powerful than wind turbines!
(orig. German: Diese Vibrier-Stange ist 2x leistungsfähiger als Windräder!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QHJfPz5LWo - YouTube-Kanal: Norio - hochgeladen am 1.7.2022

This admittedly somewhat odd-looking turbine actually has the potential to revolutionize wind power technology! We are talking about Vortex Bladeless! (Source 1) Rotor blades, as in conventional wind turbines, this wind power technology does not have. Also there is no gear, no generator in the actual sense and also no brakes! (Source 2) The current is won by oscillation. The plant swings in the wind! (Source 2) To the use one makes oneself a phenomenon called vortex-induced oscillation. (Source 3) According to fluid mechanics, the flow of wind is modified by striking a blunt body. A cyclic vortex pattern is formed. (Source 2) However, as soon as the frequency of these forces is close enough to the structural frequency of the blunt body, the body begins to vibrate quite violently and enters into resonance with the wind, as seen here on the lanterns! (Source 2, 3) This is exactly what we want to avoid at all costs in architecture with e.g. high-rise buildings or bridges. The buildings would be at high risk of collapse. Here with the wind power engineering, however, this oscillation supplies us with current! (Source 2)

The calculation: The current by the vibrating rod of Vortex is cheap, because it applies:
-- minimum area consumption
-- uses also weak winds from 2 to 8m per second, where the big windmills still stand still
-- exploits also the small winds on the ground
-- cheap and light materials
-- hardly any transport costs
-- no technically complicated parts
-- hardly any repairs


What does the Vortex website say?
https://vortexbladeless.com/


-- Low maintenance costs
-- Harmless to wildlife, no damages
-- there are no complicated mechanisms: Gears and brakes NO
-- Needs oiling NO
-- Self-running & standalone without control
-- Lightweight, minimal need of raw materials
-- Can handle all winds from all directions: Quick response to wind changes.

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