{
  "patent_number": "US 8303250",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Wind Turbine Blades Get More Lift with Extra Parts",
  "original_title": "Method and apparatus for increasing lift on wind turbine blade",
  "summary": "This patent describes adding special front and back parts to a wind turbine blade to create specific air channels, making the blade generate more power from the wind.",
  "what_it_does": "The patent describes a way to make wind turbine blades catch more wind, generating more lift. It does this by adding two extra pieces, called \"extensions,\" to the main blade. A \"forward blade extension\" is attached to the top (suction surface) of the main blade, creating a \"first airflow channel\" (Claim 1). Another \"aft blade extension\" is attached to the bottom (pressure surface) of the main blade, creating a \"second airflow channel\" (Claim 1). These channels are designed to have a \"substantially constant cross-sectional width\" (Claim 1, Claim 4), which helps guide the airflow efficiently. For example, if a wind turbine blade is struggling to generate enough power in lighter winds, adding these extensions could help it capture more energy without needing a larger, heavier main blade.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Wind turbine blades that increase lift using only adjustable pitch or angle of attack without additional extensions.",
    "Blade designs that use different types of aerodynamic add-ons, like vortex generators or Gurney flaps, instead of the specified forward and aft extensions.",
    "Extensions that do not form airflow channels with a \"substantially constant cross-sectional width\" as claimed.",
    "Blade designs where the forward extension does not extend along the suction surface past the centerline towards the trailing edge.",
    "Systems where the aft blade extension's suction surface does not extend along the pressure surface of the rotor blade."
  ],
  "filed": "2009-12-30",
  "granted": "2012-11-06",
  "expires": "2029-12-30",
  "status": "active",
  "holder": "General Electric",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/general-electric",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Stefan Herr",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/stefan-herr"
    },
    {
      "name": "Omer Mohammed",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/omer-mohammed"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 14,
  "tags": [
    "energy",
    "mechanical",
    "aerospace",
    "renewable_energy"
  ],
  "abstract": "A lift generating apparatus for a wind turbine rotor blade comprising a first sidewall and an opposing second sidewall coupled together at a leading edge and at a trailing edge. The lift generating apparatus includes at least one forward blade extension coupled to the rotor blade to define a first airflow channel between the forward blade extension and the rotor blade. The lift generating apparatus also includes at least one aft blade extension coupled to the rotor blade to define a second airflow channel between the aft blade extension and the rotor blade.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8303250/method-and-apparatus-for-increasing-lift-on-wind-turbine-blade",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/8303250/method-and-apparatus-for-increasing-lift-on-wind-turbine-blade/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US8303250",
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}