Domestic Windmill using Bevel Gear Mechanism

Introduction:

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In this career episode, I will be focusing on one of the projects which I have carried out while pursuing my undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering. This project helped me in understanding the working mechanism of bevel gears and how renewable resources can be used to produce electricity.

Background:

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Wind energy has been used for various purposes over the years. The concept of windmill was established in the 10^th century and has been improving ever since. The main principle working of windmill is conversion of wind energy to rotational energy by means of vanes called blades, which is then converted into mechanical energy with the help of bevel gears.

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The main aim of the project was to produce four times the power than the actual windmill (i.e. 4:1). It is based on the principle of the power generation in the actual wind mill. Another aspect of the project was also using the mechanisms of bevel gears, bearings, shaft, and pulley to generate power from the actual wind mill.

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The organisational structure of the project is as follows:

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The following activities were essential to successful competition of the project:

• Being on par with the timeframe given by the professor.
• I had to read books related to bevel gears and windmill to understand the working procedure.
• Have discussions with project supervisor and team member on how to carry out the work.
• Discuss with lab technicians how to connect the bevel gears with the shafts.
• I proposed the design of the windmill and carried out the necessary calculations required.
• The project documentation was completed along with my team member which presented my finding and the results to the project supervisor and the faculty.

3. Personal Engineering Activity:

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Working on a project is the most interesting part where learning is very essential and crucial in successful completion of the project. I first approached my project supervisor along with my team member to discuss about the different ideas. After careful examination, myself and my team member decided to work on something which helps in reducing the pollution and working with renewable resources. Which lead to working on power generation of windmill with help of bevel gears.

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The initial step of the project was to design the model of the windmill and how to establish the connection between the shafts, gears, motor, and batteries. The design of the model was carried out using AutoCAD software. I learned the basics from Design of Machine Members subject and with the help of lab assistant understood the tools essential for creating the model. Once our project guide approved of the design of windmill, the assembly of parts was needed to obtain the working model of the proposed windmill.

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Once the parts were obtained for the completion of windmill, my team member and I had experienced difficulty in establishing a proper connection, but with the help of project guide and lab technicians myself and my team member were able to get the gears and the shafts working. The windmill consisted of three vanes which were connected to a primary shaft and fan hub. This setup was then connected the gear and ball bearing on both its end. I then suggested that each shaft be fixed to its respective dynamo using gripper belts. The gripper belt connected between the shafts and dynamo pulleys makes dynamo produce the electrical energy. The power generated is stored in battery and used for domestic purposes.

Below is the list of objects along with the specifications which were part of the project.

Table 1: Specifications

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Once the model was ready, I carried out few structural analysis using ANSYS software which our project guide thought us. ANSYS was carried out to study the stress, strain, and heat dissipation due to constant rotation of the bevel gears. I found that total deformation was the maximum on the outer edge of the gears and minimum on the inner edge as major forces acted on the outer edge due to the shape of the bevel gears whenever they came into contact.

Once the stress analysis was carried. Myself and my team member carried out the power generated by the windmill using the basic power equation.

ρ=  Density of air 1.28 kg / m³

A=  Area of the Wind

V²=  Velocity of Air

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Project Photos:

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The following are the conclusions I could draw:

• The project myself and my team member carries out made an impressing task in the field of using renewable source of domestic windmill and to produce the sufficient energy for the domestic purpose.
• The project also reduced the cost involved in developing a windmill. It also met the requirements set up by our project guide at the beginning of the project.
• The project does not produce any harmful greenhouse gases which pollute the atmosphere.

4. Summary

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Myself and my team member successfully completed the project on the power generation of Windmill using Bevel gears to generate four times the power. This project helped me in understanding the working of bevel gears and how they are connected to shafts. Also, how to use renewable resources to generate electricity.

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This project helped me to improve my skills in writing as part of the project a detailed report was to be submitted explaining our findings. I have also learned two new software’s ANSYS and AutoCAD which come in handy in the future. With constant support and review from our project guide myself and my team member were able to improve communication skills and successfully completed the required project.