With a wind sphere capable harnessing the wind’s power from all directions and being rather compact, the O-Wind turbine from O-Innovations is perhaps the type of omni-directional wind turbine that everyone has been searching for. This bladeless turbine is capable of generating more or less 3 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity per year and may perhaps be the right solution to generating household power. Founder and CEO, Nicolas Orellana, has tapped into a design innovation that enables the turbine to gain wind vertically, horizontally, as well as diagnolly. While the O-Wind may be unlike the larger traditional turbines, it is still capable to thriving in the more chaotic environments.
Considering the Venturi effect
Orellana and the team at O-Innovations considered the Venturi effect which can be defined as air accelerating through narrow passages ensuring that lower pressure is created, so a higher velocity can result. Since the surface of the turbine is spherical, it contains angled vents specifically meant to funnel air so that spinning occurs around the axis. In this O-Wind turbine, the axis stays consistent, irrespective of where the wind is coming from.
The internal generator, in a way, turns rotation into electricity that can be stored in the battery. By considering the Venturi effect, the O-Wind turbine is effective as well as safe to use in very heavily populated areas. Aesthetics and space are even considered by Orellana and team.
Understanding where the O-Wind fits into the clean energy picture
When considering conventional turbines and the reception they gain from residents, it is clear why residents shy away from using them. Conventional turbines are far larger and too noisy and that is where the O-Wind fits in to provide a brand new picture of what can be possible with wind turbines.
Being versatile and compact, the O-Wind can effectively be installed on balconies and rooftops. The O-Wind also offers an interaction point that enables the public to use energy via the charging points. Furthermore, the mere fact that wind energy can be harnessed from all directions goes beyond what turbines are able to do.
As has been stated by Orellana, the O-Wind turbine was created whilst holding onto the assumption that wind is never predictable and always changing in terms of speed and direction. Thus the team put forward a turbine that is capable of handing messy winds.
A small wind turbine (SWT) with great potential
Although the O-Wind can simply be classified as a small wind turbine (SWT) that does not depend fully on wind direction, its offering of infinite energy from all directions provides an added advantage over most traditional turbines. Another advantage is that the O-Wind turbine works so efficiently that it will be eagerly embraced by residents in urban areas who also wish to generate clean energy.
While the O-Wind may never be the complete clean energy generatiom solution that fully replaces larger offshore giants, it does enable individual homes to rely less on the grid and more on the energy that is generated from this SWT.
What the O-Wind means for all in the long run?
The company called O-Innovations wishes to expand the O-Wind Turbine’s reach by looking towards various other applications. Like the O-Wind Turbine, further innovations will be required so as to meet the need for clean energy solutions. Nevertheless whilst offering 3 MWh of free energy annually, this wind sphere will soon be common all through the city whilst O-Innovations look towards new applications and possibilities.
If we look at the O-Wind turbine, we may find the solution that allows us to forget about solar panels for a while as we embrace the sphere for our gardens that will offer free electricity, even at night. The clean energy future may be unclear at this point, but the potential of O-Wind is clear.
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