The present application relates to a plant for the production of energy particularly optimized for being powered by more than one source of energy.

In particular present invention is applicable, preferentially but not exclusively, to production of electric energy by means of the exploitation of a discontinuous energy source, for example wind, and of a programmable source of energy, i.e. a source of energy the use in time of which is programmable, to be used in addition or alternatively to said discontinuous energy source. The plant for the production of energy according to the present invention is also particularly optimized to allow to overcome the problems of size, configuration and space related to installations known in the art.

In fact are known in the art various systems for the production of energy that make use of a renewable energy source, such as wind energy or hydraulic energy, and a source of auxiliary energy.

An example is the document AU5039279 which addresses the problem of providing a wind power generator equipped with a means of emergency operation comprising a internal combustion engine, where the wind turbine and the internal combustion engine are alternately connected to the alternator by means of a mechanical transmission, depending on the amount of energy delivered by wind turbine. A further example is the document AU618719, which arises the problem of providing a floating station for the generation of energy, which can be powered by means of a wind turbine and a hydraulic wheel, mechanically connected by means of two centrifugal clutches to the generator . The examples known to the state of the art are limited. The first example cited is in fact limited to the use of an internal combustion engine as an auxiliary source, and the connection of the internal combustion engine to the wind turbine occurs by means of a mechanical transmission which links the position of the auxiliary motor to the immediate vicinity of the wind turbine.

The second example cited is a floating plant in which the two energy sources (hydro and wind) are exploited by machines located in the immediate vicinity of each other and mechanically connected to each other.

US2007/0024058 describes and claims a system for the production of wind energy that makes use of a hydraulic transmission to transfer the energy produced by wind turbine to a hydraulic motor located at the base of the wind turbine. Is not made mention in US2007/0024058 to the possibility of use of sources of auxiliary energy. Moreover the hydraulic transmission is used to connect the wind turbine to the alternator, with obvious lower yields in the transmission compared to the use of a transmission of the mechanical type.

The examples known to the state of the technique are limited, as the only two sources of energy auxiliary whose use is dealt with are the fossil source and hydroelectric power; also none of the cited documents addresses the problem of using a source of auxiliary energy positioned arbitrarily in the vicinity of the discontinuous energy source, but not connectable to the same by means of a mechanical transmission.

Purpose of the invention object of the present patent application is therefore to provide a plant for the production of electric energy supplied from a renewable discontinuous-primary source and from an auxiliary source of varying nature, use of which is programmable at will by those who operates the plant, which exceeds the limits related to the embodiments known in the art, and in particular which allows to move conveniently and without rigid mechanical constraints the position of the auxiliary energy source, while maintaining the high yields of transmission related to the use of a transmission of the mechanical type when the main energy source is in operation.

These and other advantages will be apparent from the detailed description of some preferential embodiment of the invention, which will refer to Figures 1 and 2 attached. In figure 1 a conceptual scheme of the production of electric energy according to the present invention is shown

In Figure 2 a preferred embodiment the plant in which the main energy source used is wind power is shown.

As shown in Figure 1 , the plant according to the present invention comprises a machine (1) for the production of mechanical energy supplied by the main energy source. According to a preferred embodiment shown in figure 2 this machine may be a wind turbine (101), or according to other modes of realization any machine capable of exploiting a discontinuous (i.e. not programmable) energy source.

The plant according to the present invention further comprises means for the exploitation of a second source of mechanical energy. According to a preferred embodiment this source of energy can be the power produced from animals appropriately constrained to rotate, walking, a drive shaft. According to a preferred but non limiting embodiment the plant can be optimized for the use of donkeys, mules, horses or cattle in general for the production of energy.

The system further comprises means for the mechanical connection of the two sources of energy, properly controlled. Said means comprise preferably a mechanical connection box (30), comprising components adapted to receive mechanical power input from two separate drive shafts (108, 408) respectively fed by the first and second source of energy. In particular the machine (10) for the exploitation of the first energy source is connected by means of a mechanical transmission comprising the drive shaft (108) to the connection box (30). The machine (20) for the exploitation of the second energy source, for use in the auxiliary mode, is connected to the mechanical connection box (30) by means of a hydraulic transmission (40) comprising at least one pump (401) driven by the machine ( 20) and a motor (402) which drives the drive shaft (408) connected to the mechanical connection box (30).

The hydraulic transmission (40) further comprises a reservoir (406), rigid conduit (409) and flexible conduits (410) to connect the pump (401) to the motor (402). Elements commonly known in the art, such as a hydraulic transmission filter (403), a pressure gauge (404), a pressure relief valve (405) may also be present.

In general, the transmission is carried out such as to allow connecting the machine (20) for the exploitation of the second energy source to the mechanical connection box (30) without imposing constraints on the mutual position and the distance between the two. The mechanical connection box (30) is configured so as to supply by means of the output shaft (301) an alternator for the production of electrical energy (50). It 's evident that both in the mechanical connection box (30) and in the alternator (50) control means suitable to stabilize the input power to obtain an electric current produced by the alternator (50 ) of desired quality, and in particular of quality such that they can be fed into the electrical distribution or transmission network are included.

A preferred embodiment of what has been described is shown in Figure 2, which shows an optimized system for the exploitation of wind energy, which includes a wind turbine (60) which comprises a rotor (101) connected by means of the mechanical transmission (108 ) to the mechanical connection box (30), contained within the nacelle of the wind turbine (60), which also contains an alternator (50) for electricity production. Mechanical power produced by the hydraulic motor (402) fed, by means of the hydraulic transmission (40), by the auxiliary energy source (20) is connected as input to the mechanical connection box (30).

The operation of the plant described is such that the plant produces electric energy by means of the action of the wind (or of another primary energy source) and, simultaneously or alternately, by means of one or more energy sources auxiliary. In particular at the cessation of the wind is possible, if the auxiliary source of energy is of the programmable type, operate it to continue to produce electricity. The auxiliary energy sources can be constituted by animal, by small water streams, by steam turbines, internal combustion engines or by other sources of energy whose exploitation is known in the art.

Obvious it is also possible to connect more than one source of additional power, by suitably dimensioning and configuring the hydraulic transmission (40) by inserting more than one pump in the hydraulic circuit that supplies the motor (402).

In all the embodiments described the system object of the present invention allows the use of a primary power source by connecting it by means of a mechanical transmission to an alternator, thereby maintaining the advantages associated with their high yields of a mechanical transmission. The system also allows to use one or more auxiliary energy sources without the need, for said auxiliary energy sources, to be located near the position of the machine powered by the main energy source (i.e. of the wind turbine (60). This is obtained by means of a hydraulic transmission. This allows to rationalize the spaces, for example allowing the combined use, with a single point of connection to the electric network, of a wind turbine and of a hydraulic turbine driven by a small stream, which are usually placed at distances that do not allow use of a mechanical transmission. In the case of exploitation of the animal force for the production of energy, the invention object of the present invention allows to ensure best working conditions to the animals, allowing to locate their place of work independently from the position of the wind turbine.

What has been described is merely a description of the preferential ways of realization of the plant for energy production defined by the following claims.