A system for carrying a tether guide, including a counter-balanced support system with two pivot points, where a first pivot allows the tether guide to travel up and down and the second pivot allows the tether guide to match the tether angle. Both pivots may be passive pivots. A shuttle that carries the tether guide may be electronically cammed to follow variable pitch helical grooves of a winch drum as the tether guide traverses across the drum length.

Offshore airborne wind turbine systems with an aerial vehicle connected via a tether to an adjustably buoyant body are disclosed. The tether may be coupled to an underwater mooring through which it may move, or it may be coupled to a floating platform through which it may move. The buoyancy of the buoyant body may be adjusted to change the tension in the tether or for other purposes. Methods related to changing the buoyancy are also disclosed.

A tether guide operable through a wide range of tether/fleeting angles while causing minimal wear and having a reduced size compared to a levelwind wheel. The tether guide may include a series of rollers approximating the curved shape and radius of levelwind wheel. The tether guide may include downward facing guide wings matched to a curved roller profile, but flaring out to capture and guide tether into rollers. Sensors may be included on the tether guide to provide information about tether location, including whether the tether is engaged in the tether guide.

A system may include a tether, a slip ring, a tether gimbal assembly, a drive mechanism, a control system. The tether may include a distal tether end coupled to an aerial vehicle, a proximate tether end, and at least one insulated electrical conductor coupled to the aerial vehicle. The slip ring may include a fixed portion and a rotatable portion, where the rotatable portion is coupled to the tether. The tether gimbal assembly may be rotatable about at least one axis and is coupled to the fixed portion of the slip ring. The drive mechanism may be coupled to the slip ring and configured to rotate the rotatable portion of the slip ring. And the control system may be configured to operate the drive mechanism to control twist in the tether.

The present invention relates to a high-altitude wind farm aircraft system. The aircraft has a plurality of wind turbines for capturing wind energy and converting same into electric energy which is stored in an onboard battery system. The electric energy, before storage, is stepped down by a transformer and converted into DC by an AC-DC converter. For use of the stored energy, the aircraft is brought to the ground and the batteries are removed to connect to a microgrid or any other electric circuit. The batteries can be installed again in the aircraft system for recharging with the aircraft going to high altitude for recharging the batteries. In one embodiment, the aircraft has an altitude indicator for indicating an appropriate altitude level for maximum efficiency of the system.

An example system includes a ground station, an aerial vehicle, a tether, a probe, and a control system. The tether includes a core having a strength member as well as an electrical conductor that is wound around the core. The probe is attached to the strength member so that the probe is able to measure an electrical property of at least a portion of the strength member. The control system is configured to measure the electrical property along the strength member at a predetermined measurement rate and also determine that the electrical property is outside a predetermined range. Based on the electrical property, damage to the tether core can be assessed.

Tethered unmanned aerial vehicle (TUAV) includes at least one wing fixed to a fuselage. The wing is comprised of an airfoil shaped body capable of producing lift in response to a flow of air across a major wing surface, and can include at least one flight control surface, such as an aileron. One or more buoyancy cell is disposed within the fuselage for containing a lighter than air gas to provide positive buoyancy for the TUAV when the TUAV is disposed in air. A tether attachment structure facilitates attachment of the TUAV to a tether which is secured to an attachment point for securing the TUAV to the ground when aloft. A wind-powered generator is integrated with the TUAV and configured to generate electric power in response to the flow of air across the least one wing when the TUAV is aloft.

An airborne tethered flight system including a base unit, a tether having a first end attached to the base unit and a second end attached to a kite, wherein the kite comprises a main wing, a tail wing, and a tail boom attached to said main wing on a first end, said tail boom coupled to said tail wing on a second end, a plurality of vertical pylons attached to the main wing, said pylons comprising vertical airfoils adapted to provide lift, turbine driven generators mounted on the vertical airfoils attached to the main wing, and an additional vertical airfoil extending between the tail boom and tail wing.

A system may include a tether, a slip ring, a tether gimbal assembly, a drive mechanism, a control system. The tether may include a distal tether end coupled to an aerial vehicle, a proximate tether end, and at least one insulated electrical conductor coupled to the aerial vehicle. The slip ring may include a fixed portion and a rotatable portion, where the rotatable portion is coupled to the tether. The tether gimbal assembly may be rotatable about at least one axis and is coupled to the fixed portion of the slip ring. The drive mechanism may be coupled to the slip ring and configured to rotate the rotatable portion of the slip ring. And the control system may be configured to operate the drive mechanism to control twist in the tether.

A method is disclosed where an airborne wind turbine (AWT) is prevented from coming into contact with airborne objects such as birds and bats. The AWT determines the location and characteristics of the incoming airborne objects, and depending on the determined risk value, may shift the location of the aerial vehicle of the AWT in order to avoid the risk of colliding with the airborne objects. Other considerations used by the AWT's determination may include whether the aerial vehicle can continue to generate electricity while performing the avoidance maneuver.