An important component of WinDIY are certainly the wings. They absorb the energy of the wind and convert it into a rotary motion, which in turn feeds the generator and thus produces energy.

Of course, the wings should be as light as possible. At the same time, however, they should be stable enough to withstand the forces even in stronger winds.

On the way to a suitable design I have therefore experimented a little bit. Information about these experiments can be found here: https://hackaday.io/project/172328-windiy-hawt-wind-turbine/log/179141-windy-wing-mark-3-a-modular-easy-replaceable-and-scalable-blade

In the following article you will find the tips to rebuild the wing. You will (of course) need three copies of this wing.

You can also find additional infos about that here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-fluegel-der-windturbine-aufbauen/

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Cordless drill

(long) 3mm drill bit

tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this item.

You need the materials listed here for one wing. So make sure you order enough parts for three wings. 🙂

15x	rafters
1x	raftersTip
1x	basePlug
1x	baseSocket
1x	Aluminum rod 10x10mm 67cm long
1x	Shrink tubing approx. 1 m long and 140 mm wide
1x	M6x100mm hexagon screw
1x	M6 self-locking nut
5x	M3 nut
3x	M3x20 cylinder head screw
2x	M3x8 cylinder head screw
2x	M5x75 cylinder head screw
1x	Glue

Information about the structure

The wing design is based on the NACA4412 profile with a chord length of 120mm.

On the following page you will find information and configurable templates for this and other wing profiles: http://airfoiltools.com/airfoil/details?airfoil=naca4412-il

Collect needed parts

Before you can start building the wing, you will of course need to have all the necessary parts together. A complete list of the required materials and tools can be found above in the materials and tools list.

The plastic parts can be easily created with a 3D printer. All parts are designed to be printed on a standard FMD printer.

The required STL files for printing can be found here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/wingMk3

I have printed the parts with the following settings.

Rafter:

• Perimeter: 3
• Infill: 10%

Wing base (both parts):

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 50%

Wing-Tip:

• Perimeter: 3
• Infill: 30%

The screws in the wing should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust from moisture.

Mount the end piece

Somewhat untypically we start with the end. Namely the end part of the wing.

For this you need the shown parts.

Now insert the aluminium profile into the wing’s end part.

This should be pushed into the wing’s end part up to the stop.

Because now you have to drill a hole in the aluminium profile.

Therefore, use the wing’s end part as a template. By drilling through the hole (which is actually intended for the screw) in the aluminum profile, you will have the correct position for the drill hole.

Important: When drilling, make sure that you only drill through one side of the aluminum profile. You should not drill completely through!

Once drilled, your aluminum profile should look something like this.

Now the prepared aluminium profile must be connected to the wing’s end part. To do this, insert an M3 screw into the wing’s end part as shown.

This should then project into the recess for the aluminum profile as shown.

Now it gets a bit tricky.

Through the opening, into which the aluminium profile will later be inserted into the wing’s end part, you must now screw an M3 nut onto the M3 screw previously inserted.

The finished M3 nut could then look something like this.

Now you can insert the aluminium profile into the wing’s end part as shown. Screw it with the prepared screw.

Mount the first five rafters

After the wing’s end part is mounted, you can now mount the first five rafters on the wing.

Slide the first four rafters onto the aluminium profile as shown.

Now you have to prepare the fifth rafter.

This is fixed to the aluminium profile with a screw – similar to the wing’s end part.

Therefore, insert the M3 screw into the hole in the rafter and screw the M3 nut on the inside as shown.

You can then pull the M3 nut into the recess in the rafter using the screw.

Prepared like this you can now push the fifth rafter loosely onto the aluminium profile.

Before the individual rafters are pushed together, you should apply some glue to the connectors.

This is not absolutely necessary, since the wing parts will most likely stick together without glue. But I recommend it. 🙂

Coat the positioning aid on the …

…wing’s trailing edge …

… of every single rafter…

… and on the front of the wing with a small drop of glue.

If you have prepared all rafters with the glue…

…you can now put them together.

View of the first rafters put together.

Close-up view of the hole at the front edge of the rafters into which the positioning aid must be inserted.

Close-up view of the hole at the rear edge of the rafters into which the positioning aid must be inserted.

Now, prepare the fifth rafter so that the nut on the screw is pulled into the recess in the rafter.

Then you can slide the rafter onto the aluminium profile.

As soon as you have put the first five rafters together, you can screw the fifth (previously prepared with the screw) rafter onto the aluminium profile with the screw.

Make sure that the screw is tight but not too tight.

Mount the rafters six to ten

Rafters six to ten are installed basically in the same way as the previous five rafters.

You now need another five rafters.

You can slide four of them onto the aluminium profile as usual.

The fifth one should be prepared with a screw as shown before. With this screw you can secure the fifth rafter on the aluminium profile as shown before.

All five prepared rafters would then look like this.

Now you can coat the connectors with some glue like before and…

… put the individual rafters together.

When everything is put together properly you can tighten the screw of the last rafter and secure the attached rafters.

Mount the rafters eleven to 15

Meanwhile you already have practice in installing more rafters. Now you have to install the last five rafters before you can install the wing’s connector.

Here you can see the wing built up to now and the five rafters not yet installed.

Additional view.

Prepare the fifth rafter again as before so that you can fix it later with a screw on the aluminium profile.

Now push the five rafters back onto the aluminum profile, prepare the plug connections with glue…

…and push the rafters or their connectors together.

With the help of the screw in the last rafter you again can secure the rafters on the aluminium profile.

Assemble the wing-side part of the wing base

So that the wing can be easily assembled or disassembled later, you can now mount the first part of the connector on the aluminium profile.

For this you need the upper part of the connector as shown and a M3 screw including nut.

As with the wing’s end part you now have to put the upper part of the connector onto the aluminium profile and drill through the screw hole of the connector with a 3mm drill bit.

The aim is to drill a hole in one side of the aluminium profile (as with the wing end part).

Once you have drilled the hole, you can now reinsert the screw into the connector.

This should look something like this.

Now you can push the connector onto the aluminium profile and clamp it with the prepared screw on the aluminium profile.

Now the wing looks almost finished.

Mount the hub-side part of the wing

Of course, it must be possible to plug in the connector just mounted somewhere. Therefore you should now prepare the hub-side part of the wing connector. This will be mounted on the hub later when the hub is assembled.

Now you need the shown parts.

Additional view.

Now push the M6x100 screw as shown…

…into the connector…

…and place the self-locking M6 nut on the M6x100 screw as shown.

Screwed on ready…

…it should look like this.

Make sure that the head of the M6x100 screw is correctly inserted into the recess provided for it.

Now you can test the connector for the first time.

The parts should fit into each other as shown.

You can now secure the plug connection with the M5 screw.

Put it completely through the two parts of the connector…

… and screw it with the appropriate M5 nut in such a way that the connector is held together by the M5 screw.

Fasten the screw on the upper and…

…lower side of the wing.

Additional view.

Now the structure for your wing is ready. The only thing missing is the wing surface.

Additional view.

Additional view.

Prepare shrinking of the shrink tubing

In order for the wing to offer resistance to the wind and for its aerodynamic shape to generate lift, it is important that the skeleton of the wing is covered with a foil. The easiest way to do this is to place the wing in an appropriately sized shrink tube.

Dazu benötigt Ihr die abgebildeten Teile.

Important: Of course you should now remove the lower part of the connector. It should not be enclosed by the shrink tube.

Additional view.

Now check again that the shrinking tube is at least as long as the whole wing.

If yes, you can now insert the wing into the heat shrink tube.

Since you have to use hot air to shrink the shrink tube onto the wing, you should now store the wing slightly away from the base.

This way you avoid that the base is damaged by the hot air.

This could look like this, for example.

I simply used two empty boxes.

Close-up view of the wing in heat shrink tube.

Close-up view of the wing in heat shrink tube.

Close-up view of the wing in heat shrink tube.

Close-up view of the wing in heat shrink tube.

Close-up view of the wing in heat shrink tube.

Shrink the middle part of the wing

To shrink the heat shrink tube you need some patience. Here you have to be careful that the tube does not get too hot, because then holes will appear. In the video below you can see how I did it. To shrink the heat shrink tube I used a hot air station which I set to 150°C.

The aim of shrinking the shrink tubing is to ensure that it lies evenly and as far as possible without wrinkles on the wing skeleton.

Important: During this shrinking process you should not shrink the ends of the wing yet! In the next step these are prepared with glue to “seal” them.

A few tips:

• never direct the hot air to one spot for too long
• set the temperature not too hot
• if in doubt, let the affected area cool down first and work on it again later

Shrink the ends of the heat shrink tubing

The ends of your wing must now be prepared with glue. This way the ends can be secured against water penetration.

This is what your wing should look like now. The heat shrink tubing is mostly tightly fitted to the skeleton of the wing.

The ends are still loose and not shrunk.

View of the loose (not shrunk) wing tip.

View of the loose (not shrunk) wing tip.

View of the loose (not shrunk) wing tip.

View of the loose (not shrunk) wing tip.

The aim is to seal the ends against water penetration. For this purpose you should now coat the space between the wing frame and the shrink tube with glue.

Especially in the corners a cotton swab can be helpful. In this way the applied adhesive can be better distributed.

You should do the same at the other end of the wing.

Make sure that the glue is spread around the complete wing.

When the shrink tube is shrunk later, it automatically lays on the wing and thus comes into contact with the adhesive over a large area.

In the following again two videos how I proceeded with shrinking the wingtips. (Finally I could use my GoPro. :D (And yes, I build a GoProHeatGun-Mount for recording this: https://www.instagram.com/p/CCB5HauqAiM/ ))

Done

If everything went well, your wing should now be fully assembled. For a complete assembly you obviously need three wings.

At one point or another I have probably already mentioned that it was important to me to be able to control WinDIY safely and to be able to limit its speed in an emergency.

This is why I developed a mechanism which allows to adjust the angle of attack of the wings. So the wings can be adjusted to the current wind and rotation speed. In addition they can be turned out of the wind in strong winds.

In this way the speed and the load of WinDIY can be controlled.

I have written down some additional information here: https://hackaday.io/project/172328-windiy-hawt-wind-turbine/log/179105-windiys-hub-oh-my-god-mechanics

You can find additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-nabe-inkl-mechanik-aufbauen/

In the following article you will find the instructions to rebuild the mechanism for adjusting the wing’s angle of attack.

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Spanner

Cordless drill

3mm drill bit

Tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this item.

3x	pitchArm
3x	pitchLever
3x	pitchArmNutSecuring
1x	hubBase
1x	pitchLeverDisk
1x	hubCover
1x	hubBearingCap
9x	603ZZ Bearing
2x	606ZZ Bearing
5x	M6 self-securing nut
6x	M6 nut
3x	M3x20 Cylinderhead screw
3x	M3 self-securing nut
15x	M3 nut
3x	M3x30 Countersunk screw
3x	M3x16 Countersunk screw
6x	M3x40 Countersunk screw
3x	Prepared wing slot
1x	M6 Threaded rod 60cm long

Collect needed parts

Before you can start building the hub and its mechanics, you will of course need to have all the necessary parts together. A complete list of the required materials and tools can be found above in the material and tool list

On this picture you can see all parts needed to build the hub mechanism.

The required STL files for printing can be found here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/hub

I have printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 50%

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust through moisture.

Mount the hub base on the axle

First the hub base must be connected to the axle. This actually makes further assembly a bit more complicated. Unfortunately, this has to be done right at the beginning, because the screw holes which are used during the assembly are difficult to reach later on.

For this you first need the shown parts.

The axle, the hub base, 3x M3 nuts and 3x M3x50 countersunk screws.

In order for the screws to hold the axle in place, you must first insert an M3 nut into the axle as shown.

Depending on the print quality of your printer, you may have to “force” the nut to go into the correct position.

Now you can put the first M3x50 screw through the hole in the hub base.

Another view of the inserted screw.

The inserted screw should then …

… be inserted into the axis as shown and screwed together with the previously inserted nut.

Now that you have provisionally fixed the axle with a screw, you can insert the other nuts…

…into the recesses in the axle.

Then you can insert the remaining screws into the hub base and screw them into the axle with the nuts.

The axle should now be bolted to the hub base with three M3x50 countersunk screws.

Mount the first wing slot

The blades are not directly connected to the hub. First only the slots are connected to the hub. The wings can then be plugged into it later.

Insert the first 606ZZ ball bearing from the outside into the recess of the hub base as shown.

On the opposite inner side…

..the second ball bearing is then inserted.

Now you can plug in the first wing slot.

You should have already prepared this wing slot during the construction of the wing.

This should look like this.

The first securing of the wing consists of a self-locking M6 nut, which is screwed onto the M6x100 screw of the wing slot.

When screwed on, it should look like this.

The nut should be so tight that the wing slot cannot be moved in the direction of the screw. At the same time, it should of course still be possible to turn it.

The next ball bearing is now inserted on the inside of the hub.

Push the 606ZZ ball bearing over the M6x100 screw into the recess on the inside of the hub base…

…and secure it again with a (normal) M6 nut.

Another view of the screwed on M6 nut on the M6x100 screw of the wing slot.

Attach lever and adjust correctly

Now comes a somewhat critical step where you should work as precisely as possible. To be honest I am not really satisfied with the mounting of the lever on the M6x100 screw of the wing slot yet. This is because the lever is secured on the screw by clamping it between two nuts. Theoretically this should hold. Practically, it does too. However, it would be safer to put a split pin through the M6x100 screw. There is certainly room for future improvements. 🙂

For correct adjustment of the lever you should now raise the hub base a bit higher. For example, I have placed it on two boxes.

The goal is that the trailing edge of the wing slot is at exactly the same height as the back of the hub base.

Once you have adjusted the wing slot correctly, you can now put the lever on the axle and on the M6 nut that was screwed on before. The nut should fit as close as possible to the ball bearing, but the whole wing slot should still be able to rotate freely.

As soon as the lever is correctly attached…

…you can temporarily secure its alignment in the hub base with an M3 screw (the screw is removed again later). (see picture)

View of the secured and aligned lever.

Install guide ball bearing

In this step, the ball bearing is installed, which allows the push rod to adjust the wing’s angle of attack. Actually this step could have been done before the installation of the wing lever.

Insert the 606ZZ ball bearing…

…into the recess in the hub base.

The ball bearing is then clamped in the hub base with the shown clamp.

Close-up view.

The screw for clamping the ball bearing is secured in the axle with a nut.

Now repeat this two more times…

..until the ball bearing is jammed with a total of three clamps.

Another view of the jammed ball bearing.

Top view of the jammed ball bearing and a mounted lever.

Mount the remaining two blades to the hub

After the ball bearing for guiding the push rod is mounted in the hub base, you can continue with the mounting of the remaining two wing slots. These are mounted in exactly the same way as the first wing slot.

Once all three wing slots are installed, your previous setup should now look like this.

Close-up view of the three assembled wing slots including lever.

Close-up view of the three assembled wing slots including lever.

Close-up view of the three assembled wing slots including lever.

Close-up view of the three assembled wing slots including lever.

Attach the nut lock

As already mentioned above, the levers for adjusting the wing’s angle of attack are clamped on the M6x100 screw of the respective wing slot. To prevent the inner nut from loosening afterwards (which would cause the lever to no longer have any effect on the rotation of the wing) you should urgently secure this nut against rotation.

Before you secure the nut, again make sure that the inner nut is tightened as tight as possible.

But of course the setting of the lever should not be changed.

So first check that the angle of the lever to the wing slot is correct and then tighten the nut as tight as possible.

” Tight as possible” here means so tight that you can’t get it tighter “by hand” using a wrench.

Now you need a M3x20 cylinder head screw, a M3 nut and the 3D printed plastic part to secure the lever.

Now place the fuse over the M6 nut as shown…

…and secure it with the M3x10 screw by …

…screwing it to the M3 nut on the back of the lever.

Now repeat this again for all three wing slots.

Close-up view of the levers including attached fuses.

Close-up view of the levers including attached fuses.

Now you can also check that the levers have the correct angle to the wing slots.

If the wing slots are straight (as shown in the picture)…

…the levers should hit the stops of the hub base. So the angle of rotation of the wing slots is limited in one direction.

Additional view.

Attach the “lever extender”

(Btw: Sometimes not easy to find suitable names for the individual parts. 🙂 )

This section is about attaching the “lever extender” to the previously mounted levers. This is part of the mechanism which turns the back and forth movements of the push rod into a turning movement for the wing.

First you need a 3D printed lever extender, a M3x20 cylinder head screw and a self-locking M3 nut.

Now mount the lever extender on the first lever as shown.

Another view of the mounted lever extender.

Another view of the mounted lever extender.

If you have mounted the first lever extender, you can repeat this for the other two levers.

Close-up view of the mounted (and folded) lever extenders on the levers.

Close-up view of the mounted (and unfolded) lever extenders on the levers.

Attach the lever plate

Here comes the next important part for the mechanics to adjust the angle of attack: The “lever plate”.

For this you need the lever plate, three M3 nuts and three M3x30 countersunk screws.

Now mount the lever plate as shown on the first lever extender…

…and fix it by inserting the M3x30 screw from outside into the lever plate.

To fix the screw you have to put a M3 nut into the recess on top of the lever plate.

Completely plugged in you should not be able to see much of the M3 nut.

Now you can screw the M3x30 countersunk screw into the nut.

Repeat this for the remaining two lever extenders.

If you now move the lever plate back and forth you should already notice that the wings can be adjusted according to the distance of the lever plate.

View of the folded lever plate.

Insert ball bearing at anchor point

So far we have used a ball bearing which is intended to guide the push rod.

Now the ball bearing is mounted, via which the thrust movement of the push rod is transmitted to the lever plate.

You will need the ball bearing securing plate, a 606ZZ ball bearing, three M3x16 cylinder screws and three M3 nuts.

Now insert the 606Zz ball bearing into the recess in the lever plate.

Close-up view of the inserted ball bearing.

Now secure the ball bearing in its position by mounting the ball bearing securing plate including the three M3x16 cylinder head screws on the lever plate.

The screws are secured by inserting them into the recesses on the bottom of the lever plate.

Additional view.

Attach the stabilizing ring

To give the hub base a little more stability a stabilizing ring is now mounted on the hub base.

You will need the 3D printed stabilizing ring, six M3 nuts and six M3x40 countersunk screws.

The stabilizing ring is now placed on the hub base from above…

…and screwed into the hub base with the M3x40 countersunk screws as shown.

To do this, screw the M3x40 screws into the nuts, which are inserted into the recesses on the bottom of the hub base.

Close view of the inserted M3 nuts.

Close view of the inserted M3 nuts.

Mount push rod

The push rod consists of a M6 threaded rod. It will later transfer the thrust movement generated by the pitch actuator to the mechanism in the hub.

At this point you need the previously prepared hub base including attachments as well as two self-locking M6 nuts and an M6 threaded rod.

Now push the threaded rod through the first and second ball bearing in the hub as shown.

Then pull the push rod back a little and screw the first self-locking nut onto the push rod as shown.

The nut is unfortunately not visible but is located in the socket wrench, which makes assembly much easier.

It is also helpful if you clamp the threaded rod in a cordless screwdriver as shown. So you can easily screw the threaded rod into the M6 nut.

If everything worked, the M6 nut should sit on the threaded rod as shown.

Now you can put the threaded rod back into the upper ball bearing.

Close-up view of the inserted threaded rod in the upper ball bearing.

To keep the push rod in the upper ball bearing you have to screw the other M6 nut onto the push rod as shown.

The push rod should now sit tight in the ball bearing.

Additional view.

Additional view.

Additional view.

Now it is time for a first test.

Fasten the cover

Last but not least the hub now gets a cover. This covers the mechanics and should protect them from moisture and rain. Additionally it makes the hub slightly more aerodynamic.

You will need the 3D printed cover, three M3 nuts and three M3x16 countersunk screws.

Close-up view of the required parts.

Insert the M3 nut into the recess provided in the hub base…

… and fix the M3x16 countersunk screw in it.

Now you secure the M3 nut again with some hot glue in the frame of the hub base…

… and remove the screw.

Now you can put on the cover and screw it into…

…the frame of the hub base using the prepared screws.

View of the attached and screwed cover.

View of the attached and screwed cover.

View of the attached and screwed cover.

The main axis is the axis in which the wind turbine will later rotate. It must therefore bear the weight of the blades including the hub and at the same time absorb the forces generated by the wind. Last but not least, it should rotate smoothly.

A critical task and in my opinion one of the most important components.

I have written down some additional information here: https://hackaday.io/project/172328/log/179713-why-i-think-a-new-main-shaft-mount-is-needed

Also you can find additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-montage-der-hauptachse/

In the following article you will find instructions on how to assemble the mounting of the main axis.

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Cordless drill

3mm drill bit

tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this article.

1x	basePlateMainShaft
1x	mainShaftBearingMountBaseConnector
2x	mainShaftBearingMountBearingClamp
1x	mainShaftBearingMount
1x	shaftCoupler
2x	Aluminum profile 14.5cm long
2x	6008ZZ ball bearing
12x	M3x50 countersunk screws
8x	M3x16 countersunk screws
6x	M3x20 countersunk head screws

Collect required parts

Before you can start building the main axis, of course you have to collect all needed parts. A complete list of the required materials and tools can be found above in the material and tool list.

On this picture you can see all parts needed to build the main axis.

The required STL files for printing can be found here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/mainAxis

I have printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 50%

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust through moisture.

Mount the ball bearing in the main axle base

The base of the main axis consists of one part. In this part the two ball bearings are inserted and clamped.

For this part of the main axle assembly you need the main axle base, two 6008ZZ ball bearings, four M3x20 screws and four M3 nuts.

Insert the first of the two 6008ZZ ball bearings into the main axle base as shown.

Make sure that the ball bearing sits in the holder up to the stop.

The ball bearing should be exactly centered in the bracket.

Additional view.

Now also put the second 6008ZZ ball bearing into the free holder of the main axle bracket.

Now check again that both ball bearings are seated up to the stop and centered in the main axis holder.

Additional view.

Additional view.

To secure the ball bearing in the main axis holder, you should now insert the first ball bearing clamp into the main axis holder as shown and…

…secure it with one of the M3x20 countersunk screws.

Use an M3 nut to secure the screw.

Repeat this for the other side of the ball bearing clamp.

Additional view.

Additional view.

In the same way you should now secure the other ball bearing with the ball bearing clamp in the main axle mount.

Connect the main axis base to the base connector

The main axis base is connected to the base plate using the base connector. To do this, the main axis base is now first connected to the Base Connector.

For this you need the shown parts.

• The prepared main axis mount
• The 3D printed basic connector
• Two 14,5cm long pieces of the 10x10mm aluminium profile
• Six M3x50 countersunk screws
• Six M3x20 countersunk screws
• Twelve M3 nuts

Insert the first of the two aluminum profiles as shown…

….up to the stop into the main axis holder.

Now drill with a 3mm drill bit -through the hole provided for the screw- into the aluminum profile.

Important: Make sure that you only drill through one side of the aluminum profile. More about this in the following pictures.

Repeat the same for the other screw hole.

If you now pull out the aluminium profile again it should look something like this.

As can be seen here, the aluminum profile should only be drilled through on one side.

To fasten the aluminium profile in the main axis holder you now need two M3x20 countersunk screws and two M3 nuts.

Now place the first of the two M3 nuts into the recess on the inside of the guideway for the aluminum profile as shown.

Close view of the inserted M3 nut.

Now screw the M3x20 countersunk screw into the nut as shown.

Additional view.

Now repeat this for the other screw position.

The two screws should now hang in the guideway for the aluminum profile as shown.

Close-up view.

Now retract the screw including the nut so that the nut disappears completely into the matching recess. Now you can insert the aluminium profile and as soon as the holes in the aluminium profile are congruent with the screws, you can screw the screws into the holes of the aluminium profile.

Now screw the screws further into the aluminium profile until the aluminium profile is clamped by the screws in the holder.

Additional view.

Repeat this for the other aluminum profile.

Both aluminum profiles should now be firmly clamped…

… iin the main axis holder.

Now insert the two aluminum profiles into the 3D printed base connector as shown.

Additional view.

Push the basic connector to the main axis bracket until it stops.

Top view.

Side view.

Now drill through the screw hole in the aluminum profile as done before.

Important: Make sure that you only drill through one side of the aluminum profile. More about this in the following pictures.

Repeats the same for the other side.

Now insert again on both sides..

…each a M3x20 countersunk screw and screw it with a M3 nut.

View of the basic connector including inserted screws.

Now pull the screw back again including the nut, so that the nut disappears completely in the matching recess. Now you can slide the base connector back onto the two aluminium profiles of the main axis bracket.

View of the attached basic connector and the main axis bracket.

The screws you have just prepared will be tightened in a later step.

For additional mounting you now need six of the M3x50 countersunk screws and six M3 nuts.

Push the first of the M3x50 countersunk screws through the base connector into the main axis mount.

In the main axis bracket you need to insert a M3 nut into the shown recess.

This should sit in such a way that it can be screwed together with the previously inserted M3x50 countersunk screw.

Repeat this with another screw in the directly adjacent screw hole.

Secure this screw again with a M3 nut.

Both screws should now be secured with one M3 nut each.

Now repeat this with the other two screws on the other side of the main axis bracket.

Additional view.

View of the two countersunk screws on the left side.

View of the two countersunk screws on the right side.

You can now use the two remaining M3x50 countersunk screws to connect the base connector in the same way on the bottom side.

To do this, push the screw through the base connector into the main axis holder as shown in the picture…

…and screw it back on with a M3 nut (which is located on the bottom of the main axle mount)…

…into the designated assembly stations.

This should look something like this.

Repeat this for the opposite side as well.

Now use the previously prepared screws to screw the aluminium profiles into the base connector.

Connect the main axis holder to the base plate

The next step entails connecting the prepared main axis mount (including the base connector) to the base plate.

For this you need:

• of course the prepared main axis mount
• the 3D printed base plate
• four M3x50 countersunk screws
• four M3x20 countersunk screws
• eight M3 nuts

Now first position two M3 nuts in the recesses in the base plate as shown.

Close-up of the inserted M3 nuts in the base plate.

Now position the main axis bracket in front of the base connector as shown and plug…

…the two parts together as shown.

Now you can screw the base connector to the base plate using the first M3x20 countersunk screw.

Insert the M3x20 screw through the shown screw hole and …

… screws it on the bottom side with a M3 nut.

Repeat this now with the remaining M3x20 countersunk screws.

Screw this also with M3 nuts to the bottom of the base plate.

Now you need the remaining M3x50 countersunk screws.

Insert this too through the – still empty – screw holes in the base connector into the base plate…

…and screw it again with M3 nuts on the bottom of the base plate.

Prepare connection with the pivot bearing

In the last step the base plate is prepared for the final connection with the pivot bearing.

For this you need:

• the prepared main axis mount including all attached components
• four M3x25 countersunk screws
• five M3 nuts
• the 3D printed connecting plate

Now prepare the connecting plate by inserting three M3 nuts into the base plate as shown.

Close-up of the inserted M3 nuts in the connecting plate.

Now it gets a little bit complicated. The connecting plate must now be placed on the base plate in such a way that the M3 nuts previously inserted are locked between the connecting plate and the base plate.

These are needed later to connect the upper support of the turret with the connecting plate.

Thanks to the M3x50 screws from the connection between the base connector and the base plate, the connecting plate is now already in the correct position.

Make sure the connecting plate rests on the base plate as shown.

Now you can screw the first two M3x25 countersunk screws through the connecting plate with the M3 nuts previously inserted in the base plate.

On the opposite side repeat this with the other two M3x25 countersunk screws.

This should look like this when viewed from below.

To do this, the last two M3x25 screws must be screwed back on the upper side of the base plate using an M3 nut each.

If all went well your main axis mount should now look like this.

Another view of the assembled main axis mount.

Another view of the assembled main axis mount.

The turret supports the turbine and the superstructure on the standpipe so that it can be rotated 360°.

A slip ring is also integrated in it to transfer the generated energy to the non-rotating part of WinDIY.

How you can proceed building the turret is described in the following article.

You can find additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-drehturm-aufbauen/

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Spanner

Cordless drill

3mm drill bit

Tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this item.

1x	turretBearingTopMount2BasePlate
1x	turretBearingTopMount
1x	turretBearingBase
3x	turretBearingTopMountClamp
1x	turretBearingBaseMountClamp
1x	Slip ring
12x	M3 nut
9x	M3x30 countersunk screw
6x	M3x25 countersunk screw
1x	16014 ball bearings

Collect needed parts

Before you can start to build the turret, you have to collect all necessary parts. A complete list of the required materials and tools can be found above in the material and tool list.

Here you can see all parts you need for the construction.

Unfortunately the three terminal blocks are missing on the photo.

The required STL files for printing can be found here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/turret

I have printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 50>#/li###

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust through moisture.

Mount slip ring

The slip ring is a quite important component. It enables the energy generated to be transferred through the pivot bearing to the non-rotating part of WinDIY. So you can lead the generated energy through the stand downwards without twisting any wires.

Here you can see the parts needed for this step.

The shown slip ring has six contacts. Theoretically, one with only two contacts would also be sufficient. However, always make sure that the expected amperage matches the slip ring.

Insert the slip ring in the upper holder as shown.

Now insert the screws through the mounting holes of the slip ring into the upper bracket as shown.

Close-up view.

The inserted screws are screwed on the opposite side (as shown on the left) with M3 nuts.

Mount upper bracket to base plate

During the construction of the main axis you have already prepared the base plate of WinDIY.

This is the clamping block with which the ball bearing is later clamped on the upper bracket.

Now prepare three of them as shown…

… and put it into the upper bracket as shown.

On the backside screw on the M3 nuts again.

To keep them in place I strongly recommend to secure the nuts with some hot glue.

Additional view.

To be honest: It doesn’t look super nice. But the hot glue here only has a fixing function to ensure that the nuts stay in place.

The actual forces are held by the 3D printed structure.

Additional view.

Now remove the clamping blocks but make sure that the glued in nuts stay where you glued them in.

Short jump to the base plate, which you should have already prepared during the assembly of the main axis.

This should currently look like this.

You can now screw the previously prepared upper retaining plate onto this.

The M3 nuts (into which the screws are screwed) should already be positioned in the correct holes during the assembly of the main axle.

Additional view.

Additional view.

Now your assembly should look like this.

Ensure that the cables are led out on the rotating side of the slip ring through the recess in the base plate.

Additional view.

Additional view.

Installation of the ball bearing on the upper bracket

Before you put the ball bearing over the upper bracket, you should put the clamping ring over the upper bracket as shown.

If the clamping ring is in position you can now put on the ball bearing.

Another view of the mounted ball bearing.

Now you can screw the previously removed clamping blocks back in and fix the ball bearing in the upper bracket.

Another view of the mounted ball bearing.

Close-up view of the mounted ball bearing.

Close-up view of the mounted ball bearing.

Another view of the mounted ball bearing.

Mounting the lower bracket

The ball bearing is now fixed to the rotating part of the wind turbine. Of course it has to be fixed to the bracket, which will later be placed on the mast on which the wind turbine will stand.

To do this, place the lower bracket on the previously mounted ball bearing.

Now you can bring the clamping ring – which clamps the lower bracket with the ball bearing – roughly into position.

Because the clamping ring is now screwed to the lower bracket as shown.

Insert the M3 screws as shown through the clamping ring into the lower bracket…

… and secures it with a M3 nut.

Again, make sure that the screws are not overtightened. The clamping ring should be tight but not bent or even broken.

Further view of the screwed clamping ring on the lower bracket.

Additional view.

Additional view.

The rotatable part of WinDIY should now stand freely rotatable on the lower bracket.

One component that is supposed to make WinDIY more secure is the pitch actuator.

It allows the wing’s angle of attack to be changed via a push rod. In case of an emergency (e.g. if the speed is too high) the angle of attack can then be changed so that the wind can no longer transfer enough energy to the blades.

Especially in strong winds the speed can in this way be reduced effectively.

How to build the pitch actuator is described in the following article.

You can find additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-pitch-aktor-zusammenbauen/

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Helpful article:
For the assembly of the pitch actuator you only need patience and a few simple manual skills besides the parts and tools. You can find tips for the individual steps in the following articles:
Mechanics – Cutting internal threads

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

soldering iron

solder

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this article.

1x	mountV
1x	pitchControllBase
1x	gearSmall
1x	shaft
1x	nutCover
4x	M3x50 countersunk screw
6x	M3x25 countersunk screw
2x	M3x16 countersunk screw
15x	M3 nut
2x	M3 grub screw
1x	603ZZ ball bearings
1x	606ZZ ball bearings
1x	M6 nut
3x	M3x40 cylinder head screw
1x	3-6V gear motor
ca. 10cm	Shrink tubing
ca. 1m	Wires (different colors)
1x	B103 B10K Ohm Potentiometer 10K 75mm SC6080GH

The required parts

On the picture you can see the needed parts.

You can find the plastic parts shown in the Nerdiy-GitHub. Here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/pitch-actuator

I printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 30>#/li###

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust from moisture.

Preparation of individual parts

Before you can start assembling the whole pitch actuator unit, you should first prefabricate a few smaller components. For example the drive gear and its carrier.

The drive gear is supported on one side by a 603ZZ ball bearing. On the other side it is mounted on the motor axle of the drive motor.

First you need the parts shown in the picture.

Then insert the ball bearing into the corresponding recess on the face of the gear as shown.

Make sure that the gear wheel is as level as possible in the recess.

Seen from the side, the ball bearing should hardly stick out of the gear wheel.

To be able to fix the gear wheel on the motor axle later, you should now screw in the two grub screws as shown.

You may have to cut a thread in the holes first. How you can do this is described in the article HowTo: Mechanics – Cut internal threads.

Seen from above this should look like this.

Make sure that you screw in the screws as shown (not too far).

Now the gear carrier is prepared. For this you need the shown parts.

Insert the screw into the gear carrier as shown.

On the other side you can then screw on the nut.

Close-up of the screwed-on nut.

For a first test you can screw in the screw completely.

Different view.

Later you will have to loosen the screw again to insert the gear.

Assemble the prepared parts

Now you can start with the actual assembly.

For the final assembly you now need the previously prepared components and the remaining parts shown.

First you have to insert the M3 nuts into the base of the pitch actuator as shown.

Close view of the inserted M3 nut.

Further close view of the inserted M3 nut.

Further close view of the inserted M3 nut.

Next you have to insert the M3 screws into the gear carrier as shown.

Until they look out of the gear carrier on the opposite side.

You can then insert the gear carrier into the base of the pitch actuator as shown…

… and screw with the previously inserted M3 nuts.

Further view of the screw connections.

Ready screwed the whole thing should look like this.

Now you have to insert the previously prepared gear into the carrier.

To do this, you may have to unscrew the screw from the gear carrier again.

The gear wheel can now be inserted into the recess as shown.

Then you can screw the screw back into the gear carrier and thus also into the hole of the ball bearing in the gear.

For the bearing of the gear wheel on the other side you now need the shown parts.

First place the ball bearing in the recess in the base as shown.

The illustrated axle carrier can then be inserted through the ball bearing…

…into the gear wheel.

Another view of the inserted axle carrier.

You can then screw the inserted axle carrier to the gear wheel using the prepared M3 grub screws.

Additional view.

Installing the gear motor

In order to drive the gear wheel later, a motor is obviously necessary. You can see how it is installed in the following paragraph.

For this you first need the shown parts.

Now first insert the axis of the geared motor into the axis carrier.

The motor should then be plugged into the base as shown.

To keep it in place you can screw it into the base with the shown screws.

Insert the screws into the motor housing up to the stop.

The screws are screwed on the back with the inserted M3 nuts.

Now the whole thing should look like this.

To have an anchor point for the shaft to adjust the pitch angle, you now have to fix a M6 nut in the base.

For this you need the shown parts.

First insert three M3 nuts into the base as shown.

The M6 nut is then inserted as shown.

When fully inserted, it should look like this.

To prevent the M6 nut from falling out, you can secure it with the shown plate.

Screw the plate to the base.

View of the screwed plate.

Connecting the pitch actuator to the base plate

In order to mount the pitch actuator correctly, you have to mount it on a base plate. This is described in the following paragraph.

For this you need the shown parts.

Insert four M3 nuts into the base of the pitch actuator as shown.

Using four M3 screws you can now screw the base plate…

…to the base of the pitch actuator.

When screwed together, the whole thing should look like this.

View of the opposite side.

Attach cables and install sliding resistor

In this step, the cables are attached to the motor and the sliding resistor – via which the pitch position can later be read in – is glued in.

In this picture the supply lines of the gear motor are already soldered on.

I strongly recommend securing the connector contacts with some hot glue after soldering.

Not just so that the contacts are electrically isolated. But also to protect the fragile contact lugs from mechanical stress caused by bending.

Now it is time to wire the slide resistor.

As you can see, this one is already wired.

For this you need three cables and three pieces of shrink tubing approx. Two cm long.

On the side shown, the contact of the wiper is connected to a line.

On the other side, the two contacts of the resistor are each connected to a line.

Close-up view of the connected resistance contacts.

Close-up view of the connected wiper contact.

Another view.

Now you can attach an adapter to the grinder.

Simply put it on the metal surface of the grinder.

Close-up view of the adapter attached to the metal surface of the grinder.

After the sliding resistor has been wired, you can glue it into the holder provided with a drop of hot glue.

The lines should run out of the bracket as shown.

The construction of the pitch actuator is now complete.

Another view.

Another view.

The WinDIY wind vane is mounted at the end of the device carrier. It should help to align the wind turbine always in the direction of the wind.

How you can set up the wind vane is described in the following article.

You can find additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-windfahne-zusammenbauen/

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Cordless drill

3mm drill bit

tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all the parts you need to implement this article.

2x	vaneBaseMount
1x	vaneVerticalMount
1x	vaneAngledMount
1x	vaneBackCornerBracket
1x	vaneFrontCornerBracket
2x	vaneSheetCorner105.8deg
2x	vaneSheetCorner74.2deg
4x	vaneSheetCorner90deg
1x	Aluminum profile 10x10mm 14cm long
1x	Aluminum profile 10x10mm 30m long
1x	Aluminum profile 10x10mm 31cm long
16x	M3x20 countersunk screw
12x	M3x6 countersunk screw
1x	approx 40x40cm canvas or similar

Collect the parts you need

Before you can start building the wind vane, you must of course first have all the parts you need together. A complete list of the required materials and tools can be found above in the material and tool list

On this picture you can see all the components that are needed to build the wind vane.

The STL files required for printing can be found here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/vane

I printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 30>#/li###

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust from moisture.

Assemble frame parts

The wind vane basically consists of a frame that is made from the same aluminum profile as was used, for example, on the WinDIY wing. Later a sail will be clamped in it to give the wind more (or even more) attack surface.

For the first frame side you need the 14cm long aluminum profile, two M3x20 countersunk screws including nuts and the two “corner brackets”.

Now insert the aluminum profile into the first corner bracket as shown and drill through one side of the aluminum profile with a 3mm drill bit – as shown.

Now repeat this step …

… also with the other corner bracket.

Then you can prepare both conrerBrackets as shown below, each with one screw.

To do this, insert the screw through the screw hole as shown and …

… unscrews one of the M3 nuts from the inside.

Then pull the screw including the screwed nut into the recess provided …

… and then insert the aluminum profile into the corner brackets as shown.

Now you can screw in the screws further. You should then clamp the aluminum profile inside.

For the next step you need the two remaining aluminum profiles.

The longer one comes to the front (in the picture the right side) and the shorter one to the back.

Now repeat the same steps as with the previous corner brackets …

… to fix the aluminum profiles with one M3x20 screw each.

Another view.

Another view.

Another view.

Assemble the base brackets

The base brackets later connect the long aluminum profiles to the device carrier.

The structure of the angled and vertical support is almost identical. We start here with the angled one.

Now insert the first M3x20 countersunk head screw through the angled bracket into the base as shown.

Close-up of the inserted screw.

Now secure the screw on the other side with an M3 nut. The nut should lie in the recess shown.

Now repeat this for the remaining free screw holes.

Completed, it should now look like this.

The structure of the vertical bracket is almost identical.

View of the screwed vertical bracket.

View of the two screwed brackets.

Another view of the two screwed brackets.

Assemble the base brackets with the frame

In this step, the previously built frame is connected to the brackets that have just been prepared.

Insert the prepared frame – as shown – in the brackets.

The inserted aluminum profiles now have to be screwed to the brackets.

To do this, you have to connect the vertical and …

… also the angled bracket to the frame.

To do this, drill again (as is now almost the norm) through the screw hole through one side of the aluminum profile.

You repeat the same for the angled bracket.

As soon as the holes have been drilled in both aluminum profiles, you can clamp them as before using the remaining M3x20 screws including nuts.

Cut and insert sails

Your wind vane is almost ready now. In the last step, the sail is used, which should give the wind a surface to attack.

For this you need the parts shown

Close-up of the parts needed.

Now place the frame on the fabric you want to use for the wind vane as shown.

I used a foil here that is also used for building kites. A normal plastic bin bag should also work. 🙂

Now lightly trace the inner contour with a pen.

Close-up of the traced contour.

Now you can cut out the shape of the wind vane based on the recorded contour.

The corner angles that have been printed out are now glued to the film as shown.

Repeat this for all corners.

Your sail should look something like this.

Now you can test again whether the sail fits into the frame. The corner parts should be at least one cm away from the frame.

For the next step, you now have to lay your sail down so that the glued-on corner parts are under the sail.

In this step you have to make the holes for the screws, which later connect two corner parts per corner.

The easiest way to do this with plastic materials is with a soldering iron.

Now repeat this for all holes in the corner angles.

Now you can put on the matching counterpart of the respective corner bracket and use the M3x6 countersunk screws …

… and screw the M3 nuts on the opposite side.

If your sail does not yet fit 100%, you can now cut it a little more precisely.

Your finished sail could look like this. 🙂

Cable ties are best suited to clamp the sail in the frame of the wind vane.

Now fix the sail in the frame with the cable ties as shown.

This works easiest if you have already mounted the frame on the device carrier.

By pulling the cable ties tighter in the corners, you can adjust the tension of the sail precisely.

It should hang tightly in the frame without wrinkles.

Make sure to cut off the excess ends of the zip ties.

Once the sail is fully tensioned, your wind vane should look something like this.

Close up of a corner.

Close up of a corner.

So that the construction articles for WinDIY do not become too extensive, I have divided the construction into several articles. A certain component such as the wing built. Of course, these individual components have to be brought together at some point.

This is what this article is about.

This article is intended to support you in connecting the individual prefabricated components.

Additional infos here: https://nerdiy.de/en/howto-windiy-zusammenbau-der-vorbereiteten-komponenten/

Safety instructions

I know the following hints are always a bit annoying and seem unnecessary. But unfortunately, many people who knew it "better" from carelessness lost their eyes, fingers or other things or hurt themselves. In comparison, a loss of data is almost not worth mentioning, but even these can be really annoying. Therefore, please take five minutes to read the safety instructions. Even the coolest project is worth no injury or other annoyance. https://www.nerdiy.de/sicherheitshinweise/

Requirements

Required tools:

Hot glue gun

3D printer

Allen key

Pliers

Spanner

Cordless drill

3mm drill bit

Tweezers

Required material:

In the following list you will find all parts you need to implement this article.

1x	Main axle cover
2x	M3x30 countersunk head screw
2x	M3 Nut
2x	Aluminum profile 10×10 75cm long
2x	M3x16 countersunk head screw
2x	M3x50 countersunk head screw
2x	M3 Nut
1x	generator cover
2x	M3x10 countersunk head screw
2x	M3 Nut
4x	M3x16 countersunk head screw
4x	M3 Nut

You can find the plastic parts shown in the Nerdiy-GitHub. Here: https://github.com/Nerdiyde/WinDIY/tree/master/covers

I printed the parts with the following settings.

• Perimeter: 5
• Infill: 30>#/li###

The screws should preferably be made of stainless steel so that they do not rust from moisture.

Attach the cover of the main axis

After assembly, the main axis is exposed to the ambient conditions without any protection. Wind, rain and sun can therefore easily reach the main axis. In order to protect them a little better, a cover is attached in this step.

You should already have connected the main axis to the hub so that the cover can be put on.

In order to be able to put on the cover you need the cover, two M3x30 countersunk screws and two M3 nuts.

Now insert the screws from the outside into the screw holes shown.

Then screw the M3 nuts on the inside of the screws and glue them with a little hot glue as shown in the recesses provided.

Close-up view of the M3 nut fixed with hot glue.

Close-up view of the M3 nut fixed with hot glue.

After the hot glue has cooled down, you can unscrew the screws again.

Now brings the wing slots of the hub into the position in which they are fully engaged.

Only then can you put the cover over the main axis.

This should be pressed just behind the hub down to the main axis bracket.

View from above (cover not yet fully fitted).

View from the side (cover not yet fully fitted).

View from the back (cover not yet fully fitted).

As soon as the cover is completely in place, the main axis should be completely covered. The wings do not rub against the cover.

Now insert the M3 screws again and screw the cover to the main axis bracket.

Make sure that the front of the cover does not rub against the hub.

Attach “device carrier”

The device carrier is the part on which the generator including the brake actuator, as well as the pitch actuator and the wind vane will later be attached. This basically consists of two 75cm long aluminum profiles, which are screwed to the base bracket of the main axis bracket.

To assemble the device carrier you need two 10x10mm 75cm long aluminum profiles, two M3x16 countersunk screws, two M3x50 countersunk screws and two M3 nuts.

Lay the unit on its side as shown.

Just put the M3x16 screw …

… into the screw holes in the base bracket.

To do this, insert the screw from the outside and …

… unscrews the M3 nut from the inside.

Then you pull the M3 nut on the screw into the recess on the inside.

Then you can in the free holder …

… insert the 10x10mm aluminum profile and clamp it with the M3 screw.

Make sure that the aluminum profile protrudes 5mm on the front.

As soon as you are sure that the aluminum profile is in the right place, you can finally tighten the M3 screw.

Now set up the unit again.

Now you need a 10cm long 3mm drill.

With this you drill through the aluminum profile of the main axis bracket as shown and then through the aluminum profile of the device carrier.

Both aluminum profiles are completely drilled through.

Did you drill through both aluminum profiles …

… you can insert the M3x50 screw …

… and screw it with the M3 nut on the underside.

This should pull into the recess in the base bracket.

The first aluminum profile is now fixed.

Now repeat these steps with the second aluminum profile on the opposite side to complete the assembly of the device carrier.

Fit the generator cover

Of course the generator also needs to be protected with a cover. 🙂

For this you need the printed cover of the generator, two M3x10 countersunk screws and two M3 nuts.

Close-up of the screws required.

Now put the M3 screws (as usual) into the recesses in the cover of the generator.

Close-up view of the inserted M3 screw.

View of the two inserted screws.

Set up the main axis including attachments as shown …

… and puts the generator cover over it.

To do this, you have to pull the cover apart at the bottom.

The cover should now lie on the aluminum profiles of the device carrier as shown.

At the front, the pins on the cover should …

… be inserted into the aluminum profiles of the device carrier.

View of the inserted cover.

If everything is in position you can clamp the M3 screws with the aluminum profiles of the device carrier.

Another view of the attached cover.

Fit the generator and brake actuator unit

You should already have prefabricated the unit consisting of disk generator and brake actuator. In this step, this is only mounted on the device carrier.

For this you need the prefabricated unit consisting of disk generator and brake actuator.

Now prepare its assembly by inserting the M3 screws …

… reinserted into the screw holes provided.

Then you can slide the unit onto the device carrier from behind.

Make sure that the push rod for setting the wing angle of attack (pitch) is guided through the guide in the middle of the generator.

Now push the unit forward as far as it will go. The mechanical coupling of the generator should be completely inserted into the coupling piece of the main axis.

Now you can fix the unit by clamping it with the previously inserted screws on the aluminum profiles of the device carrier.

further view.

Install the pitch actuator

The pitch actuator should move the push rod back and forth. As a result, the wing’s angle of attack can ultimately be adjusted.

For this you need the parts shown.

But it starts with the parts shown here first.

First insert the M3x20 countersunk head screws through the stacked parts as shown.

View of the stacked components.

This unit will later be used to clamp the large gear on the threaded rod.

Then screw the components together with three M3 nuts …

…on the back side.

Now you can also use one of the M6 nuts …

… insert into the corresponding recess.

it continues with the “big gear”.

Here, too, place the M6 nut in the recess provided.

Now put the stacked and screwed washers including M6 nuts onto the push rod.

Then also screw the large gear onto the push rod.

Before you can put the pitch actuator on the device carrier …

… you also have to equip this with four M3x16 countersunk screws including M3 nuts.

Set this as before with the generator …

… in the left and …

… right side of the base.

View of the prepared bracket.

Now attach the pitch actuator to the aluminum profile of the device carrier from behind.

Then also screw the push rod into the anchor point on the top of the pitch actuator.

So far, your structure should look like this.

The pitch actuator should now sit on the device carrier with the screwed-in push rod so that the wings (as shown) are in the sail position.

Then you can clamp the base of the pitch actuator on the device carrier.

Another view.

Now you have to turn the M6 nut that you previously inserted into the large gear to the position shown.

Biegt dann den Schleifer des pitch-Schleifwiderstands etwas zur Seite…

Then bend the wiper of the pitch grinding resistor a little to the side …

… so thaht the big gear can be pushed onto the M6 nut.

Then you can also turn the unit from the three remaining washers with the M6 nut towards the large gear and thus clamp it on the push rod.

The grinder of the pitch grinding resistor can then be bent into the guide as shown.

When the gear wheel is rotated and the push rod is moved forwards or backwards, this is taken along and thus signals the position of the pitch position.

To secure the big gear you need three M3x25 countersunk screws.

Put it through the big gear as shown …

… and secures it through …

… screw with the other washers before being twisted on the push rod.

To do this, you can insert an M3 nut into the recess at the point shown.

The easiest way to do this is with needle-nose pliers.

That was it with the construction of the components and the integration on the device carrier.

Another view.

Another view.

Another view.

This step is actuall not a port of WinDIY. It is more related to the generator you choose to use in the end. But i though it's cool to have it here as a reference how the brake actuator is made and constructed. :)

The generator is held by a bracket in which a brake actuator is also integrated.

In the following article you will find how you can proceed with its construction.

Collect the parts you need

You need the parts shown to assemble the brake actuator.

For the assembly of just one actuator that follows, you only need the half of the parts shown.

In this step the stamp is assembled. This also includes the force sensor for measuring the contact pressure.

Screw the brake block as shown with the inserted M6 nut.

Another view.

And put the prepared component together as shown.

The force sensor is then inserted into the slot between the 3D printed components.

You need the parts shown to assemble the first gear.

Now place the first ball bearing as shown …

… into the top of the gear.

Then turn the gear around and insert the spacer sleeve …

… in the axis guide.

Now you can insert the second ball bearing into the recess on the other side.

View of the inserted ball bearing.

In this step, the slide resistor is built into the bracket of the position sensor.

To do this, insert the sliding resistor into the holder as shown …

… and screw it in.

Another view.

Another view.

View of the fully screwed sliding resistor in the bracket.

View of the fully screwed sliding resistor in the bracket.

For the further construction you now need the components shown.

First place the ball bearing in the recess as shown.

Then you can equip the bracket of the brake actuator sensor with the M3 nuts.

View of the inserted M3 nuts.

The bracket for the slide resistor can be mounted on the brake actuator cover as shown.

Both are done with the help of the previously inserted M3 nuts …

… and screwed on the M3 countersunk screws.

To prepare the gear motor, you will now need the parts shown.

Put the gear on the shaft of the gear motor.

Make sure that it sits on the axle almost up to the stop …

… and then fasten it with the screw shown.

View of the prepared geared motor.

Now it is time to install the gear motor in the bracket of the brake actuator.

Place the prepared gear motor in the recess in the base of the brake actuator as shown.

Now you can insert the M3 countersunk screws through the gear motor housing …

… plug into the base of the brake actuator.

Another view.

The screws are screwed with M3 nuts that you have to insert on the back.

If you have screwed the gear motor, the first gear can now be put on.

For this you need the individual parts shown.

First place the ball bearing in the depicted recess in the base of the brake actuator.

Then you put the M3 countersunk head screw through the base of the brake actuator so that it protrudes as shown.

The previously prepared gear can now be placed on it.

In order to be able to integrate the next gear into the gearbox, you now need the components shown.

Insert the M3 countersunk screws as shown …

… into the screw holes provided here …

…and here.

So that the gear can be placed on the axle of the brake actuator, you should now insert the M6 nut into the gear as shown.

You can then position the gear on the basis of the brake actuator.

Another view.

Now you can mount the prepared cover on the prepared bracket of the brake actuator.

Another view.

Put this on as shown …

… and screw it to the base

To do this, place an M3 nut in the recess provided.

Another view of one of the inserted M3 nuts.

Another view of one of the inserted M3 nuts.

Another view of one of the inserted M3 nuts.

Your brake actuator should now look like this when screwed in.

The parts shown are now required to install the brake cylinder.

Mount the M6x100 screw for this …

… as shown in this picture.

Then insert the remaining M6 nut into the recess provided in the brake base.

Another view of the inserted M6 nut.

Now you can put the brake block from below into the recess provided in the brake socket.

The connection lug of the force sensor should look out of the base as shown.

Another view of the inserted brake cylinder.

Another view of the inserted brake cylinder.

Now you can screw the prepared M6 screw into the brake cylinder from above.

Ultimately, the M6 nut should not be rotatably locked in the brake cylinder.

Once you have completed this step, you can set up the mechanics for the brake position sensor.

Another view of the required parts.

First build the driver for the sliding resistance of the sensor …

…together…

… and puts it on the sliding contact of the sliding resistor.

Another view of the prepared slider of the sliding resistor.

Now you can put on the lever of the mechanics and bring it into position as shown.

Then screw the lever point with one of the M3 countersunk head screws and M3 nut.

Another view of the partially installed sensor lever.

In the last step you have to attach the anchor point of the lever.

. To do this, put an M3 countersunk screw including M3 nut into the …

… screw hole shown here.

The M3 screw is screwed on the other side with an M3 nut.

Once assembled, it should look like this.

Another view.

That was it with the construction of the first brake actuator. Now you just have to repeat these steps for the other half.

Another view of the partially assembled brake actuator.

Your brake actuator could then look like this.

Another view.