Device employing resonant chambers to determine wind characteristics

Claim 1

Apparatus for determining wind characteristics, comprising: frame means means defining a plurality of resonant chambers, each with a mouth opening such that wind blowing across the opening at an appropriate speed and direction causes air within the respective chamber to resonate and create a sound, the chambers and mouth openings being at different angles and orientations so as to correspond to hemispherical radii distributed at intervals no greater than about 10°, a sound detecting unit associated with each resonant chamber and producing a signal when its respective chamber is resonating, and interpretative means for continuously sampling the output from all said sound detecting units, and for calculating from said sampled outputs the compass direction, the inclination to the horizontal and the speed range of the wind.

Claim 7

A method for determining wind characteristics, comprising the steps: (a) providing an apparatus including: frame means, and means defining a plurality of resonant chambers, each with a mouth opening such that wind blowing across the opening at an appropriate speed and direction causes air within the respective chamber to resonate and create a sound, the chambers and mouth openings being at different angles and orientations so as to correspond to hemispherical radii distributed at intervals no greater than about 10°, (b) placing the apparatus in a wind stream such that certain of the resonant chambers begin to resonate and create sound due to the passage of wind across the respective mouths at appropriate angles, (c) detecting the generation of sound in the resonating chambers, and (d) computing, on the basis of those chambers actually producing a signal, the position and orientation of a hypothetical plane located such that the sum of the distances of the plane from all signaling chambers is the least, and further calculating: (1) the compass direction of the wind as that of a perpendicular line from the center of the hypothetical hemisphere to the hypothetical plane, (2) the inclination of said line to a horizontal plane as the inclination of the wind to a horizontal plane, and (3) the wind speed range as a function of the perpendicular distance from the center of the hypothetical hemisphere to the hypothetical plane.

Claim 8

A method for determining wind characteristics, comprising the steps: (a) providing an apparatus including: frame means, and means defining a plurality of resonant chambers, each with a mouth opening such that wind blowing across the opening at an appropriate speed and direction causes air within the respective chamber to resonate and create a sound, the chambers and mouth openings being at different angles and orientations so as to correspond to hemispherical radii distributed at intervals no greater than about 10°, (b) placing the apparatus in a wind stream such that certain of the resonant chambers begin to resonate and create sound due to the passage of wind across the respective mouths at appropriate angles, (c) detecting the generation of sound in the resonating chambers, and (d) computing, on the basis of those chambers actually producing a signal, the position and orientation of a hypothetical plane located such that the sum of the distances of the plane from all signaling chambers is the least, and further calculating: (1) the compass direction of the wind as that of a perpendicular line from the center of the hypothetical hemisphere to the hypothetical plane, (2) the inclination of said line to a horizontal plane as the inclination of the wind to a horizontal plane, and (3) the wind speed range as a function of the perpendicular distance from the center of the hypothetical hemisphere to the hypothetical plane.