The Blackhawk Project, LLC is a Boise, Idaho-based company that has designed an innovative wind turbine. Their patent was issued in March 2010. The company’s design is typically referred to as a vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT), and has a fully articulating tilt rotor. 

The company founder and inventor of the new wind turbine is Bruce Boatner, who is an electrical engineer and helicopter pilot. The helicopter blade was the initial inspiration for his invention. It has been Mr. Boatner’s vision to provide a product that is a part of the solution for the need to produce clean alternative energy that can be used by general consumers.

The Blackhawk TR-10 wind turbine produces about 1.5 kilowatts of electricity using an axial flux permanent magnet generator. The unit only needs about 65 square feet of operational space. Obviously size and energy production make it very attractive for commercial roof-top applications and for farms and rural residences. 

The wind turbine that Bruce Boatner has developed is innovative in many ways, and has been extensively and successfully tested at the Center for Advanced Energy Studies at the Idaho National Laboratory. The TR-10 is just the first in a series of VAWT coming from Blackhawk. Boatner is in the process of designing larger units with greater energy output. However, the application of the TR-10 for rural and small commercial consumptions appears to be huge.

The Blackhawk design uses helicopter-like wings, called airfoils that rotate parallel to the ground. The airfoils are attached to the tilt rotor in the center of the wind turbine. The slanted rotor allows the turbine to self-start, and lets the Blackhawk generate electricity without the noise, clutching, electronics, tower heights, or heavy blades that come along with most wind turbines.

The rotor tilt sets the airfoil angle of attack, enabling self-starting power generation without the noise, clutching, electronics, tower heights, heavy blades and significant expense often associated with horizontal axis, “propeller” wind machines. In keeping with a goal of the company of minimizing carbon footprints, this is done through mechanical means, without the use of computers or other energy consuming devices.

The design also lets the turbine start in winds as low as 7 mph, which makes this wind turbine much more efficient than most designs that require 12-15 mph wind speed. Since the rotor tilts depending on wind speed, the Blackhawk TR-10 can also function in very high wind speeds. Tests have been successfully conducted, and the system continued to function in wind gusts as high as 101 mph.

Blackhawk claims that their turbine is much more durable than traditional turbines because it has fewer electronics and moving parts. In addition, the long arms of the turbine create higher torque so that it can produce more power with fewer revolutions per minute. The unit has a rated speed of 40 to 80 revolutions per minute.

The entire turbine can fit in the back of a pickup truck and takes about three hours to install. Blackhawk is targeting the TR-10 for farms, shops and houses in rural and semi-rural areas.