Harvistor – Darwind5 Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
I made these SolidWorks Renderings in Tribute to a Very Fascinating Design.
Gizmag.com Article : DARWIND5 Wind Turbine
My interpretation of the DARWIND5 in a SolidWorks Rendering
The DARWIND5 is an interesting Vertical Axis Wind Turbine of which (I feel) will be popular with individuals living Off-the-Grid
Unlike other Vertical Axis Wind Turbines, the Harvistor – Darwind5 design allows it to function at heights much lower than current Wind Energy units.
In addition, the 2012 Gizmag article mentions, ‘It doesn’t need a brake because it self-regulates the top RPM – until now, unregulated top speeds have been a problem with VAWT design.’
Hydrographic Dipped Snow-Camo Version for Hidden ‘Remote Locations’
In addition – Much to the approval of the Survivalist ‘Prepper’ crowd – As-well-as operating at lower heights, the custom mount options allow the Darwind5 to be lowered for Service & Storage in a hidden horizontal position until needed …this also means generating wind power without having a tall turbine unit giving away one’s location.
In all seriousness, I feel there will be a lot of interest in the Darwind5 in the near future. This is one ‘Green Technology’ design that will actually function in Urban as-well-as Remote locations — Great Design!! Well Done!!
One Possible Design for the DARWIND5 ‘Tilting’ Stand
DARWIND5 Field Test Video : http://youtu.be/2Fo1gTh7nJQ
2012 Field Test of the Vertical Axis Wind Turbine Measuring 3.5 Meters
— CHEERS…
NOTE: The ‘Survivalist’ and ‘Prepper’ comments are my own opinion, and in no way represent the thoughts or opinions of the Harvistor Darwind5 designers… but nevertheless, their design is brilliant and I enjoyed creating the Renderings!!
CTM Projects 
I think your work is awesome. I am interested in why you chose Solidworks to do your design work in as opposed to Rhino or say Inventor or Fusion 360. I am interested in doing CAD work and would really appreciate your thoughts since you have obviously got a handle on how to do make concepts real.
Thank You for the Kind words… I chose SolidWorks because years ago I started out fabricating items hands-on prior to starting to design my items using CAD software about 10 years ago. I feel SolidWorks parametric design software seems to have the best of both worlds in the Mechanical Design & Simulation functions, as-well-as, the Photo-Realistic Rendering abilities for presenting visual images to clients. I have used Rhino and enjoyed it, and I have also used AutoCAD & AutoDesk in the past with good results… With that said, I found my preference was SolidWorks because I have not found any software limitations in what I need to design or render… and as I am sure you know, we tend to design with what tools we have available and if one’s software does not have limitations then one does not have to limit your creativity & designs. If you are a student, please check their website for Student Edition. http://www.solidworks.com/sw/education/student-software-3d-mcad.htm — Thank You again for the nice comment! 🙂