A kite on a pulley lifts a mass on a fixed line to high altitude and maintains position. Upon demand, the line is released to pay out thru a groundgen capstan, so the mass pulls down on the line, opposed by the pulley-kite.

Lowering a 550 lb mass one foot per second is one horsepower (746 W). Lowering this mass from 2000 ft would provide power for half an hour. Mass velocity can be modulated to match load more flexibly than a kite without the payload-mass storage feature. In particular, gusts and lulls can be smoothed out of the generation output.

Kite payload-mass potential energy was discussed in past years, and is recalled by the emergence of the "All kites are AWES" science theorem; and may someday even be a practical utility-scale AWES method.

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•  ~ Dave Santos   7Feb2014           Discuss at:  AirborneWindEnergy/conversations/messages/11412

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  • Let the dropping weight drive the towing of a hang glider for launch.    ~ JoeF  7Feb2014
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