Windspire Overview

Power from Advanced Technology - Mariah Power’s patented technology includes a rotor, generator, and inverter designed as a complete system to optimize the conversion of wind energy into electricity. The 1.2 kW (1.2 kilowatt, or 1200 watts) Windspire will produce approximately 1800* kilowatt hours per year in 11 mile per hour average winds. The Windspire also includes an internal wireless modem that can continuously transmit power production information directly to your computer so you can check your power production at any time.

Why Choose Windspire?

Windspire offers clean, renewable energy that can reduce your electricity bills, with key advantages over other renewable energy systems:

Aesthetically Inspiring
Windspire was designed to be uniquely aesthetic and compatible for the areas where we live and work. The low-profile, unobtrusive design blends in easily with the surrounding environment. Mesmerizing and relaxing to watch, the Windspire is truly visually inspiring.

Virtually Silent
Windspire is nearly silent. We estimate the maximum noise level at about 45 dB, taken 5 feet from the base (if you are standing right under it). This is well below the 65 to 100 dB noise levels of many turbines on the market.

Low Cost
At an MSRP of only $3995 for a 1.2kW wind generator, the Windspire is priced well below other renewable alternatives. If rebates are available in your area, your net cost would be even lower. The price includes the poles, inverter, wireless performance monitor, and the hinged monopole, so there are no expensive extras to buy.

Easy to Install
No cranes, no guy wires - the Windspire really is simple to install. Your installer will simply pour a concrete foundation, assemble the unit on the ground, and raise the hinged unit with a winch (or motor or vehicle). Once the foundation has set, the installation can be completed in just a few hours. Our Plug 'n Produce system allows you to simply plug the Windspire into your home or building like an appliance, or alternatively you can have it hard-wired, to begin providing power.

Extremely Low Maintenance
Windspire is very easy to maintain. Once a year, add a little grease to an easy-to-reach bearing. Simple!

High Quality
Windspire uses a durable corrosion-protected steel and aircraft grade aluminum construction, designed to operate for 20 years or more. With quality oversized bearings combined with a very simple mechanical structure, it is sure to provide reliable operation for years, even in high winds (up to 100 mph), snow and ice.

Clean, Abundant Renewable Energy
Wind power is from a clean, natural source that does not emit pollution of any kind. No emissions to lower our air quality or exacerbate global warming; no nuclear waste to bury away - just pure, clean wind. Wind will be a source of power as long as the earth orbits the sun and we have night and day. Wind is infinitely renewable, and it's there for the taking. Why waste wind?

Offset Global Warming
Wind is a source of power which doesn't require burning fossil fuels like coal, gas, oil, or other hydrocarbon fuels. By drawing power from a clean source, you are offsetting the need for power from dirty sources which emit greenhouse gases and contribute to the ill effects of global warming, not to mention poor air quality at ground level.

Personal Independence from Grid Power and Grid Prices
Electricity rates have been steadily rising for the last few years. For many people, the electricity bill is like paying a high rent on top of the mortgage. When temperatures hit record highs and lows, energy bills and rates can skyrocket. Worse, blackouts have shown the grid to be less reliable than most assumed. By adding your own source of renewable wind energy, you hedge against the risk of rising electricity rates (the higher the rates, the greater your benefit).

Savings on your Electricity Bill
When you supply your own power, you no longer need to buy as much electricity from your utility. This means ongoing savings every month for 20 plus years.

Improved Local and National Security
In the big picture, many matters of national security revolve around our energy security, namely fossil fuels that are frequently imported from foreign nations. By reducing your need for fossil fuel power, you are reducing the nation's need, and thus taking one small step towards easing tensions around many matters of national security.

Windspire Applications

Current Applications

Residential
Use one or more Windspires to power your home. Place them in the back yard, or display them in front of your home. Line a path, driveway, or your entry, using Windspires as power-generating pillars. Great for homes in the country, but also appropriate for many suburban and urban settings.

Business
Set up an array of Windspires in front of your building to provide you with electricity. Use this attractive form of renewable energy to visibly display your corporation's values and environmental responsibility, while lowering your energy bills.

Kinetic Sculptures for Resorts, Hotels, Office Towers, etc.
A group of Windspires arranged artistically in an array, painted with custom colors, can form a novel display of renewable energy that provides usable electricity, visual appeal, and a strong message to passers-by. Take your outdoor display to a new level by incorporating Windspires.

Coming Soon...

Off-Grid/Remote Power
Remote homes, cabins, telecommunications equipment, water pumps, monitoring sites, and other off-grid power needs can be fulfilled with renewable wind energy. As a bonus, Windspire’s noiseless operation will still allow you to enjoy the sounds of nature.

240 V AC Version
Live in a country with 240V AC requirements? In the works is an electronic panel that incorporates a built-in transformer to condition the electricity for international electricity needs.

Windspire Technology

Windspire is a complete consumer-friendly appliance that is designed for plug-and-produce installation. All of the components were designed for integration together to provide seamless, reliable operation and easy installation.

Optimized Rotor
The rotor is a low speed giromill (straight-bladed Darrieus) design optimized for energy capture efficiency by Ecole Polytechique Montreal. The Darrieus rotor was researched and developed extensively by Sandia National Laboratories in the 1980's. Our rotor has modified this proven, high efficiency configuration into a size and form optimal for personal power generation. The changes also lowered the operating speed, making it nearly silent, while also improving self-starting capabilities. Constructed from aircraft grade aluminum, the rotor is both high strength and low cost.

Advanced Generator
Double Rotating Air Core motors and generators are seen as the future. They provide the highest efficiencies ever achieved, with some operating at over 99.0 percent. New manufacturing

technology allows them to be produced with both the highest possible efficiency and simultaneously at low cost. The Double Rotating Air Core generator used in Windspire is designed specifically for the rotor to efficiently capture as much energy as possible at all wind speeds. The Windspire generator technology was dynamometer tested and its performance verified by Oregon State University and the University of Nevada, Reno, under a program sponsored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). It acheived over 98% efficiency.

Integrated Inverter
The Windspire has its own integrated inverter to convert the raw electrical power from the generator into regulated electricity that ties in with the grid. The high-efficiency inverter was custom designed by the best electronics designers in the industry, to optimize operation with the rotor and generator. The inverter technology continuously maximizes the conversion of wind energy into electric power provided to your home or business, over the range of wind speeds.

Wireless Modem
Sometimes it can be nice to know how much energy you’re producing each month, let alone how much you made from that big windstorm last week. A click of your computer can provide you all of that. The Windspire has a built-in wireless modem that’s always transmitting power production information. Any computer with a WiFi modem can pick up the signal within 330 feet and read the output. It doesn’t get any simpler.

What It Means to You
Through creative innovation with advanced engineering Mariah Power has developed the optimal and most cost-

effective wind power appliance for residential and commercial needs. Windspire is a truly revolutionary wind energy solution.

Why Windspire is So Revolutionary
You may wonder why you haven't seen a product like Windspire on the market before, or why it's taken so long to see a viable Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT). Unfortunately, VAWTs have had a rocky history in the market, mainly due to low efficiencies. It is an engineering challenge to harness sufficient power from low rates of rotation in a cost-effective manner.

We began by developing an extremely efficient generator that is optimized for those low rates of rotation, and followed this with breakthroughs in rotor design and construction. In the end, we developed a solution that finally overcomes the hurdles of cost and efficiency, with our truly revolutionary Windspire wind power appliance. Finally, to really set Mariah Power apart from the rest, we verified our results with rigorous independent, third party testing. With multiple international patents protecting our innovations, Mariah Power is poised to change renewable wind power forever. Join in the revolution! Test Data. We are currently having our model tested by at an independent, third-party test site in Spanish Forks, Utah. The Windward Engineering test site offers a class 6 wind zone, and full testing and monitoring equipment. The Windspire will be tested for a full year at this site.

UPDATE

We expect to release performance results for the Windspire 1.2G in the first quarter of 2008. We take pride in setting high performance standards for our technology, and in putting our unit through stringent real-world, in-ground testing to honestly assess and rate its performance. While this process has taken some time, rest assured that this level of testing is unusual: it is undertaken by very few companies in the industry. We chose to pursue real-world, independent testing in the interest of delivering a truly high performance product to our customers.

Testing of Other Products

We continue to develop and perfect a number of related technologies, including the original Savonius design of the Windspire. More information on products in our pipeline is available in the "Applications" section of the "Windspire" menu.

Maintenance

Bearings
Windspire utilizes two bearings. One bearing is sealed for life. For the other bearing, we recommend the addition of a finger swipe of grease to it about every year. Both bearings are located near ground level and are easily accessible, as well as replaceable.

Rotor
New Giromill Design
The efficiency of energy capture is very sensitive to the shape of the airfoils. For this reason, we recommend cleaning any accumulated dirt off the airfoils periodically. Also, should an airfoil become damaged, we recommend replacing it.

Savonius Design (product in development)
This design utilizes UV stabilized HDPE plastic panels. This material is designed for long life. However over time, the UV rays of the sun will cause degradation of any plastic and they will require replacement. The expected life is about 7-10 years, but this will vary by location. The panels are very inexpensive and can be easily replaced by lowering your Windspire, sliding the old panels out and new ones into the rotor frame.

Inverter
Windspire utilizes a smart inverter designed to provide long reliable generation. The expected life is about 10-20 years. As with all electronic hardware, electrical components will eventually degrade and will need to be replaced. The inverter is not overly expensive and can be easily replaced by unbolting it from the generator and installing a new one.

Generator
The Windspire generator was designed to operate with very high efficiency and to be maintenance-free. Should the generator become damaged for any reason, we recommend replacing it.

Windspire Brochures & Downloads

New 1.2kW Windspire

Windspire Brochure

Windspire Specifications

Savonius Windspire (still in development)

Windspire Brochure

Windspire Specifications

Gallery & Theater: Windspire, The New Design

Windspire Videos, New Design

Click on title or image to view video

Silver Windspire at Spanish Fork, Utah		Windspire Catches the Eye of the Sun

		Credit: Dean Davis, WE

Note: Videos may play with distorted proportions with certain computer and browser settings.

Gallery & Theater: Windspire, Savonius Design

Windspire Videos, Savonius Design

Click on title or image to view video

Windspire at the End of the Rainbow		Windspire at a Home, Reno, NV

Note: Videos may play with distorted proportions with certain computer and browser settings.

Windspire Economic Calculator

The following calculator will show you the economics for energy production of a Windspire at your home or business. Results are approximations, and may vary with actual conditions. Results may also be adjusted once full test data is available.

Enter Your Information:
1.	Average wind speed (mph):	(From wind maps)
2.	Annual electricity consumption (kWh):	(From your electricity bill)
3.	Marginal electricity rate ($/kWh):	Ex. $0.22 (Your highest tier rate)
4.	Total cash rebates & tax credits ($):	OR ($/kWh):
5.	Tax deductions ($):	OR ($/kWh):
6.	Marginal income tax rate (percent):	(Highest tax bracket you're in)

Enter Your Assumptions:
7.	Useful life of unit:	years (Ex. 20 years or more)

Your Windspire Results:
1.	Annual electricity production will be:	kWh
2.	Annual electric bill savings will be:	dollars
3.	Percent of household electricity produced by Windspire:	%
4.	Net cost after rebates:	dollars
5.	Savings over lifetime of unit:	dollars
6.	Net economic benefit of investment:	dollars
7.	Payback time will be:	years
8.	Renewable Energy cost per Watt:	dollars
9.	Renewable Energy cost per kWh:	cents