COPYRIGHT NOTIFICATION

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document and its attachments contain material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND

Exemplary embodiments generally relate to development of renewable energy resources and, in particular, to the development of renewable wind energy. Exemplary embodiments generally relate to structures that support wind turbines or antennas, to dynamo plants, and to fluid reaction surfaces (i.e., impellers) and, more particularly, to structures with bracing or guys.

High oil prices have renewed our interest in wind energy. Wind turbines are being planned and built to convert wind energy into electricity. Some wind turbines are built atop masts, while other wind turbines are supported by towers. A mast is a vertical structure supported by one or more stay cables (or “guys”). The stay cables provide stability to the mast to reduce oscillations from wind and seismic events. A tower, on the other hand, is a larger, stronger, and more expensive self-supporting structure designed to withstand the wind and seismic events. While the mast is less expensive than the self-supporting tower, additional land is needed for the stay cables. Moreover, the mast must withstand a sizable portion of the wind and seismic events. Often, then, design tradeoffs are required when stay cables are used.

