New motionless tech harnesses wind energy from rooftops

Technologies has developed a rooftop wind energy system that’s more compact than a typical turbine and works with wind speeds as low as 5 miles per hour — traditional small turbines require average wind speeds of at least 9 mph.

One Aeromine unit can generate as much power as an array of 16 solar panels while taking up 10% of the roof space, and when manufactured at scale, the system could generate significantly more energy than a rooftop solar installation of the same price.

Aeromine’s wind energy system doesn’t look anything like a traditional turbine — instead of spinning blades atop a thin pole, it features a motionless, tank-like cylinder flanked by airfoils. 

As the wind hits those airfoils, it creates a negative pressure that sucks the wind that’s hitting the building through an internal propeller on the bottom of the unit, which creates the energy production which connects directly to the building.

Aeromine’s wind energy system couldn’t be installed on slanted roofs or single-family homes, but it could make on-site wind power generation possible for warehouses, apartment buildings, or other large, flat-roofed structures.