Vestas Wind Systems A/s

Vestas Wind Systmes A/s

Ali Zaib

Erik Carl Lehnskov Miranda

Thomas Krüger

Martin Ansbjerg Kjær

Poul Brandt Christensen

Imad Abdallah

Jesper Sandberg Thomsen

Fabio Caponetti

Jacob Deleuran Grunnet

Robert Bowyer

Ian Couchman

Per Brath

Martin Møller Sørensen

Martin Atzler

Asger Svenning Andersen

Carsten Nørlund Thomsen

Kenneth Tougaard Simonsen

Peter Koldkjær

Thomas Tvilum Bachmann

Maryam Soleimanzadeh

Michael Houlind Jensen

Arvishwa Kumar Singh

Rasmus Molgaard Hviid Knudsen

Martin Møller SØRENSEN

Rasmus MØLGAARD Hviid Knudsen

Peter KOLDKJÆR

A wind turbine control system comprising at least one control module configured to output a control signal for a control mechanism of a wind turbine, and a gain calculator for calculating a gain parameter associated with the control module, wherein the gain parameter is calculated based on a computerized real-time blade model using a determined wind turbine operating point as an input. The blade model may be a blade element momentum model. In another aspect, the invention may be expressed as a method of controlling a control mechanism of a wind turbine.

Control of a wind turbine using real-time gain calculation

The invention relates to a control apparatus and method for controlling the rotor blades of a wind turbine, and in particular to controlling the rotor blades during an extreme wind event. An extended mode of operation of the wind turbine rotor beyond the cut-out wind speed is provided. In the extended mode of operation, the pitch of the wind turbine blades is actively controlled so that the rotor and the generator idle at a designated rotational speed. The rotational speed may be relatively high, say 15 to 20% of the nominal speed, compared with minimal speeds experienced by purely feathered wind turbine blades, and may be further controlled as a function of the incident wind speed. Output power control in the extended mode may be zero but is preferably a low, but non-zero value. The output power so produced may then be used as an auxiliary power source for controlling the wind turbine in situations where the utility grid fails.

Rotor blade control for high winds

To efficiently nm a wind turbine in varying wind speeds, the wind turbine may be configured to switch between two different electrical configurations that offer different efficiencies depending on wind speed. For example, a star configuration may be preferred during low wind speeds while a delta configuration is preferred for high wind speeds. Before switching, the power output by the turbine's generator may be driven to zero. Doing so, however, removes load from the rotor blades which cause the rotor speed to increase. Instead, the rotor speed may be controlled such that the speed stays at or above the speed of the rotor immediately before the generator power is ramped down. Maintaining rotor speed at or slightly above the current speed while switching between electrical configurations may mitigate the torque change experienced by the turbine and reduce the likelihood of structural failure.

Speed management of a wind turbine when switching electrical configurations

According to an aspect of the invention, a wind farm is provided. The wind farm includes a plurality of wind turbines and a wind farm controller. The controller is configured to detect a high wind condition from at least one wind turbine in the wind farm, reduce a parameter setpoint of at least one other wind turbine, and increase a cut-out wind speed threshold of the at least one other wind turbine.

Wind farm and a method of operating a wind farm

The invention provides a wind turbine, a control system for a wind turbine and a method for controlling a wind turbine where asymmetry in load on the rotor is compensated by individual pitching by comparing a load distribution over the rotor plane with a threshold value. To avoid unnecessary compensation, the threshold value is adjusted based on a loading of the wind turbine or based on climate conditions under which the turbine operates.

Wind turbine with a load controller

A method of operating a wind turbine is provided. The wind turbine comprises a turbine rotor with at least two blades, each blade having a variable pitch angle. The method comprises determining mechanical loads on the blades, determining an asymmetric load moment experienced by the turbine rotor based on the mechanical loads on the blades, determining high order harmonics from the asymmetric load moment, and determining an individual pitch control signal for each of the blades for varying the pitch angle of each blade to compensate for the asymmetric load moment. The individual pitch control signal for each blade is determined at least based on the high order harmonics.

Compensation for asymmetric load moment experienced by wind turbine rotor

Embodiments of the invention generally relate to using remote sensing equipment such as a Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) device to detect wind characteristics for use by wind turbines of a wind park. A wind park controller may received raw wind data from the remote sensing device and determine one or more turbines that can use the raw wind data. The raw wind data may be converted to customized data for each of the one or more wind turbines. Upon being provided the customized wind data, the one or more wind turbines may adjust one or more operational characteristics to improve power production or avoid damage to turbine components.

Remote sensing system for wind turbines

A method for operating a wind turbine includes: providing a curve defining optimal pitch angle as a function of tip speed ratio or as a function of wind speed; modifying at least a part of the optimal pitch angle curve by applying a safety buffer, thereby obtaining a safety modified pitch angle curve; operating the wind turbine in accordance with the safety modified pitch angle curve; measuring one or more parameters regarding wind conditions and/or loads on one or more component of the wind turbine; adjusting the safety buffer, based on the measurements, thereby obtaining an adjusted pitch angle curve; and operating the wind turbine in accordance with the adjusted pitch angle curve. Since the safety buffer is adjusted based on measured parameters, it can be reduced if actual operating conditions are less severe than expected. This allows the wind turbine to be operated in a more optimal manner.

Method for operating a wind turbine at improved power output

A method of controlling a wind turbine, where a control signal for a controllable parameter of the wind turbine is determined, and the rotor power coefficient, the torque coefficient, and/or a thrust coefficient of the wind turbine are estimated at time intervals. From this is determined a variation parameter reflecting the variation of the estimated rotor power, torque or thrust coefficient over time. The wind turbine is then controlled according to the control signal only if the variation parameter is below an alert threshold, and otherwise according to a modified control strategy. The control signal may have a power or torque reference signal for controlling the rotational speed of the turbine or a blade pitch reference signal. The modified control method may for instance entail stopping or de-rating the wind turbine. A control system configured to perform the above control method, and a wind turbine comprising such system are also disclosed.

Control method for a wind turbine

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Aalborg, Denmark

Ali Zaib