Conceptio › Archive › Google Patents

Google Patentsopen access

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine — General Electric Company (US8025476B2)

General Electric Company · Google Patents

Google Patents · Patents · License: Open Access

Open Source ↗

generalelectriccompany

patent, google patents, intellectual property, US8025476B2, General Electric Company, Danian Zheng, en, 2011

ABSTRACT

Abstract

A method for controlling operation of a wind turbine is described. The wind turbine includes a rotor having a plurality of rotor blades and an upwind wind condition measurement device. The method includes measuring a wind condition upwind from the rotor using the upwind wind condition measurement device and providing the measured wind condition to a processor. The method also includes determining a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the measured wind condition, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth, a wind turbine response speed, and a wind turbine control error range. The method also includes determining a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter and applying the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The subject matter described herein relates generally to controlling operation of a wind turbine, and more specifically, to controlling operation of a wind turbine based at least partially on upwind measurements from an upwind measurement device.

Wind turbine generators utilize wind energy to produce electrical power. Wind turbine generators typically include a rotor having multiple blades that transform wind energy into rotational motion of a drive shaft, which in turn is utilized to drive an electrical generator to produce electrical power. Each of the multiple blades may be pitched to increase or decrease the rotational speed of the rotor. Pitching a blade refers to rotating the blade to change the angle of attack of the wind on the blade. Pitching toward feather, or feathering the pitch, refers to rotating the blade such that the blade surface is aligned along a direction of the wind speed (i.e., reducing the angle of attack). Pitching a blade toward feather decreases wind energy capture by the blade. Typically, blades are progressively pitched toward feather to counteract increasing wind speed in order to maintain a substantially constant generator speed.

Changes in atmospheric conditions, for example, wind speed, wind turbulence intensity, and wind direction, may significantly influence power produced by wind turbine generators. A power output of a wind turbine generator increases with wind speed until the wind speed reaches a rated wind speed for the turbine. At and above the rated wind speed, the wind turbine generator operates at a rated power. The rated power is an output power at which a wind turbine generator can operate with a level of fatigue to turbine components that is predetermined to be acceptable. At wind speeds higher than a certain speed, or at a wind turbulence level that exceeds a predetermined magnitude, typically referred to as a âtrip limitâ or âmonitor set point limit,â wind turbines may be shut down, or the loads may be reduced by regulating the pitch of the blades or braking the rotor, in order to protect wind turbine components against damage. A static rated power and static trip limits are typically determined during a design stage of the wind turbine and therefore are not dependent upon changing wind conditions that may be present during operation of the wind turbine. A high wind turbulence intensity corresponds to frequently changing wind conditions, which may include frequent and/or strong wind gusts. Wind gusts are sudden, brief increases in the speed of the wind.

Sensors positioned on the wind turbine react to wind conditions as they affect the wind turbine. For example, a wind speed sensor positioned on the wind turbine will measure a wind gust at substantially the same time as the wind gust strikes the rotor blades. Wind turbine operation adjustments are subject to a time lag between measurement of the wind gust and the actual pitching of the blades, and therefore, wind turbine operation adjustments typically are performed at a time after the wind gust has affected wind turbine operation. As a result, the wind gust may cause the rotor speed and/or the output power to exceed a trip limit, before a wind turbine operation adjustment is completed, causing a wind turbine shut down.

Measurements of wind conditions upwind from the wind turbine may be used by a system controller of the wind turbine to determine wind turbine operating commands. A change in wind speed may be measured upwind from the wind turbine, and the pitch of the blades adjusted to compensate for the change in wind speed once the wind reaches the wind turbine. However, wind turbine performance may be reduced in times of high wind turbulence due to oscillations in blade pitch caused by rapid component adjustments. Additionally, a balance between a torque on the rotor created by interaction of the rotor blades and the wind and a generator torque facilitates stable operation of the wind turbine. Blade pitch adjustments may cause an imbalance between the torque on the rotor caused by the wind and the generator torque.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, a method for controlling operation of a wind turbine is provided. The wind turbine includes a rotor having a plurality of rotor blades and an upwind wind condition measurement device. The method includes measuring a wind condition upwind from the rotor using the upwind wind condition measurement device and providing the measured wind condition to a processor. The method also includes determining a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the measured wind condition, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth, a wind turbine response speed, and a wind turbine control error range. The method also includes determining a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter and applying the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

In another aspect, a method for facilitating operation of a wind turbine is provided. The wind turbine includes a system controller and an upwind wind condition measurement device. The method includes configuring the upwind wind condition measurement device to provide the system controller with at least one upwind wind condition measurement. The method also includes configuring the system controller to receive the at least one upwind wind condition measurement and to determine a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the upwind wind condition measurement, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth, a wind turbine response speed, and a wind turbine control error range. The method also includes configuring the system controller to determine a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter and to apply the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

In yet another aspect, a wind turbine control system for a wind turbine is provided. The wind turbine control system includes an upwind wind condition measurement device positioned on or in close proximity to a body of the wind turbine. The upwind wind condition measurement device is configured to measure at least one upwind wind condition. The wind turbine control system also includes a processor coupled to the upwind wind condition measurement device. The processor is configured to receive the upwind wind condition measurement. The processor is also configured to determine a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the upwind wind condition measurement, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth, a wind turbine response speed, and a wind turbine control error range. The processor is also configured to determine a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter and to apply the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary wind turbine.

FIG. 2 is a partial cut-away perspective view of a portion of the wind turbine shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary wind turbine.

FIG. 4 is another perspective view of the wind turbine shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 5 is a control diagram that illustrates a flow of exemplary control signals during operation of a wind turbine.

FIG. 6 is a decision tree illustrating an exemplary process executed by a wind turbine controller.

FIG. 7 is a decision tree illustrating an exemplary process executed by a wind turbine controller.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart of an exemplary method for controlling a wind turbine.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As used herein, the term âbladeâ is intended to be representative of any device that provides reactive force when in motion relative to a surrounding fluid. As used herein, the term âwind turbineâ is intended to be representative of any device that generates rotational energy from wind energy, and more specifically, converts kinetic energy of wind into mechanical energy. As used herein, the term âwind generatorâ is intended to be representative of any wind turbine that generates electrical power from rotational energy generated from wind energy, and more specifically, converts mechanical energy converted from kinetic energy of wind to electrical power. As used herein, the term âwindmillâ is intended to be representative of any wind turbine that uses rotational energy generated from wind energy, and more specifically mechanical energy converted from kinetic energy of wind, for a predetermined purpose other than generating electrical power, such as, but not limited to, pumping a fluid and/or grinding a substance.

Technical effects of the methods, systems, and computer-readable media described herein include at least one of: (a) measuring a wind condition upwind from a rotor using an upwind condition measurement device; (b) providing the measured wind condition to a processor; (c) determining a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the measured wind condition, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth, a wind turbine response speed, and a wind turbine component operating error range; (d) determining a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter; and (e) applying the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary wind turbine 10 . FIG. 2 is a partially cut-away perspective view of a portion of wind turbine 10 . Wind turbine 10 described and illustrated herein is a wind generator for generating electrical power from wind energy. However, in some embodiments, wind turbine 10 may be, in addition or alternative to a wind generator, any type of wind turbine, such as, but not limited to, a windmill (not shown). Moreover, wind turbine 10 described and illustrated herein includes a horizontal-axis configuration. However, in some embodiments, wind turbine 10 may include, in addition or alternative to the horizontal-axis configuration, a vertical-axis configuration (not shown). Wind turbine 10 may be coupled to an electrical load (not shown), such as, but not limited to, a power grid (not shown), for receiving electrical power therefrom to drive operation of wind turbine 10 and/or its associated components and/or for supplying electrical power generated by wind turbine 10 thereto. Although only one wind turbine 10 is shown in FIG. 1 , in some embodiments, a plurality of wind turbines 10 may be grouped together, sometimes referred to as a âwind farm.â

Wind turbine 10 includes a body or nacelle 12 and a rotor (generally designated by 14 ) coupled to body 12 for rotation with respect to body 12 about an axis of rotation 20 . In the exemplary embodiment, body 12 is mounted on a tower 16 . However, in some embodiments, in addition or alternative to tower-mounted body 12 , wind turbine 10 includes a body 12 adjacent the ground and/or a surface of water. Tower 16 may have any suitable height enabling wind turbine 10 to function as described herein. Rotor 14 includes a hub 22 and a plurality of blades 24 (sometimes referred to as âairfoilsâ) extending outwardly from hub 22 for converting wind energy into rotational energy. Although rotor 14 is described and illustrated herein as having three blades 24 , rotor 14 may have any suitable number of blades 24 . Blades 24 may have any suitable length that allows wind turbine 10 to function as described herein. For example, in some embodiments, one or more rotor blades 24

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary wind turbine.

FIG. 2 is a partial cut-away perspective view of a portion of the wind turbine shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary wind turbine.

FIG. 4 is another perspective view of the wind turbine shown in FIG. 1 .

FIG. 5 is a control diagram that illustrates a flow of exemplary control signals during operation of a wind turbine.

FIG. 6 is a decision tree illustrating an exemplary process executed by a wind turbine controller.

FIG. 7 is a decision tree illustrating an exemplary process executed by a wind turbine controller.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart of an exemplary method for controlling a wind turbine.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Despite how blades 24 are illustrated in FIG. 1 , rotor 14 may have blades 24 of any shape, and may have blades 24 of any type and/or any configuration, whether such shape, type, and/or configuration is described and/or illustrated herein. One example of another type, shape, and/or configuration of rotor blades 24 is a ducted rotor (not shown) having a turbine (not shown) contained within a duct (not shown). Another example of another type, shape, and/or configuration of blades 24 is a Darrieus wind turbine, sometimes referred to as an âeggbeaterâ turbine. Yet another example of another type, shape, and/or configuration of blades 24 is a Savonious wind turbine. Even another example of another type, shape, and/or configuration of blades 24 is a traditional windmill for pumping water, such as, but not limited to, four-bladed rotors having wooden shutters and/or fabric sails. Moreover, wind turbine 10 may, in some embodiments, be a wind turbine wherein rotor 14 generally faces upwind to harness wind energy, and/or may be a wind turbine wherein rotor 14 generally faces downwind to harness energy. Of course, in any of the embodiments, rotor 14 may not face exactly upwind and/or downwind, but may face generally at any angle (which may be variable) with respect to a direction of the wind to harness energy therefrom.

Referring now to FIG. 2 , wind turbine 10 includes an electrical generator 26 coupled to rotor 14 for generating electrical power from the rotational energy generated by rotor 14 . Generator 26 may be any suitable type of electrical generator, such as, but not limited to, a wound rotor induction generator. Generator 26 includes a stator (not shown) and a rotor (not shown). Rotor 14 includes a rotor shaft 28 coupled to rotor hub 22 for rotation therewith. Generator 26 is coupled to rotor shaft 28 such that rotation of rotor shaft 28 drives rotation of the generator rotor, and therefore operation of generator 26 . In the exemplary embodiment, a generator shaft 30 is coupled to the generator rotor and coupled to rotor shaft 28 such that rotation of rotor shaft 28 drives rotation of the generator rotor. In other embodiments, the generator rotor is directly coupled to rotor shaft 28 , sometimes referred to as a âdirect-drive wind turbine.â In the exemplary embodiment, generator shaft 30 is coupled to rotor shaft 28 through a gearbox 32 , although in other embodiments generator shaft 30 is coupled directly to rotor shaft 28 .

The torque of rotor 14 drives the generator rotor to thereby generate variable frequency alternating current (AC) electrical power from rotation of rotor 14 . Generator 26 has an air gap torque between the generator rotor and stator that opposes the torque of rotor 14 . A frequency converter 34 is coupled to generator 26 for converting the variable frequency AC to a fixed frequency AC for delivery to an electrical load (not shown), such as, but not limited to a power grid (not shown), coupled to generator 26 . Frequency converter 34 also controls the air gap torque which facilitates controlling the power output of generator 26 . Frequency converter 34 may be located anywhere within or remote to wind turbine 10 . For example, frequency converter 34 may be located within a base (not shown) of tower 16 .

In some embodiments, wind turbine 10 may include a rotor speed limiter, for example, but not limited to a disk brake 36 . Disk brake 36 brakes rotation of rotor 14 to, for example, slow rotation of rotor 14 , brake rotor 14 against full wind torque, and/or reduce the generation of electrical power from electrical generator 26 . Furthermore, in some embodiments, wind turbine 10 may include a yaw system 38 for rotating body 12 about an axis of rotation 40 for changing a yaw of rotor 14 , and more specifically for changing a direction faced by rotor 14 to, for example, adjust an angle between the direction faced by rotor 14 and a direction of wind.

In an exemplary embodiment, wind turbine 10 includes a variable blade pitch system 42 for controlling, including but not limited to changing, a pitch angle of rotor blades 24 with respect to a wind direction. Pitch system 42 may be coupled to a system controller 44 for control thereby. Pitch system 42 is coupled to hub 22 and blades 24 , and includes pitch actuators for changing the pitch angle of blades 24 by rotating blades 24 with respect to hub 22 . The pitch actuators may include any suitable structure, configuration, arrangement, means, and/or components, whether described and/or illustrated herein, such as, but not limited to, electrical motors, hydraulic cylinders, springs, and/or servomechanisms. Moreover, the pitch actuators may be driven by any suitable means, whether described and/or illustrated herein, such as, but not limited to, hydraulic fluid, electrical power, electro-chemical power, and/or mechanical power, such as, but not limited to, spring force.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of wind turbine 10 . In the exemplary embodiment, wind turbine 10 includes one or more system controllers 44 coupled to some or all of the components of wind turbine 10 for generally controlling operation of wind turbine 10 and/or controlling operation of some or all of the components thereof, regardless of whether such components are described and/or illustrated herein. For example, in the exemplary embodiment, system controller 44 is coupled to variable blade pitch system 42 for controlling the pitch of blades 24 . Furthermore, system controller 44 is coupled to, and configured to control, frequency converter 34 . In the exemplary embodiment, system controller 44 is mounted within body 12 (shown in FIG. 2 ). However, additionally or alternatively, one or more system controllers 44 may be remote from body 12 and/or other components of wind turbine 10 . System controller 44 may be used for, but is not limited to, overall system monitoring and control including, for example, pitch and speed regulation, high-speed shaft and yaw brake application, yaw and pump motor application, and/or fault monitoring. Alternative distributed or centralized control architectures may be used in some embodiments.

In an exemplary embodiment, wind turbine 10 includes a plurality of sensors, for example,

sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , and 58 .

Sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , and 58 measure a variety of parameters, including, but not limited to, operating conditions and atmospheric conditions. Each of

sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , and 58 may be an individual sensor or a plurality of sensors.

Sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , and 58 may be any suitable sensor having any suitable location within or remote to wind turbine 10 that allows wind turbine 10 to function as described herein. In some embodiments,

sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 58 , and 58 are coupled to system controller 44 for transmitting measurements to system controller 44 for processing thereof.

In the exemplary embodiment, wind turbine 10 also includes an upwind wind condition measurement device 60 . In the exemplary embodiment, upwind wind condition measurement device 60 is configured to measure at least one wind condition upwind from wind turbine 10 and provide the measurement to system controller 44 . System controller 44 is configured to control a rotor speed and an electrical power output of generator 26 based at least partially on the upwind wind condition measurement. Rotor speed and power output of electrical generator 26 may be controlled by controlling the pitch of blades 24 using variable blade pitch system 42 . Controlling air gap torque of generator 26 through use of frequency converter 34 may also simultaneously control power output of generator 26 and an overall mechanical load to generator 26 .

In some embodiments, system controller 44 includes a bus 62 or other communications device to communicate information. In at least one specific example, system controller 44 includes a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller. One or more processor(s) 64 may be coupled to bus 62 to process information, including information from

sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , 58 and/or other sensor(s), as well as information from upwind wind condition measurement device 60 . System controller 44 may also include one or more random access memories (RAM) 66 and/or other storage device(s) 68 . RAM(s) 66 and storage device(s) 68 are coupled to bus 62 to store and transfer information and instructions to be executed by processor(s) 64 . RAM(s) 66 (and/or also storage device(s) 68 , if included) can also be used to store temporary variables or other intermediate information during execution of instructions by processor(s) 64 . System controller 44 may also include one or more read only memories (ROM) 70 and/or other static storage devices coupled to bus 62 to store and provide static (i.e., non-changing) information and instructions to processor(s) 64 .

Processor 64 may include any programmable system including systems and microcontrollers, reduced instruction set circuits (RISC), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), programmable logic circuits (PLC), and any other circuit or processor capable of executing the functions described herein. The above examples are exemplary only, and thus are not intended to limit in any way the definition and/or meaning of the term processor.

System controller 44 may also include, or may be coupled to, input/output device(s) 72 . Input/output device(s) 72 may include any device known in the art to provide input data to system controller 44 and/or to provide outputs, such as, but not limited to, yaw control, pitch control, and/or generator torque outputs. Instructions may be provided to memory 66 from storage device 68 , such as, but not limited to, a magnetic disk, a read-only memory (ROM) integrated circuit, CD-ROM, and/or DVD, via a remote connection that is either wired or wireless providing access to one or more electronically-accessible media, etc. In some embodiments, hard-wired circuitry can be used in place of or in combination with software instructions. Thus, execution of sequences of instructions is not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software instructions, whether described and/or illustrated herein. System controller 44 may also include a sensor interface 74 that allows system controller 44 to communicate with

sensors

50 , 52 , 54 , 56 , 58 and/or other sensor(s), as well as to communicate with upwind wind condition measurement device 60 . Sensor interface 74 may include one or more analog-to-digital converters that convert analog signals into digital signals that can be used by processor(s) 64 .

FIG. 4 is another perspective view of wind turbine 10 (shown in FIG. 1 ), further illustrating upwind wind condition measurement device 60 (shown in FIG. 3 ). As described above, in cases of sudden wind gusts, wind speed may increase in a relatively small interval of time. In the exemplary embodiment, wind turbine components are preemptively adjusted before a gust hits rotor 14 (shown in FIG. 1 ) in order to compensate for a time lag between measurement of the wind gust and a response by wind turbine components. For example, in order to compensate for the time lag between measurement of the wind gust and response of variable blade pitch system 42 , blades 24 are preemptively pitched before the gust hits rotor 14 . In a specific example, variable blade pitch system 42 can change the blade pitch to fully feathered in ten seconds. At a given wind speed, if upwind wind condition measurement device 60 measures a wind gust a distance of three hundred meters upwind from rotor 14 , the blades can be fully feathered by the time the wind gust reaches rotor 14 .

Preemptively pitching blades 24 prior to interaction with the wind gust facilitates preventing the wind gust from applying a high load to rotor 14 . Furthermore, in the exemplary embodiment, operation of frequency converter 34 is preemptively adjusted to balance the torque applied to rotor 14 by the wind and the torque on generator 26 . For example, both the pitch of blades 24 and the torque on generator 26 are adjusted upon measurement of a changed wind condition measured a distance upwind from rotor 14 .

Adjusting the blade pitch in anticipation of the wind gust facilitates running wind turbine</figure-c

CLAIMS

Claims ( 20 )

1. A method for controlling operation of a wind turbine, the wind turbine comprising a rotor having a plurality of rotor blades and an upwind wind condition measurement device, said method comprising:

measuring a wind condition upwind from the rotor using the upwind wind condition measurement device;

providing the measured wind condition to a processor;

determining a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the measured wind condition, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth and a wind turbine control error range;

determining a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter; and,

applying the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

2. A method in accordance with claim 1 , wherein determining a wind turbine operating command comprises determining a generator torque command that facilitates setting at least one of a generator torque and a generator torque change curve within a generator torque error range of a generator torque control target.

3. A method in accordance with claim 1 , wherein determining a control algorithm parameter comprises at least one of:

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a bandwidth of at least one of a component and a system of the wind turbine;

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a response speed of at least one of a component and a system of the wind turbine; and,

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a control error range of at least one of a component and a system of the wind turbine.

4. A method in accordance with claim 3 , further comprising at least one of:

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a bandwidth of the upwind wind condition measurement device;

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a response speed of at least one of a variable blade pitch system and a frequency converter; and,

determining a control algorithm parameter that controls a control error range for at least one of a variable blade pitch system and a frequency converter.

5. A method in accordance with claim 1 , wherein determining a control algorithm parameter comprises determining at least one of a control algorithm gain, a set of control algorithm gains, and a controller matrix/model based at least partially on a measured wind turbulence intensity.

6. A method in accordance with claim 5 , wherein determining a control algorithm gain comprises determining at least one of a proportional gain and an integration gain.

7. A method in accordance with claim 5 , further comprising:

reducing a stored control algorithm gain when the measured wind turbulence intensity is greater than a first stored wind turbulence intensity;

increasing the stored control algorithm gain when the measured wind turbulence intensity is less than a second stored wind turbulence intensity; and,

maintaining the stored control algorithm gain when the measured wind turbulence intensity is less than the first stored wind turbulence intensity and greater than the second stored wind turbulence intensity.

8. A method in accordance with claim 7 , wherein reducing the stored control algorithm gain further comprises at least one of:

decreasing a wind turbine response bandwidth to facilitate reducing oscillation;

increasing a wind turbine response time to the wind turbine operating command to facilitate reducing oscillation; and,

increasing the blade pitch error range and the generator torque error range to facilitate reducing oscillation.

9. A method in accordance with claim 8 , wherein increasing the stored control algorithm gain further comprises at least one of:

increasing the wind turbine response bandwidth to facilitate increasing wind turbine performance;

decreasing the wind turbine response time to the wind turbine operating command to facilitate increasing wind turbine performance; and,

decreasing the blade pitch error range and the generator torque error range to facilitate increasing wind turbine performance.

10. A method in accordance with claim 1 , further comprising determining at least one wind turbine set point based at least partially on the measured wind condition.

11. A method in accordance with claim 10 , wherein determining the at least one wind turbine set point comprises determining at least one of a power set point and a rotor speed set point based at least partially on at least one of a measured wind direction and a measured wind speed.

12. A method in accordance with claim 11 , further comprising:

reducing the at least one of a rated power set point and a rated rotor speed set point when the measured wind speed is greater than a stored maximum wind speed;

reducing the at least one of a rated power set point and a rated rotor speed set point when the measured turbulence intensity level is greater than a stored maximum turbulence intensity level; and,

reducing the at least one of a rated power set point and a rated rotor speed set point when the measured wind direction changes at higher than a stored rate.

13. A method for facilitating operation of a wind turbine, the wind turbine comprising a system controller and an upwind wind condition measurement device, said method comprising:

configuring the upwind wind condition measurement device to provide the system controller with at least one upstream wind condition measurement; and,

configuring the system controller to:

receive the at least one upstream wind condition measurement;

determine a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the upstream wind condition measurement, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth and a wind turbine control error range;

determine a wind turbine operating command based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter; and,

apply the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

14. A method in accordance with claim 13 , wherein configuring the upwind wind condition measurement device comprises configuring the upwind wind condition measurement device to provide the system controller with at least one of an upwind wind speed, an upwind wind direction, and an upwind wind turbulence intensity.

15. A method in accordance with claim 14 , further comprising configuring the system controller to determine at least one of a power set point and a rotor speed set point based at least partially on the upwind wind speed.

16. A method in accordance with claim 13 , further comprising configuring the system controller to change at least one of the wind turbine response speed and the wind turbine response bandwidth based on the at least one upwind wind condition measurement.

17. A method in accordance with claim 13 , wherein configuring the system controller to determine a control algorithm parameter comprises configuring the system controller to determine at least one of a control algorithm gain, a set of control algorithm gains, and a controller model/matrix.

18. A method in accordance with claim 13 , wherein configuring the system controller to determine a wind turbine operating command comprises at least one of:

determining a blade pitch command that facilitates setting at least one of a blade pitch and a blade pitch change curve within an error range of a blade pitch control target; and,

determining a generator torque command that facilitates setting at least one of a generator torque and a generator torque change curve within an error range of a generator torque control target.

19. A method in accordance with claim 18 , further comprising configuring the system controller to change at least one of the blade pitch error range and the generator torque error range based on the at least one upwind wind condition measurement.

20. A wind turbine control system for a wind turbine that includes a frequency converter, said wind turbine control system comprising:

an upwind wind condition measurement device positioned on or in close proximity to a body of the wind turbine, said upstream wind condition measurement device configured to measure at least one upwind wind condition; and,

a processor coupled to said upwind wind condition measurement device, said processor configured to:

receive the upwind wind condition measurement;

determine a control algorithm parameter, based at least partially on the upwind wind condition measurement, that controls at least one of a wind turbine response bandwidth and a wind turbine control error range;

determine a wind turbine operating command, based at least partially on the control algorithm parameter, that controls operation of the frequency converter; and,

apply the wind turbine operating command to operation of the wind turbine.

US12/570,988

2009-09-30

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

Active

US8025476B2

( en )

Priority Applications (5)

Application Number

Priority Date

Filing Date

Title

US12/570,988

US8025476B2

( en )

2009-09-30

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

DK10179695.1T

DK2306003T3

( en )

2009-09-30

2010-09-24

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

ES10179695T

ES2717654T3

( en )

2009-09-30

2010-09-24

Systems and procedures and to control a wind turbine

EP10179695.1A

EP2306003B1

( en )

2009-09-30

2010-09-24

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

CN201010508340.7A

CN102032109B

( en )

2009-09-30

2010-09-30

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number

Priority Date

Filing Date

Title

US12/570,988

US8025476B2

( en )

2009-09-30

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

Publications (2)

Publication Number

Publication Date

US20100135789A1

US20100135789A1 ( en )

2010-06-03

US8025476B2

true

US8025476B2 ( en )

2011-09-27

Family

ID=42222960

Family Applications (1)

Application Number

Title

Priority Date

Filing Date

US12/570,988

Active

US8025476B2

( en )

2009-09-30

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine

Country Status (5)

Country

Link

( 1 )

US8025476B2

( en )

( 1 )

EP2306003B1

( en )

( 1 )

CN102032109B

( en )

( 1 )

DK2306003T3

( en )

( 1 )

ES2717654T3

( en )

Cited By (34)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

US20110101691A1

( en )

2009-01-05

2011-05-05

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Wind turbine generator and method of estimating wind direction in wind turbine generator

US20120169053A1

( en )

2009-07-29

2012-07-05

Michigan Aerospace Corporation

Atmospheric Measurement System

US20120211982A1

( en )

2011-02-23

2012-08-23

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Controller for wind turbine generator, wind turbine generator, and method of controlling wind turbine generator

US20130099497A1

( en )

2010-06-30

2013-04-25

Robert Bowyer

Apparatus and method for reducing yaw error in wind turbines

US20140117668A1

( en )

2012-11-01

2014-05-01

General Electric Company

System and method for operating wind farm

US8912675B2

( en )

2010-08-02

2014-12-16

Alstom Wind, S.L.U.

Reactive power regulation

US20150056072A1

( en )

2013-08-20

2015-02-26

General Electric Company

System and method for preventing excessive loading on a wind turbine

US20150260157A1

( en )

2012-11-22

2015-09-17

Senvion Se

Method for operating a wind energy installation, and wind energy installation

US20150337802A1

( en )

2014-05-26

2015-11-26

General Electric Company

System and method for pitch fault detection

US20150354534A1

( en )

2013-01-17

2015-12-10

Alstom Renewable Technologies

Method of starting a wind turbine

US20160265510A1

( en )

2015-03-13

2016-09-15

General Electric Company

Wind turbine control using signal controller

US9507365B2

( en )

2014-06-24

2016-11-29

Woodward, Inc.

Adaptive PID control system for industrial turbines

US9551321B2

( en )

2013-06-26

2017-01-24

General Electric Company

System and method for controlling a wind turbine

US9624905B2

( en )

2013-09-20

2017-04-18

General Electric Company

System and method for preventing excessive loading on a wind turbine

US9631606B2

( en )

2014-04-14

2017-04-25

General Electric Company

System and method for thrust-speed control of a wind turbine

US9863402B2

( en )

2015-02-13

2018-01-09

General Electric Company

System and method for operating a wind turbine based on rotor blade margin

US9926912B2

( en )

2016-08-30

2018-03-27

General Electric Company

System and method for estimating wind coherence and controlling wind turbine based on same

US10036692B2

( en )

2014-11-13

2018-07-31

General Electric Company

System and method for estimating rotor blade loads of a wind turbine

US10107261B2

( en )

2013-12-09

2018-10-23

General Electric Company

System and method for reducing oscillation loads of wind turbine

US20180347542A1

( en )

2017-05-30

2018-12-06

General Electric Company

System and method for reducing loads during an idling or parked state of a wind turbine via yaw offset

US10364797B2

( en )

2015-01-29

2019-07-30

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Partial and full load controllers of a wind turbine

US10451036B2

( en )

2017-05-05

2019-10-22

General Electric Company

Adjustment factor for aerodynamic performance map

US10539116B2

( en )

2016-07-13

2020-01-21

General Electric Company

Systems and methods to correct induction for LIDAR-assisted wind turbine control

US10634121B2

( en )

2017-06-15

2020-04-28

General Electric Company

Variable rated speed control in partial load operation of a wind turbine

US10778112B2

( en )

2018-04-04

2020-09-15

General Electric Company

DFIG converter with active filter

US10808681B2

( en )

2018-01-23

2020-10-20

General Electric Company

Twist correction factor for aerodynamic performance map used in wind turbine control

US11060504B1

( en )

2020-02-07

2021-07-13

General Electric Company

Systems and methods for continuous machine learning based control of wind turbines

US20210396209A1

( en )

2020-06-18

2021-12-23

Wobben Properties Gmbh

Method for operating a wind power installation, controller for operating a wind power installation, and wind farm

US11319926B2

( en )

2018-10-22

2022-05-03

General Electric Company

System and method for protecting wind turbines from extreme and fatigue loads

US20220220935A1

( en )

2021-01-08

2022-07-14

General Electric Renovables Espana S.L.

Thrust control for wind turbines using active sensing of wind turbulence

EP3749853B1

( en )

2018-03-08

2023-02-15

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy A/S

Determining control settings for a wind turbine

US11649804B2

( en )

2021-06-07

2023-05-16

General Electric Renovables Espana, S.L.

Systems and methods for controlling a wind turbine

US11736056B2

( en )

2019-05-30

2023-08-22

General Electric Company

System and method for controlling harmonics in a renewable energy power system

US12180936B2

( en )

2021-07-28

2024-12-31

General Electric Renovables Espana, S.L.

Systems and methods for operating a wind farm

Families Citing this family (41)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

JP3918837B2

( en )

2004-08-06

2007-05-23

æ ªå¼ä¼ç¤¾æ¥ç«è£½ä½æ

Wind power generator

US8093737B2

( en )

2008-05-29

2012-01-10

General Electric Company

Method for increasing energy capture in a wind turbine

US7948103B2

( en )

2009-09-03

2011-05-24

General Electric Company

Method and system for verifying wind turbine operation

GB0921207D0

( en )

2009-12-03

2010-01-20

Tidal Energy Ltd

Tidal turbine system

GB2481461A

( en )

2010-06-21

2011-12-28

Vestas Wind Sys As

Control of a downstream wind turbine in a wind park by sensing the wake turbulence of an upstream turbine

WO2012003503A2

( en )

2010-07-02

2012-01-05

Calhoon Scott W

Wind energy system

WO2012019785A2

( en )

2010-08-13

2012-02-16

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Arrangement for generating a control signal for controlling a power output of a power generation system

US9909564B2

( en )

2010-12-23

2018-03-06

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Supervision of controller instability in a wind turbine

US8805596B2

( en )

2010-12-28

2014-08-12

Inventus Holdings, Llc

Remote wind turbine reset system and method

GB2487715A

( en )

2011-01-18

2012-08-08

Vestas Wind Sys As

Method and apparatus for protecting wind turbines from extreme wind direction changes

ES2401857B1

( en )

2011-01-31

2014-03-10

Gamesa Innovation & Technology S.L.

IMPROVED WIND GENERATOR CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS.

WO2012146258A1

( en )

2011-04-28

2012-11-01

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Method and appartaus for protecting wind turbines from extreme events

WO2012149984A1

( en )

2011-05-04

2012-11-08

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

System and method for operating a wind turbine using an adaptive speed reference

US9711964B2

( en )

2011-09-26

2017-07-18

General Electric Corporation

Method and system for operating a power generation and delivery system

US8258643B2

( en )

2011-10-11

2012-09-04

General Electric Company

Method and system for control of wind turbines

US9234506B2

( en )

2011-10-14

2016-01-12

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Estimation of wind properties using a light detection and ranging device

US9217415B2

( en )

2011-10-14

2015-12-22

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Estimation of wind properties using a light detection and ranging device

US9587628B2

( en )

2012-01-17

2017-03-07

General Electric Company

Method for operating a wind turbine

CN104081043A

( en )

2012-01-27

2014-10-01

éç¨çµæ°å¬å¸

Wind turbine and method for determining parameters of wind turbine

US9018787B2

( en )

2012-04-24

2015-04-28

General Electric Company

System and method of wind turbine control using a torque setpoint

ES2658364T3

( en )

2012-05-18

2018-03-09

Romo Wind Ag

Step angle control procedure of at least one wind turbine blade

EP2904264B1

( en )

2012-10-02

2018-02-28

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Wind turbine control

DK2784303T3

( en )

2013-03-27

2017-01-30

Alstom Renovables Espana Sl

Method of operating a wind turbine

US9534584B2

( en )

2013-06-13

2017-01-03

Cooper Industries Holdings

Wind turbine electric generator with torque limiting brake

FR3013777B1

( en )

2013-11-25

2015-11-13

IFP Energies Nouvelles

METHOD OF MONITORING AND MONITORING A WIND TURBINE USING WIND SPEED ESTIMATION USING A LIDAR SENSOR

CN107429669B

( en )

2015-02-12

2020-07-07

ç»´æ¯å¡æ¯é£åç³»ç»éå¢å¬å¸

Control system with local and central controllers for a wind turbine system with multiple rotors

CN106812658B

( en )

2015-11-27

2019-09-06

ä¸å½è¹è¶éå·¥éå¢æµ·è£é£çµè¡ä»½æéå¬å¸

A method and device for controlling a wind power generating set

CN107178468A

( en )

2016-03-10

2017-09-19

éç¨çµæ°å¬å¸

Control method, control system and the wind turbine of wind turbine operation

US10519929B2

( en )

2016-11-09

2019-12-31

General Electric Company

System and method for minimizing energy loss due to yaw untwist of a wind turbine

EP3339640A1

( en )

2016-12-21

2018-06-27

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Control system for a wind turbine

CN107630785B

( en )

2017-09-11

2019-04-02

å¤§è¿å½éçµæ°æéå¬å¸

Wind turbines Protection control system under one kind of multiple operating conditions

US10570883B2

( en )

2017-12-22

2020-02-25

General Electric Company

System and method for protecting wind turbines during wind gusts

US11031784B2

( en )

2018-02-15

2021-06-08

General Electric Company

Reactive current margin regulator for power systems

US10305283B1

( en )

2018-02-22

2019-05-28

General Electric Company

Power angle feedforward signal for phase locked loop in wind turbine power systems

DE102018124084A1

( en )

2018-09-28

2020-04-02

Wobben Properties Gmbh

Method for operating a wind turbine, wind turbine and wind farm

DE102019118036A1

( en )

2019-07-04

2021-01-07

Wobben Properties Gmbh

Method for determining a wind speed in the area of a wind energy installation and wind energy installation for carrying out the method

EP3875756B1

( en )

2020-03-02

2023-07-05

Vestas Wind Systems A/S

Blade pitch control monitoring system for a wind turbine

CN115143033B

( en )

2021-03-31

2025-07-04

éé£ç§æè¡ä»½æéå¬å¸

Control method and control device of wind turbine generator set

EP4234923A1

( en )

2022-02-25

2023-08-30

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy A/S

Operational transition between partial load and full load region in wind turbine control

CN114687931B

( en )

2022-04-12

2025-01-24

åçµé£è½æéå¬å¸

Wind turbine generator set yaw control method, device, electronic equipment and storage medium

CN116591915B

( en )

2023-06-25

2026-03-31

åè½å½éçµåè¡ä»½æéå¬å¸æ¹åæ¸æ´è½æºåå¬å¸

A method, system, computer equipment, and storage medium for identifying the performance deviation of wind turbine blades.

Citations (7)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

US6320272B1

( en )

1997-03-26

2001-11-20

Forskningscenter Riso

Wind turbine with a wind velocity measurement system

US6946751B2

( en )

2003-03-19

2005-09-20

Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha

Wind power generation system

US20060140764A1

( en )

2003-02-28

2006-06-29

Smith David A

Wind turbine control having a lidar wind speed measurement apparatus

US20070075546A1

( en )

2005-09-30

2007-04-05

Aaron Avagliano

System and method for upwind speed based control of a wind turbine

US20070171396A1

( en )

2004-05-19

2007-07-26

Michael Harris

Laser radar device and method

US7309930B2

( en )

2004-09-30

2007-12-18

General Electric Company

Vibration damping system and method for variable speed wind turbines

US20090047116A1

( en )

2007-08-13

2009-02-19

General Electric Company

System and method for loads reduction in a horizontal-axis wind turbine using upwind information

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

US6137187A

( en )

1997-08-08

2000-10-24

Zond Energy Systems, Inc.

Variable speed wind turbine generator

US6600240B2

( en )

1997-08-08

2003-07-29

General Electric Company

Variable speed wind turbine generator

DE102008010543A1

( en )

2008-02-22

2009-08-27

Nordex Energy Gmbh

Method for operating a wind turbine and wind turbine

2009

2009-09-30

US12/570,988

patent/US8025476B2/en

active

Active

2010

2010-09-24

DK10179695.1T

patent/DK2306003T3/en

active

2010-09-24

EP10179695.1A

patent/EP2306003B1/en

active

Active

2010-09-24

ES10179695T

patent/ES2717654T3/en

active

Active

2010-09-30

CN201010508340.7A

patent/CN102032109B/en

active

Active

Patent Citations (9)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

US6320272B1

( en )

1997-03-26

2001-11-20

Forskningscenter Riso

Wind turbine with a wind velocity measurement system

US20060140764A1

( en )

2003-02-28

2006-06-29

Smith David A

Wind turbine control having a lidar wind speed measurement apparatus

US7281891B2

( en )

2003-02-28

2007-10-16

Qinetiq Limited

Wind turbine control having a lidar wind speed measurement apparatus

US6946751B2

( en )

2003-03-19

2005-09-20

Mitsubishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha

Wind power generation system

US20070171396A1

( en )

2004-05-19

2007-07-26

Michael Harris

Laser radar device and method

US7309930B2

( en )

2004-09-30

2007-12-18

General Electric Company

Vibration damping system and method for variable speed wind turbines

US20070075546A1

( en )

2005-09-30

2007-04-05

Aaron Avagliano

System and method for upwind speed based control of a wind turbine

US7342323B2

( en )

2005-09-30

2008-03-11

General Electric Company

System and method for upwind speed based control of a wind turbine

US20090047116A1

( en )

2007-08-13

2009-02-19

General Electric Company

System and method for loads reduction in a horizontal-axis wind turbine using upwind information

Cited By (47)

* Cited by examiner, â Cited by third party

Publication number

Priority date

Publication date

Assignee

Title

US20110101691A1

( en )

2009-01-05

2011-05-05

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Wind turbine generator and method of estimating wind direction in wind turbine generator

US8476780B2

( en )

2009-01-05

2013-07-02

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Wind turbine generator and method of estimating wind direction in wind turbine generator

US20120169053A1

( en )

2009-07-29

2012-07-05

Michigan Aerospace Corporation

Atmospheric Measurement System

US8866322B2

( en )

2009-07-29

2014-10-21

Michigan Aerospace Corporation

Atmospheric measurement system

US8901763B2

( en )

2010-06-30

2014-12-02

Vesta Wind Systems A/S

Apparatus and method for reducing yaw error in wind turbines

US20130099497A1

( en )

2010-06-30

2013-04-25

Robert Bowyer

Apparatus and method for reducing yaw error in wind turbines

US8912675B2

( en )

2010-08-02

2014-12-16

Alstom Wind, S.L.U.

Reactive power regulation

US9222464B2

( en )

2011-02-23

2015-12-29

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Controller for wind turbine generator, wind turbine generator, and method of controlling wind turbine generator

US20120211982A1

( en )

2011-02-23

2012-08-23

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Controller for wind turbine generator, wind turbine generator, and method of controlling wind turbine generator

US20140117668A1

( en )

2012-11-01

2014-05-01

General Electric Company

System and method for operating wind farm

US8987929B2

( en )

2012-11-01

2015-03-24

General Electric Company

System and method for operating wind farm

US9938961B2

( en )

2012-11-22

2018-04-10

Senvion Se

Method for operating a wind energy installation, and wind energy installation

US20150260157A1

( en )

2012-11-22

2015-09-17

Senvion Se

Method for operating a wind energy installation, and wind energy installation

US20150354534A1

( en )

2013-01-17

2015-12-10

Alstom Renewable Technologies

Method of starting a wind turbine

US10215159B2

( en )

2013-01-17

2019-02-26

Ge Renewable Technologies Wind B.V.

Method of starting a wind turbine

US9551321B2

( en )

2013-06-26

2017-01-24

General Electric Company

System and method for controlling a wind turbine

<span itemprop="publicatio

System and methods for controlling a wind turbine — General Electric Company (US8025476B2)

Related documents