Fault Detection and Continuous Monitoring in Wind Turbines

Monitoring and assessing power performance changes of wind turbines to detect if their power output degrades over time, indicating potential issues that need to be addressed. The method involves comparing the actual power output of monitored wind turbines to the predicted power output based on wind speed data from nearby reference turbines. Deviations indicate degraded performance. A transfer function is generated to estimate power output at the monitored turbines based on reference turbine wind speeds, allowing ongoing monitoring without additional sensors.

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Determining ice buildup on wind turbine blades to prevent hazardous ice shedding and blade imbalances. The method involves comparing natural frequency shifts due to ice buildup to a known base shift factor. Measuring blade natural frequencies identifies the current shift factor which can then be used to determine the ice buildup quantity.

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Sensing lightning-current parameters at installations with capturing devices and lightning-current diversion paths, like wind turbines, using sensors on the paths to detect lightning strikes. These sensors provide yes/no indications of strikes at each location. A central unit collects the strike data and analyzes it to evaluate the effects of the strikes on the installation.

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A system for monitoring the state of wind turbine blades without using strain sensors or accelerometers. The system determines blade state parameters using 3D scans of the blades collected from a LiDAR system. It compares the scans to reference models to identify blade deformations, deflections, and other parameters. This allows monitoring of blade conditions like deflection, twist, vibration, and pitch without installing many sensors inside the blades.

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Automated inspection of surfaces like wind turbine blades using unmanned aircraft. The inspection involves using a camera-equipped drone that autonomously flies near the surface, like a rotor blade, while recording images. Continuous position sensing allows stitching the images into an overall surface view. This is then automatically inspected for defects. The drone can stay a fixed distance from the surface by measuring its position so that stitched images create a full view.

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Monitor the health of the tether used to connect airborne wind turbines (AWTs) to the ground. A system uses probes to measure electrical properties along the tether's strength members. Changes in the measured properties indicate stress, strain, and potential damage to the tether. Regular monitoring can detect damage before failure.

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A wind power plant management system that uses data from the wind turbines and environment to predict faults and plan maintenance. The system collects data on the wind turbine work environment and uses a normal state model to predict faults before they occur. It estimates the remaining time until a fault occurs and schedules maintenance to prevent failures.

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Monitoring and controlling wind turbines using improved sensors and algorithms to optimize performance and reduce damage. The monitoring involves measuring acceleration and vibrations in rotor blades to detect torsional instability, ice formation, and other issues. Key features include using fiber-optic sensors positioned effectively on the blades, analog filtering to avoid aliasing and signal processing techniques like subspace identification to extract useful data.

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Detecting blade deflection to assess wind turbine structural integrity without expensive instrumentation like strain gauges. A method using cameras mounted at the root of the turbine blades pointed towards the tips. The cameras capture video of the blades in operation. Analyzing the video frame by frame allows for determining the tip deflection relative to the root. Changes in deflection over time can indicate structural damage.

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Enabling condition monitoring of wind turbines, especially related to fatigue issues, by effectively measuring shaft torque and load variations. The monitoring system uses selective sensing of electrical and mechanical parts and switches between them based on grid connection. When connected to the grid, electrical measurements provide torque information. When disconnected, mechanical measurements are used. The system also leverages models of turbine components to estimate torque from available measurements.

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Monitoring the condition of the elastic coupling in a wind turbine drive train to detect wear or aging. This involves using sensors in the coupling to measure parameters like axial, radial, tangential and rotational forces. Changes in these signals can indicate degradation of the coupling and the elastic elements can be replaced.

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Method for diagnosing faults in wind turbine generator systems through data monitoring and comparison. The method involves receiving sets of signals from sensors monitoring different aspects of the turbine system like electrical characteristics, high frequency components, and low frequency components. These sets of signals are conditionally filtered and downsampled before comparing them against reference values to detect and locate faults.

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Testing of an in-flight rotor blade ice detection system for a wind turbine that can be carried out more easily and without interrupting turbine operation. The testing involves modifying values of operating and environmental parameters provided to the detection system to simulate conditions that would indicate icing. The system should then still output a warning based on the modified data.

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A method for accurately sensing lightning-current parameters at installations like buildings and wind turbines, to enable improved evaluation and optimized maintenance of these installations. The method uses a network of simple lightning-current detection sensors placed on the lightning-diversion paths and capturing devices of the installation. These sensors only provide a yes/no indication of lightning current events at their specific location. The sensors wirelessly transmit their data to a central evaluation unit. This allows identifying which parts of the installation experienced lightning strikes. The central unit also contains high-accuracy lightning-current measurement sensors for detailed analysis. By combining the strike locations and detailed current parameters, the method provides a comprehensive view of how lightning impacts the installation.

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Method for detecting changes in a wind turbine blade, such as ice formation, using existing equipment. The method involves exciting blade oscillations using the turbine's own drive system, then monitoring the oscillation patterns for changes that indicate ice buildup or blade damage. The turbine's control system can be programmed to periodically excite blade oscillations and analyze the response to detect any changes over time. This allows low-cost sensors to be used, since the excitations generate large enough oscillations for detection.

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