Patent Application
20180100486
The present application claims priority from Japanese Patent application serial No. 2016-197843, filed on Oct. 6, 2016, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference into this application.
The present invention relates to wind farms, in each of which plural wind power generation apparatuses are installed, and wind power generation apparatuses and, in particular, to a wind farm that is able to reduce the damage degrees of wind power generation apparatuses installed therein and to wind power generation apparatuses appropriate to be installed in the wind farm.
In a wind farm where plural wind power generation apparatuses are installed adjacently to each other, a windmill wake passing through a windward-located wind power generation apparatus (a windmill wake is often referred to as a wake for short) flows into a leeward-located wind power generation apparatus. In this windmill wake, there arise a problem that the generated electric energy of each of the wind power generation apparatuses is reduced, a problem that the damage degrees of the wind power generation apparatuses are increased, and other problems. In order to cope with such problems, a method in which the tilt angles of the blades of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus are controlled, a method in which the rotation directions of the rotors of adjacent wind power generation apparatuses are set opposite to each other, and the like have been proposed.
For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a method in which the tilt angle (pitch angle) of a windward-located wind power generation apparatus is controlled, and describes the configuration of a wind farm including plural wind power generation apparatuses (T1, Ti−1, and Ti) in which the operation parameters of the wind power generation apparatuses (T1, Ti−1, and Ti) are adjusted in such a way that an optimized target is achieved. In addition, Patent Literature discloses that the optimized target is achieved when the total output of the wind farm that is equal to the total sum of the individual outputs (Pi) of the plural wind power generation apparatuses (T1, Ti−1, and Ti) is maximized.
Furthermore, Patent Literature 2 discloses the configuration of a wind farm where first wind power generation apparatuses having rotors that rotate in a first rotation direction and second wind power generation apparatuses having rotors that rotate in a second rotation direction opposite to the rotation direction of the rotors of the first wind power generation apparatuses are disposed with constant distances away from each other in a lateral direction or a longitudinal direction. It is disclosed that each of the first wind power generation apparatuses and each of the second wind power generation apparatuses are adjacent to each other and disposed alternately, and because rotors rotate in opposite directions to each other direction, the effects of the vortex flows generated by the rotations of the respective rotors are reduced reciprocally, which extends the life spans of these wind power generation apparatuses.
Patent Literature 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication (Translation of PCT Application) No. 2010-526963
Patent Literature 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2015-155690
However, in the wind farm described in Patent Literature 1, there is a possibility that the equipment expense of the wind farm is increased because a network for aggregating information from all the wind power generation apparatuses, and a central processing unit for determining control parameters have to be introduced. In addition, in the wind farm described in Patent Literature 2, it is necessary to prepare two kinds of wind power generation apparatuses that respectively have the rotation directions of blades different from each other, so that it is difficult to apply this method to, for example, existing wind farms.
Therefore, in the present invention, a wind farm including wind power generation apparatuses the damage degrees of which can be held down and wind power generation apparatuses suitable to be installed in such a wind farm are provided without introducing a central processing unit for the wind farm and new wind power generation apparatuses having the rotation directions of their blades different from each other.
In order to solve the abovementioned problems, a wind farm according to the present invention includes at least plural power generation apparatuses each of which includes a rotor that rotates on receiving the wind and a yaw angle control device for controlling the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor. The wind farm further includes a control device that determines a wake region on the basis of wind direction data and information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor of a windward-located wind power generation apparatus, and controls the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor of the windward-located wind power generation apparatuses on the basis of the determined wake region and positional information regarding a leeward-located wind power generation apparatus.
Furthermore a wind power generation apparatus according to the present invention is a wind power generation apparatus that can be installed in a wind farm, and includes at least: a rotor that rotates on receiving the wind; a yaw angle control device that controls the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor; and a control device that determines a wake region on the basis of wind direction data and information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor, and controls the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor on the basis of the determined wake region and positional information regarding other leeward-located wind power generation apparatuses.
According to the present invention, a wind farm including wind power generation apparatuses the damage degrees of which can be held down and wind power generation apparatuses can be provided without introducing a central processing unit for the wind farm and new wind power generation apparatuses having the rotation directions of their blades different from each other.
Problems, configurations, and advantageous effects other than those described above will be revealed in accordance with the explanations of the following embodiments.
Although, as an example of a wind power generation apparatus according to the embodiments of the present invention, a downwind type wind power generation apparatus will be explained in this specification, the present invention can be applied to an upwind type wind power generation apparatus in a similar way. In addition, an example including a rotor composed of three blades and a hub will be shown, it is conceivable that a wind power generation apparatus includes a rotor composed of at least one blade and a hub. The wind farm, in which plural wind power generation apparatuses according to the embodiments of the present invention are installed adjacently to each other, can be installed anywhere such as on oceans, in mountainous regions, or in plan fields.
Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, the following embodiments will be made for describing some examples only, therefore it is not intended that the scope of the present invention is limited to these specific embodiments.
Furthermore, the direction of the nacelle 21 is referred to as a yaw angle, and the wind power generation apparatus 2 includes a yaw angle control device 33 for controlling the direction of the nacelle 21, that is to say, the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24. As shown in
Hereinafter, a wind farm according to this embodiment will be explained.
Wind power generation apparatuses 2 installed in the wind farm 1 are classified into a windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a relative to the wind direction, a leeward-located wind power generation apparatus 2b relative to the wind direction, a wind power generation apparatus 2c that is partially affected by a windmill wake, and other wind power generation apparatuses 2d, and this classification result varies according to the change of the wind direction. To put it concretely, although a windmill wake generated by the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a flows into the leeward-located wind power generation apparatus 2b in the example shown in
Hereinafter, a windmill wake (awake) will be explained. The wind condition including the wind direction and wind speed of the wind that passes through the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a varies under the influence of the rotation of a rotor 24 included in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a. In this case, it is conceivable that the wind condition includes not only the abovementioned wind direction and wind speed, but also includes all the physical characteristics regarding the wind such as the turbulent characteristic of the wind showing the degree of the turbulent flow of the wind and the shape of the eddy flow of the wind. As shown in
The generated electric energy of each of the leeward-located wind power generation apparatus 2b and the leeward-located wind power generation apparatus 2c, which are shown in
Therefore, as shown in the lower figure of
As shown in
The measurement value acquisition unit 311 acquires wind direction data and wind speed data measured by the wind direction/wind speed meter 32 via the input I/F 317a and the internal bus 319, and performs, for example, A/D conversion processing, smoothing processing (noise elimination), normalization processing, or the like on the acquired data.
The memory unit 318 stores at least the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of its own (of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) in the wind farm 1, and the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1. Here, it will be assumed that the area of the rotation plane of a rotor 24 is, for example, the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 viewed squarely with the relevant yaw angle 0° plus the area of the relevant tower 20. In addition, the memory unit 318 further stores the current yaw angle of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the relevant rotor 24), the shape data of the relevant blades 23, and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23.
The wind direction calculation unit 312 acquires the wind direction data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311 via the internal bus 319, and determines the wind direction of the wind flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a).
The windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of, for example, the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318. Here, all the abovementioned parameters are not always used for the calculation of the windmill wake region (the wake region), and it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only at least the wind direction data, the wind speed data, and the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only the wind direction data.
The position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 are read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. If there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the position judgment unit 314 transfers this information to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319. Here, it is conceivable that the judgment whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows is made on the basis of only the positional information regarding the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312.
On the basis of information, which is transferred from the position judgment unit 314, regarding the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which the windmill wake partially flows, the control determination unit 315 reads out the positional information regarding the wind power generation apparatus 2c and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the wind power generation apparatus 2c from the memory unit 318, and selects one of the wake avoidance control (
The yaw angle calculation unit 316 corresponds to the one of the wake avoidance control and the wake centralization control selected by the control determination unit 315, calculates the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which the windmill wake partially flows (where the positional information and the area of the rotation plane are read out from the memory unit 318), and then the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs a yaw angle control command corresponding to the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 to the yaw angle control device 33 via the output I/F.
Next, the operation of the control device 31 will be explained.
As shown in
At step S102, the wind direction calculation unit 312 determines the wind direction of the wind that flows into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) on the basis of the wind direction data that has been dealt with and transferred by the measurement value acquisition unit 311.
At step S103, the windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318.
At step S104, the position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 is read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. As a result of the judgment, if there is no wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a controls its yaw angle as usual using the yaw angle control device 33 (
At step S105, on the basis of information, which is transferred from the position judgment unit 314, regarding the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which the windmill wake partially flows, the control determination unit 315 reads out the positional information regarding the wind power generation apparatus 2c and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the wind power generation apparatus 2c from the memory unit 318, and selects one of the wake avoidance control (
At step S106, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 corresponds to the one of the wake avoidance control and the wake centralization control selected by the control determination unit 315, calculates the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which the windmill wake partially flows (where the positional information and the area of the rotation plane are read out from the memory unit 318), and then the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs a yaw angle control command corresponding to the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 to the yaw angle control device 33 via the output I/F, and this processing is ended.
Furthermore, up to now a small-sized wind farm including two wind power generation apparatuses and a large-sized wind farm including three or more wind power generation apparatuses that are disposed with a predefined distance among them in an offset arrangement have been explained as examples in this embodiment, but the configurations of wind farms to which this embodiment can be applied are not limited to the above two types of wind farms. For example, this embodiment can be applied to a wind farm in which three or more wind power generation apparatuses are disposed with a predefined distance among them in a two-dimensional matrix arrangement in a similar way to the first embodiment.
As described above, according to this embodiment, a wind farm including wind power generation apparatuses the damage degrees of which can be held down and wind power generation apparatuses suitable to be installed in such a wind farm can be provided without introducing a central processing unit for the wind farm and new wind power generation apparatuses having the rotation directions of their blades different from each other.
To put it concretely, according to this embodiment, it becomes possible to prevent an inhomogeneous wind from flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of a wind power generation apparatus unlike in the case of the wind power generation apparatus 2c by controlling the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, and the increases of the damage degrees of wind power generation apparatuses installed a wind farm are restrained, so that this embodiment can contribute to the improvement of the reliability of the wind farm. In addition, because it is not necessary to prepare a wind power generation apparatus having a new configuration or parts needed for the new configuration, an ordinary wind power generation apparatus can be easily introduced. Furthermore, because communication with the other wind power generation apparatuses and communication with a central management system that monitors the entirety of the wind farm are unnecessary, each wind power generation apparatus can be easily introduced independently of others in the farm.
Although a control device 31a that will be described below is installed in each of all wind power generation apparatuses (2a to 2d) installed in a wind farm 1, an operation shown in the after-described flowchart in
As shown in
The measurement value acquisition unit 311 acquires wind direction data and wind speed data measured by a wind direction/wind speed meter 32 via the input I/F 317a and the internal bus 319, and performs, for example, A/D conversion processing, smoothing processing (noise elimination), normalization processing, or the like on the acquired data.
The memory unit 318 stores at least the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of its own (of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) in the wind farm 1, and the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1. Here, it will be assumed that the area of the rotation plane of a rotor 24 is, for example, the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 viewed squarely with the relevant yaw angle 0° plus the area of the relevant tower 20. In addition, the memory unit 318 further stores the current yaw angle of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a), that is to say, information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the relevant rotor 24, the shape data of the relevant blades 23, and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23.
The wind direction calculation unit 312 acquires the wind direction data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311 via the internal bus 319, and determines the wind direction of the wind flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a).
The windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of, for example, the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318. Here, all the abovementioned parameters are not always used for the calculation of the windmill wake region (the wake region), and it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only at least the wind direction data, the wind speed data, and the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only the wind direction data.
The position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 are read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. If there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the position judgment unit 314 transfers this information to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319. Here, it is conceivable that the judgment whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows is made on the basis of only the positional information regarding the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312.
The yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
The control determination unit 315 calculates the difference between the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, which is selected by the yaw angle calculation unit 316, in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
Next, the operation of the control device 31a will be explained.
As shown in
At step S202, the wind direction calculation unit 312 determines the wind direction of the wind that flows into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) on the basis of the wind direction data that has been dealt with and transferred by the measurement value acquisition unit 311.
At step S203, the windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318.
At step S204, the position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information is read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. As a result of the judgment, if there is no wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a controls its yaw angle as usual using the yaw angle control device 33 (
At step 205, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S206, the control determination unit 315 calculates the difference between the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, which is selected by the yaw angle calculation unit 316, in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S207, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a that corresponds to the wake avoidance control (
As described above, according to this embodiment, in addition to the advantageous effects brought about by the first embodiment, not only the increase of the damage degree of a wind power generation apparatus 2c that is partially affected by a windmill wake but also the increase of the damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a can be limited to a minimum by making the difference small between the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of a windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a and the wind direction of the wind flowing into the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a.
Although a control device 31b that will be described below is installed in each of all wind power generation apparatuses (2a to 2d) installed in a wind farm 1, an operation shown in an after-mentioned flowchart in
As shown in
The measurement value acquisition unit 311 acquires wind direction data and wind speed data measured by a wind direction/wind speed meter 32 via the input I/F 317a and the internal bus 319, and performs, for example, A/D conversion processing, smoothing processing (noise elimination), normalization processing, or the like on the acquired data.
The memory unit 318 stores at least the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of its own (of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) in the wind farm 1, and the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1. Here, it will be assumed that the area of the rotation plane of a rotor 24 is, for example, the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 viewed squarely with the relevant yaw angle 0° plus the area of the relevant tower 20. In addition, the memory unit 318 further stores the current yaw angle of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a), that is to say, information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the relevant rotor 24, the shape data of the relevant blades 23, and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23.
The operation achievement holding unit 320 stores operation data from past to present, for example, such as an operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of an electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle. In addition, it is preferable that, data measured in the wind power generation apparatus such as a wind condition and a distortion is included as data stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320 as well as the above operation history. Here, data regarding the distortion of a blade 23 to be stored is measured, for example, by a distortion sensor, a distortion gauge, or the like that is installed at the base of the blade 23 or the like. Here, loads added to the blade 23 are calculated on the basis of a measured value obtained from the distortion sensor installed at the base of the blade 23 or the like. In the calculation of the loads added to the blade 23, not only the load added to the base of the blade 23 but also a load added to the apical end or to an arbitrary position of the blade 23 can be estimated on the basis of the measured value obtained from the abovementioned distortion sensor.
The wind direction calculation unit 312 acquires the wind direction data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311 via the internal bus 319, and determines the wind direction of the wind flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a).
The windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of, for example, the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318. Here, all the abovementioned parameters are not always used for the calculation of the windmill wake region (the wake region), and it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only at least the wind direction data, the wind speed data, and the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only the wind direction data.
The position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 are read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. If there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the position judgment unit 314 transfers this information to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319. Here, it is conceivable that the judgment whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows is made on the basis of only the positional information regarding the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312.
The yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
The damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates a damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the operation data of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a from past to present, which is stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320, for example, such as the operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of the electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a. The damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates the tolerance value of the difference between the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312 and the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 on the basis of the calculated damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, and transfers the calculated tolerance value to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
The control determination unit 315 calculates the difference between the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, which is selected by the yaw angle calculation unit 316, in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
Next, the operation of the control device 31b will be explained.
As shown in
At step S302, the wind direction calculation unit 312 determines the wind direction of the wind that flows into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) on the basis of the wind direction data that has been dealt with and transferred by the measurement value acquisition unit 311.
At step S303, the windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318.
At step S304, the position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information is read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. As a result of the judgment, if there is no wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a controls its yaw angle as usual using the yaw angle control device 33 (
At step S305, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S306, the damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates a damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the operation data of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a from past to present, which are stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320, for example, such as the operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of the electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a. Subsequently, the damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates the tolerance value of the difference between the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312 and the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 on the basis of the calculated damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, and transfers the calculated tolerance value to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
At step S307, the control determination unit 315 calculates the difference between the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a, which is selected by the yaw angle calculation unit 316, in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S308, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a that corresponds to the one of the wake avoidance control (
As described above, according to this embodiment, in addition to the advantageous effects brought about by the first embodiment, the increases of the damage degrees of the surrounding wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) can be avoided while the reliability of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a is being secured.
Although a control device 31c that will be described below is installed in each of all wind power generation apparatuses (2a to 2d) installed in a wind farm 1, an operation shown in an after-mentioned flowchart in
As shown in
The measurement value acquisition unit 311 acquires wind direction data and wind speed data measured by a wind direction/wind speed meter 32 via the input I/F 317a and the internal bus 319, and performs, for example, A/D conversion processing, smoothing processing (noise elimination), normalization processing, or the like on the acquired data.
The memory unit 318 stores at least the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of its own (of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) in the wind farm 1, and the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1. Here, it will be assumed that the area of the rotation plane of a rotor 24 is, for example, the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 viewed squarely with the relevant yaw angle 0° plus the area of the relevant tower 20. In addition, the memory unit 318 further stores the current yaw angle of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a), that is to say, information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the relevant rotor 24, the shape data of the relevant blades 23, and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23.
The operation achievement holding unit 320 stores operation data from past to present, for example, such as an operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of an electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle. In addition, it is preferable that, data measured in the wind power generation apparatus such as a wind condition and a distortion is included as data stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320 as well as the above operation history. Here, data regarding the distortion of a blade 23 to be stored is measured, for example, by a distortion sensor, a distortion gauge, or the like that is installed at the base of the blade 23 or the like. Here, loads added to the blade 23 are calculated on the basis of a measured value obtained from the distortion sensor installed at the base of the blade 23 or the like. In the calculation of the loads added to the blade 23, not only the load added to the base of the blade 23 but also a load added to the apical end of the blade 23 or to an arbitrary position of the blade 23 can be estimated on the basis of the measured value obtained from the abovementioned distortion sensor.
The wind direction calculation unit 312 acquires the wind direction data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311 via the internal bus 319, and determines the wind direction of the wind flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a).
The windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of, for example, the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318. Here, all the abovementioned parameters are not always used for the calculation of the windmill wake region (the wake region), and it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only at least the wind direction data, the wind speed data, and the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only the wind direction data.
The position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 are read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. If there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the position judgment unit 314 transfers this information to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319. Here, it is conceivable that the judgment whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows is made on the basis of only the positional information regarding the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312.
The yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
The damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates a damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the operation data of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a from past to present, which is stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320, for example, such as the operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of the electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a. The damage degree calculation unit 321 acquires the damage degree accumulated in the wind power generation apparatus 2c via the communication I/F 317c, and transfers the calculated damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a and the acquired damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
The control determination unit 315 compares the damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a transferred from the damage degree calculation unit 321 with the acquired damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c. As a result of the above comparison, if the damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) is larger than the damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c, the wake centralization control (
Next, the operation of the control device 31c will be explained.
As shown in
At step S402, the wind direction calculation unit 312 determines the wind direction of the wind that flows into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) on the basis of the wind direction data that has been dealt with and transferred by the measurement value acquisition unit 311.
At step S403, the windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318.
At step S404, the position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information is read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. As a result of the judgment, if there is no wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a controls its yaw angle as usual using the yaw angle control device 33 (
At step S405, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S406, the damage degree calculation unit 321 calculates a damage degree accumulated in the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a on the basis of the operation data of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a from past to present, which are stored in the operation achievement holding unit 320, for example, such as the operation history including the rotation number of the rotor 24, the output of the electric power generator 28, and the yaw angle of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a. Furthermore, the damage degree calculation unit 321 acquires the damage degree accumulated in the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows via the communication I/F 317c, and transfers the calculated damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a and the acquired damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
At step S407, the control determination unit 315 compares the damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a transferred from the damage degree calculation unit 321 with the acquired damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows. As a result of the above comparison, if the damage degree of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) is larger than the damage degree of the wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the wake centralization control (
At step S408, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a that corresponds to the one of the wake avoidance control (
As described above, according to this embodiment, in addition to the advantageous effects brought about by the first embodiment, the damage degree of a certain wind power generation apparatus is prevented from growing extremely large by preferentially protecting wind power generation apparatuses in which large damage degrees are accumulated, which makes it possible to improve the reliability of the entirety of the relevant wind farm.
Although a control device 31d that will be described below is installed in each of all wind power generation apparatuses (2a to 2d) installed in a wind farm 1, an operation shown in an after-mentioned flowchart in
As shown in
The measurement value acquisition unit 311 acquires wind direction data and wind speed data measured by a wind direction/wind speed meter 32 via the input I/F 317a and the internal bus 319, and performs, for example, A/D conversion processing, smoothing processing (noise elimination), normalization processing, or the like on the acquired data.
The memory unit 318 stores at least the positional information and the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of its own (of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a) in the wind farm 1, and the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1. Here, it will be assumed that the area of the rotation plane of a rotor 24 is, for example, the area of the rotation plane of the rotor 24 viewed squarely with the relevant yaw angle 0° plus the area of the relevant tower 20. In addition, the memory unit 318 further stores the current yaw angle of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a), that is to say, information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the relevant rotor 24, the shape data of the relevant blades 23, and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23.
The wind direction calculation unit 312 acquires the wind direction data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311 via the internal bus 319, and determines the wind direction of the wind flowing into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of itself (the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a).
The windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of, for example, the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318. Here, all the abovementioned parameters are not always used for the calculation of the windmill wake region (the wake region), and it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only at least the wind direction data, the wind speed data, and the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the windmill wake region (the wake region) is calculated on the basis of only the wind direction data.
The position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information and the areas of the rotation planes of the rotors 24 are read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. If there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the position judgment unit 314 transfers this information to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319. Here, it is conceivable that the judgment whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows is made on the basis of only the positional information regarding the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312.
The yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
The demand prediction unit 322 predicts a demand for electric power on the basis of time slots and seasons. To put it concretely, the demand prediction unit 322 predicts that, while the demand is large in the day time, the demand becomes small in the night time. The demand prediction unit 322 transfers the predicted demand for electric power to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
If the demand for electric power transferred from the demand prediction unit 322 is large, the control determination unit 315 selects one of the wake avoidance control (
Next, the operation of the control device 31d will be explained.
As shown in
At step S502, the wind direction calculation unit 312 determines the wind direction that flows into the rotation plane of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a (itself) on the basis of the wind direction data that has been dealt with and transferred by the measurement value acquisition unit 311.
At step S503, the windmill wake calculation unit 312 calculates a windmill wake region (a wake region) on the basis of the wind direction determined by the wind direction calculation unit 312; the wind speed data dealt with by the measurement value acquisition unit 311; the current yaw angle (information regarding the direction of the rotation plane of the rotor 24) stored in the memory unit 318; and the shape data of the blades 23 and the rotation speed of the rotor 24 or the pitch angles of the blades 23 that are stored in the memory unit 318.
At step S504, the position judgment unit 314 accesses the memory unit 318 via the internal bus 319, and judges whether there is a wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows on the basis of the positional information of the other wind power generation apparatuses (2b to 2d) installed in the wind farm 1 (where the positional information is read out from the memory unit 318), and the windmill wake region (the wake region) calculated by the windmill wake calculation unit 312. As a result of the judgment, if there is no wind power generation apparatus 2c into which a windmill wake partially flows, the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a controls its yaw angle as usual using the yaw angle control device 33 (
At step S205, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 calculates the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a in the case of executing the wake avoidance control (
At step S506, the demand prediction unit 322 predicts a demand for electric power on the basis of time slots and seasons. To put it concretely, the demand prediction unit 322 predicts that, while the demand is large in the day time, the demand becomes small in the night time. The demand prediction unit 322 transfers the predicted demand for electric power to the control determination unit 315 via the internal bus 319.
At step S507, if the demand for electric power transferred from the demand prediction unit 322 is large, the control determination unit 315 selects either of the wake avoidance control (
At step S5208, the yaw angle calculation unit 316 outputs the direction of the rotation plane (yaw angle) of the rotor 24 of the windward-located wind power generation apparatus 2a that corresponds to the one of the wake avoidance control (
As described above, according to this embodiment, in addition to the advantageous effects brought about by the first embodiment, both of the stable supply of electric power when necessary and the reduction of the damage degree of a wind power generation apparatus can be satisfied by changing the order of priority given to each of the abovementioned controls.
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modification examples can be included in the present invention. For example, the above embodiment has been described in detail in order to make the present invention easily understood, and therefore all the components described so far are not always indispensable for the present invention. In addition, a part of the configuration of a certain embodiment can be replaced by the configuration of another embodiment, or the configuration of another embodiment can be added to the configuration of a certain embodiment.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-197843 | Oct 2016 | JP | national |
