Detecting wind turbine rotor blade adjustment faults

Abstract

A method for detecting a regulation fault (47) associated with a wind turbine rotor blade (1) which is mounted at a wind turbine rotor (4) and comprises an adaptive flow regulation device (11), in particular a spoiler and / or a flap, the method comprising: estimating a quantity (41) indicative of a change in a driving impulse of a wind (9) on the wind turbine rotor (4) based on at least two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulation device (11); determining a further quantity (43) indicative of an expected change in the driving impulse on the wind turbine rotor in order to change a value (25) of the rotor speed to a reference value (27) of the rotor speed; and indicating a regulation fault (47) based on a comparison of the quantity (41) with the further quantity (43).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a method and an arrangement for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade, the wind turbine rotor blade being mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device, in particular a spoiler and / or a flap. Furthermore, the invention relates to a wind turbine rotor blade comprising the arrangement and also to a wind turbine comprising the wind turbine rotor blade. Background Art

[0002] A wind turbine rotor blade may have a flow conditioning device mounted on its surface. An example of such a flow conditioning device is a spoiler mounted at the surface of the rotor blade. The spoiler may cooperate with the vortex generator and the effect of the vortex generator may be influenced depending on the state of the spoiler. The state of the spoiler may involve a protrusion height and / or an inclination angle of the spoiler extending from or tilted at an angle relative to other surface portions of the rotor blade. In general, the flow conditioning device may be considered to include a device that is capable of increasing the lift coefficient of the airfoil section under certain conditions, for example by increasing the energy level of the boundary layer of the rotor blade.

[0003] EP1623111B1 discloses a wind turbine blade, the wind turbine blade comprising an adjustable lift regulating device arranged on or at the surface of the wind turbine blade and extending in the longitudinal direction of the blade, and an actuating device, by which the lift regulating device can be adjusted and thereby the aerodynamic characteristics of the blade can be changed. The lift regulating device comprises one or more flexible flaps.

[0004] US8851840B2 discloses a wind turbine blade comprising a blade body and a device for changing the aerodynamic surface or shape of the blade, wherein a pneumatic actuator controls the position and / or movement of the device, wherein there is a pressure chamber located in the blade body. The pressure chamber can be pressurized to change the state of the device, thereby changing the aerodynamic surface or shape of the blade.

[0005] US5106265A discloses a wind turbine airfoil comprising an aerodynamically actuated spoiler movable perpendicular to the airflow.

[0006] WO2018 / 041420 discloses a rotor blade comprising an aerodynamic device for influencing an airflow from a leading edge section of the rotor blade to a trailing edge section of the rotor blade, wherein the aerodynamic device is mounted at the surface of the rotor blade and comprises an aerodynamic or hydraulic actuator, such as a hose or a cavity, the volume of which depends on the pressure of a fluid present in the aerodynamic or hydraulic actuator.

[0007] Typically, adaptive flow regulating devices such as spoilers or flaps mounted on or at the surface of a rotor blade may be susceptible to regulation failures due to a controller failure and / or due to an actuator failure, which is intended to set the adaptive flow regulating device in two or more different actuation states. If such a regulation failure occurs, the wind turbine rotor blades and other components of the wind turbine may be subjected to excessive loads. In particular, an actuator loss of control (due to a controller and / or actuator failure or failure) may result in excessive overspeed and may result in excessive loads if the loss of control is not detected quickly enough.

[0008] Conventionally, however, fault detection of a regulation failure of an adaptive flow regulating device has not been adequately addressed.

[0009] Therefore, there may be a need for a method of detecting a regulation fault in connection with a wind turbine rotor blade, which is mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprises an adaptive flow regulation device, and for a corresponding arrangement, a wind turbine rotor blade and a wind turbine, wherein a regulation fault can be detected reliably and safely so that a reaction can be made in an appropriate manner in order to set the wind turbine in a safe operating mode or to shut down the wind turbine in a safe manner. Summary of the invention

[0010] This need can be met by the subject matter according to the independent claim. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are described by the dependent claims.

[0011] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a method for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade is provided, the wind turbine rotor blade being mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device, in particular a spoiler and / or a flap, the method comprising: estimating a quantity indicative of a change in a driving impulse of the wind on the wind turbine rotor based on at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device; determining another quantity indicative of a required (or desired, or required) change in the driving impulse on the wind turbine rotor (e.g., a required rotor torque change) in order to change the value of the rotor speed to a reference value of the rotor speed; and indicating a regulation fault based on a comparison of the quantity with the other quantity.

[0012] When such a regulation fault is detected, countermeasures can be taken or a safety stop procedure can be initiated.

[0013] Wind turbine rotor blades may be equipped with so-called active attachment devices, i.e. adaptive flow regulation devices, which may be set in different states or settings corresponding to different influences on the airflow at or near the rotor blade surface. The active attachment device may be set to the different states using one or more actuators, for example using an inflatable device such as a hose or a bag, which may be filled with compressed air to different extents or filling levels, in order to set the adaptive flow regulation device in two or more different settings.

[0014] The method may be performed, for example, by a wind turbine controller or a wind park controller. The method may be implemented partly in software and / or hardware. In particular, the method for detecting a regulation fault may be performed completely independently of any controller process or actuator process involved in regulating the wind turbine rotor blades, in particular regulating the pitch angle and / or regulating the settings of the adaptive flow regulation device.

[0015] The regulation fault may involve a fault of a controller (and / or sensor) controlling, for example, the state of a flow regulating device, and / or a controller controlling a pitch mechanism of a rotor blade. Alternatively or additionally, the regulation fault may involve a fault or failure of an actuator (and / or associated sensor) of, for example, an adaptive flow regulating device, and / or an actuator actuating a blade pitch system in order to set the rotor blades to a specific pitch angle.

[0016] The method may identify a situation in which a continuous setting of the flow regulating device, for example, does not result in a driving impulse to the rotor of the wind turbine, which would change the actual value of the rotor speed to a reference value of the rotor speed, which may be a desired value of the rotor speed. The regulation fault may in particular comprise a regulation fault of the adaptive flow regulating device and / or a regulation fault of the blade pitch.

[0017] The adaptive flow regulating device can be mounted on or at the surface of the rotor blade, in particular at the leading edge at the suction surface of the rotor blade, in particular if the adaptive flow regulating device comprises a spoiler. The wind turbine rotor blade may comprise one or more adaptive flow regulating devices, for example mounted at different positions on the surface of the rotor blade. In particular, the rotor blade may comprise further flow regulating devices, which may not necessarily be adaptive, such as at least one vortex generator, in particular mounted downstream of the adaptive flow regulating device, and which may be effectively opened or closed, for example, depending on the state of an adaptive flow regulating device (in particular a spoiler) mounted upstream of the vortex generator. In particular, the adaptive flow regulating device and / or the vortex generator may be configured as a plurality or a number of modules arranged in the longitudinal direction of the rotor blade. A flap (another example of an adjustable flow regulating device) may be mounted, for example, at the trailing edge of the rotor blade, in particular at the suction side.

[0018] The method may be performed, for example, during normal operation of a wind turbine, including rotation of a rotor to which wind turbine rotor blades are mounted. The wind may impact portions of the rotor blades as well as the airfoil surface of the adaptive flow regulation device. The airfoil surface of the adaptive flow regulation device may be arranged in different orientations and / or positions for different states or settings of the adaptive flow regulation device. Thus, two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device may result in two different driving impacts of the wind on the wind turbine rotor.

[0019] The drive impulse may be understood as corresponding to a force or torque applied to the wind turbine rotor. Thus, for example, the quantity may indicate a torque applied to the rotor. However, the quantity may not necessarily be a torque. The variation of the drive impulse may relate to a temporal variation of the drive impulse, in particular to a temporal variation of the torque acting on the wind turbine rotor. Each of the two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device may result in a specific drive impulse, in particular, the two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device may result in two different drive impulses on the wind turbine rotor. The variation of the drive impulse may, for example, be determined as the difference between the drive impulse of the first setting and the drive impulse of the second setting. From this quantity, a torque variation may be obtainable. For example, the torque variation may be proportional to the quantity.

[0020] Similarly, the further quantity may be proportional to the required or desired or needed torque in order to change the (actual) value of the rotor speed to the reference value. For estimating the quantity, other values ​​of parameters beyond the at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device may be taken into account, such as operating parameters of the wind turbine, in particular including blade pitch settings. In particular, the quantity may be estimated taking into account any setting of any device mounted at a wind turbine rotor blade that influences or governs the driving impulse of the wind on the wind turbine rotor.

[0021] The reference value of the rotor speed may be a predetermined value, for example, may be a rated rotor speed to be reached for normal operation of the wind turbine. However, the method may also be performed when the wind turbine is not operating in a normal operation mode, but when, for example, the reference value of the rotor speed is different from the rated rotor speed. The reference value of the rotor speed may be related to a desired rotor speed of the rotor or may be equal to the desired rotor speed of the rotor.

[0022] During normal operation, when no regulation fault occurs, it is desirable to control and then set the adaptive flow regulation device so as to regulate or change the actual rotor speed towards a reference value for the rotor speed. For this purpose, a controller of the adaptive flow regulation device may be designed. Also for this purpose, an actuator is designed which sets the state of the adaptive flow regulation device (which may be coupled to a corresponding controller). Thus, in the case of fault-free regulation, regulation of the adaptive flow regulation device may cause the value of the rotor speed to change towards a reference value for the rotor speed, thereby reaching the reference value for the rotor speed.

[0023] In order to change the actual value of the rotor speed to the (desired) reference value of the rotor speed, a certain torque may be needed or required, which torque may be determined by the method. In particular, the further quantity may relate to or may be equal to the torque required in order to adjust the actual value of the rotor speed to the reference value of the rotor speed. In other embodiments, the further quantity may be different from the actual required torque, but may be proportional to the required torque, for example.

[0024] Furthermore, for example, the moment of inertia of the rotating system including the rotor and the rotor blades may be taken into account in order to determine another quantity indicative of a desired or expected or required change in the drive impulse.

[0025] At least two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device may be related to or may be equal to actually existing settings of the adaptive flow regulating device, which may for example be measured, for example comprising the pressure in the inflatable device and / or the protruding height and / or the orientation and / or the position of the airfoil surface of the flow regulating device exposed to the airflow.

[0026] For example, if the deviation between the quantity and the further quantity is relatively small, for example less than a quantity threshold, it can be inferred that there is no regulation fault. If the quantity and the further quantity differ from each other, for example more than a quantity threshold, it can be inferred or inferred that there is a regulation fault. The method may or may not distinguish between regulation faults associated with a blade pitch system or a flow regulation device. Advantageously, when taking into account at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device, in particular, a regulation fault of the adaptive flow regulation device (for example due to a controller fault and / or an actuator fault and / or a sensor fault) can be identified. The wind turbine and / or the wind turbine rotor blade can then be set to a safe operating mode or parameter setting.

[0027] According to an embodiment of the invention the estimating quantity indicative of a change in driving impulse to the wind turbine rotor is further based on at least two settings of blade pitch of the rotor blades and / or wherein the quantity and / or the further quantity comprises the rotor torque.

[0028] The setting of the blade pitch also affects the change of the driving impulse of the wind on the rotor. In addition, the blade pitch adjustment system may be faulty (due to controller failure and / or actuator failure and / or sensor failure), which may also need to be detected in order to avoid damage to wind turbine components.

[0029] Each rotor blade of the wind turbine can be independently monitored for a failure of the adaptive flow regulation device and / or a failure of the blade pitch system. Thereby, the risk of damage can be further reduced.

[0030] According to an embodiment of the present invention, comparing the amount with another amount comprises determining the amount difference between the amount and the other amount. The amount difference may be, for example, a torque difference or may be, for example, a value proportional to the torque difference. Therefore, the method may be further simplified.

[0031] According to an embodiment of the invention, a regulation fault is indicated if the absolute value of the quantity difference exceeds a quantity threshold and / or if the sum of the absolute values ​​of the quantity differences accumulated over a time interval exceeding the quantity threshold exceeds a further quantity threshold.

[0032] If the absolute value of the quantity difference exceeds the quantity threshold, it may indicate that the setting of the flow regulating device and / or the setting of the blade pitch is not in the direction or magnitude that is needed or required or desired in order to change the rotor speed towards the reference rotor speed. The required change need may be based on a model of the controller, which uses the actual speed and the speed reference as input and outputs the torque difference. Thus, in this case, there is some regulation fault.

[0033] According to an embodiment of the present invention, estimating the quantity comprises: modeling the airflow near and / or on the rotor blade based on the at least two correspondingly set rotor speeds for the adaptive flow regulation device and the blade pitch; and deriving the aerodynamic impact, in particular the torque, acting on the rotor blade for the different settings based on the airflow for the different settings.

[0034] Modeling may include using or establishing a physical / mathematical model that simulates the airflow over the surface of the wind turbine blade and / or the active surface of the flow conditioning device. Thus, the geometry of the relevant airflow exposed surface and the moment of inertia of the rotor may be taken into account. Furthermore, wind speed, wind direction, wind turbulence may be taken into account. Also for determining another quantity, airflow modeling may be used.

[0035] According to an embodiment of the invention, determining the other quantity is based on the value of the rotor speed and the rotor speed reference value. In addition, the other quantity may depend on the moment of inertia of the rotor. Thus, the other quantity may be simply determined.

[0036] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the method also includes: measuring at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device at a first time point and a second time point and determining the difference between the two settings; and / or measuring at least two settings of the blade pitch at the first and second time points and determining the difference between the two settings; and / or measuring the value of the rotor speed.

[0037] For example, a sensor (e.g. an encoder) may be used to measure the pitch angle. The setting of the flow regulating device may be measured, for example, optically or by determining the pressure in an expandable container that is actuated on the airfoil surface of the flow regulating device (in particular, a spoiler). Thus, the method may rely on the actual physical configuration or construction of the flow regulating device and / or the blade pitch. Thereby, the estimation of this quantity may be improved in terms of accuracy.

[0038] According to an embodiment of the invention, the two settings of the adaptive flow conditioning device each indicate a respective protrusion height and / or orientation and / or inclination of the airfoil surface of the flow conditioning device exposed to the airflow.

[0039] The airfoil surface may be exposed to the airflow in normal operation and may deflect or alter the airflow compared to what would exist or develop at the bare rotor blade surface. An estimate of this quantity may be performed more accurately if the geometry and / or orientation and / or position of the airfoil surface is taken into account.

[0040] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device correspond to two states of the adaptive flow regulating device that are different in terms of the effect on the airflow. The flow regulating device may include more than two states, all of which may be different in terms of the effect on the airflow. In a simple embodiment, the flow regulating device (for each device module) has only an on state and an off state.

[0041] According to an embodiment of the invention, the adaptive flow regulating device comprises a plurality of adaptive flow regulating device modules mounted at the rotor blades, which can be independently set in corresponding module states, each of at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device comprising information about all module states. Thus, the manufacture and / or transportation of the flow regulating device can be simplified, and the installation can also be simplified. Furthermore, conventional designs can be supported.

[0042] According to an embodiment of the invention, the method further comprises, after indicating a regulation fault, triggering a safety stop function of the flow regulating device and / or the blade pitch system, in particular for stopping the wind turbine.Thereby, damage to components of the wind turbine may be avoided.

[0043] It shall be understood that features disclosed, described, explained or used, alone or in any combination, for a method for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device may also be applied or relate, alone or in any combination, to an arrangement for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device according to embodiments of the present invention, and vice versa.

[0044] According to an embodiment of the invention, an arrangement for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade, the wind turbine rotor blade being mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device, the arrangement comprising a processor adapted to: estimate a quantity indicative of a change in a driving impulse of wind to the wind turbine rotor based on at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device; determine another quantity indicative of a required (or desired, or required) change in the driving impulse to the wind turbine rotor (e.g., a required rotor torque change) in order to change a value of a rotor speed to a reference value of the rotor speed; and determine the presence of a regulation fault based on a comparison of the quantity with another quantity.

[0045] Furthermore, the arrangement may comprise an input section for receiving at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulating device and at least two settings of the blade pitch.

[0046] According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a wind turbine rotor blade, comprising: an adaptive flow regulation device; and an arrangement according to the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0047] According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a wind turbine, comprising: a wind turbine rotor; and a wind turbine rotor blade according to the aforementioned embodiment installed at the wind turbine rotor.

[0048] The aspects defined above and further aspects of the invention are apparent from the examples of embodiment described hereinafter and are explained with reference to the examples of embodiment.The invention will be described in more detail hereinafter with reference to examples of embodiment but to which the invention is not limited. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0049] Figure 1 schematically illustrates a wind turbine rotor blade according to an embodiment of the invention, comprising an adaptive flow regulation device according to an embodiment of the invention; and

[0050] Figure 2Schematically shown is an arrangement for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade according to an embodiment of the invention, which is mounted at a wind turbine rotor and comprises an adaptive flow regulation device configured to perform a method according to an embodiment of the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0051] The illustrations in the drawings are in schematic form.

[0052] Figure 1 The rotor blade 1 for a wind turbine shown in comprises a rotor blade surface 3 which is exposed to the airflow during normal operation of the rotor blade, which involves rotation about a rotation axis 4 of the wind turbine. In particular, the rotor blade 1 comprises a leading edge 5 and a trailing (or trailing) edge 7, which represent the upstream edge and the downstream edge, respectively, with respect to a wind direction 9.

[0053] The rotor blade 1 further comprises at least one adaptive flow conditioning device 11 according to an embodiment of the invention. In the embodiment shown, the flow conditioning device 11 is a spoiler, which is mounted, for example, at the suction side surface close to the leading edge 5 of the rotor blade 1. The spoiler 11 (generally, the adaptive flow conditioning device) comprises an airfoil surface 13 exposed to the airflow 9 during rotation of the rotor blade 1.

[0054] Figure 1 The wind turbine rotor blade 1 shown in the figure further comprises an arrangement 15 for detecting a regulation fault associated with a wind turbine rotor blade 1 mounted at a wind turbine rotor 4 and comprises an adaptive flow regulation device 11 according to an embodiment of the invention. Thereby, the arrangement comprises an input section 17 adapted to receive at least two settings 19a, 19b of the adaptive flow regulation device 11 (e.g. measured by an actuator and / or a sensor 24) and in particular also at least two settings 21a, 21b of the blade pitch, which are measured by an actuator and / or a sensor 23, for example.

[0055] The arrangement 15 is schematically shown in the exemplary embodiment. Figure 2 At the input section 17, the arrangement 15 receives the settings 19a, 19b, 19c of the flow regulating device 11 from an actuator and / or sensor 24. Furthermore, the arrangement 15 receives a blade pitch angle 21a, 21b, 21c determined by an actuator and / or sensor 23 measuring the blade pitch angle of the rotor blade 1. In particular, the blade pitch angle is related to the rotation angle of the rotor blade around the longitudinal axis 6 of the rotor blade.

[0056] As a further input, the arrangement receives a value 25 of the currently existing rotor speed. Furthermore, the arrangement receives a reference value 27 of the rotor speed at the input section 17. The arrangement 15 also comprises a pitch activity determination module 29 which derives, for example, a change in the pitch angle from the pitch settings 21a, 21b, 21c, as indicated by reference numeral 31.

[0057] Furthermore, the arrangement comprises an active additional device activity module 33, which receives the settings 19a, 19b, 19c of the adaptive flow regulating device 11 and determines a change 35 of the settings of the flow regulating device 11. Furthermore, the arrangement 15 comprises an estimation block 37, which is configured to estimate a rotor torque change (or in general, a quantity) 41 based on the pitch activity change 31 and the active additional device activity change 35. Thus, the estimation block 37 also receives the actual value 25 of the rotor speed. The estimation module 37 outputs a quantity 41 indicating a change in the driving impact of the wind force on the wind turbine rotor (in particular, indicating the torque).

[0058] Another processing module 39 is configured to determine the need for, for example, a rotor torque change rate based on the actual value 25 of the rotor speed and the reference value 27 of the rotor speed. The processing module 39 outputs another quantity 43 indicative of a required change in the driving impulse to the wind turbine rotor in order to change the value of the rotor speed (i.e. the value 25 of the rotor speed) to the reference value 27 of the rotor speed.

[0059] The quantity 41 and the further quantity 43 are compared in a monitoring module 45 also included in the arrangement 15. If the difference between the quantity 41 and the further quantity 43 exceeds a quantity threshold, a fault indication signal 47 is output from the monitoring module 45 and provided to a safety stop block 49 which may initiate or trigger a safety stop of the wind turbine.

[0060] The embodiments of the present invention introduce Figure 2 2. The model-based actuator fail-safe protection system is exemplarily shown in FIG. Based on the state inputs from the blade pitch angles (e.g., blade pitch setting signals 21a, 21b, 21c) and the states of the active attachments (e.g., flow regulating device settings 19a, 19b, 19c), and further based on the actual value of the rotor speed 25, the actual change of the rotor torque is estimated (e.g., marked with reference numeral 41). This estimation performed by the estimator block 37 can be done based on detailed data about the aerodynamic impact of the blades and the active attachments, or can be done based on a simplified model.

[0061] The rotor torque change rate requirement (e.g. Figure 2The monitoring unit 45 may actuate a safe stop function if the difference between the estimated rotor torque rate of change and the demand for rotor torque rate of change exceeds a threshold level. The monitoring unit may also be triggered if the accumulated value above the threshold level exceeds an additional threshold value for the accumulated value. The safe stop function (e.g. initiated or executed in box 49) may be a safe pitch function or an active additional device function that may have the ability to stop the turbine, or a combination of these.

[0062] Embodiments of the present invention introduce an active additional device state in the actuator fail-safe system. All actuators of one or more flow regulating devices can be summed or normalized to the sum of the rotor torque change rates. All actuator systems can be compared by combining the expected need for rotor torque change with the actual rotor torque change, and a safety stop is initiated if their difference is greater than a threshold.

[0063] Advantages provided by embodiments of the present invention may be that the monitoring system may be made very narrow and slender and precise, so that it may catch actuator runaway very early. This may reduce the design loads of the turbine. The monitoring unit or module 45 may, for example, output a signal indicating a fault such as "actuator runaway". According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a system comprising Figure 1 The rotor blades of a wind turbine are shown.

[0064] It should be noted that the term "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. Furthermore, elements described in association with different embodiments may be combined. It should also be noted that the reference numerals in the claims should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for detecting a regulation fault (47) associated with a wind turbine rotor blade (1), the wind turbine rotor blade being mounted at a wind turbine rotor (4) and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device (11), the method comprising: estimating a quantity (41) indicative of a change in a driving impulse of the wind (9) on the wind turbine rotor (4) based on at least two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulation device (11); determining a further quantity (43) indicative of an expected change in driving impulse to a wind turbine rotor, wherein the further quantity (43) is determined based on the value (25) of the rotor speed and a reference value (27) of the rotor speed; and A regulation fault (47) is indicated based on a comparison of the quantity (41) with the further quantity (43).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Estimating a quantity (41) indicative of a change in a driving impulse to the wind turbine rotor is further based on at least two settings (21a, 21b) of a blade pitch (23) of the rotor blades (1), and / or wherein the quantity and / or the further quantity comprises a rotor torque.

3. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein: The comparison of the quantity (41) with the further quantity (43) comprises: A difference in amount between the amount and the other amount is determined.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The regulation fault is indicated in the following cases: If the absolute value of the quantity difference exceeds the quantity threshold; and / or If the sum of the absolute values ​​of the quantity differences accumulated over the time interval exceeding the quantity threshold exceeds another quantity threshold.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein: The estimated amount includes: Modeling the airflow near and / or at the rotor blade (1) based on at least two correspondingly set values ​​of the rotor speed (25) and the blade pitch (23) for the adaptive flow regulation device (11); Based on the air flow for the different arrangements, aerodynamic impacts acting on the rotor blades of the different arrangements are derived.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, further comprising: measuring the at least two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulating device (11) at a first and a second point in time and determining a difference between the two settings; and / or measuring at least two settings (21a, 21b) of the blade pitch (23) at a first and a second point in time and determining a difference between the two settings; and / or Measure the value of the rotor speed (25).

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein: The two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulating device each indicate a respective protrusion height and / or orientation and / or inclination of the airfoil surface (13) of the flow regulating device (11) exposed to the airflow (9).

8. A method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulating device (11) correspond to two states of the adaptive flow regulating device that differ in terms of their influence on the airflow (9).

9. A method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the adaptive flow regulation device (11) comprises a plurality of adaptive flow regulation device modules mounted at the rotor blades, the adaptive flow regulation device modules being independently settable in corresponding module states, each of the at least two settings of the adaptive flow regulation device comprising information about all module states.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, further comprising, after indicating the regulation fault (47): A safety stop function (49) of the flow regulating device and / or the blade pitch system is triggered.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein: The adaptive flow regulating device is a spoiler and / or a flap.

12. The method according to claim 5, wherein: The aerodynamic impact acting on the rotor blades in different configurations is torque.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The wind turbine is stopped after indicating the regulation fault (47).

14. A device (15) for detecting a regulation fault (47) associated with a wind turbine rotor blade (1), the wind turbine rotor blade being mounted at a wind turbine rotor (4) and comprising an adaptive flow regulation device (11), the device comprising a processor adapted to: estimating a quantity (41) indicative of a change in a driving impulse of the wind on the wind turbine rotor based on at least two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulation device (11); determining a further quantity (43) indicative of an expected change in driving impulse to a wind turbine rotor, wherein the further quantity (43) is determined based on the value (25) of the rotor speed and a reference value (27) of the rotor speed; and The presence of a regulation fault (47) is determined based on a comparison of the quantity (41) with the further quantity (43).

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising: An input section (17) for receiving at least two settings (19a, 19b) of the adaptive flow regulating device (11) and at least two settings (21a, 21b) of the blade pitch (23).

16. A wind turbine rotor blade (1) comprising: Adaptive flow regulating device (11); as well as The device (15) according to claim 15.

17. A wind turbine comprising: Wind turbine rotor (4); as well as A wind turbine rotor blade (1) according to claim 16, mounted at a wind turbine rotor (4).

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