Decentralized Voting Wind Turbine Control System
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current fault-tolerant control systems for wind power plants are not fully reliable, particularly in scenarios involving multiple failures, as they lack redundancy in the main communication unit, which can lead to system failures and inability to maintain deterministic power output during grid failures.
Innovation Solution
A fault-tolerant real-time control system with decentralized voting mechanisms and redundant communication networks, where each power unit generates and votes on replica set-point values, ensuring high reliability and real-time data transmission, and incorporates a supervisory control and data acquisition system for generating reference signals, along with a fault-tolerant sensor system for measuring electrical parameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a main communication unit controls prioritised control units in a wind power plant, then the control structure is simplified and easier to implement, but the system becomes vulnerable to single points of failure and cannot guarantee very high reliability in case the main communication unit fails
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the centralized control function into multiple decentralized control units, each capable of autonomous operation. This segmentation eliminates the single point of failure in the main communication unit while maintaining control functionality through distributed decision-making across multiple units.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements pre-configured backup control units that are ready to take over immediately upon detection of failures. This preliminary preparation ensures that reliability is maintained without requiring complex real-time reconfiguration, thus resolving the contradiction between simplicity and reliability.
2Reliability
If redundant systems comprising duplicates of critical plant modules are implemented to achieve fault tolerance, then reliability in single-failure scenarios improves, but the device complexity and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic redundancy where backup control units are activated only when failures occur. During normal operation, the system operates with minimal redundancy, reducing complexity. When failures are detected, the system dynamically reconfigures to activate standby units, providing fault tolerance only when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a strategy where control units can be discarded (deactivated) during normal operation and recovered (activated) when failures occur. This allows the system to maintain fault tolerance capabilities while minimizing the operational complexity and resource consumption associated with maintaining all redundant units active simultaneously.
3Reliability
If decentralized voting schemes are implemented to select the most reliable wind turbine set point value, then reliability in selecting correct control values improves, but the communication network complexity and data processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements voting mechanisms where multiple control units generate copies of set point values, and the decentralized voting scheme selects the correct value by comparing these copies. This approach ensures reliability in value selection while keeping the communication network manageable by only transmitting essential voting data rather than full control datasets.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The present invention relates to a fault-tolerant control system for a wind power plant comprising a plurality of power units, the control system comprising control means for generating a replica of essentially concurrent power unit set-point values, a data communication network for transmitting the essentially concurrent power unit set-point values to the plurality of power units and a plurality of decentralised voting means being arranged so that a decentralised voting means is assigned to each power unit, each decentralised voting means being adapted to select one power unit set-point value out of the replica of power unit set-points. The present invention further relates to an associated method.