Off-site SCADA System for Wind Farm Turbine Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
The high cost of installing and maintaining on-site supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems for wind farms, as well as the need for a system that can continue to monitor and control wind turbines despite connectivity issues with the remote SCADA system.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that allows for the remote monitoring and control of wind turbines using an off-site SCADA system, with each turbine controller equipped to access data and provide control interfaces for other turbines, enabling local operation and data collection when connectivity is lost.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an on-site SCADA system is installed at each wind farm, then monitoring and control capability is ensured, but installation and maintenance costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent consolidates multiple wind farms under a single off-site SCADA system, merging the monitoring and control functions that would otherwise require separate on-site systems at each farm. This reduces the total number of SCADA installations needed while maintaining comprehensive oversight across all connected wind turbines.
Solution Approach 2:
The off-site SCADA system is designed to serve multiple wind farms simultaneously, making it a universal platform that performs monitoring and control functions across different geographic locations. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for dedicated on-site SCADA systems at each individual farm.
2Productivity
If connectivity is maintained between wind farm and off-site SCADA system, then centralized control is optimized, but system vulnerability to connectivity loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by establishing local monitoring capabilities at each wind farm before connectivity issues arise. The local SCADA system is pre-configured to independently monitor and control wind turbines, so when connectivity is lost, the system can immediately continue operations without interruption or degradation of monitoring functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by distributing monitoring and control capabilities to individual wind farms through local SCADA systems. Each location has its own monitoring infrastructure that can operate independently, ensuring that the loss of centralized connectivity does not compromise local operational reliability.
Data Source
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AI summary
In one aspect, a system 100 for monitoring and controlling the operation of wind turbines 10 located within a wind farm 102 may generally include first and second wind turbines 10. The first wind turbine 10 may include a first turbine controller 26 configured to monitor an operating parameter(s) associated with the first wind turbine 10 and provide a first control interface for controlling the operation of the first wind turbine 10. The second wind turbine 10 may include a second turbine controller 26 configured to monitor an operating parameter(s) associated with the second wind turbine 10 and provide a second control interface for controlling the operation of the second wind turbine 10. The system 100 may also include a secondary computing device 150 coupled to the second turbine controller 26. The second turbine controller 26 may be configured to provide the secondary computing device 150 access to the first control interface in order to allow the operation of the first wind turbine 10 to be controlled.