TW202018179A - Monitoring system for a tower of a wind turbine - Google Patents

Abstract

A monitoring system for a tower of a wind turbine includes a plurality of stress sensing devices, a data storage device and a data analyzing device. Each stress sensing device is disposed on the tower with different heights, and includes a plurality of strain gauges surround the side wall of the tower to collect gauge data. The data storage device stores the gauge data. The data analyzing device warns a stress concentration location of the tower based on the gauge data.

Description

Wind Turbine Tower Monitoring System

The invention relates to a monitoring system, in particular to a tower monitoring system of a wind turbine.

Wind power generators are usually installed in coastal or even offshore areas. The environment in these areas is relatively harsh, or there may be poor geological conditions, which can easily affect the wind turbine tower.

In view of this, the present invention provides a tower monitoring system for a wind turbine, which includes: a plurality of stress sensing devices, a data storage device, and a data analysis device. The stress sensing devices are respectively disposed at different heights on the tower of the wind turbine, and each of the stress sensing devices includes a plurality of first strain gauges, which are placed around the side walls of the tower to collect strain data. The data storage device is used to store the strain data. The data analysis device analyzes the stress distribution at different height positions on the tower based on the strain data to warn a stress concentration point of the tower.

In some embodiments, the number of the first strain gauges included in each of the stress sensing devices is four, which are divided into four orientations of the tower.

In some embodiments, the stress sensing devices are respectively disposed at the upper, middle, and lower positions of the tower.

In some embodiments, the tower monitoring system further includes a torque sensing device disposed on the top of the tower to collect torsional strain data, and the data storage device also stores the torsional strain data.

In some embodiments, the torque sensing device includes two second strain gauges.

In some embodiments, the data analysis device also calculates the bearing load of the tower based on the wind speed data of the tower to estimate the remaining life of the tower.

In some embodiments, the data analysis device sets the wind speed data and the strain data corresponding to the current time into a Markov matrix to obtain the corresponding load for each wind speed.

In some embodiments, the data analysis device also estimates future changes and times of wind speed through the Rayleigh distribution based on the wind speed data, so as to predict future load bearing in the future.

In summary, the tower monitoring system of the wind turbine proposed in the embodiment of the present invention can immediately monitor the status of the tower and analyze the stress concentration of the tower. In addition, the remaining life of the tower can be predicted, which can provide a reference for the operation and maintenance methods. For example, if the blade or generator parts are replaced when the remaining life is sufficient, the entire group of wind turbines can be replaced if the remaining life is not enough. .

1 is a schematic diagram of a tower monitoring system 200 applied to a wind turbine 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wind turbine 100 includes a tower 110, blades 120 and a generator 130. The generator 130 is installed on the tower 110 and connected to the blades 120 to rotate the blades 120 to drive the generator 130 to generate electricity. The tower monitoring system 200 includes a plurality of stress sensing devices 210, a data storage device 220, and a data analysis device 230.

The stress sensing devices 210 are respectively disposed at different heights on the tower 110 to obtain strain data at different heights of the tower 110. Here, the stress sensing device 210 is provided at the upper, middle, and lower positions of the tower 110. However, in some embodiments, more stress sensing devices 210 may be provided at other locations of the tower 110 to obtain strain data at more precise locations. 2 is a schematic diagram of the configuration of the stress sensing device 210 according to an embodiment of the invention. Here, the configuration of the stress-sensing device 210 located in the middle is presented as an exemplary cross-sectional view of the tower 110. Each stress sensing device 210 includes a plurality of strain gauges (herein referred to as "first strain gauges 211"). The first strain gauge 211 is placed around the side wall of the tower 110 to collect strain data in different directions. Here, the number of the first strain gauges 211 is four, which are divided into four directions of the tower 110 (such as front, back, left, and right). From this, the strain data can be used to obtain the stress on the tower by using Equation 1. Based on the stress, the torque in the biaxial direction such as the forward bending moment (as indicated by arrow a1) and the lateral bending moment (as indicated by arrow a2) can be obtained through Equation 2. Since two first strain gauges 211 are used in one axis, the strain data of the two first strain gauges 211 can be cross-referenced to reduce misjudgment.

ε•E=δ………………Formula 1

Among them, ε is strain, E is Young's coefficient, and δ is stress.

M = (δ•I)/c…………Equation 2

Among them, M is the bending moment, δ is the stress, I is the moment of inertia, and c is the inner radius of the tower.

In some embodiments, each stress sensing device 210 may include other numbers of first strain gauges 211. Alternatively, the stress sensing devices 210 at different positions may include different numbers of first strain gauges 211. For example, since the torque near the upper portion is less, the stress sensing device 210 adjacent to the tower 110 may include fewer first strain gauges 211.

The data storage device 220 is a non-transitory storage medium, such as a hard disk, an optical disc, a non-volatile memory, or the like, or an electronic device including the non-transitory storage medium, to store strain data.

The data analysis device 230 is an operation unit that can execute computer program code, such as a processor, an embedded controller, a programmable logic device (PLD), etc., or a calculation device (such as a computer) having the above operation unit. Based on the strain data, the stress distribution at different heights on the tower 110 is analyzed to warn at least one stress concentration point of the tower 110, so that the manager can first check whether the stress concentration point is damaged for repair. For example, assuming that the tower 110 has a breakage (crossed position as shown in FIG. 2), the first strain gauge 211a closest to the position will measure larger strain data, and the first strain gauge 211b will be the second Therefore, the lateral position of the damaged part can be known through the strain data. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 1, if the damaged part (crossed position) is closer to the upper stress sensing device 210, it will also measure larger strain data, and the middle stress sensing device 210 will be the second. According to the longitudinal and the aforementioned lateral considerations, the damaged position can be accurately known.

As shown in FIG. 3, it is a schematic diagram of a tower monitoring system 200 applied to a wind turbine 100 according to another embodiment of the present invention. The tower monitoring system 200 may further include a torque sensing device 240 disposed on the top of the tower 110 to collect torsional strain data. The torsional strain data is also stored in the data storage device 220. Here, the torque sensing device 240 includes two strain gauges (herein referred to as "second strain gauges"). The two second strain gauges are oppositely set, and the strain data of the two second strain gauges can be cross-referenced to reduce misjudgment. Through the strain data, using formula 3, the shear strain of the tower can be obtained, and then through formula 4, the torque (as shown by arrow a3) can be obtained.

τ=2Gε…………Equation 3

Where τ is the shear stress, G is the shear modulus, and ε is the strain.

T=(τ•J)/r ………Equation 4

Among them, T is the torque, τ is the shear stress, J is the moment of inertia, and r is the inner radius of the tower.

In some embodiments, the data storage device 220 and the data analysis device 230 can be integrated into a computing device and installed in the wind turbine 100.

In some embodiments, the data storage device 220 and the data analysis device 230 are provided separately. The data storage device 220 is installed in the wind turbine 100. The data analysis device 230 is installed at another location. The data storage device 220 can transmit the strain data to the data analysis device 230 via a network or other means.

In some embodiments, the administrator can take the data storage device 220 (such as a memory card or hard disk) away from the wind turbine 100 to connect the data storage device 220 to the data analysis device 230 so that the data analysis device 230 can obtain Strain data.

In some embodiments, the data analysis device 230 also calculates the load on the tower 110 based on the wind speed data of the tower 110 to estimate the remaining life of the tower 110. For example, after collecting strain data for a period of time (such as a year or several years), you can fit the wind speed data of the past period into the Markov matrix to obtain the stress corresponding to each wind speed. Therefore, based on the wind speed data, the future wind speed changes and times can be estimated through the Rayleigh distribution. In addition, the predicted frequency (number of occurrences) of each wind speed is multiplied by the corresponding stress to accumulate, and the load (stress accumulation) in the future can be predicted in the future. Based on this, it can be predicted in which year the tower 110 will be subjected to an excessive load, and the remaining life of the tower 110 can be estimated.

In summary, the tower monitoring system 200 of the wind turbine 100 proposed in the embodiment of the present invention can immediately monitor the status of the tower 110 and analyze the stress concentration of the tower 110. In addition, the remaining life of the tower 110 can also be predicted, which can provide a reference for the operation and maintenance methods, for example: replacing the parts of the blade 120 or the generator 130 with sufficient remaining life, and if the remaining life is not enough, the entire group of wind power can be The generator 100 is replaced.

100: wind turbine 110: Tower 120: blade 130: generator 200: tower monitoring system 210: Stress induction device 211, 211a, 211b: the first strain gauge 220: data storage device 230: data analysis device 240: torque sensing device a1: arrow a2: arrow a3: arrow

[Figure 1] It is a schematic diagram of a tower monitoring system applied to a wind turbine according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a schematic diagram of the configuration of a stress sensing device according to an embodiment of the invention. [FIG. 3] It is a schematic diagram of a tower monitoring system applied to a wind turbine according to another embodiment of the present invention.

100: wind turbine

110: Tower

120: blade

130: generator

200: tower monitoring system

210: Stress induction device

220: data storage device

230: data analysis device

a1: arrow

a2: arrow

Claims (8)

A tower monitoring system of a wind turbine includes: a plurality of stress sensing devices, which are respectively arranged at different heights on the tower of the wind turbine, and each of the stress sensing devices includes a plurality of first strain gauges, which are placed around the The side wall of the tower to collect strain data; a data storage device to store the strain data; and a data analysis device to analyze the stress distribution of the tower at different heights based on the strain data to warn a stress concentration point of the tower . The tower monitoring system for a wind turbine according to claim 1, wherein the number of the first strain gauges included in each of the stress sensing devices is four, which are divided into four orientations of the tower. The tower monitoring system of the wind power generator according to claim 1, wherein the stress sensing devices are respectively disposed at upper, middle and lower positions of the tower. The tower monitoring system of the wind turbine according to claim 1 further includes a torque sensing device disposed on the top of the tower to collect torsional strain data, and the data storage device also stores the torsional strain data. The tower monitoring system of a wind turbine according to claim 4, wherein the torque sensing device includes two second strain gauges. The tower monitoring system of a wind turbine according to claim 1, wherein the data analysis device further calculates the load bearing of the tower based on the wind speed data of the tower to estimate the remaining life of the tower. The tower monitoring system of a wind turbine according to claim 6, wherein the data analysis device sets the wind speed data and the corresponding strain data at the time into the Markov matrix to obtain the corresponding load for each wind speed. The tower monitoring system for a wind turbine according to claim 7, wherein the data analysis device also estimates future wind speed changes and times through Rayleigh distribution based on the wind speed data, thereby predicting future load bearing in the future.

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