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New Intelligent Wind Turbines "See" the Wind

January 7, 2010 By 3 Comments
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New wind turbine technology out of Denmark can “see” the wind before it arrives and aim itself accordingly.

The wind turbine technology, called wind LIDAR and designed by Risø DTU researchers, has a laser-based anemometer built into the spinner. With this upgrade, a wind turbine can identify when gusts of wind are coming and can also predict the direction of the wind.

As a result, energy production can be maximized and wind turbines can live longer. Reminds me of that old saying, “work smart, not hard.” Of course, has to make you think of Avatar as well (if you’ve seen it).

Lars Fuglsang, Global Research Director of LM Glasfiber, says, “The LIDAR system can be used to increase blade reliability by making the blades cope better with the irregularities of the wind. Subsequently it is possible to produce larger blades. This increases energy production, and power from wind energy becomes more competitive.”

With wind energy being perhaps the fastest-growing type of energy in the US, this is a hopeful new development.

via physorg & treehugger

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Image Credit: Morten Mitchell Larød via flickr under a CC license

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About Zachary Shahan

If you couldn't guess, I spend most of my time on CleanTechnica and Planetsave. I'm the director/editor of both sites and am a little obsessed with them and the topics they cover. I'm also Publishing Services Manager at Important Media, which means that I do everything I can to support other Important Media writers, editors, and directors (as well as the network as a whole) in the good work they are engaged in. You can also find my work on Scientific American, Reuters, Change.org, most of the sites in the Important Media network, & many other places. For more, or to connect, go to: zacharyshahan.com

  • Lars Mach

    Does not work with rain… yes: You have to ensure a 100% safe rain detector, in order to switch the turbine controller back to normal mode (i.e. without using wind data from the LIDAR). If your system fails to detect rain, then your LIDAR will deliver incorrect data which may result in fatal damages.

  • http://GlobalPatriot.com Global Patriot

    Sensors and computer analysis have long been used to determine where wind power makes sense, and now they can improve the technology’s effectiveness – very cool!

  • http://GlobalPatriot.com Global Patriot

    Sensors and computer analysis have long been used to determine where wind power makes sense, and now they can improve the technology’s effectiveness – very cool!