openWind: New Open-Source Wind Farm Design Software

A New York software company has announced the scheduled release of its open-source wind farm design software. Albany-based AWS TrueWind designed the openWind software so that a range of end users, from individuals to wind energy developers, could apply and adapt the software their own particular set of data.

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We’ve written extensively about the marriage of GIS mapping and renewable energy here at CleanTechnica. Proper testing of the given renewable resource is a critical component of any installation, and the step taken forward with this new openWind project—along with similar such releases from 3TIER and the EPA—will continue to make the process of testing sites more efficient and cost-effective.

The openWind application is built around standard GIS data types and employs a GIS-style interface to allow seamless integration of geographic and modeling data. The application is fully compatible with other leading brands, making cross-platform collaboration much easier.

The advantage of openWind is in its pliability, claim the software’s developers. “openWind is not a black box,” said AWS Truewind chief technical officer Michael Brower, in an article in North American Windpower

($ubscription req’d). “Its calculations can be observed and vetted independently and users can add or modify capabilities as needed.”

Now for the good part: openWind is being released initially as a freely downloadable, open source software package. With this version, users are able to view and modify the code (subject to the terms of the open-source license). A protected version of the software intended for users requiring greater security will be made available in 2009.

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