The WFMS will be developed by Ricardo along with related condition monitoring systems for a range of other industrial sectors. The Kongsberg WFMS is a turbine independent decision support system designed to surpass the functionality found currently in wind farm supervisory control and data acquisition systems. It offers a modern, intuitive user interface based on Kongsberg’s experience in automation and decision support systems for the defence, maritime and offshore oil & gas sectors.
Kongsberg selected Ricardo to support the development of the WFMS because of its expertise in wind turbine drivetrains. This includes a deep understanding of the physical mechanisms of failure of drivetrain bearings and extensive research into advanced sensor techniques. The collaboration between the two companies will investigate the potential integration of Ricardo’s new SensorLife technology into the WFMS. The technology will be launched formally later this month at WindEnergy Hamburg and Ricardo believes it could achieve significant reductions in the cost of energy generated by wind farms. These savings would be realised through a more accurate prediction of the remaining useful life of key components and the consequential ability to reduce cost through proactive maintenance.
“Ricardo’s experience in drivetrains and Kongsberg’s experience in system development, sensors and automation systems are an excellent basis for this new cooperation” said Kristian Holm, general manager wind for Kongsberg. “Ricardo provides an innovative approach to some of the key challenges in condition monitoring. Combining its expertise and our own advanced methods and algorithms will lift our Wind Farm Management System to a completely new level, providing energy and cost savings for the client.”
SensorLife is part of a suite of technologies to be presented by Ricardo at WindEnergy Hamburg, which will also include the MultiLife bearing management system and TorqLife, which is designed to prevent overload and non-torque loads from damaging the driveline.
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