On the design of a cup anemometer performance simulator. From the wind speed to the output data.

Abstract

This paper describes some important aspects of the development of a cup anemometer performance simulator. This tool aims to simulate the different phenomena which affect the different subsystems of the anemometer, in order to develop different strategies to improve the accuracy of the data obtained through post-processing or design changes. Bearing in mind that the cup anemometer is the most widely used wind speed sensor in the wind energy sector (to control wind generators and to analyse the future economic revenue of wind farms in certain locations), the relevance of the present study should be highlighted. The software is designed in Simulink® and is divided in 4 modules representing the different subsystems of an anemometer from the actual wind speed to the output data. The first two modules of the simulator are detailed in this paper, which consist of the Rotation Rate Module and the Pulse Generating Module. The first module outputs the anemometer’s rotor angular position with time, which depends on the wind speed of the anemometer. Oscillations of the rotation rate caused by steady state harmonic accelerations are taken into account. The Pulse Generating Module simulates the optoelectronic system of the anemometer and creates the pulse train signal based on the rotor’s angular position, taking into account the manufacturing and eccentricity errors of the system. The architecture of the modules is detailed, and related with the phenomena which is intended to simulate.