Granted Patent B2

US 12,612,895 · App. 17/574,392 · Granted Apr 28, 2026

Inventors: Kouroush Nayebi (Ikast, DK); Torsten Lund (Fredericia, DK); Frank Ormel (Skanderborg, DK); Mogens Bjerning (Ringkøbing, DK)

Assignee: VESTAS WIND SYSTEMS A/S

F03D7/0284F03D7/048F03D9/007G05B19/042G06Q50/06H02J3/381F03D9/255F05B2220/708F05B2270/1033G05B2219/2619H02J3/17H02J3/46H02J2101/28

Abstract

Claims (47)

1 . A method for controlling a renewable energy farm comprising a wind turbine and at least one central control unit, the wind turbine being connected to a power grid, the method comprising:

by the at least one central control unit:

receiving a first request to stop the wind turbine;

determining, at a first time, that stopping the wind turbine causes an obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled;

in response determining, at the first time, that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled, refraining from executing the first request;

determining, at a second time after the first time, that stopping the wind turbine does not result in the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled; and

in response to determining, at the second time, that stopping the wind turbine does not result in the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled, executing the first request.

2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

receiving, at a third time after the second time, a second request to restart the wind turbine;

determining, at the third time, that restarting the wind turbine is not in conflict with at least one obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid; and

in response to determining, at the third time, that restarting the wind turbine is not in conflict with at least one obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid, executing the second request.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that the stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

comparing at least one of a frequency or a voltage of the power grid to a predefined deadband; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine is in conflict with at least one obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid when at least one of the frequency or the voltage is outside the predefined deadband.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

checking whether or not a power output requirement from the renewable energy farm to the power grid is applicable; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when a power output requirement of the wind turbine is applicable.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the obligation towards the power grid comprises an ancillary service obligation towards the power grid, and wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

estimating whether or not stopping the wind turbine is likely to cause incapability of fulfilling the ancillary service obligation; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when stopping the wind turbine is likely to cause incapability of fulfilling the ancillary service obligation.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled is performed according to a set of prioritizing rules.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the renewable energy farm further comprises a plurality of photovoltaic cells, and wherein the method further comprises: the at least one central control unit receiving a second request for adjusting a power output of at least one photovoltaic cell of the plurality of photovoltaic cells; the at least one central control unit checking whether or not adjusting the power output of the at least one photovoltaic cell is in conflict with at least one obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid; and when adjusting the power output of the at least one photovoltaic cell is in conflict with at least one obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid, deferring execution of the second request.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one central control unit is a power plant controller (PPC).

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein receiving the first request comprises receiving the first request at a predetermined time of day.

10 . A method for controlling a renewable energy farm comprising a wind turbine, the wind turbine being connected to a power grid, the method comprising:

receiving a first request to stop the wind turbine;

determining, at a first time, that stopping the wind turbine causes an obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled;

in response determining, at the first time, that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled, refraining from executing the first request;

determining, at a second time after the first time, that stopping the wind turbine does not result in the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled;

in response to determining, at the second time, that stopping the wind turbine does not result in the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled, executing the first request; and

for a second request in which a power output of the wind turbine is decreased from a first power output to a second power output that is greater than zero does not cause the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled, executing the second request to decrease the power output of the wind turbine from the first power output to the second power output.

11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

comparing at least one of a frequency or a voltage of the power grid to a predefined deadband; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when at least one of the frequency or the voltage is outside the predefined deadband.

12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

checking whether or not a power output requirement from the renewable energy farm to the power grid is applicable; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when a power output requirement is applicable.

13 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the obligation towards the power grid is an ancillary service obligation towards the power grid, and wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

estimating whether or not stopping the wind turbine is likely to cause incapability of fulfilling the ancillary service obligation; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be when stopping the wind turbine is likely to cause incapability of fulfilling the ancillary service obligation.

14 . The method of claim 10 , wherein determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled comprises:

for the first request:

comparing at least one of a frequency or a voltage of the power grid to a predefined deadband; and

determining that stopping the wind turbine causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when at least one of the frequency or the voltage is outside the predefined deadband; and

for the second request:

checking whether or not a power output requirement from the renewable energy farm to the power grid is applicable; and

determining that decreasing the power output of the wind turbine from the first power output to the second power output causes the obligation of the renewable energy farm towards the power grid to be unfulfilled when the power output requirement is applicable.

Assignments (1)

Priority Claims (1)

Continuity (1)

References Cited (25)