Copernicus Masters Finalist: WindAI
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Daniel O’Connell and Jeremy Gondolf are the founders of WindAI, one of our three finalists in our Copernicus Masters Data Visualisation Challenge. WindAI is a wind analysis and predictor tool to aid offshore wind farms in reducing maintenance costs without reducing output performance. We chose them as one of our finalists because we were impressed with their visualisation and usability. Read on for more about WindAI and their Copernicus Masters journey.
Offshore wind farms are in an environment of high-velocity winds. When a turbine adjusts to wind movements, it does so by reacting to this change. These adjustments can create pressure on the mechanisms that allow the turbine to change direction, contributing to more maintenance costs long term. WindAI solves this problem by using Earth Observation (EO) data to make predictions on future wind patterns. WindAI will then warn a turbine to either move into a better position prior to wind change or to not move at all due to lack of forecasted power output. These predictive changes create a more consistent flow of power, alleviating pressure on the turbine.
WindAI optimises the adjustments made to turbines by combining EO data and in-turbine data references to ensure accuracy is attained. The solution will also refine adjustments against individual wind farm criteria to ensure regulatory and contractual agreements are met. It does this by recording all adjustments made to the turbine; power output, maintenance costs, turbine details and historical information are all displayed for users on a dashboard. Machine learning is then utilised to ensure that these optimised adjustments do not affect the performance output of the turbine.
Overall, WindAI aims to increase the overall profitability of the wind farm with the hope that it provides more investment opportunities for wind energy in the future.
Daniel O’Connell, Product Lead, stated that WindAI applied for the Satellite Applications Catapult Data Visualisation Challenge because he saw a company with values that aligned to WindAI’s and hopes being named a finalist will achieve their vision of strengthening wind energies role in a more sustainable future.
