windPRO 4.1
BASIS
Streamlining project creations
windPRO 4.1 has improved the workflow of creating new projects. The download wizard is now faster and always available anywhere in windPRO. It can even generate the first Site Data Object for you.
Improved Site Data Object
You no longer need to create 2,3,4 different Site Data Objects for an energy calculation. Instead, you can keep all settings in a single object (if you want to).
STATGEN and MCP can now automatically update the Site Data Object with the generated wind statistic, so you don’t have to remember to manually attach them after a calculation.
Temperature Derating Update
The new temperature derating functionality from 4.0 has been simplified making it easier to enter the turbine manufacture’s temperature thresholds.
Generic Area Object
Often you have some GIS data you want to display on the map, but it is neither height contours nor roughness data. windPRO now has a generic type that allows you to load parcel plots, ownership statuses, etc. without having to specify e.g. a height.
Improved Calculation list
In 4.1 you can now clone or start multiple calculations in one go.
A new Summary column has been added. After running multiple PARK, LOSS & UNCERTAINTY or SITE COMLIANCE calculations, you can now compare the key results directly in the calculation list.
WMTS maps
windPRO 4.0 already gives you access to high resolution satellite imagery with Bing maps. In windPRO 4.1 you can now access maps servers through the WMTS protocol the same way you access WMS and TMS maps.
Basic authentication allows you to log into paid map services with a username and password.
You can find this new feature when adding a new background map.
T-RIX tool no longer experimental
Based on the released version of FGW’s Technical Guideline 6 Revision 12 (TR 6 Rev. 12), the T-RIX tool now also calculates the vertical uncertainty.
+Small fixes
With the new design in 4.0, some slight adjustments have been made based on the nice feedback from users. For instance, copy-to-clipboard in MCP, improved scrolling in Meteo, window layout etc.
Environment
Full map in SHADOW
Previously you had to manually specify the bounding box for a shadow flicker map. Now the map is automatically generated to the full extent.
Topographic shadow is now enabled by default for the ZVI calculation in SHADOW.
ZVI in SHADOW allows use of Elevation Grids
Now you can use elevation grid data (like detailed forest data) to calculate if the wind turbines are visible from the shadow receptors. windPRO offers multiple high-quality forest data sets that can be downloaded into an Elevation Grid Data Object and used directly in the ZVI calculation.
Area of influence according to TA Lärm 2.2a
The DECIBEL noise rules have been updated to reflect that several German Länder have re-evaluated criteria concerning handling of more distant noise sources, and now use these on an individual wind turbine basis instead of looking at a wind farm’s emission as a whole. In those Länder, only turbines contributing a significant amount of noise at an NSA need to be included in the calculation for each receptor. This new setting can be found in Noise calculation model parameters under the category WTG limitation.
PARK
Clean up in PARK Setup tab
The number of options on the Setup tab in both the statistical and timevarying PARK calculation has been reduced. A new Output tab now contains everything related to reports and result to file.
New wake model in Statistical PARK
In windPRO 4.0 we introduced the TurbOPark wake model in timevarying calculations. Now it is also available in statistical PARK calculations. Expect this model to generally output higher wake losses compared to the other available models like Park2 and Eddy Viscosity.
Improved Power Curve & Ct Curve Generator
When a turbine model does not have a power curve or Ct curve defined in the Wind Turbine Catalogue, windPRO can automatically generate a generic dataset on the fly. This algorithm has been updated in 4.1 to better reflect the behaviour of modern turbines. So, now brand-new turbine models are more accurately simulated in case you don’t have the spec sheet from the manufacturer. The auto-generated power curve can be viewed in the PARK report called Power Curve Analysis.
OPTIMIZATION
Optimizer for Re-powering
Want to repower a site or do you only have limited land plots available? Sometimes, it is best to optimize a subset of fixed turbine locations.
windPRO 4.1 introduces an additional Optimizer algorithm to find the best X positions out of Y existing locations helping you find the most profitable re-powering layout.
METEO
Meteo comes with a range of smaller improvements to make life a little easier.
Multi-select heights
In the Meteo Analyzer it is now possible to select and deselect multiple meteo objects with many heights in one go.
Disable all wind signals
We have added a new column in the Advanced disable/enable tool making it easier to disable a range of signals with one checkbox. So instead of remembering to tick 7 checkboxes, you can now tick one for all min/max/mean/std wind speed and TI signals.
Highlight of missing import filters
When importing data into a meteo object, you sometimes forget to define a field. When that happens, it will now automatically be highlighted.
New Shear Extrapolation method
As an alternative to the Shear Matrix, it is now possible to create a time series based shear extrapolation using a rolling (or moving) window.
Shear Matrix with Displacement Height
When using the Shear Matrix method, it is now possible to include displacement height.
SOLAR PV
East-West facing panels
Take advantage of the increased electricity prices in the shoulder hours by installing East-West facing solar pv panels.
With one click you can turn the panels into an East-West facing layout.
Visualization is easy as always with the PHOTOMONTAGE module.
Calculation speed improvement
The same accuracy, improved speed. Around 50% faster detailed AEP calculations considering shadows from obstacles, wind turbines and terrain compared to windPRO 4.0.
Improved inverter model
Define a more detailed inverter model by specifying the efficiency curve. Real inverter characteristic where the peak efficiency is seen at half of maximum load can be easily defined.
Monthly Albedo
When modelling bi-facial plants, the albedo effect is an important factor to take into account. With windPRO 4.1 you can now input the albedo effect as a variable changing with the seasons.
Visualization
Ridge lines in PHOTOMONTAGE
You can now render ridgeline image. This option can be activated in the Artificial surface tab on the Camera object.
Photomontage in Black & White
In the Photo/Background tab, you can now render the background image as black and white. Any symbols or rendered turbines will be placed one top in color.
Improved Sketchup tools
If you use the Road Object to design roads, you can make a realistic visualization of the roads including cut and fill slopes.
It is now possible to export an exact copy of windPRO’s elevation model without resampling.
The Sketchup integration can also place a camera object inside windPRO reflecting the view point in Sketchup. This is accessed from Sketchup’s tool menu.
There is a new Exaggerated elevation option. Show area of interest on map is also an option now.
PERFORMANCE CHECK
Correction of wind speed during turbine stops
When a turbine is stopped the wind flow at the nacelle anemometer changes in a non-linear response. Therefore, the wind speed of a stopped turbine cannot be compared to an operational one.
In windPRO 4.1 you can correct the nacelle wind speed with the new Operational Transfer Function (OTF) in wind speed bins in stopped condition vs normal operation mode when the turbine indicates a non-linear wind speed response.
New Turbine Index
Lower your uncertainty on long-term correction with the new Turbine Index methodology.
An automatic solver calibrates the reference wind speed data to match real/potential production creating a unique Energy Index for each turbine. This index is trained to know its operational behavior from wind direction including wakes, seasonal and diurnal performance. This lowers the uncertainty on long-term correction especially in complex terrain and for larger wind farms where individual turbines may have somewhat different production profile relative to a traditional Park Energy Index.
TR10 Revision 3
The TR10 module has been updated to be compliant with revision 3 of the German guidelines: The simplified methods have been removed, so the potential yield is now always calculated using the detailed method. This also extends to TR 10 categories 3 (Einspeisemanagement,) and 4 (Optimierte Vermarktung).
User-friendly access to custom scripts
If you want to share a script with a colleague, they can now just run it directly from windPRO instead of from an IDE. With this dedicated interface, scripts are now easily accessible and executable directly from inside windPRO, so the user does not have to look at the code or debugging window.
New Machine Learning model in LOAD RESPONSE
Streamline your fatigue load assessments with machine learning technique! windPRO 4.1 now incorporates Gaussian Process Regression (GPR) for accurate and versatile fatigue load calculations in LOAD RESPONSE.
The newly integrated GPR model improves accuracy across a large range of siting parameters, establishing a robust foundation for future development within LOAD RESPONSE. Take the first step as a WTG manufacturer by integrating your turbine models early!
