14 DAY TRIAL // Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany announce the development of a new technique for identifying and studying the type of vibrations that can decrease the useful lifespan of wind turbines. The team says that laser light might be better at this than the sensors currently being used.
At this point, wind park operators install sensors directly onto the blades or nacelle of the wind turbines, and these devices send back relevant data on just how much stress the moving parts in such installations undergo within a given time frame, IEEE Spectrum reports.
The innovative new system, which will be showcased this March at CeBIT in Hanover, Germany, uses a combination of low-power laser light and a camera to detect even the tiniest vibrations that might affect a turbine's structural integrity. Furthermore, lasers can do so for the entirety of the structure, not just a certain point, like sensors do.
Fraunhofer expert Ilja Kaufmann, the leader of the work, says that the new system is mobile, and that it can be installed a few hundred meters away from the actual turbines. With proper stabilization, the device could even be used on water, the investigator adds.