Wind Turbine
Design and
Implementation
Phase III
Project Plan
Project: SDMAY11-01
Iowa State University: Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering
Members:
Andrew Nigro
Shonda Butler
Chad Hand
Luke Rupiper
Ryan Semler
Advisor:
Dr. Venkataramana Ajjarapu
October 14, 2010
DISCLAIMER: This document was developed as a part of the requirements of an Electrical and
Computer engineering course at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. This document does not
constitute a professional engineering design or a professional land surveying document.
Although the information is intended to be accurate, the associated students, faculty, and Iowa
State University make no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness,
quality, or adequacy of the information. The user of this document shall ensure that any such
use does not violate any laws with regard to professional licensing and certification
requirements. This use includes any work resulting from this student-prepared document that
is required to be under the responsible charge of a licensed engineer or surveyor. This
document is copyrighted by the students who produced this document and the associated
faculty advisors. No part may be reproduced without the written permission of the Senior
Design course coordinator.
Page | 1
Table of Contents:
I.
List of Figures and Tables
3
II.
Executive Summary
4
III.
Acknowledgement
4
IV.
Problem Statement
4-5
V.
Operating Environment
5
VI.
Intended User(s) and Use(s)
5
VII.
Assumptions and Limitations
6
VIII.
Expected End Product & Deliverables
6-7
IX.
Proposed Approach
7-9
X.
Statement of Work
9-11
XI.
Estimated Resources
11-12
XII.
Schedules
13-14
XIII.
Project Team Information
15
XIV.
Closing Summary
16
XV.
Appendices
17
Page | 2
I.
List of Tables and Figures:
Figure 1: Estimated Individual Team Member Effort
Page: 11
Figure 2: Required Resources
Page: 11-12
Figure 3: Project Schedule
Page: 13
Figure 4: Project Timeline
Page: 14
Figure 5: Project Team Information
Page: 15
Page | 3
II.
Executive Summary:
Over the last century electrical needs have been steadily increasing due to population growth
and technological and industrial expansion. Growing environmental concerns and the depletion of fossil
fuels have influenced the increased production of electricity from renewable resources. Iowa is one of
the leading producers of wind generated electricity in the United States, and Iowa State University has
been taking strong steps to implement new ideas to decrease its environmental impact and increase self
-sustainability.
Our senior design team plans to expand and fine tune a previous wind energy project led by Dr.
Ajjarapu. The project consists of a wind turbine coupled to a motor that is controlled by an external
power source. The goal of the project is to accurately simulate wind conditions to the turbine in a
controlled environment and monitor voltage, current, power, and speed. As a team, we need to first
understand what was designed and built by the previous group. We need to clearly understand how the
system is controlled and document all of our progress.
The end product will resemble a small scale renewable electrical network. We will simulate
wind conditions to our turbine through data we will receive from wind sensors placed outside provided
by another senior design group. The power generated from the turbine will charge a bank of batteries.
The direct current (DC) will be converted to alternating current (AC) through an inverter. From the
inverter, a load consisting of four light bulbs will be powered.
III.
Acknowledgement:


Professor Ajjarapu – Faculty Advisor – Provides us with advice on project management as
well as technical and financial support.
Coover Parts Department – Provides us with hardware support.
NI forums – Provide us with hardware support.
Brandon Janssen – Worked on previous project team. Brought us up to speed on the current
system.
Senior Design Team DEC10-05: Provide us with wind speed data.
IV.
Problem Statement:



This project is a continuation of two previous senior design groups. The final implementation of this
project is to design a wind turbine electrical generation system and integrate the power generated into
the power grid. A wind turbine will be installed on the exterior of Coover Hall.
This semester’s implementation of the project is to simulate the outdoor wind speed with a motor
connected to the turbine. We will also be gathering data and displaying current power output, current
wind speed, and other necessary data. The project will require us to update the GUI, and add sensors to
the current design. We will be rebuilding the load test-bed, and generator/motor housing. Our group
Page | 4
will be adding documentation to the project to help future groups get started on their implementation
quickly.
V.
Operating Environment:
Ideally the wind turbine would be mounted to the roof of a building, such as Coover Hall, and
integrated into the power grid at Iowa State. Although this is ideal, it will not be achieved with our
senior design group due to budget constraints. Our system will not be intended for outdoor use; instead
we are simulating wind conditions in a controlled environment inside a power lab in Coover Hall.
However, our system will be able to handle all environmental conditions such as dust, extreme
temperatures, rain and other weather elements should future innovations include outdoor
implementation. Wind simulation will be achieved using a three-phase AC motor along with sensors to
read current and voltage levels as well as rpm measurements. Data will also be provided via wireless
signals from wind sensors mounted outside, which will be used to simulate changing wind speeds for
pitch control. An interactive graphical user interface (GUI) in LabVIEW will be used during simulations to
display readings and measurements sent from the various sensors.
VI.
Intended Use(s) and User(s):
Intended Users:

The simulation environment is intended to be used by students of the Iowa State
University Electrical and Computer Engineering department. These students will have
at least a high school education and an interest in using wind as a renewable source of
energy. Primary users will consist of Dr. Ajjarapu and future senior design projects for
its expansion. Secondary users will consist of students viewing the simulation as a
display.
Intended Uses:

This environment will be used to simulate wind energy generation. This simulation is
intended to be an educational tool used to study power generation from small wind
turbines. Where the turbine will be rotated by a motor at the current wind speed and
charge its battery bank and power a load according to its current generation level. The
load is not intended to provide a primary light source for a room and the battery bank
is not intended to power any devices other than the simulation environment.
Page | 5
VII. Assumptions and Limitations:
Assumptions:




The previous group has all equipment in working condition. For example, the wind
turbine has not been damaged in testing.
The LabVIEW interface has been developed and tested to be accurate in displaying
voltage, current, power and speed.
The senior design group working on designing the wind sensor will complete their
objectives and will activity communicate any issues in receiving data.
The end product will be comparable to a regular connection to a classroom on the I.S.U.
grid (120 V AC at 60 Hz).
Limitations:



The budget of $400 leaves little room for any equipment malfunctions so our group
must be completely knowledgeable of the system and its mechanical limitations.
The budget does not allow proper funding for field testing the equipment in its intended
environment, mounted to the top of Coover Hall.
There is a lack of documentation (schematics, wiring diagrams, and system manual) of
the previous group’s work.
VIII. Expected End Product:
Control Interface:

We will be expanding on the previous groups control interface to include motor control
that will accurately simulate wind speed. This interface will be programmed in LabView
and will be used to control and monitor the entire system.
Variable Load:

We will be creating a variable load to connect to our power generation system in order
to simulate the system being connected to a real grid. This grid will have voltage and
current sensors so it can report back to our interface the amount of power being used
and the power output can be adjusted accordingly.
Wind Turbine Mount:

A new mounting system will be designed in order to stabilize the system and avoid
damage to the turbine and the motor. This will involve a thicker base that will solve the
problem of the previous group having the base bow down making the system
unbalanced. It will also include a stabilization plate that will decrease the vibrations that
Page | 6
the turbine receives from the motor increasing efficiency and avoiding damage to the
system.
User Manual:

IX.
We will be creating a user manual that will help future groups and other users become
acquainted with the setup more quickly. This will save others time and hopefully avoid
future mistakes.
Proposed Approach:
Functional Requirements:






FR01
FR02
FR03
FR04
The turbine will generate a 24V DC output.
The turbine will generate a 400W peak output.
The test-bed connection will serve to simulate the load.
The motor will simulate outdoor wind speed in real-time with our external
sensor.
FR05 The wind turbine will supply a load after charging the batteries to full.
FR06 The user interface will display accurate measurements of relevant data.
Constraints Considerations:

We are limited by what the previous group had done, and our understanding of what
they were attempting. We will also be limited by other senior design groups
implementing portions of our project necessities. We will not be able to replace the
expensive components of the project, so some expansion limitations exist.
Technology Considerations:

We must all be comfortable with our LabvVIEW environment. All group members need
to have a thorough understanding of the LabVIEW code and diagrams. We do not know
the output of our outdoor wind speed sensor, so when we need it we may need to do
conversion to get it working with our system.
Technology Approach Considerations:

We will be doing any technical approach decisions internally.
Testing Requirements Considerations:

Testing will be required in every step of our project because we have multiple systems
that will not work outside of small tolerances. We will be designing several tests to
check individual components and the system as a whole.
Page | 7

Wind Turbine Testing - We will use the wind turbine manual to verify all the
functionality the manufacturer recommends.

Battery Charge Testing - We will be verifying the battery bank can be fully charged, and
the batteries properly charge and discharge.

Inverter Functionality Testing - We will be verifying the inverter turns on at the
recommended voltage in the factory manual, and also checking the voltage points at
which the inverter will give warnings for out of range voltages. We will also be checking
the inverter is supplying enough voltage to power the load we are using.

LabVIEW Motor Control Testing - The wind turbing will be powered by a motor. This
motor output will be controlled by LabVIEW and automated through sensor data. We
must first verify that LabVIEW can control the motors power supply and adjust motor
speed in small increments

Sensor Data Testing - The automation of our system relies on various sensor inputs in
LabVIEW. We will need to check all sensors are reporting reliable data over the entire
range of outputs we can have in our simulations.
Security Considerations:

The security concern for our project is the location. Our project is in a lab that will be
frequently used by other students, and tampering is very harmful to our projects
reliability, and reproducibility.
Safety Considerations:

There are many safety issues we need to address. The turbine will need to be better
secured with safety switches to cutoff power.
Intellectual Property Considerations:

All intellectual property is shared with the team/university/advisor.
Commercialization Considerations:

This project will not be commercialized it is an academic research project.
Possible Risks and Risk Management:

Working with high voltage there is always the risk of shock. There is also the risk of high
speed moving parts becoming unstable. We will be designing systems to cut power and
stop the spinning machines quickly and safely.
Page | 8
Project Proposed Milestones and Evaluation Criteria:

Our project will have weekly reports to our Faculty Advisor who will be addressing
concerns he has in our project. We will be evaluated by our Faculty Advisor and the
goals he has for the project.
Project Tracking Procedures:

X.
We will be tracking our individual efforts, as well as our team goals based on our
scheduling. We have determined points at which we will work in two smaller teams to
speed up decision making and fabrication when having a large group would be
inefficient. We will also be tracked by our advisor on a weekly schedule to ensure we
are at appropriate points in the project.
Statement of Work:
Task 1




- Familiarize with Project
Subtask 1a - Meet with previous senior design group and Dr. Ajjarapu.
Task Objective: Become familiar with current setup and how it should operate.
Task Approach: Meet with Brandon Janssen to view current setup. Analyze the wiring to
understand how everything is hooked up. Introduced to GUI.
Task Expected Results: Group is familiar with current setup and any issues we must
initially address.
Task 2 - Initial System Testing
 Task Objective: Test current setup to find any issues we must address.
 Task Approach: Attempt to operate the current setup and view the GUI to familiarize
ourselves with how everything should work. Apply load once the battery bank is
charged.
 Task Expected Results: System works as intended with no initial issues to address.
Task 3 - Draft Project Plan
 Task Objective: Create a draft project plan in PowerPoint for class presentation.
 Task Approach: Group meeting to address all requirements for draft project plan. Once
requirements are decided each section will be typed and added to PowerPoint for
presentation.
 Task Expected Results: Draft project plan complete and presented in class.
Task 4 - Project Plan
 Task Objective: Create project plan document with all requirements addressed.
 Task Approach: Group meeting to setup Google document allowing all group members
to work on project plan. Once Google document is created a final document will be
created in Microsoft Word
 Task Expected Results: Final project plan document will be completed with all
requirements addressed.
Page | 9
Task 5 - Website Building
 Task Objective: Create a project website that can be updated throughout semester.
 Task Approach: Use premade template and link to our network space. Link files to
hyperlinks. Include weekly reports, final project plan, etc.
 Task Expected Results: Website created allowing easy updating when needed and
access to information about project.
Task 6 - Familiarize with GUI
 Task Objective: Understand LabVIEW and the programming behind the GUI.
 Task Approach: View forums on National Instruments website. Play around with
tutorials in LabVIEW. Direct contact with engineers from National Instruments. Review
book on LabVIEW.
 Task Expected Results: Fully understand current GUI as well as improvements needed.
Task 7 - Procure Equipment
 Task Objective: Obtain materials needed to construct new test bench.
 Task Approach: Upon department approval, obtain materials for new test bench.
Materials will be gathered from ECpE department as well as local businesses such as
Lowes.
 Task Expected Results: All new materials will be procured allowing new design of test
bench.
Task 8 - Constructing New Test Bench
 Task Objective: New test bench is constructed using materials procured.
 Task Approach: Once materials obtained new test bench is built according to new
design. Run new system testing to test reliability of new setup.
 Task Expected Results: New test bench is constructed allowing more reliable system
testing.
Task 9 - Final Design Document
 Task Objective: Create final design document for final presentation.
 Task Approach: Adding on to final project plan with new additions addressing final
requirements of project.
 Task Expected Results: Final design document created and turned in to senior design
board at end of the second semester.
Task 10 - Load Improvement
 Task Objective: Rebuild current load setup while adding an emergency load.
 Task Approach: Pulling apart previous load and creating a system that can account for
multiple adjustments.
 Task Expected Results: More efficient reliable load while also adding an emergency
load.
Task 11 - Wind Sensor Implementation
 Task Objective: Simulate wind conditions outside using wind sensors.
Page | 10

Task Approach: Receive data via wireless signal to LabVIEW. Use data to simulate pitch
control for changing wind speeds.
Task Expected Results: Turbine adjusts properly for changing wind speeds to prevent
damage to turbine.

Task 12 - Technical Manual
 Task Objective: Create technical manual for future senior design groups continuing this
project.
 Task Approach: Work with English 314 class in constructing a technically sound
document. Setup meetings with group from 314 to ensure proper steps are accounted
for.
 Task Expected Results: Technically sound manual created for future senior design
groups continuing this project.
XI.
Estimated Resources:
Estimated Individual Team Member Effort (hours)
Task:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Totals
Team Member:
Andrew Nigro
Chad Hand
Luke Rupiper
Ryan Semler
Shonda Butler
7
6
7
6
7
2
5
5
3
3
3
3
5
5
5
5
16
3
6
5
Totals
42
22
18
25
2
4
6
2
10
2
2
2
2
6
2
8
8
8
12
5
5
5
5
8
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
4
2
4
2
55
48
50
51
2
2
8
5
3
10
2
62
18
14
44
25
20
18
14
266
Figure 1. Estimated Individual Team Member Effort
Required Resources
Parts and Materials:
Team
Hours
Other
Hours
Cost without
Labor
Cost with Labor
($20/hr)
$700
$1,400
$100
$700
$1,400
$100
$170
$170
Purchased by Phase I:
Turbine- Air X 400
Inverter-Outback GTFX2524
Battery Bank
NI USB-6008
current
price
guess
current
price
Page | 11
Purchased by Phase II:
Coupling
Current Transducer
Stop Switch
Kikusui Power Supply
3-phase AC Motor
$112
$21
$16
Borrowed
$112
$21
$16
$0
Borrowed
$0
Phase III Estimates:
Mounting Platform:
Sturdy Building Material
Brackets and Mounting Material
Wire Encasing Material
Load Platform
Wire
RPM Sensor
Printing Costs
Services:
44
$880
$40
$20
$20
$20
$10
$10
20
5
40
$420
$110
$810
$15
Wind Sensor- Other Senior Design Group (Dec 10-05)
Technical Manual- Engl 314 Group
Knowledge of Project- Dr. Ajjarapu
2
20
30
$40
$400
$600
Knowledge of Project-Previous Senior Design Team
member
Turbine Expertise- National Instruments Forums
Totals:
2
1
55
$40
$0
5819
109
2654
Figure 2. Required Resources
Page | 12
XII. Schedules:
Our project schedule includes specific tasks and deadlines that designate how we manage
time throughout the duration of the project. Each task has a specific task leader whose purpose is
to understand each item, designate roles, and verify the scope of the task has been fulfilled. A
Gantts chart helps compare our anticipated progress to the actual progress being made on each
task item.
Project Schedule
TEAM NAME:
PROJECT MEMBERS:
PROJECT TITLE:
SDMAY1101
Andrew Nigro , Shonda Butler, Ryan Semler, Chad Hand, Luke Rupiper
Wind Turbine Design and Simulation
ANTICIPATED TASK DEADLINES, WORK LOAD, TASK LEADER, AND TASK DESCRIPTIONS
TASK START
9/9/2010
9/15/2010
9/21/2010
9/21/2010
9/28/2010
9/15/2010
10/7/2010
10/14/2010
10/14/2010
1/10/2011
1/10/2011
9/9/2010
TASK DEADLINE
9/23/2010
10/14/2010
9/28/2010
10/14/2010
10/8/2010
12/13/2010
12/13/2010
11/14/2010
12/3/2010
3/11/2010
3/11/2010
3/11/2010
TASK #
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
WORK LOAD
TASK LEADER
Shonda/Andrew
Ryan
Luke/Shonda
ALL
Ryan
Chad
Andrew
Ryan
ALL
Andrew
Shonda
Chad
TASK DESCRIPTION
Familiarize with project
Initial system testing
Draft Project Plan
Project Plan
Website Building
Familiarize with GUI
Procure Equipment
Constructing new test bench
Final Design Document
Load improvement
Wind sensor implementation
Technical Manual
Figure 3. Project Schedule
Page | 13
Actual TASK 12
Anticipated TASK 12
Actual TASK 11
Anticipated TASK 11
Actual TASK 10
Anticipated TASK 10
Actual TASK 9
Anticipated TASK 9
Actual TASK 8
Anticipated TASK 8
Actual TASK 7
Anticipated TASK 7
Actual TASK 6
Anticipated TASK 6
Actual TASK 5
Anticipated TASK 5
Actual TASK 4
Anticipated TASK 4
Actual TASK 3
Anticipated TASK 3
Actual TASK 2
Anticipated TASK 2
Actual TASK 1
Anticipated TASK 1
PROJECT TIMELINE
Figure 4: Project Timeline
Page | 14
WK2
8/30-9/4
WK1
8/23-8/28
9/6-9/11
WK3
9/13-9/18
WK4
9/20-9/25
WK5
9/27-10/2
WK6
10/4-10/9
WK7
WK9
WK10
10/11-10/16 10/18-10/23 10/25-10/30
WK8
11/1-11/6
WK11
11/8-11/13
WK12
11/15-11/20
WK13
Break
11/22-11/27
WK14
11/29-12/4
WK15
Week
WK17
12/6-12/11 12/13-12/18
WK16
XIII. Project Team Information:
Client:

Iowa State University : Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Faculty Advisor:
 Dr. Venkataramana Ajjarapu
1122 Coover Hall
Ames, IA 50011-3060
Phone #: (515) 294-7687
vajjarp@iastate.edu
http://www.ece.iastate.edu/who-we-are/faculty-and-staff/facultynew/index/detail/abc/289.html
Student Team:

Andrew Nigro
Electrical Engineering
2129 Sunset Dr
Ames, IA 50014-7074
Cell: (402) 917-4753
Email: anigro@iastate.edu

Chad Hand
Electrical Engineering
3114 Woodland Street
Ames, IA 50014-7074
Cell: (563) 210-6631
Email: chand@iastate.edu

Luke Rupiper
Electrical Engineering
2506 Lincoln Way Unit 22
Ames, IA 50014
Cell: (612) 840-4465
Email: lrupiper@iastate.edu

Ryan Semler
Electrical Engineering
1005 Pinon Dr Unit 3
Ames, IA 50014-7944
Cell: (515) 451-9336
Email: rsemler@iastate.edu

Shonda Butler
Electrical Engineering
1317 Roosevelt Ave
Ames, IA 50010
Cell: (210) 834-6114
Email: sbutler@iastate.edu
Figure 5: Project Team Information
Page | 15
XIV. Closing Summary:
The United States continues to increase its electrical consumption and recently has
stressed the need for solutions from renewable resources. Our project focuses on the electrical
needs of Iowa State University and aims at taking advantage of an abundance of wind energy in
the Iowa area. By creating a simulated environment, we can work in a controlled laboratory to test
load control with a wind turbine. Our goal is to improve the previous system by using real -time
wind data to control our turbine. If we can accurately monitor the output of turbine and control its
ability to feed a load, future groups will be able to easily use our sys tem and interface to design
other wind turbine systems for campus buildings.
Page | 16
XV. Appendices:
A-1:



Wind Turbine Manual:
http://www.windenergy.com/documents/manuals/3-CMLT1004_REV_E_AIR_X_OWNERS_MANUAL.pdf
Wind Turbine Specification Sheet:
http://www.windenergy.com/documents/spec_sheets/3-CMLT-133901_Air_X_Spec.pdf
Wind Turbine Wire Sizing:
http://www.windenergy.com/documents/misc/AirX_wire_sizing.pdf
A-2:

Inverter Manual:
http://www.outbackpower.com/pdf/manuals/gtfx_gvfx.pdf
A-3:

Labview USB-6008 DAC:
http://www.ni.com/pdf/manuals/371303l.pdf
A-4:

Labview Manual:
http://www.ni.com/pdf/manuals/320999e.pdf
Page | 17