Characterizing the Wind of the San Joaquin Valley
Format
SOECS Senior Project Demonstration
Faculty Mentor Name
Rahim Khoie
Faculty Mentor Department
School of Engineering and Computer Science
Abstract/Artist Statement
The purpose of this project is to characterize the wind for the San Joaquin Valley. Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into useable forms such as electricity through the use of wind turbines. Wind power is a clean, renewable, and sustainable source of energy that consumes no fuel for continual operation, unlike fossil fuel. In order to take advantage of the wind and the potential that it provides, the potential of the wind in the area must be known. The objectives in this project included (i) designing and constructing a self sustainable prototype to measure wind speed and direction, (ii) adapting wireless capabilities to transmit data from the prototype to a fixed location, (iii) presenting the data in a friendly graphical user interface, and (iv) interpreting the final results.The project was implemented using a three cup and vane anemometer system that has two internal reed switches that send electrical pulses when a magnet passes over each switch. The speed was calculated using the rate at which the pulses occurred during one complete revolution of the cups in reference to one of the reed switches. The direction was based on the phase delay between the two switch occurrences. The electrical pulses were processed through an Arduino Pro microcontroller board to calculate the speed and direction. The data was then transmitted via Bluetooth to a computer to display the data in a graphical user interface. The system was powered by an external battery and charged by a solar panel.
Location
School of Engineering & Computer Science
Start Date
30-4-2011 2:00 PM
End Date
30-4-2011 3:30 PM
Characterizing the Wind of the San Joaquin Valley
School of Engineering & Computer Science
The purpose of this project is to characterize the wind for the San Joaquin Valley. Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into useable forms such as electricity through the use of wind turbines. Wind power is a clean, renewable, and sustainable source of energy that consumes no fuel for continual operation, unlike fossil fuel. In order to take advantage of the wind and the potential that it provides, the potential of the wind in the area must be known. The objectives in this project included (i) designing and constructing a self sustainable prototype to measure wind speed and direction, (ii) adapting wireless capabilities to transmit data from the prototype to a fixed location, (iii) presenting the data in a friendly graphical user interface, and (iv) interpreting the final results.The project was implemented using a three cup and vane anemometer system that has two internal reed switches that send electrical pulses when a magnet passes over each switch. The speed was calculated using the rate at which the pulses occurred during one complete revolution of the cups in reference to one of the reed switches. The direction was based on the phase delay between the two switch occurrences. The electrical pulses were processed through an Arduino Pro microcontroller board to calculate the speed and direction. The data was then transmitted via Bluetooth to a computer to display the data in a graphical user interface. The system was powered by an external battery and charged by a solar panel.