KR20140030253A - High voltage energy harvesting and conversion renewable energy utility size electric power systems and visual monitoring and control systems - Google Patents

Abstract

A renewable energy utility scale power system is provided having a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network connected to a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system by a direct current link. The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network includes a distributed renewable energy power optimizer and transmitter that controls the transfer of renewable energy to a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system. A virtual emulsion monitoring and control system is provided for three-dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display, command and control environments.

Description

HIGH VOLTAGE ENERGY HARVESTING AND CONVERSION RENEWABLE ENERGY UTILITY SIZE ELECTRIC POWER SYSTEMS AND VISUAL MONITORING AND CONTROL SYSTEMS}

The present invention relates to a utility scale power system of renewable energy, and more particularly to a visual for such a system where a combination of high voltage energy harvesting and conversion renewable energy collection and conversion systems, and DC-DC conversion is used. It relates to a monitoring and control system.

The term "renewable energy power system" as used herein refers to a plurality of interconnected wind turbines that form a plurality of interconnected photovoltaic modules or wind farms or power plants to form a solar farm or power plant. A utility scale power system using a generator.

A utility scale (output capacity ranging from 5 to 100 megawatts (MWe)) photovoltaic power systems, such as photovoltaic modules that supply DC power to a co-located DC-AC inverter that converts DC power to AC power. And a plurality of solar power collectors.

Utility scale wind power systems include a number of electrically interconnected wind turbine generators. The wind turbine driven generator assembly may be a wind turbine with an output shaft suitably connected to an electrical generator. Various types of generator systems can be connected to the wind turbine. One such system is known as a type 4 industrial designated wind turbine generator power system, which is a synchronous permanent with variable frequency, variable voltage output supplied to a rectifier with a rectified output DC link to a DC-AC inverter. It is a magnet generator. The inverter output current is then converted through a line converter that converts the inverter output voltage level to a grid voltage level.

For solar or wind renewable energy utility scale power systems, power system components are spread out over much more land than conventional residential or commercial scale power plants, and thus are the typical one line used in conventional scale power plants. The challenge was the physical visualization and control of the power system beyond the central control panel.

One object of the present invention is a monitoring and control system for a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network in combination with a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system in which renewable energy harvesting is distributed and power optimized within the harvesting network by a combination of DC-DC converters. To provide.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a visual monitoring and control system for high voltage energy harvesting and utility scale renewable energy systems in combination with a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a power collection, conversion, It is to provide a monitoring and control system.

In one aspect, the invention is a renewable energy utility scale power system. The system includes a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system. The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network has a plurality of strings of renewable energy collectors, each string having a DC output, and a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers are distributed throughout the harvest network. Each renewable energy power optimizer has at least one energy collector string power optimizer input coupled to at least one DC output of the plurality of renewable energy collector strings. Each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has a high voltage DC output connected to the system DC link. The plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters are a combination of providing a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to the system DC link with a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical ground of the system DC link. Are arranged. The central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system has a plurality of grid inverter package modules that are connected to the system DC link and can be connected to a high voltage electrical grid.

In another aspect, the invention is a renewable energy utility scale power system. The system includes a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network; Central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system; And a virtual emulsion monitoring system and a central control system for monitoring and controlling a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system. The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network has a string of a plurality of renewable energy collectors, each string having a DC output, and a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters. Each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and the transmitter has at least one string power optimizer input coupled to at least one DC output of the strings of the plurality of renewable energy collectors. The plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters are arranged in a combination that provides a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to the system DC link with a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical ground of the system DC link. do. The grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system is connected to the system DC link and has a plurality of grid inverter package modules.

In another aspect, the present invention is a method for harvesting, converting, monitoring, and controlling renewable energy from a utility scale renewable energy system. The renewable energy system includes a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network. The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network includes a plurality of renewable energy collector strings, each of the plurality of renewable energy collectors having a DC output. The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network also includes a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters. Each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and the transmitter has at least one string power optimizer input coupled to at least one DC output of the strings of the plurality of renewable energy collectors. The plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters are arranged in a combination that provides a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to the system DC link with a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical ground of the system DC link. do. The renewable energy system also includes a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system connected to the system DC link and having a plurality of grid inverter package modules. In the present invention, the virtual emulsion monitoring of the high voltage renewable energy harvesting network is performed in a 3D visually oriented virtual reality display environment, and the high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and the central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system are a 3D visually oriented virtual reality display environment. In communication with the central control.

These and other aspects of the invention are further described herein and in the appended claims.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, presently preferred forms are shown in the drawings. However, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.
1 is a simple one-line block diagram of one example of a renewable energy utility scale power system for the collection and conversion of solar energy and one example of the present monitoring and control system for the power system.
2A is a diagram of one example of a solar energy optimizer and transmitter that may be used in the present invention.
2B is another illustration of one example of a solar energy optimizer and transmitter that may be used in the present invention.
3A is a diagram of one example of a resonant DC-DC converter that may be used in the solar energy optimizer and transmitter shown in FIG. 2A.
FIG. 3B is a diagram of one example of a resonant DC-DC converter that may be used in the solar energy optimizer and transmitter shown in FIG. 2B.
4 shows the waveform of the inverter current near the resonance of the resonant DC-DC converter shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B when the photovoltaic string voltage connected to the input of the DC-DC converter is low.
FIG. 5 shows the waveform of the inverter current out of resonance of the resonant DC-DC converter shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B when the photovoltaic string voltage connected to the input of the DC-DC converter is high.
6 is an example of an interconnection between a solar farm's photovoltaic module and solar energy optimizer and transmitter used in the present invention.
7 is a simple black and white rendition of one three-dimensional visual display frame in the three-dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment of the present invention.
8 is a simple one-line block diagram of one example of a renewable energy utility scale power system for the collection and conversion of wind power and one example of the present monitoring and control system for the power system.

1 is a simple one-line block diagram of one example of a renewable energy utility scale power system for the collection and conversion of solar energy, and one example of the present monitoring and control system for the power system. In this example, a high voltage, photovoltaic energy collection (also called "harvest") network 12; A central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system 14; And an optional virtual immersion monitoring and control system 16. A step-up transformer 18 electrically isolates the output of the inverter in the Grid Inverter Package Module (GRP) module 14a-14d from the high voltage electrical grid.

High voltage photovoltaic energy harvesting networks and central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter systems are further described in US Pat. No. 8,130,518.

The virtual emulsion detection and control system includes a Virtual Immersion Equipment Watchdog (VIEW) module 16a and a central control module 16b.

One example of a Solar Power Optimizer and Transmitter (hereinafter referred to as SPOT) that can be used in the high voltage photovoltaic energy collection network 12 of FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 2A. The SPOT 20 of FIG. 2A includes a plurality of DC-DC converters 20a (four in this example); A processor 20b (represented in this example by a microprocessor μP); And a transceiver 20c (represented in this example as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) with a transmit / receive antenna 20c '.

In FIG. 2A four DC-DC converters convert the variable photovoltaic "string" voltage and current into a fixed, high voltage in parallel (eg, 1,250 volts DC). In this example, the positive outputs of the two converters are connected together in parallel and the negative outputs of the other two converters are connected together in parallel as shown in FIG. 2A. The remaining four outputs of the four converters are commonly connected together as shown in FIG. 2A to form a common (neutral) circuit. The parallel positive and negative outputs of the converter are at a high DC voltage (eg 2.5 kV DC) that is twice the output voltage of each DC-DC converter (eg 1.25 kV DC) (eg DC link bus in FIGS. 1 and 2A). Connected in series with the system DC link (identified by 22) (clamped). One-Line Diagram Referring again to FIG. 1, a plurality of solar power optimizers and transmitters (shown in FIG. 2A) may be connected to a plurality of photovoltaic modules 30. Thus, the combination of the four DC-DC converters of FIG. 2A can be described as a first pair of converters on the right side of the figure and a second pair of converters on the left side of the figure, wherein the positive output of the first pair of converters The connection forms a single positive high voltage DC output; The negative output connections of the second pair of converters form a single negative high voltage DC output; And the negative output connection of the first pair of converters together with the positive output connection of the second pair of converters form a single neutral connection to the common of the system DC link. In another example of the present invention, any even DC-DC converter is single with a single amount of high voltage DC output with a single neutral connection to a system DC link similar to that described above for the four DC-DC converter examples. It can be arranged with interconnected outputs to achieve a negative high voltage DC output.

3A is one simple example of a DC-DC converter that may be used in the solar power optimizer and transmitter 20 shown in FIG. 2A. Each DC-DC converter consists of two parts: a series resonant full bridge inverter 20a '(shown in this example as semiconductor switching devices Q1 to Q4) and a combination output filter and a single commutator section 20a ". Isolated from each other via a high frequency (range of 10 kHz to 20 kHz) transformer Tx The power drawn from the input photovoltaic string source at terminals 1 and 2 changes with the operating frequency of the inverter. The voltage E is measured by the processor 20b of Fig. 2A, which adjusts the operating frequency of the inverter so that the DC-DC converter operates at the maximum power point value. It changes around the resonance value determined by the values of the inductor Ltank and capacitor Ctank of Fig. 3A, which form a resonant loop. Draws more current from the string, which lowers the photovoltaic string voltage As described in more detail below, one of the functions of the processor 20b is to convert the mathematical product of the photovoltaic string voltage and current to the maximum power point. 4 shows the inverter output current near the resonance value when the input photovoltaic string voltage is low, and FIG. 5 shows the inverter current deviating from the resonance value when the photovoltaic string voltage is high.

The processor 20b may be a microprocessor in communication with an I / O device that senses string voltage and current at the input to each DC-DC converter 20a. The processor monitors the string voltage and current at the input of each converter and executes the computer code for the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to harvest the maximum power from each string of photovoltaic modules. To control the operation. For example, this algorithm may include a "disturb and observe" subroutine in which the operating frequency of the DC-DC converter changes only a small amount, and the MPPT algorithm uses the power harvested according to frequency perturbation. Determine if it is increased or decreased.

The transceiver 20c transmits power system data to the virtual emulsion monitoring and control system if used in certain examples of the invention. Power system data include: string voltage magnitude; String current magnitude; String power size; SPOT output current magnitude; SPOT operating temperature; And SPOT operating state data such as whether the SPOT is operating at full maximum input power from all input photovoltaic strings or at a limited maximum input power from at least some input photovoltaic strings. The transceiver 20c receives power system limit command data and power system data that may include a power system on or off state or control. For example, the power system on / off state may be determined by detecting whether a particular DC-DC converter is in an operating oscillation state (power system on). Remote power system on or off commands (from the central control module) can be used to facilitate maintenance of the SPOT. One way the transceiver 20c transmits and receives is via a mesh radio system.

FIG. 2B illustrates an alternative solar power optimizer and transmitter (SPOT) used in some examples of the high voltage photovoltaic energy collection network 12 of FIG. 1. The SPOT 25 of FIG. 2B includes a plurality of double commutator DC-DC converters 25a (four in this example); A processor 20b (represented in this example by a microprocessor μP); And a transceiver 20c (represented in this example as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) with a transmit / receive antenna 20c '.

In FIG. 2B four double commutator DC-DC converters convert the variable photovoltaic "string" voltage and current into a fixed, high voltage in parallel (eg, 1,250 volts DC). In this example, as shown in FIG. 2B, the four positive outputs of the converter are connected together in parallel to form a connection to the positive DC link and the four negative outputs of the converter are parallel together. Are connected to form a connection to the negative DC link. The remaining eight outputs of the four converters are commonly connected together as shown in FIG. 2B to form a common connection to the electrical neutral (common). The parallel positive and negative outputs of the converter are at a high DC voltage (eg, 2.5 kV DC) that is twice the output voltage (eg, 1.25 kV DC) of each DC-DC converter (eg DC link bus in FIGS. 1 and 2B). Connected in parallel with the DC link (identified by 22) (clamped). One-Line Diagram Referring again to FIG. 1, a plurality of solar power optimizers and transmitters (shown in FIG. 2B) may be connected to a plurality of photovoltaic modules 30. Thus, the combination of four DC-DC converters of FIG. 2B can be described as a combination of four DC-DC converters, with each converter having a pair of commutators marked as positive commutator (REC2) and negative commutator (REC1). Positive outputs of all positive commutators are connected together to form a single positive high voltage DC output; negative outputs of all negative commutators form a single negative high voltage DC output; and positive commutator The negative connection of is coupled together with the positive connection of the negative commutator to form a single neutral connection to the common of the system DC link In another example of the invention, any even DC-DC converter is connected to four DCs. It can be arranged with interconnected outputs to achieve a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output with a single neutral connection to the system DC link similar to that described above for the DC converter example.

FIG. 3B is one simple example of a double commutator DC-DC converter that may be used in the solar power optimizer and transmitter 25 shown in FIG. 2B. Each DC-DC converter consists of two parts: a series resonant full bridge inverter 25a 'and a combination 2 output (double or pair) commutator and filter section 25a ". These are high frequency (ranges from 10 kHz to 20 kHz) transformers. The power withdrawn from the input photovoltaic string source at terminals 1 and 2 changes with the operating frequency of the inverter, input current Idc and voltage E are shown in FIG. Measured by 20b), the processor adjusts the operating frequency of the inverter to cause the DC-DC converter to operate at the maximum power point value The operating frequency of the input inverter of the converter is the inductor Ltank of Figure 3b forming a series resonant loop. And near the resonance value determined by the value of the capacitor Ctank. As the operating frequency approaches the resonance point, the inverter draws more current from the input photovoltaic string, Lowers the photovoltaic string voltage, as described in more detail below, one of the functions of the processor 20b is to maintain the mathematical product of the photovoltaic string voltage and current at the maximum power point value. The inverter output current near the resonance value when the input photovoltaic string voltage is low, and FIG. 5 shows the inverter current deviated from the resonance value when the photovoltaic string voltage is high.

The control of the DC-DC converter used in FIGS. 2A, 2B, 3A, and 3B is controlled by the inverter controller by changing the rectification frequency of the switching device (semiconductors Q1 to Q4 in this example) used in the inverter section of the DC-DC converter. Can be performed.

Alternatively, control of the DC-DC converter can be performed by the inverter controller by varying the conduction duration of the switching device used in the inverter section of the DC-DC converter during each time while keeping it fixed near the resonant frequency.

Alternatively, the control of the DC-DC converter may be performed by a combination of changing the commutation frequency of the inverter switching device and changing the conduction duration of the inverter switching device. That is, the converter control can be performed by changing the rectified frequency of the inverter switching device in the first range and changing the conduction duration of the inverter switching device for each time while keeping the rectified frequency fixed in the second range. The variable frequency range is near the resonant frequency, while the variable duration of the fixed frequency and the conduction time of the inverter switching device is far from resonance.

In one example of the invention using the solar power optimizer and transmitter shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, each photovoltaic string 31 may include 20 to 25 photovoltaic modules. The output of each string is typically between 1 and 10 amp DC (at 400 to 1,000 volts DC), depending on solar energy system parameters such as solar dosage, shadow, or environmental degradation. A cluster of four photovoltaic module strings is shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B to calculate a "watts per input string" between approximately 200 and 6,250 for a maximum value of approximately 25,000 watts for each SPOT with four string inputs. As shown, it may be connected to a single SPOT.

One example of interconnecting a renewable energy utility scale power system using the solar power optimizer and transmitter of the present invention is shown in FIG. 6. The maximum number of, for example, twenty solar power optimizers and transmitters may each share the SPOT "horizontal" buses 21a, 21b, 21c ... 21x shown in FIG. For example, has a horizontal bus SPOT (21a) is 20 solar power optimizer and a transceiver coupled to the bus (21a ₁ to 21a _20). These interconnected twenty solar power optimizers and transmitters, and photovoltaic modules connected to these twenty solar power optimizers and transmitters, are photovoltaic energy harvesting arrays 21 representing a portion of the high voltage, the light shown schematically in FIG. A power generation energy collection network 12 can be included and can yield up to 500 kW from solar radiation. The photovoltaic energy harvesting array 21 may include four (photovoltaic) strings of photovoltaic modules connected to each of the 20 solar power optimizers and transmitters in the photovoltaic energy harvesting array 21, each photovoltaic power generation. The string consists of approximately 20 to 25 photovoltaic modules connected in series. The combination of four photovoltaic strings of photovoltaic modules can be equivalent to a photovoltaic "cluster" of approximately 80 to 100 modules, with 20 solar power optimizers and transmitters in photovoltaic energy harvesting array 21. In total, 1,600 to 2,000 photovoltaic modules are connected to the SPOT horizontal bus 21a. Each of the other photovoltaic energy harvesting arrays, including SPOT horizontal buses 21b ... 21x (where "x" is the variable representing the last bus and array comprising photovoltaic collection network 23), may also be solar radiation. ; Up to 500 kW can be calculated from photovoltaic strings connected to solar power optimizers and transmitters in other arrays not shown in FIG. 6. Each SPOT horizontal bus is a SPOT vertical bus (26a, 26b, 26c ... 26x in FIG. 6) up to grid inverter package modules 14a, 14b, 14c and 14d in a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system 14, respectively. Is connected to. This practical arrangement measures the size of the conductors that form each of the SPOT vertical buses with a maximum current capacity of 200 amps DC, based on a maximum of 10 amps DC supplied by an array of photovoltaic modules connected to each solar power optimizer and transmitter. Will limit.

 The central control module 16b of FIG. 1 collects data transmitted from circuits communicating between a plurality of solar power optimizers and transmitters, inverter modules in a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system, and respective SPOTs; Communicating with the grid inverter package module 14a-14d, preferably by a secure data link 17 (shown in dashed line in FIG. 1), such as secure Ethernet; Communicating with a three-dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment if used in certain examples of the invention, such as via a VIEW computer system; Monitoring the high voltage (HV) electrical grid voltage injected by the central inverter system into the grid; And monitoring the voltage on the DC link 22 between the harvesting system 12 and the conversion system 14; The set DC input current magnitude is a set of DC input current magnitudes delivered to each grid inverter package module that is set to match the request by the conversion system 14 and the supply of current calculated by the harvesting system 12. To control; And circuitry for transmitting and receiving power system data, such as controlling the phase of AC current injected into the grid relative to the phase of the AC grid voltage.

In one example of the invention, the energy conversion system 14 includes a plurality of grid inverter package modules. Although four grid inverter package modules 14a-14d are shown for the system example of FIGS. 1 and 6, the total grid inverter package module ranges from 3 to 40 in another system example of the present invention. The grid inverter package module converts the grid inverter package rated output (2500 kW in the example of FIG. 1) from DC to AC; Transmit (report) grid inverter package operating parameters to a central control module and a three-dimensional visually oriented display environment (eg, a VIEW computer); Circuitry for receiving operating parameters from the central control module, such as the output phase angle and the set DC input current magnitude set point of the grid in-buffer package, as described in the preceding paragraph. The operating parameters transmitted are DC input current to the grid inverter package module; AC output phase current from the grid inverter package module; AC output phase voltage from the grid inverter package module; AC output power from the grid inverter package module; Output frequency from the grid inverter package module; The temperature of the coolant (if used) in the grid inverter package module cooling subsystem; And the selected grid inverter package circuit component temperature.

In one example of the present invention, the virtual emulsion monitoring system collects harvesting system information; Represent harvest information collected using three-dimensional virtual reality as detailed below; A three-dimensional, visually oriented virtual reality display environment that includes a VIEW computer system that predicts power output for injection into a grid based on available string radiation for a solar energy renewable power system.

A key element of the virtual emulsion monitoring system of the present invention is shown in FIG. 7, which is a simplified black and white illustration of a three-dimensional image of a partial display of a high voltage photovoltaic energy collection network on a VIEW computer visual display unit. In this figure, the photovoltaic module 30 constituting the photovoltaic string is visualized against an installed dynamic external environment, including, for example, dynamic real time cloud shading of the component. The relative position of the SPOT 20 or 25 together with the photovoltaic string connected to the input of the SPOT 20 or 25, and the conductor 91 from the DC link 22 to which the output of the SPOT 20 or 25 is connected. Is shown. Each SPOT has four connections for photovoltaic string input at the top of the enclosure as shown in FIG. 7 and input and output conductors at either the bottom of the SPOT enclosure, or at the sides of the SPOT enclosure as shown in FIG. It can be enclosed in an approximately 12 × 12 × 6 inch enclosure with three paths through (positive, negative, and neutral (common), as shown in FIG. 2A or 2B). Each photovoltaic cluster of the photovoltaic module is installed on one structural support rack that can serve as a mounting structure (either on the side or the bottom of the rack) for the solar power optimizer and transmitter associated with the photovoltaic cluster. Can be. The color coding elements, cloud visualizations, and other display elements of the visual emulsion surveillance system described below are all three-dimensional images of the power system provided on the VIEW computer visual display unit as one member of the three-dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment. Is achieved within.

Two typical examples of the virtual emulsion monitoring and control system of the present invention for solar power generation are provided. One example uses a fixed tilt tracking photovoltaic array and another example uses a dual axis tracking photovoltaic array as shown by pedestal 31 in FIG. 1. Precise three-dimensional depictions of solar farm locations are integrated into the VIEW computer display model. The operator's screen of the VIEW computer display model may be provided on a suitable computer visual output device, such as a video monitor, from the virtual camera screen moving unconstrained through the three-dimensional space. The operator can control the movement of the camera through the three-dimensional space through a suitable computer input device such as a portable controller, joystick, or trackball. Movement may be made throughout the photovoltaic array and, optionally, movement may be provided within a predetermined three-dimensional space track of the individual components of the solar farm.

The power output of each individual photovoltaic string in the solar farm can be visualized on the VIEW computer visual display unit. Each photovoltaic string may be referenced by the SPOT controlling the string along with the SPOT communication performance data of the string connected with the central control module. Changes in sunlight from morning to night of the sun over the solar farm can provide varying levels of solar radiation for the photovoltaic module, and (if used) will affect the direction in which the dual axis tracker is always perpendicular to the direction of solar radiation. . In one example of this virtual emulsion monitoring system, the magnitude of the power, current, and voltage values may be determined by a VIEW, such as a switching component associated with a photovoltaic module, solar power optimizer and transmitter, interconnect electrical conductor, grid inverter package module. Expressed in the appropriate range of color intensities for the image of the power system component on the computer visual display unit, this color intensity is a function of the magnitude of the power, current, and voltage associated with the power system component.

In one example of the invention, the color coding of the normal output of the photovoltaic string of the module ranges from light shaded blue for strings operating at full power, darker shades of blue for power less than maximum power, And finally a shading of the continuous color spectrum, which may range up to black, for a functional string producing zero power. The color change can be in a linear relationship to the normal power output. Any string that does not generate power due to equipment failure may be visually displayed in red to distinguish it from normal strings that generate zero power. The power system electrical conductors may be displayed in shades of green to indicate the magnitude of the current flowing through the conductors in light green representing high current levels and dark green representing low current levels. Conductors that have experienced a fault or error condition may be shown in red. The enclosure for each SPOT can be displayed in shades of yellow, where the high current level is represented by bright yellow and the low current level is represented by dark yellow. SPOT enclosures with a fault or error condition may be shown in red. Inbuffers, transformers, grid switchgears, and other components can be visually represented in natural colors. The active meter graphic icon may be placed at the appropriate location (eg, at the corner of the visual display) along with the display of real-time total power generation in appropriate units such as kilowatts. The operator controllable visual display pointing icon can be used by the operator to visually display in the meter graphic icon detailed information of the power output and energy generated by the system component, along with a unique identifier, such as a number for the component. .

In a virtual emulsion surveillance system, the image of the cloud can be reconstructed from the shading it produces on the surface of the photovoltaic panel. Shading is detected by a variable reduction in photovoltaic electrical power harvested from a portion of the solar palm.

The system performs the execution of a prediction algorithm that visually displays the system's output power at a near future time (eg, 10 minutes after the present in real time) based on the cloud movement parameters (cloud direction and speed) over that location. It may include.

As one exemplary model of the invention, visualization can be accomplished with a dedicated visual layer on the VIEW computer visual display unit so that the equipment can be activated (eg, the photovoltaic module is transparent), Various stages can be highlighted by turning on or off the selected display layer.

8 is a simple one-line block diagram of one example of the monitoring and control system of the present invention for a renewable energy utility scale power system and power system for the collection and conversion of wind power. The variable frequency AC power produced by the permanent magnet synchronous generator (SG) 50 is rectified by the AC-DC converter 51 and then referred to as the Wind Power Optimizer and Transmitter (WPOT) ( Is applied to the input of 40). Wind optimizers and transmitters apply optimal loads to synchronous generators to operate wind turbines with maximum power point values. The wind optimizer and transmitter 40 are typically four, but not exclusively, four DC-DC converters (or other even DC-DC converters) as shown in FIG. 2A or 2B for the solar power optimizer and transmitter. It is similar to the solar power optimizer and transmitter described above, except that it uses one DC-DC converter (eg, as shown in FIG. 3A or 3B) instead. The output of one or more wind optimizers and converters is a central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system in which the system uses three or more grid inverter package modules, for example four grid inverter package modules 14a-14d shown in FIG. 14 is connected via a high voltage DC link 42.

The virtual emulsion monitoring system, if used in certain examples of the present invention, communicates with one or more wind optimizers and converters and grid inverter package modules to visually depict the operation of the wind farm on the VIEW computer display unit. The three-dimensional visually oriented display environment includes the three-dimensional topographic layer of the wind farm. Comprehensive wind turbine graphics can be used. Depending on the number of turbines, an appropriate number of inverter packages will be selected, each turbine having an output of approximately 1.5 MW and each grid inverter package having a rated power of 2.5 megawatts (MW). The visualization of the virtual emulsion monitoring system will be aligned so that the grid inverter package is in the foreground and the connection to the turbine and inverter system will be clearly shown. The transformer may be located next to the inverter outside the building in which the inverter is placed. The visualization of the output of the wind turbine can be a power meter graphic icon with historical data in numerical or graphical form stacked on a three-dimensional visually oriented display environment as at least real time power output and selection.

An element of a virtual emulsion system described above with respect to a solar energy system is a virtual emulsion system for a wind energy system, unless the element is inherently associated with solar energy and is not specifically addressed for components or functions not related to wind power. Applicable to

The present invention has been described with respect to preferred examples and examples. Unless explicitly stated, equivalents, alternatives, and modifications are possible and are within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (27)

As a utility scale renewable energy power system,
High voltage renewable energy harvesting network; And
A central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system having a plurality of grid inverter package modules;
The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network
A plurality of renewable energy collector strings each having a DC output; And
And a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters,
Each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has at least one string power optimizer input coupled to said DC output of at least one of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings,
Each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has a high voltage DC output coupled to a system DC link,
Each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters is arranged to connect a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical ground of the system DC link,
And wherein each of said plurality of grid inverter package modules has an input coupled to said system DC link. 10. The system of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules, each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters:
At least a pair of DC-DC converters; And
A processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at each of said string inverter inputs of said at least one pair of DC-DC converters and controlling each of said at least one pair of DC-DC converters to a maximum power point; and,
Each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters has a string inverter input and a converter pair DC link output, wherein the string inverter input is connected to the at least one string power optimizer input and the converter pair connected to the high voltage DC output. Utility scale renewable energy power system comprising a DC link output. 3. The utility scale renewable energy according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising an inverter controller for controlling the rectification frequencies of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and the transmitters. Power system. 3. The inverter of claim 1 or 2, further comprising an inverter controller for controlling the conduction duration of the plurality of reversing switching devices in each of the plurality of regenerative energy power optimizers and the transmitter for a specific time while maintaining a fixed near the resonant frequency. Utility scale renewable energy power system comprising a. The rectifying frequency of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of regenerative energy power optimizers and transmitters is controlled near a resonant frequency, and a fixed frequency in a range deviated from the resonant frequency. And an inverter controller for controlling the conduction duration of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters for a predetermined time while maintaining the utility scale. 10. The renewable energy power optimizer and transmitter of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules.
A combination of four DC-DC converters;
A processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at a string inverter input of each of the four DC-DC converters and controlling each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point; And
Including a transceiver;
Each of the four DC-DC converters comprises separate first and second pairs of DC-DC converters, each of the combination of four DC-DC converters comprising at least one string power optimizer input and a single commutator Having a string inverter input coupled to each of the positive converter output and the negative converter output supplied from said first pair of DC-DC converters in parallel to a single positive high voltage output connected to the system DC link. Having the positive converter output connected, the second separate pair of DC-DC converters having the negative converter output connected in parallel to a single negative high voltage output connected to the system DC link; The separate first pair of negative converter outputs of the converter and the second separate pair of positive converter outputs of the DC-DC converter are common to a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical neutral. Connected together,
And said transceiver is coupled to an antenna for transmitting and receiving a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data. 10. The renewable energy power optimizer and transmitter of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules.
A combination of a plurality of DC-DC converters;
A processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at a string inverter input of each of the four DC-DC converters and controlling each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point; And
Including a transceiver;
Each of the four DC-DC converters comprises a string input and a pair of commutators coupled to each of at least one string power optimizer input, each of the pair of commutators comprising a positive commutator and a negative commutator The positive outputs of the positive commutator of the combination of four DC-DC converters are connected together in parallel to a single positive high voltage output connected to a system DC link; The negative output of the negative commutator is coupled together in parallel to a single negative high voltage output connected to the system DC link, the negative output of the positive commutator of the combination of the four DC-DC converters and the plurality of The positive outputs of the negative commutator of the combination of DC-DC converters are connected together in parallel to a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical neutral,
And said transceiver is coupled to an antenna for transmitting and receiving a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data. 3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a central control system, wherein the central control system comprises:
Means for communicating between the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters and the plurality of grid inverter package modules; And
Means for transmitting and receiving a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data. 7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein each of the four DC-DC converters further comprises a variable frequency controlled resonant inverter having a resonant inverter input coupled to the string inverter input and a resonant inverter output coupled to the input of a single commutator by an isolation transformer. The single commutator has an output coupled to the positive commutator output and a negative commutator output, wherein the processor is configured to maximize the power of each of the four DC-DC converters by varying the operating frequency of the variable frequency controlled resonant inverter. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that the control point. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein each of the four DC-DC converters further comprises a variable frequency controlled resonant inverter having a resonant inverter input connected to the string inverter input and a resonant inverter output connected to the input of the commutator pair by an isolation transformer. And the processor controls each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point by changing an operating frequency of the variable frequency controlled resonant inverter. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of renewable energy collectors comprises a plurality of wind turbine driven AC generators with a rectified DC output, each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters:
At least a pair of DC-DC converters; And
And a processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at a string inverter input of each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters, and controlling each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters to a maximum power point.
Each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters includes the at least one string power optimizer input and a converter pair DC link input, wherein the string inverter input is coupled to the at least one string power optimizer input and is connected to the converter pair. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that the DC link input is connected to the high voltage DC output. A method of harvesting, converting, monitoring, and controlling renewable energy from utility scale renewable energy systems,
The utility scale renewable energy system is:
A plurality of renewable energy collector strings, each of the plurality of renewable energy collectors comprising: a high voltage renewable energy harvesting network having the plurality of renewable energy collector strings having a DC output; And
A central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system having a plurality of grid inverter package modules;
The method comprises:
The plurality of regenerations with a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters distributed within the high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and arranged to provide a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to a single electrical neutral unit. Optimizing the DC output of an energy collector string to a maximum power point; And
Said plurality of said plurality of grids in said central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system by a system DC link having a positive, negative and common bus coupled to said single positive high voltage DC output, a single negative high voltage DC output, and a single electrical neutral, respectively. Connecting the single positive high voltage DC output, the single negative high voltage DC output, and the single electrical neutral of the renewable energy power optimizer and the transmitter of the utility scale. A method of harvesting, converting, monitoring, and controlling renewable energy from a renewable energy system. In a utility scale renewable energy power system,
High voltage renewable energy harvesting network;
A central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system having a plurality of grid inverter package modules, each of the plurality of grid inverter package modules comprising: the central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system having an input coupled to a system DC link; And
And a virtual emulsion monitoring system and a central control system for monitoring and controlling said high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and said central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system.
The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network
A plurality of renewable energy collector strings each having a DC output; And
And a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters,
Each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has at least one string power optimizer input coupled to at least one DC output of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings, said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters Each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output connected to the system DC link. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that it is arranged to connect to the system DC link with a single electrical neutral connected to electrical ground. 15. The system of claim 13, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules, each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters:
At least one pair of DC-DC converters, each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters having a string inverter input and a converter pair DC link output, wherein the string inverter input is connected to the at least one string power optimizer input The at least one pair of DC-DC converters connected to the converter pair DC link outputs and the high voltage DC outputs; And
And a processor that senses and monitors a voltage and a current at the string inverter input of each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters, and controls each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters to a maximum power point. Utility scale renewable energy power system. 15. The utility scale renewable energy according to claim 13 or 14, further comprising an inverter controller for controlling the rectification frequencies of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and the transmitter. Power system. 15. The inverter controller of claim 13 or 14, further comprising: an inverter controller for controlling the conduction duration of the plurality of reversing switching devices in each of the plurality of regenerative energy power optimizers and the transmitter for a period of time while being fixed near the resonant frequency. Utility scale renewable energy power system comprising a. The rectifying frequency of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of regenerative energy power optimizers and the transmitters is controlled near a resonance frequency, and a fixed frequency in a range deviating from the resonance frequency. And an inverter controller for controlling the conduction duration of the plurality of inverter switching devices in each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters for a predetermined time while maintaining the utility scale. 15. The system of claim 13, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules, each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters:
A combination of four DC-DC converters;
A processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at a string inverter input of each of the four DC-DC converters and controlling each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point; And
Including a transceiver;
Each of the four DC-DC converters comprises separate first and second pairs of DC-DC converters, each of the combination of four DC-DC converters comprising at least one string power optimizer input and a single commutator Having a string inverter input coupled to each of the positive converter output and the negative converter output supplied from said first pair of DC-DC converters in parallel to a single positive high voltage output connected to the system DC link. Having the positive converter output connected, the second separate pair of DC-DC converters having the negative converter output connected in parallel to a single negative high voltage output connected to the system DC link; The separate first pair of negative converter outputs of the converter and the separate second pair of positive converter outputs of the DC-DC converter are common to a single electrical neutral connected to electrical ground. It is connected to,
The transceiver is configured to transmit a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data to the virtual emulsion monitoring system and control system and to receive from the virtual emulsion monitoring system and control system. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that connected to. 15. The system of claim 13, wherein each of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings comprises a plurality of photovoltaic modules, each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters:
A combination of a plurality of DC-DC converters;
A processor for sensing and monitoring voltage and current at a string inverter input of each of the four DC-DC converters and controlling each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point; And
Including a transceiver;
Each of the four DC-DC converters comprises a string input and a pair of commutators coupled to each of at least one string power optimizer input, each of the pair of commutators comprising a positive commutator and a negative commutator The positive outputs of the positive commutator of the combination of four DC-DC converters are connected together in parallel to a single positive high voltage output connected to a system DC link; The negative output of the negative commutator is coupled together in parallel to a single negative high voltage output connected to the system DC link, the negative output of the positive commutator of the combination of the four DC-DC converters and the plurality of The positive outputs of the negative commutator of the combination of DC-DC converters are connected together in parallel to a single electrical neutral connected to the electrical neutral,
The transceiver is configured to transmit a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data to the virtual emulsion monitoring system and control system and to receive from the virtual emulsion monitoring system and control system. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that connected to. 15. The system of claim 13 or 14, wherein the central control system is:
Means for communicating between the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters and the plurality of grid inverter package modules;
Means for transmitting and receiving a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data; And
Means for communicating with said virtual emulsion monitoring system. 15. The system of claim 13 or 14, wherein the virtual emulsion monitoring system is
For visual display of the plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data, and the plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data in a three dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment, and for the available survey of the plurality of renewable energy collector strings collect a plurality of high voltage regenerative energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data to predict power output from the high voltage regenerative energy harvesting network for injection into a high voltage electric grid based on irradiation A utility scale renewable energy power system comprising a Virtual Immersion Equipment Watchdog (VIEW) computer system. 19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein each of the four DC-DC converters further comprises a variable frequency controlled resonant inverter having a resonant inverter input coupled to the string inverter input and a resonant inverter output coupled to the input of a single commutator by an isolation transformer. The single commutator has an output coupled to the positive commutator output and a negative commutator output, wherein the processor is configured to maximize the power of each of the four DC-DC converters by varying the operating frequency of the variable frequency controlled resonant inverter. Utility scale renewable energy power system, characterized in that the control point. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein each of the four DC-DC converters further comprises a variable frequency controlled resonant inverter having a resonant inverter input coupled to the string inverter input and a resonant inverter output coupled to an input of a pair of commutators by an isolation transformer. And the processor controls each of the four DC-DC converters to a maximum power point by changing an operating frequency of the variable frequency controlled resonant inverter. The system of claim 13, wherein each of the plurality of renewable energy collectors comprises a plurality of wind turbine driven ac generators having a rectified dc output, wherein each of the plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters comprises:
Each of the at least one pair of DC-DC converters has a string inverter input and a converter pair DC link output, wherein the string inverter input is connected to the at least one string power optimizer input and the converter pair DC link output The at least one pair of DC-DC converters connected to the high voltage DC output unit; And
And a processor that senses and monitors voltage and current at each string inverter input of the at least one DC-DC converter and controls each of the at least one DC-DC converter to a maximum power point. Utility scale renewable energy power system. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the virtual emulsion monitoring system collects a plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and a plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data; And a virtual emulsion watchdog computer system for visual display of the plurality of high voltage renewable energy harvesting network data and the plurality of central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system data in a three-dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment. Utility scale renewable energy power system. 25. The variable frequency controlled resonance of claim 24, wherein each of said at least two DC-DC converters has a resonant inverter input coupled to each of said at least one string inverter input and a resonant inverter output coupled to an input of a single commutator by an isolation transformer. Further comprising an inverter, said single commutator having an output coupled to said positive commutator output and a negative commutator output, wherein said processor changes said operating frequency of said at least one DC- A utility scale renewable energy power system characterized by controlling each DC converter to its maximum power point. A method of harvesting, converting, monitoring, and controlling renewable energy from utility scale renewable energy systems,
The utility scale renewable energy system is:
High voltage renewable energy harvesting network; And
A central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system having a plurality of grid inverter package modules;
The high voltage renewable energy harvesting network
A plurality of renewable energy collector strings, each of the plurality of renewable energy collectors having a DC output; And
And a plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters,
Each of said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters has at least one string power optimizer input coupled to at least one DC output of said plurality of renewable energy collector strings, said plurality of renewable energy power optimizers and transmitters Each of is arranged to provide a single positive high voltage DC output and a single negative high voltage DC output to a single electrical neutral connected to the system DC link and connected to the positive, negative, and common buses of the system DC link,
The method comprises:
Monitoring the virtual emulsion of the high voltage renewable energy harvesting network in a 3D visually oriented virtual reality display environment, and
Centrally controlling the high voltage renewable energy harvesting network and the central grid synchronous polyphase regulated current source inverter system in communication with the three dimensional visually oriented virtual reality display environment; and regenerate from a utility scale renewable energy system. How to harvest, convert, monitor, and control energy.

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