SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DETECTING LIGHTNING

• US 20100328084A1
• Filed: 06/29/2009
• Published: 12/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GE Infrastructure Technology, LLC (General Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Kraemer, Sebastian Gerhard Maxim
• Granted Patent: US 8,427,333 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/601
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 29/0842 Measurements related to lightning, e.g. measuring electric disturbances, warning systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01W 1/16 Measuring atmospheric potential differences, e.g. due to electrical charges in clouds measuring potentiels in general G01R
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 10/30 Wind power

Abstract

A lightning detection system is presented. The lightning detection system includes a plurality of sensing devices configured to generate sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of an object. The lightning detection system further includes a lightning signal processing subsystem configured to combine the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters received from the plurality of sensing devices to generate a composite signal, extract noise signals from the composite signal, and compare the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals, wherein the lightning noise signals are induced in the sensor signals in response to a lightning strike on the object.

Claims

1. A lightning detection system, comprising:

a plurality of sensing devices configured to generate sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of an object;

a lightning signal processing subsystem configured to;

combine the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters received from the plurality of sensing devices to generate a composite signal;

extract noise signals from the composite signal; and

compare the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine the existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the lightning noise signals are induced in the sensor signals in response to a lightning strike on the object.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the lightning noise signals comprise a lightning strike induced current, a lighting strike induced voltage, a lightning strike induced magnetic field, a lightning strike induced electric field, or combinations thereof.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more lightning signal profiles comprise a lightning strike induced current, a lighting strike induced voltage, a lightning strike induced magnetic field, a lightning strike induced electric field, or combinations thereof.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the object comprises a wind turbine, a tall building, a tower, an aircraft, and the like.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the one or more working state parameters of the object comprise wind speed, wind direction, rotations per minute, stress, temperature, generation winding, vibration in blades, vibration in tower, power measurement, twist in power cable of a generator, or combinations thereof.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the lightning signal processing subsystem combines the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters by utilizing data fusion methods.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the data fusion methods comprise utilization of correlation functions, neural networks, artificial intelligence, statistical estimation, a Bayesian inference method, a weighted average method, a pattern recognition method, or combinations thereof.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensing devices comprises anenometers, voltage sensors, temperature sensors, proximity sensors, tacho rotor sensors, tacho generator sensors, yaw sensors, twisted cable sensors, or combinations thereof.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a data repository to store the one or more lightning signal profiles.

11. The system of claim 1, further configured to:

generate a signal indicative of presence or absence of a lightning strike based on the determination of the existence of the lightning noise signals; and

communicate the generated signal to a remote location, an onsite location, or both.

12. A lightning detection system, comprising:

a plurality of sensing devices configured to generate sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of an object;

a sensing subsystem comprising one or more sensing modules and configured to;

extract noise signals from the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters of the object received from the plurality of sensing devices;

compare the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals; and

a lightning signal processing subsystem in operative communication with the sensing subsystem and configured to combine the extracted noise signals received from the sensing subsystem to generate a composite noise signal based on determination of lightning noise signals in at least one of the extracted noise signals,

wherein the lightning noise signals are induced in the sensor signals in response to a lightning strike on the object.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the one or more lightning signal profiles comprise lightning strike induced current, a lighting strike induced voltage, a lightning strike induced magnetic field, a lightning strike induced electric field, or combinations thereof.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the composite noise signal comprises a lightning strike induced current, a lighting strike induced voltage, a lightning strike induced magnetic field, a lightning strike induced electric field, or combinations thereof.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the lightning signal processing subsystem is configured to combine the extracted noise signals by utilizing correlation functions, neural network, a Bayesian inference method, a weighted average method, artificial intelligence, a pattern recognition, a statistical estimation, or combinations thereof.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the lightning signal processing subsystem is further configured to compare the composite noise signal with the one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of a lightning strike.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the plurality of sensing devices comprises anenometers, voltage sensors, temperature sensors, proximity sensors, tacho rotor sensors, tacho generator sensors, yaw sensors, twisted cable sensors, or combinations thereof.

18. A lightning detection method, comprising:

combining one or more sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters to generate a composite signal, wherein the one or more sensor signals are received from plurality of sensing devices disposed on an object;

extracting noise signals from the composite signal via use of a lightning signal processing subsystem; and

comparing the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals via use of the lightning signal processing subsystem,

wherein a lightning strike on the object induces the lightning noise signals in the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters.

19. A lightning detection method, comprising:

extracting noise signals from one or more sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of an object, wherein the one or more sensor signals are received from one or more sensors disposed on the object;

comparing the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals; and

combining the extracted noise signals to generate a composite noise signal based on a determination of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals,

wherein a lightning strike on the object induces the lightning noise signals in the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising comparing the composite noise signal with the one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of a lightning strike.

21. A wind turbine, comprising:

a plurality of sensing devices disposed on various components of the wind turbine, and configured to generate sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of the wind turbine;

a lightning signal processing subsystem configured to;

combine the sensor signals representative of the one or more working state parameters received from the plurality of sensing devices to generate a composite signal;

extract noise signals from the composite signal; and

compare the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals,

wherein the lightning noise signals are induced in the sensor signals in response to a lightning strike on the wind turbine.

22. A kit for detection of lightning, the kit comprising:

a lightning signal processing subsystem in operational association with a plurality of sensing devices disposed on an object and configured to;

combine sensor signals representative of one or more working state parameters of the object received from the plurality of sensing devices to generate a composite signal;

extract noise signals from the composite signal; and

compare the extracted noise signals with one or more lightning signal profiles to determine the existence of lightning noise signals in the extracted noise signals.

23. The kit of claim 22, further configured to:

generate a signal indicative of presence or absence of a lightning strike based on the determination of the existence of the lightning noise signals; and

communicate the generated signal to a remote location, an onsite location, or both.