Control of Wave Energy Converters with Discrete Displacement Hydraulic Power Take-Off Units

• Main Authors: Shangyan Zou, Ossama Abdelkhalik
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2018-04-01
• Series: Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
• Subjects: wave energy conversion; PTO units; hydraulic PTO; WEC control
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/6/2/31

The control of ocean Wave Energy Converters (WECs) impacts the harvested energy. Several control methods have been developed over the past few decades to maximize the harvested energy. Many of these methods were developed based on an unconstrained dynamic model assuming an ideal power take-off (PTO) unit. This study presents numerical tests and comparisons of a few recently developed control methods. The testing is conducted using a numerical simulator that simulates a hydraulic PTO. The PTO imposes constraints on the maximum attainable control force and maximum stroke. In addition, the PTO has its own dynamics, which may impact the performance of some control strategies.