Vaisala WindCube Vertical Profiler
Remote sensing devices are lightweight and easily transportable, they do not require planning permission and can be applied both offshore and onshore to gather wind data from 40m to 300m in height, with up to 20 separate height measurements taken every second.
Coupled with Dulas’ robust remote power supply, and in field monitoring services, these LiDAR units can operate reliably in the field for years with regular refuelling and maintenance intervals.
Remote sensing devices can be deployed ahead of met masts and in conjunction with them to extend and enhance your data sets. Though it is widely held that terrain in the UK is too complex to allow for LiDAR only measurement campaigns currently.
Dulas is proud to be an authorised distributor of Vaisala WindCubes in the UK and Ireland.
Features & Benefits
- Embedded FCR correction for direct measurement in complex Terrain
- IEC compliance for contractual performance testing (IEC 61400-12-1:2017)
- 3-year warranty and maintenance with optional onsite maintenance
- Includes WindCube Insights cloud- based data management system
The industry-standard vertical profiling LiDAR for wind energy applications. Its highly accurate, rigorously validated data aids in wind farm development and operations, both offshore and onshore.
WindCube provides accurate wind measurement up to 300 meters over 20 simultaneously measured heights. The result is bankable data with a more complete view of the wind profile – both of which help you secure funding, reduce uncertainties and the cost of equity, and minimize risk.
WindCube data has been validated by hundreds of independent studies and is accepted by all international standards and guidelines. On complex terrain, it uses FCR – also validated by formal studies.
WindCube is IEC-compliant for contractual performance testing, and it is well-suited for continuous wind monitoring, power performance verification, grid-loss compensation, and more.
WindCube units are simple and fast to deploy, with few, if any, permitting or regulatory challenges. The system can stand alone or be co-located with a met mast.
Technical Specifications
| MEASUREMENT PARAMETERS | |
| Wind data provided | Wind speed, wind direction, turbulence intensity, vertical wind speed, data availability |
| Measurement range (1) | 40 … > 300 m Constant measuring probe (spatial resolution) |
| Data sampling rate | 1 Hz 10.000 measurement pulses accumulated every 0,8 seconds |
| Measuring distances | 20 user-defined distances simultaneously |
| Radial Wind Speed range | -23m/s to +23m/s |
| Reconstructed Wind Speed range | 0m/s to 49m/s |
| Reconstructed Wind Direction range | 0 – 360° |
| Speed accuracy (2) | 0.1 m/s |
| Speed uncertainty (2) | 40 – 80m: 1.4% to 2.6% 80 – 120m: 0.6% to 1.4% 120 – 135m: 0.6% to 0.8% |
| Direction accuracy (2) | 2° |
| Beam geometry | 4 inclined beams at 28° and 1 vertical beam |
| 1) Height from WindCube feet. Data availability depends on environmental factors such as visibility, type of aerosols and variation of refractive index in the atmosphere 2) For 10-min averages, as assessed by several 3rd parties on multiple WindCube devices or in 2020 according to IEC 61400-12-1 Ed.2. Uncertainty figures are Final Accuracy Class divided by √3 |
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| OPERATING ENVIRONMENT | |
| Warranty | 3 years standard, extendable twice (up to 9 years) after maintenance |
| Preventive maintenance | 3 years cycle (factory or onsite maintenance) |
| Temperature range (1) | -30°C to +50°C / -22°F to 122°F (chamber conditions) |
| Maximum operation altitude | Maximum operation altitude : 3000m (2000m with provided AC-DC converter) |
| Operating humidity | 0 to 95% RH (non-condensing) |
| Environmental Protection | Designed for installation in many kinds of weather and environmental conditions IP66 and IP67 (Inner sub-assemblies) IP54 (Lidar Casing) Radiation +1000W/m² at +45°C |
| Rain protection | Wiper |
| Marine atmosphere (Salt Atmosphere Compliance) |
IEC 60068-2-52 – 120 hours |
| Shocks and vibration | ISTA/FEDEX 6B |
| 1) Starting the system at low temperature (lower than -20ºC) will require to have the WindCube equipped with an adapted protection | |
| ELECTRICAL AND OPTICAL | |
| Input Power Supply Insulation class: class I (PE connected) |
24.5-27 VDC |
| Power Supply with the transformer provided by VAISALA |
100-240 VAC 50/60 Hz |
| Power consumption (1) | 45W between -5°C and 30°C (23°F and 86°F) 110W below -5°C (23°F) 55W over +30°C (86°F) |
| LASER Safety Compliance | 1M Class / EN 60825‑1 |
| 1) Nominal power consumption taken from an initial state of the WindCube at 15°C. | |
| DATA OUTPUT | |
| Output data | 1 s / 1‑, 2‑, 5‑, 10‑minute averaged (user-defined) horizontal and vertical wind speed Standard deviation Direction CNR (carrier-to-noise ratio) GPS coordinates Data availability |
| Complex terrain measurements | FCR unlimited license |
| Data storage | 120 GB industrial disk (over 5 years storage of all data) WindCube Insights secured cloud-based server |
| Data file format | RTD and STA (file), UTF‑8 encoding |
| Communication | LAN, USB, 3G, or 4G router (router availability depends on the region/country), Modbus RTU (gateways available), Wi‑Fi |
| Time synchronization | GPS, NTP |
| MECHANICAL SPECIFICATIONS | |
| Cube dimensions (L × W × H) | 554 × 566 × 554 mm (21.81 × 22.28 × 21.81 in) |
| With feet and wiper | 608 × 566 × 661 mm (23.94 × 22.28 × 26.02 in) |
| Weight | 59kg (system only) 28kg (shipping case only) 91kg (total with accessories) |
| COMPLIANCE | |
| Compliance marks (1) | CE, FCC, IC |
| 1) As verified on WindCube without Geofencing option |
Case Studies
Grayside Wind Farm LiDAR Installation
Riversdale Enterprises was at the pre-planning application stage for the development of a wind farm in Biggar, South Lanarkshire. They were already running a noise survey and wanted a wind monitoring campaign to run alongside it. Read more.
Gordonbush Wind Farm Permanent WindCube Installation
Gordonbush Wind Farm is a 35 turbine wind farm approximately 12km northwest of Brora, in Sutherland – it was first commissioned by SSE Renewables in 2012 and generates up to 71.57MW of power. Read more.
