Rack case aids wind farm efficiency & aviation safety

Manufactured from aluminium rather than the usual steel, the custom case reduces magnetic susceptibility and prevents interference with the very sensitive electronic compass contained in the unit. The scanning heads cover 360° horizontally and 180° vertically in less than three minutes. This provides local atmospheric data over a 10km range.

In order to produce the Veroshield rack case from thicker than normal aluminium sheet fitted with stainless steel EMC strip gaskets, Verotec utilised the TecServ+ value added service to translate the customer’s drawings into the production control information required. The rack case features thermal management fans positioned in the side of the unit, as well as apertures and silk screened legends where required.

Deployed at commercial airports to provide LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data, the close range radar units provide an all-weather 3D wind shear monitoring solution. This improves air traffic management efficiency and ensures safe take-offs and landings since wind shear during the critical take-off and landing periods can be unpredictable and dangerous. Wake vortices are also monitored during take-off. This supports research into the consideration of real time wind information leading to dynamic plane separation rules, further improving air traffic management efficiency.

The LIDAR units can also be used during site assessments for new onshore and offshore wind farms to characterise the wind resource and reduce project risk. Continuously collecting 200m wind profile data, the LIDAR units reduce uncertainty during wind resource assessment and wind turbine optimisation.