Academics at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) have created novel software which analyses the activity of airborne wind energy systems (AWES) – tethered kites or drones which offer a new source of wind energy. The researchers outlined the flight simulation software in a paper in Applied Mathematical Modelling. “The simulator can be used to study the behaviour of AWES, optimise their design and find the trajectories maximizing the generation of energy,” explained Ricardo Borobia Moreno, aerospace engineer and PhD student at UC3M.
“AWES are disruptive technologies that operate at high altitudes and generate electrical energy,” said Gonzalo Sánchez Arriaga, a research fellow in the department of Bioengineering and Aerospace Engineering. “They combine well-known disciplines from electrical engineering and aeronautics, such as the design of electric machines, aeroelasticity and control, with novel and non-conventional disciplines related to drones and tether dynamics.”
