Updates on the OpenFAST Lidar Simulator

Abstract Lidar systems are able to measure the wind speed remotely by detecting the aerosol movement caused by wind. A nacelle-based lidar system scanning the wind in front of a wind turbine can provide a preview of the incoming wind before the wind interacts with the turbine. Implementing a realistic lidar simulator into the wind turbine aero-elastic simulation tool can be beneficial for various wind energy related fields, such as lidar-assisted control, load validation, and load monitoring. In previous work, a lidar simulation module has been integrated into the open-source aero-elastic simulation tool OpenFAST, covering already lidar characteristics like different scan patterns, the volume averaging along the beam, and the coupling with the nacelle motion due to turbine tower dynamics. This paper focuses on adding further features to the lidar simulation module of OpenFAST to make the lidar simulation more realistic: the evolving turbulence, the blade blockage effect, and the adjustable data availability. Further, the wind preview quality with the new features is assessed.