Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

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Applied Energy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apenergy

Performance of a 3 kW wind turbine generator with variable pitch control system

Baku M. Nagai 1, Kazumasa Ameku, Jitendro Nath Roy *
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of the Ryukyus, 1 Senbaru, Nishihara-cho, Okinawa 903-0213, Japan

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 7 July 2008
Received in revised form 7 December 2008
Accepted 12 December 2008
Available online 1 February 2009
Keywords:
Renewable energy
Wind turbine generator
Variable pitch control
Field current control

a b s t r a c t
A prototype 3 kW horizontal upwind type wind turbine generator of 4 m in diameter has been designed
and examined under real wind conditions. The machine was designed based on the concept that even
small wind turbines should have a variable pitch control system just as large wind turbines, especially
in Japan where typhoons occur at least once a year. A characteristic of the machine is the use of a worm
and gear system with a stepping motor installed in the center of the hub, and the rotational main shaft.
The machine is constructed with no mechanical breaking system so as to avoid damage from strong
winds. In a storm, the wind turbine is slowed down by adjusting the pitch angle and the maximum electrical load. Usually the machine is controlled at several stages depending on the rotational speed of the
blades. Two control methods have been applied: the variable pitch angle, and regulation of the generator
eld current. The characteristics of the generator under each rotational speed and eld current are rst
investigated in the laboratory. This paper describes the performances of the wind turbine in terms of the
functions of wind turbine rotational speed, generated outputs, and its stability for wind speed changes.
The expected performances of the machine have been conrmed under real wind conditions and compared with numerical simulation results. The wind turbine showed a power coefcient of 0.257 under
the average wind speed of 7.3 m/s.
2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The Southwest Islands of Japan have abundant wind energy resources because the monsoon blows as a result of the inclination of
atmospheric pressure between the Eurasia Continent and the Pacic Ocean. It blows from the southwest in summer and from the
northeast in winter along the Southwest Islands. Moreover, tempestuous gust winds or strong winds such as typhoons blow at
least once per annum and often damage crops, buildings, infrastructure, etc. This is one of the reasons for the small number of
wind turbines introduced in these areas so far.
Today, wind power resources are expected to work for the
reduction of greenhouse effect gasses and energy security problems all over the world. A wind turbine system is a system that
converts the turbines mechanical energy obtained from wind into
electrical energy through a generator, and can be categorized by
the types of generators used, power control methods, and constant- or variable-speed operation. The technology of wind turbine
generators is mostly seen in larger scale turbines and offshore
wind farms [1]. The largest output of a generator has exceeded ve
MW. On the other hand, remote islands where small populations

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +81 9097896621.

E-mail addresses: dr-nagai@tec.u-ryukyu.ac.jp (B.M. Nagai),
u-ryukyu.ac.jp (K. Ameku), jiten_vb@yahoo.com (J.N. Roy).
1
Tel.: +81 98 895 8624; fax: +81 98 895 8707.

kazumasa@tec.

0306-2619/$ - see front matter 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2008.12.018

live usually have very small electric utility capacity and very
high-cost electricity generation from fossil oil fuel generators.
Therefore, it is important to develop small wind turbine generators
which are safe enough and easy to run in individual houses and on
farms for self-sufciency and independent power production. For
example, the authors have installed a hybrid wind power and photovoltaic generation system on Minami Daitou Island [2]. The 1 kW
wind turbine, 1.2 kW photovoltaic and 500 Ah battery system are
estimated to be able to pump enough water to irrigate a one hectare (10,000 m2) sugar cane farm during a drought.
Usually, small wind turbines with a rated power of less than
10 kW have been developed for battery charge, most having pitch
xed type blades and some having the rotational surface of the
blades which can be furled upward or side wards to prevent over
rotation under strong winds. However, these control systems seem
to be unsuitable for the turbulent wind areas of East Asia including
the Southwest Islands of Japan. In such windy areas, even small
wind turbine generators need a variable pitch control system like
middle and large wind turbine generators.
Pitch control systems have been studied extensively in the literature (e.g. [3,4]). Initially, the purpose was to keep a constant rotational speed and electrical output under a higher wind speed
range. Recently one additional purpose is to reduce load using individual pitch control systems in large wind turbines [57]. Pitch
control systems are widely used and usually applied to large wind
turbines, but not so often to small wind turbines.

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Nomenclature
cp
cpb
cq
Ego
fr
If
J
K
N
Pg
Qb

power coefcient (=generated electric output/wind

energy)
blade power coefcient (=turbines mechanical output/
wind energy)
blade torque coefcient
generated voltage in an open circuit
friction coefcient
eld current
inertia moment of the rotor
proportional constant
wind turbine rotational speed
generator output
blade torque

In this paper, the design of a prototype 3 kW wind turbine generator with a variable pitch control system and the performance
aspects of the machine, namely, the wind turbine rotational speed,
pitch angle, generated outputs as well as its stability for wind
speed changes are described.
2. Outline of wind turbine generator system
2.1. Small wind turbine generator
The prototype wind turbine was designed for anyone to be able
to use easily and stop safely using an automatic variable pitch control system during gusts, which often come unexpectedly.
Table 1 and Fig. 1 show the specications and outline of the prototype wind turbine generator. The prototype is a 4 m diameter,
horizontal, upwind wind turbine with a power rating of 3 kW, with
a free yaw and three variable pitch blades. The rotational center of
each turbine blade is 5.7 m above the roof of a ve-storied building. The main shaft is set on the tower tilting upwards approximately 3. The tower pole can be laid down for maintenance by a

Table 1
Specications of 3 kW wind turbine generator.
Type

Horizontal, up-wind

No. of blades
Rated outputs
Rotational speed
Tip speed ratio
Solidity
Airfoil
Yaw control

3
3 kW
315 rpm (at 11 m/s)
6
0.05
NACA4418
Free yaw

Fig. 1. Outline of the 3 kW wind turbine generator.

Qg
R
RL.R
V
Xa

gg
gm
h
k

q
x
X

generator torque
radius of rotor blades
load resistance
wind speed
reactance
generator efciency
mechanical efciency
pitch angle of rotor blade
tip speed ratio (TSR)
air density
generator angular speed
wind turbine rotor angular speed

hand winch and eight tension wires. After the length of tension
wires are adjusted, it is very easy to lay down and raise the tower
pole. The three blades using NACA4418 airfoil are designed with a
tip speed ratio of 6 and solidity 0.05 using the blade element
momentum theory [8] and each blade tapers straight and twists
appropriately to catch a good wind along the axis of the blades.
Each blade was made of glass ber reinforced plastic (GFRP) and
is about 5.3 kg in mass.
The yaw control system is a passive free yaw with a movable
tail. The tail can move left and right upward to the nacelle with a
tilting pin joint which maintains the centerline through gravitational force on the tail. When the wind direction changes suddenly,
the tail moves rst, then the whole nacelle axis moves slowly to
the wind direction.
Fig. 2 shows details of the nacelle. The nacelle is structured from
the front; a blade hub, a main shaft composed of a stepping motor
with slip rings, a gearbox (CNH-4115-11, Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd.), and a synchronous generator (SG3000, Sawafuji Electric
Co., Ltd.). In the gearbox, the blade rotational speeds increase at the
ratio of 11:1 times, that is, the rated wind turbine rotational speed
is 315 rpm at the blade hub and about 3500 rpm at the generator.
Because it is extremely dangerous for the turbine to be standing in
a xed position under turbulent conditions, the wind turbine has
no mechanical breaking system to elude strong winds. In a storm
the rotational speeds of the blades are slowed down by changes
of the pitch angle along with the maximum electrical load. Then,
the machine eludes strong wind forces by use of only the feathering control. The total nacelle weight is about 185 kg in mass
including three blades and it is lighter than a manufacturers

Fig. 2. Details of the nacelle.

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B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

Fig. 3. Outline of the hub including a worm gear system.

product of 2.5 kW wind turbine (LMW, Netherlands) with 224 kg

in mass.
Fig. 3 shows the hub including a worm gear system. A worm
and gear system with a stepping motor (UPK564AW -H100, Oriental Motor Co., Ltd.) is installed in the center of the hub and the rotational main shaft. The rotation of the stepping motor is transmitted
to the blade shaft decreasing at the ratio of 1/20. The tip blade
pitch angle can change to the rotational surface from the feathering
angle of 90 to the design angle of 5. Two limit switches are installed in the hub and can detect the three positions of 0, 29
and 90 through the combination of their settings.
2.2. Generation system
Fig. 4 shows the outline of the generation system. The prototype
system is composed of a generator system, a load system, control
system and measuring system. A generator output of 100 VAC is
rectied and supplied to DC loads of 3 kW 4 X heat resistance,
which obtains the maximum output at the maximum eld current.
The wind turbine is controlled by both a blade pitch controller and
a generation controller. A personal computer (FMV5100D5, Fujitsu

Ltd.) measures rotational speeds of the main shaft using a tachometer (MP981, Ono Sokki Co., Ltd.) on the gearbox for the controls.
For the blade pitch control, the computer sends signals to a pulse
generator of the motor driver, and the stepping motor then obtains
signals through the slip rings. Each signal of the pitch controller
consists of 8333 pulses to the motor driver and changes 3 of the
blade pitch angle, which is one step of the control. The rated pulse
speed is 25,000 pulses per second, so a pitch angle command of one
step can be completed within 1 s. The computer memorizes the
present pitch angle. For the generation control, the computer sends
signals to the eld current controller. The generation controller
supplies eld current from 0 to 3 A at approximately 0.1 A steps.
Both controllers can also be operated manually for maintenance
purposes.
During the experiment, eight items were measured at one-second intervals and averaged over a period of 1 h. These were, wind
direction, wind speed, generated current and voltage, eld current
and voltage, rotational speed of the turbine and limit switch conditions. Wind direction is taken from the anemometer chart. Wind
speed, each electric current, and voltage are taken into the computer through an A/D converter. Two limit switch signals are taken
in the computer through an I/O interface.
3. Theoretical analysis
The performance of the wind turbine was analyzed before
experimentation using the blade element momentum (BEM) theory. The BEM theory is based on the Glauert propeller theory and
applied to wind turbine models. The BEM theory offers the possi-

Fig. 4. Wind power generation system.

Fig. 5. Relationship between blade torque coefcient and tip speed ratio.

B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

bility to perform uid dynamics design of rotor blades and to evaluate wind turbine performance over a wide range of wind speeds.
In recent years the BEM theory has been modied to provide
increasingly accurate results [9]. However, we use the BEM theory
under simple conditions; non-tip-loss and non-rotational-effect
with measurements of two-dimensional airfoil lift and drag coefcients of NACA4418 airfoil at angles of attack from 21 to 60
[10].
Fig. 5 shows the relationship between blade torque coefcient
cq and tip speed ratio k with blade pitch angles h from 5 to 29.
In this gure, to show the effect of the blade torque coefcient,
the step of changing in pitch angle is decided as 3. As the pitch angle increases, the maximum torque coefcient cq becomes smaller,
but the slope of the cq curves with respect to the tip speed ratio becomes steep. The maximum torque coefcient is 0.077 to tip speed
ratio of 4.5 at 5 of pitch angle.
Fig. 6 shows the relationship between blade power coefcient
cpb and tip speed ratio k. From this gure, the maximum power
coefcient cpb is 0.38 at a tip speed ratio of 6.5. As a result of the
analysis, we determined step control angles of 3 increments within a range of 529. Both gures also show the maximum tip speed
ratio at no load condition that is called runaway condition. The
runaway tip speed ratio of 14 became larger than two times that
of the rated tip speed ratio of 6 for 5 of pitch angle.

1777

Fig. 7. Outline of the generator test equipment.

4. Characteristics of the generator

Before experimentation under real wind conditions, the generator performance was tested in the laboratory. Fig. 7 shows
the outline of the generator test equipment. The equipment
can test generators with a maximum of 3 kW and a driving
3.7 kW induction motor. The induction motor is controlled by
an inverter and can produce the appropriate motor shaft torque
at every generator rotational speed. The induction motor drives
the testing synchronous generator through the torque transducer. The generator output supplies several DC loads which
are adjusted manually. The eight items of measurement are current and voltage of the induction motor, current and voltage of
the synchronous generator, eld current and voltage of the controller, generator rotational speed, and torque of the induction
motor. The test method measures electrical output change for
every generator rotational speed and eld current at a resistance
value of the DC load circuit, eld current changes in the range of
03 A, the resistance of DC loads from 0 to 60 X, and generator
rotational speeds from 0 to 4000 rpm.
Fig. 8 shows the relationship between the generated voltage in
an open circuit and the eld current. The results show that the generated open voltage is proportional to the eld current at each generator rotational speed. The proportionality K in the following
equation has been calculated as 0.223.

Ego K  If  x

Fig. 8. Relationship between the generated voltage in an open circuit and the eld
current.

Fig. 9. Relationship between the generated output and the rotational speed at 4 X
load.

Fig. 9 shows the relationship between the generated output and

the generator rotational speed at the xed load resistance RL.R. of
4 X. The solid lines are calculated by Eq. (2).

RL:R:
  I2f  x2
Pg K 2  
2
2
RL:R: X a

Fig. 6. Relationship between blade power coefcient and tip speed ratio.

Here, a reactance Xa was conrmed almost proportional to the generator angular speed and the proportionality of 0.0178 was decided
by the experiments. The main coil resistance of 0.08 X is smaller
than the load resistance RL.R. of 4 X and thus omitted from the equation. From this gure, it is clear that the theory line ts well with
measuring points.
As described in the following chapter, to match the turbines
output with the generator output, the generation controller uses

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B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

PID control and supplies eld current depending on the instantaneous wind turbine rotational speed changes.
5. Control method
For the generation controller, it is necessary to consider the
capacity of the generator. The variance of wind turbine rotational
speed to wind speed changes has been analyzed including the
capacity of the generator. Generated output of the turbine is given
by the following equation

1
qV 3 pR2 cp
2
cp gm gg cpb
Pg

3
4

As shown in Fig. 5, each cq curve at the range from a tip speed

ratio at maximum cq to maximum tip speed ratio is approximated
by linear function and then substituted in Eq. (4) with cpb = kcq.
Then, relationship between wind turbine rotational speed and
wind speed is calculated from Eqs. (2) and (3).
Fig. 10 shows the relationship between the wind turbine rotational speed and wind speed at pitch angles from 5 to 29. The
characteristics of the lines are similar to one another. It is clear that
the controlled wind turbine rotational speeds increase proportionately with wind speed, and after a certain point the inclinations become larger. The constant inclination of the lines under a certain
point means that there is an optimum tip speed ratio at each pitch
angle. The inclination of the lines becomes larger at the maximum
led current point, so that the wind turbine easily exceeds a rated
rotational speed of 315 rpm. Therefore, it is difcult to control the
generator using only a eld current controller. We have to change
the pitch angle when the turbine rotation reaches a certain limit.
Fig. 11 shows the performance of the wind turbine generator at
the design pitch angle of 5. Although the theoretical performance
in Fig. 6 shows the maximum power coefcient of 0.38 at the tip
speed ratio of 6.5, the optimum running point is decided at a tip
speed ratio of 6 considering the effect of mechanical friction loss
which increases the rotational speed of the turbine. The circle
points are design points at a tip speed ratio of 6 and power coefcient 0.3. The broken line is the maximum electrical output at the
maximum eld current. To generate electricity from 4 m/s wind
speed and the wind turbine rotational speeds between 80 and
450 rpm, operating the turbine at ve stages of the control were
prepared as follows.
Initially, the wind turbine is controlled in the standby stage at
which the pitch angle is xed at 29 without generated power. In
stages one and two which are under the rated wind condition,
the blade pitch angle is xed at 11 and 5, respectively, to help
alleviate frequent movement between the standby stage and stage
three. In stage three around the rated wind speed, the wind turbine

Fig. 10. Relationship between wind turbine rotational speed and wind speed.

Fig. 11. Performance of wind turbine generator.

Fig. 12. Flow chart of the control program.

is controlled by the blade pitch controller. In these stages of one to

three, the eld current is controlled by tracking the maximum
power coefcient curve. When the wind blows too strongly and
the wind turbine rotational speed exceeds 325 rpm, the wind turbine controller goes into the escape stage.
Fig. 12 shows the ow chart of the control program. The wind
turbine starts rotating in the standby stage. When the average
wind turbine rotational speed goes over 40 rpm for one minute,
the control program transitions to stage 1 which sets the pitch angle to 11 and starts generation. The eld current is controlled to
match the instantaneous wind turbine rotational speed with the
maximum power coefcient curve. If the average rotational speed
decreases, the pitch angle is reset to the 29 of the standby stage.
When the average rotational speed is larger than 150 rpm, the
pitch angle becomes 5 (stage 2). In stage 2 the wind turbine is
controlled in the rotational speed range of 100 to 300 rpm. At
stronger wind speeds and where the average rotational speed increases past 300 rpm, the wind turbine is controlled in stage 3
where the pitch angle controller operates in addition to the eld

B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

1779

current controller. If the average rotational speed increases past

325 rpm, the blade pitch angle increases by 3. On the other hand,
if the average rotational speed decreases below 250 rpm, the blade
pitch angle decreases by 3. Furthermore, when the wind strengthens and rotational speed increases past 325 rpm at the pitch angle
of 29, the control mode goes into the escape stage where eld currents are xed at the maximum. In the case of an instantaneous
rotational speed of over 450 rpm in any stage, the escape stage
mode goes to operation.
6. Experimental results and discussions
The prototype wind turbine generator was set on the roof of the
engineering faculty building in the university. The campus is located in an area with fairly good wind conditions, with the annual
mean wind speed being about 5.3 m/s and the frequency of wind
speed over 5 m/s being 57%. Since construction, the wind turbine
has experienced several typhoons, but suffered little damage because of the free rotation condition using a feathering pitch angle.
Fig. 13 shows the measured performance of the wind turbine
for 1 h at the sampling interval of 1 s on January 25th 2002. This
experiment was to check the control program and equipment
operation. Therefore, the control program only used the generation
control, and the pitch angle was xed at 11. Wind direction was in
a southeasterly direction for the measuring period. The measured
wind data for 1 h was the average of 11 m/s, which is equal to
the rated wind speed, and several data were over 15 m/s. The wind
turbine rotational speed and generated electrical output varied
widely following the wind speed changes and the 1 h averages
were 195 rpm and 939 W.

Fig. 14. Relationship between generator output and wind turbine rotational speed.

Fig. 15. Relationship between tip speed ratio and wind speed.

Fig. 13. Measured data at xed pitch angle of 11(2002.1.25 18:0019:00, SE).

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B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

Fig. 14 shows the relationship between the electrical output and

wind turbine rotational speed from the same data as that of Fig. 13.
In this gure, the solid line is the optimum generation line and the
dashed line is the maximum generation line. The measured data
was distributed around the optimum generation line.
Fig. 15 shows the relationship between tip speed ratio and wind
speed. In this gure, the solid line shows the constant wind turbine

rotational speed of the average 195 rpm. The generation controller

supplied smaller eld current near the starting generation speed of
100 rpm to avoid stalling of the blades. As a result, the generation
controller operated to keep an optimum tip speed ratio for high
wind speed area over 8 m/s and to keep the appropriate wind turbine rotational speed for low wind speed area around 5 m/s. Therefore, the large pitch angle of 11 operated well at lower wind speed
conditions, while the mean power coefcient became as small as
cp = 0.09.

Table 2
Experimental results with automatic control program (2002.3.1314).
Date 3/1314

Wind speed (m/s)

Rotational speed (rpm)

Output (W)

cp

15:00
16:00
17:00
18:00
19:00
20:00
21:00
22:00
23:00
00:00
01:00
02:00
03:00
04:00
05:00
06:00

7.2
7.3
7.5
7.2
7.6
7.0
7.4
6.8
6.4
6.0
5.2
5.6
5.9
6.7
7.6
8.2 (max 15.1)

93
177
175
167
182
162
171
158
159
121
40
23
38
76
139
62 (max 558)

307
768
699
576
750
539
631
573
488
289
33
25
41
174
761
392

0.105
0.257
0.212
0.203
0.218
0.204
0.202
0.234
0.236
0.171
0.030
0.019
0.025
0.076
0.229
0.093

Fig. 17. Relationship between generator output and wind speed.

Fig. 16. Measured data with automatic control program (2002.3.13 16:0017:00, E).

B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

Table 2 shows data measurements from March 13th and 14th

2002. These data were also measured at the sampling interval of
1 s. Wind speeds, wind turbine rotational speeds and generated
outputs are averaged 1 h, respectively, and the power coefcient
cp is calculated on the average wind speed. The wind condition
was stable and averaged lower than the rated speed throughout
the measurement period. The wind turbine started to generate
from the standby stage at 15:00 on March 13th and stopped at
06:00 on March 14th through the escape stage because of an
instantaneous rotational speed of 558 rpm. The measured data of

Table 3
Constant parameter values.
Air density q

1.225 kg/m3

Inertia moment J
Generator efciency gg

15 kg m2
0.6

Table 4
Simulation results changing friction coefcient fr.
fr

0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5

Outputs Pg (W)

Rotational speed N (rpm)

Ave.

Max

Ave.

Max

827
798
769
738
709
683

3232
3138
2976
2814
2642
2585

196
194
192
189
186
184

327
320
315
313
310
307

1781

16:0017:00 on the 13th are plotted in Fig. 16 for example. In this

experiment the wind turbine was controlled by both the generation controller and the pitch angle controller. In the condition of
Fig. 16 the pitch angle was xed at 5, i.e., stage 2. Average wind
speed was 7.3 m/s from the east, average rotational speed was
177 rpm and average output was fairly large of 768 W.
Fig. 17 shows the relationship between the generated electrical
output and wind speed from the same data of Fig. 16. Considering
the uctuation of the wind speed and the distance between the
wind turbine and the anemometer, the data is calculated using
the Bin method. The mean power coefcient is calculated as
0.257. Comparing the values of the Bin method with the optimum
line, the Bin method values distribute upper the optimum line in
lower wind speeds and under the optimum line in higher wind
speeds.
7. Comparison with numerical simulation
The authors have developed the simulation program to improve
the control program and test the wind turbine safely under strong
wind conditions including typhoons or gusts. The numerical simulation was calculated through the following equations [3].

dX
Q b  Q g  fr X
dt
1
Q b qV 2 pR3 cq
2
Pg
Qg
J

gg X

Fig. 18. Numerical simulation results using wind speed data of Fig. 16.

5
6
7

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B.M. Nagai et al. / Applied Energy 86 (2009) 17741782

Where, blade torque Qb in Eq. (6) was calculated by using Fig. 5 and
generator torque Qg in Eq. (7) was calculated by using Eq. (2). Characteristic data about the wind turbine system used in this work are
given in the Table 3. This simulation program calculated the wind
turbine performance using measured wind data.
The simulation program calculated each case of the friction
coefcient fr from 0 to 0.5 through the step 0.1 using measured
wind speed data of Fig. 16. The results were shown in Table 4.
Fig. 18 shows the numerical simulation results at the friction coefcient fr of 0.2. As compared with Fig. 16, it is shown that the average output and wind turbine rotational speed are almost the same
as the experimental data when the friction coefcient fr was identied as 0.2.

(4) The wind turbine has experienced several typhoons and suffered little damage because of free rotation condition using a
feathering pitch angle.
(5) To compare simulation results and experiment results under
real wind conditions, the parameters of the wind turbine
system were identied. It is possible to easily simulate wind
turbine performances under any wind condition.
The authors are now attempting to improve the control program using a simulation program under wind conditions that include typhoons or gusts and will then apply it to the wind
turbine under real wind conditions.
Acknowledgements

8. Conclusions
The prototype 3 kW wind turbine generator with variable pitch
control system has been designed and constructed. A characteristic
of the machine is the pitch control system with stepping motor and
worm gear system. The wind turbine generator has been controlled
by both a generation controller and a pitch angle controller like
large wind turbines, but it is very difcult to maintain a constant
rotational speed of the turbine because of the small inertia moment which causes the rotational speed to vary following the wind
uctuation. The characteristics of the wind turbine were analyzed
using BEM theory and the performance of the generator was conrmed by the test equipment, and examined under real wind conditions. The results are
(1) As a result of the BEM theory analysis, the design pitch angle
with NACA4418 airfoil blades was decided 5 at and the unit
control pitch angle at 3 within a range of 529.
(2) Using the equations of wind turbine performance and generator performance, the relationship between wind turbine
rotational speed and wind speed has been calculated and
the characteristic of the higher wind turbine rotational
speed range has been shown.
(3) The automatically controlled wind turbine showed a maximum average power coefcient of 0.257 under an average
wind speed of 7.3 m/s.

The authors would like to express thanks to Y. Sakei and T. Yamada who were graduate students at Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering of University of the Ryukyus for their supporting
in this work.
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