Control Software Development for the Renewable Energy Sector

Challenge

Meeting the demands of renewable energy innovation often requires specialized technical expertise and dynamic collaboration. A global engineering company faced challenges scaling their software development team to create advanced solutions for wind turbines. That’s where Edvantis stepped in.

The company needed experienced team of software engineers to modernize proprietary operating system and develop new modules for the wind turbines.

Main Goals

Key tasks included:

• Upgrade a legacy Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) to support next-generation embedded controllers powered by ARM Cortex architecture
• Developing new software modules for wind turbine’s power supply and backup systems
• Connecting new wind turbine controllers to monitoring systems (SCADA)
• Implementing a networking protocol within the operating system to enable seamless connectivity
• Adding the ability to run Matlab/Simulink simulations on embedded controllers
• Ensuring the system meets required industry standards for safety and communication (IEC 61850 and IEC 61400-25)

Solution

By partnering with Edvantis, the engineering company found the right-skilled experts and smoothly integrated them into their team. We provided four Software Engineers specializing in C++ and embedded systems, including expertise in Nucleus Real-Time Operating System (RTOS) for wind turbines.

Key achievements include:

• Upgraded turbine RTOS to support next-generation embedded controllers based on ARM Cortex architecture.
• Integrated the FUSION TCP/IP stack into NUCLEUS RTOS, enhancing network functionality.
• Delivered new software modules for turbine power supply and backup systems, adding safety features such as alarm notifications and rapid shutdown.
• Implemented a communication protocol within RTOS to meet IEC 61850/IEC 61400-25 standards for seamless data exchange in energy systems.
• Developed integrations between SCADA and new controllers
• Deployed an automated solution to generate code from Simulink models ​and run it on the embedded controllers
• Optimized embedded hardware resource use, enhancing performance and reducing overhead

Beyond delivering results, our team became a trusted source of software development expertise. Edvantis specialists actively participated in business discussions, offering actionable insights and solutions to complex challenges.

Results

We delivered a robust, future-focused solution that empowers the client to innovate confidently and meet the growing demands of the renewable energy market. Together we:

• Successfully designed and implemented new modules for the turbine, ensuring uninterrupted operations during power outages.
• Upgraded turbine control software to support next-generation embedded controllers and implemented a networking protocol, enabling seamless connectivity while significantly reducing costs.
• Upgraded the turbine software to incorporate advanced sensor systems for monitoring weather conditions, including wind speed, temperature, and humidity. These sensors deliver real-time data directly to the turbine’s control system, enabling dynamic operational adjustments in response to environmental changes.
• Helped the customer successfully test new turbine versions and achieve IEC 61850 compliance.

Through these efforts, we’ve helped the client maintain high efficiency, reliability, and adaptability, reinforcing their leadership in renewable energy innovation.