List of airborne wind energy organizations

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This is a list of airborne wind energy or kite-energy organizations that are advancing airborne wind energy systems (AWES). In 2011 there were over 40 organizations involved worldwide, [1] but this number has increased to over 60 in 2017. [2]

Categories of kite-energy or airborne-wind-energy organizations that are forming the nascent industry: education, academic, non-profit, for-profit, communication, research, original kite-energy equipment manufacturer, kite-line manufacturer, industry-wide association, history, testing, forum entity, library, cooperative, consortium, group, club, school, training school. [3]

Generation by kite-energy systems may involve pumping, electricity generators flown in the upper flying system (flygen), electric generators situated on the land or sea or on board a vessel (groundgen), simple lifting of objects (lifting), pulling hulls or other objects (traction), or transportation; systems generate energy to do special tasks. Systems may be scaled from tiny to utility size.

Organizations

Organizations
NameLocationStart yearTypeGenerationCommentRef
KitemillVoss, Norway2008CompanyGroundgenReel in/Reel out. Bought KPS in 2020 [4]
WindFisherNear Grenoble, France2015CompanyGroundgenMagnus effect energy balloon [5]
KiteXCopenhagen, Denmark2020CompanyFlygenTechnical University of Denmark spin-off [6] [7]
KitekraftMunich, Germany2019CompanyFlygenTU Munich renewable energy spin-off [8]
Airborne Wind EuropeBrussels, Belgium2018AssociationAll types of AWES [9]
Skypull SALugano, Switzerland2017CompanyGroundgendeveloped a specifically suitable UAV [10]
Scuola Sant'AnnaPisa, Italy2013Research LabFlygenInvestigates Dual Drone Systems [11]
Airborne Wind Energy LabsTexas, USA2013Research LabGroundgenProvides calculations of cost per kWh [12]
Altaeros EnergiesMassachusetts, USA2010Research and OEMFlygenMIT and Harvard graduates [13]
AWEIAWorldwide2009AssociationAll typesNation chapters [14]
NTS GmbH Germany2006CompanyGroundgen X-Wind technology by Uwe Ahrens [15] [16]
TU Delft Wind Energy InstituteDelft, The Netherlands1999Research groupGroundgen Wubbo Ockels ✝, Roland Schmehl [17] [18]
GIPSA-lab  [ fr ]Grenoble, France2011Research groupGroundgenAhmad Hably [19]
EnerkiteBrandenburg, Germany2009CompanyGroundgenBernhard Kämpf [20] [21]
Energy Kite SystemsLos Angeles, California, USA1968Research, communicationAll types of AWESAcquired by Upper Windpower [22]
University of Freiburg Germany2011Research groupGroundgenMoritz Diehl. The SYSCOP Kite Power activities are within the ERC Project HIGHWIND. [23]
SkySails Hamburg, Germany2001CompanyGroundgen and hull tractionStephan Wrage, Thomas Meyer [24] [25]
Makani Power Alameda, California, USA2006CompanyFlygenAcquired by Google [26] [27]
KiteLab GroupIlwaco, Washington, USA ?R&DAll methodsRapid open source development of kite energy. Flight encampments. kPower. [28]
Kitepower Enevate BVDelft, NL2016CompanyGroundgenJohannes Peschel, mobile 100 kW system, H2020 FTI [29]
Ampyx Power The Hague, The Netherlands2008CompanyGroundGenEuropean fund for regional development [30]
e-kiteThe Netherlands2013CompanyGroundGen50 kW prototype [31]
KiteGen Torino, Italy2003Private Research- industrial CompanyGroundGen; Carousel GW scale3-MW preseries; 130sqm composite wings, first mover; full patents coverage (3000 worldwide); freedom to operate; [32] [33] [34] [35]
TwingTecSwitzerland2013CompanyGroundGenUsing tensairity [36] [37]
UpWind ProjectPortugal2014Research GroupGroundGenThe University of Porto Airborne Wind Energy Project. Investigates multi-kite systems [38]
Windswept and Interesting LimitedUnited Kingdom2012CompanyGroundGen with tensile rotary power transmission from airborne kite turbineUsing Kite Turbine and Tensile Rotary Power Transmission [39]
UFSCkiteFlorianópolis, Brazil2012Research LabGroundGenFirst AWE research group in Latin America [40]
Kites for Future Berlin, Germany2020free-timeGroundGen Open source [41] [42]
WindliftDurham, NC, USA2006CompanyGroundGenRob Creighton, Andy Stough, Mark Aull [43]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airborne wind turbine</span> High-altitude flying turbine for generating electricity

An airborne wind turbine is a design concept for a wind turbine with a rotor supported in the air without a tower, thus benefiting from the higher velocity and persistence of wind at high altitudes, while avoiding the expense of tower construction, or the need for slip rings or yaw mechanism. An electrical generator may be on the ground or airborne. Challenges include safely suspending and maintaining turbines hundreds of meters off the ground in high winds and storms, transferring the harvested and/or generated power back to earth, and interference with aviation.

Airborne wind energy (AWE) is the direct use or generation of wind energy by the use of aerodynamic or aerostatic lift devices. AWE technology is able to harvest high altitude winds, in contrast to wind turbines, which use a rotor mounted on a tower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Unconventional wind turbines</span> Wind turbines of unconventional design

Unconventional wind turbines are those that differ significantly from the most common types in use.

Southwest Windpower (SWWP) was a wind turbine manufacturer established in 1987 based in Flagstaff, Arizona, United States. The company specialized in small, reliable battery charging wind generators that complement photovoltaics (solar energy or PV) in supplying energy to rural areas.

A laddermill kite system is an airborne wind turbine consisting of a long string or loop of power kites. The loop or string of kites would be launched in the air by the lifting force of the kites, until it is fully unrolled, and the top reaches a height determined by designers and operators; some designers have considered heights of about 30,000 feet, but the concept is not height-dependent. The laddermill method may use one endless loop, two endless loops, or more such loops.

SkySails Group GmbH is a Hamburg-based company that sells kite rigs to propel cargo ships, large yachts and fishing vessels by wind energy as well as airborne wind energy systems for electricity production from high-altitude winds.

Different types of flying kites have niche applications. In nature, some animals, such as spiders, also make use of kiting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wind turbine</span> Machine that converts wind energy into electrical energy

A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. As of 2020, hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, were generating over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. Wind turbines are an increasingly important source of intermittent renewable energy, and are used in many countries to lower energy costs and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. One study claimed that, as of 2009, wind had the "lowest relative greenhouse gas emissions, the least water consumption demands and the most favorable social impacts" compared to photovoltaic, hydro, geothermal, coal and gas energy sources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SMA Solar Technology</span> German solar energy equipment supplier

SMA Solar Technology AG is a German solar energy equipment supplier founded in 1981 and headquartered in Niestetal, Northern Hesse, Germany. SMA is a producer and manufacturer of solar inverters for photovoltaics systems with grid connection, off-grid power supply and backup operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GE Wind</span> American wind turbine manufacturer

GE Wind is a division of GE Vernova. The company manufactures and sells wind turbines to the international market. In 2018, GE Wind was the fourth largest wind turbine manufacturer in the world. Vic Abate is the CEO of GE Vernova’s Wind businesses.

Squid Labs was an American independent research and development company founded by a group of four MIT graduates. In 2004, Colin Bulthaup, Dan Goldwater, Saul Griffith, and Eric Wilhelm moved from the East Coast to California to found the company known as Squid Labs. During its years of existence from 2004 to 2007, Squid Labs added three more members to its team: Geo Homsy, Corwin Hardham and Ryan McKinley. Working out of a warehouse in Emeryville, the group adopted the slogan "We're not a think tank, we're a do tank." and created a handful of patents and inventions including an electronically sensed rope, portable pull-cord generators, and a machine that could manufacture eyeglasses of any prescriptions at extremely low cost. Squid Labs was also the birthplace for many companies still running today, such as Makani Power and Howtoons. Although the company no longer exists, Squid Lab's co-founder, Saul Griffith created a similar company in San Francisco named Otherlab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Dehlsen</span>

James G.P. Dehlsen is an American businessman, inventor, and entrepreneur. He is a pioneering figure in wind power and renewable energy development in the United States and holds 25 patents.

Makani Technologies LLC was an Alameda, California-based company that developed airborne wind turbines. Founded in 2006, Makani was acquired by Google in May 2013. In February 2020, Makani was shut down by Alphabet, Google's parent company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">X Development</span> American research and development company

X Development LLC, doing business as X, is an American semi-secret research and development facility and organization founded by Google in January 2010. X has its headquarters about a mile and a half from Alphabet's corporate headquarters, the Googleplex, in Mountain View, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crosswind kite power</span> Form of wind-powered mechanical or electrical generation

Crosswind kite power is power derived from airborne wind-energy conversion systems or crosswind kite power systems (CWKPS). The kite system is characterized by energy-harvesting parts flying transversely to the direction of the ambient wind, i.e., to crosswind mode; sometimes the entire wing set and tether set are flown in crosswind mode. From toy to power-grid-feeding sizes, these systems may be used as high-altitude wind power (HAWP) devices or low-altitude wind power (LAWP) devices without having to use towers. Flexible wings or rigid wings may be used in the kite system. A tethered wing, flying in crosswind at many times wind speed, harvests wind power from an area that exceeds the wing's total area by many times.

NTS Energie- und Transportsysteme GmbH was founded in 2006 in Berlin, Germany by Uwe Ahrens.The company is developing X-Wind technology. This technology combines two technologies - automatically steered kites and generators on a rail system - to produce electricity. A closed loop rail with cable-connected cars work in concert to pull the loop cable. Each railed car is pulled by a four-tethered kited wing; each wing is controlled by an autopilot or kite-steering unit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Montague</span> Canadian-American watersport athlete and designer

Donald Lewis Montague is a Canadian-American watersport athlete and designer. He is President of Kai Concepts, co-founder of Makani Power, and the head of the Kiteboat Project in Alameda, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ampyx Power</span>

Ampyx Power was a Dutch company based in The Hague whose aim was to develop utility-scale airborne wind energy systems. The company was founded in 2008 by Bas Lansdorp and Dr. Richard Ruiterkamp.

Kitepower is a registered trademark of the Dutch company Enevate B.V. developing mobile airborne wind power systems. Kitepower was founded in 2016 by Johannes Peschel and Roland Schmehl as a university spin-off from the Delft University of Technology’s airborne wind energy research group established by the former astronaut Wubbo Ockels. The company is located in Delft, Netherlands, and currently comprises 18 employees (2018).

References

  1. ↑ Ahrens, Uwe; Diehl, Moritz; Schmehl, Roland (2013). "Preface". In Ahrens, Uwe; Diehl, Moritz; Schmehl, Roland (eds.). Airborne Wind Energy. Green Energy and Technology. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer. pp. i–xxiii. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-39965-7. ISBN   978-3-642-39964-0.
  2. ↑ Schmehl, Roland (2018). "Preface" (PDF). In Schmehl, Roland (ed.). Airborne Wind Energy - Advances in Technology Development and Research. Green Energy and Technology. Singapore: Springer. pp. i–xxvii. doi:10.1007/978-981-10-1947-0. ISBN   978-981-10-1946-3. S2CID   238791121.
  3. ↑ AWE and Kite Energy Industry List by UpperWindpower
  4. ↑ "Kitemill - Taking windpower to new heights". www.kitemill.com. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  5. ↑ "WindFisher" . Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  6. ↑ "KiteX github". GitHub . Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  7. ↑ "Kites harvest energy like wind turbines" . Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  8. ↑ "Kitekraft" . Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  9. ↑ "Airborne Wind Europe – The association of the European airborne wind energy industry, representing the interests to policy and business – suppliers, utilities, developers and manufacturers" . Retrieved 2023-02-25.
  10. ↑ "Home". Skypull (in Italian). Retrieved 2021-02-08.
  11. ↑ "Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna". Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna. Retrieved 2017-05-17.
  12. ↑ "Airborne Wind Energy Labs". Airborne Wind Energy Labs. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  13. ↑ "Altaeros Energies". Altaeros Energies. Retrieved 2013-10-02.
  14. ↑ "AWEIA - About us". Airborne Wind Energy Industry Association. Retrieved 2013-10-02.[ non-primary source needed ]
  15. ↑ "News". Nature Technology Systems. 2013-09-24. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
  16. ↑ "Startup: Berliner wollen guenstigsten Windstrom der Welt erzeugen/". Wirtschaftswoche. 2013-09-24. Retrieved 2014-06-14.
  17. ↑ "Delft explores kite power for rural Africa". Gizmag. 11 July 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  18. ↑ "Kite power: towards affordable, clean energy". Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology. Retrieved 2018-05-25.
  19. ↑ "Génération d'électricité par voile de traction qui exploite les vents de hautes altitudes". gipsa-lab. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
  20. ↑ "Airborne Wind Energy". EnerKite. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
  21. ↑ "Virging Flight of a Mobile Airborne Wind Power Plant". Haute Innovation. 2012. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
  22. ↑ "Energy Kite systems". Kite Information and Technology Exchange Society of America (KITESA). Retrieved 2016-11-10. "kPower, LLC".
  23. ↑ "Simulation, Optimization and Control of High-Altitude Wind Power Generators". ERC Highwind. Retrieved 2016-12-14.
  24. ↑ "SkySails GmbH - Home". SkySails GmbH. Archived from the original on 2013-09-29. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
  25. ↑ Fritz, Falko (2013). "Application of an Automated Kite System for Ship Propulsion and Power Generation". In Ahrens, Uwe; Diehl, Moritz; Roland, Schmehl (eds.). Airborne Wind Energy. Green Energy and Technology. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 359–372. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-39965-7_20. ISBN   978-3-642-39964-0.
  26. ↑ "Airborne Wind Energy". Makani - Google. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
  27. ↑ "Google X acquires kite-power startup Makani". cnet. 2013-05-23. Retrieved 2014-06-15.
  28. ↑ "KiteLab Group". Dave Santos. Retrieved 2013-10-02.[ non-primary source needed ]
  29. ↑ "KitePower - KitePower". Kitepower. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
  30. ↑ "Ampyx power a rising star in airborne wind power". Connect green. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  31. ↑ "Wind energy takes a flight". e-kite. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  32. ↑ "KiteGen Company site". KiteGen. Retrieved 2007-07-05.
  33. ↑ "high-altitude-wind-power-reviewed". EuanMearns. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
  34. ↑ "Kites global energy". Mashable. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  35. ↑ "KiteGen looks to get wind-power off the ground". Gizmag. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  36. ↑ "TwingTec aims to harvest wind power using kites". Gizmag. 20 June 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-05.
  37. ↑ "TwingTec website". TwingTec. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  38. ↑ "The University of Porto Airborne Wind Energy Project". UP WIND. Retrieved 2020-02-12.
  39. ↑ "Windswept and Interesting Limited". windswept and interesting ltd.
  40. ↑ "UFSCkite". UFSCkite. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  41. ↑ "Kites for Future" . Retrieved 2022-11-09.
  42. ↑ "Hackaday.io Kites for Future". hackaday.io. 2022-11-08. Retrieved 2022-11-09.
  43. ↑ "Windlift Uses Airborne Wind Energy To Lower Costs And Increase Efficiency". grepbeat.com. Retrieved 2024-08-23.
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