Patent ID: 7944068

Claim:
An integrated fault and personnel protection system adapted for a wind turbine power system receiving electric power from a wind turbine generator, mounted atop a wind turbine tower and interconnected by tower cables to a power converter system mounted at a lower level of the wind turbine tower, providing a power output to a load, the system comprising: a wind turbine generator adapted to generate an alternating current power output; a power converter system coupled to the wind turbine generator and adapted to generate a voltage and frequency power output provided to a load, wherein the power converter system includes a plurality of parallel generator-side converters, each generator-side converter connecting to the wind turbine generator, and a plurality of parallel load-side converters, each load-side converter connecting to the load; a converter control system coupled to the power converter system and adapted to drive the power converter system to reduce harmonic components in the power output from the power converter system and on the alternating current power output from the wind turbine generator; a main transformer, coupling the power converter system to the load; at least one motor-operated circuit breaker adapted to isolate the wind turbine generator from the power converter system; at least one motor-operated circuit breaker adapted to isolate the power converter system from the load; at least one fuse for generator-side for fuse protection on the generator-side of the parallel generator-side converters; at least one load-side fuse for fuse protection on the load-side of the parallel load-side converters; and an isolation circuit breaker adapted for isolating the wind turbine power system through the main transformer to the load.