Bird Protection System

Year

2024

Organisation

Bioseco

Description

The Bioseco Bird Protection System (BPS) minimises bird mortality at wind farms by using visual modules and advanced algorithms. It detects birds, tracks their flight paths, and activates deterrent measures to prevent collisions with turbine blades. This innovative solution helps wind farms operate more sustainably with less risk to avian biodiversity and reduce the need for constant downtime of wind turbines.

Highlights

  • Bird Protection System achieves over 90% detection accuracy for large birds within a 400-metre range.
  • Installed in over 200 wind turbines across multiple countries, proving its scalability and reliability.
  • Minimises the need for constant downtime, which leads to faster wear of materials and less energy generation.

About this Practice

The Bioseco Bird Protection System (BPS) was developed to address the issue of bird collisions with wind turbine blades, which poses a serious risk to avian populations near wind farms. BPS combines stereovision, AI algorithms, and a cascade response system to identify birds and prevent collisions. The system can classify birds by size, filter out false positives, and even stop the turbine if necessary, ensuring a balance between energy production and environmental protection.

Each wind turbine is equipped with 6-8 independent BPS modules, covering 360° of the monitored area. These modules include high-resolution cameras and optional strobe or audio deterrents, which are activated based on the bird’s proximity and flight trajectory. The BPS offers three versions—Standard, Premium, and Long Range—each varying in detection range and false positive rate, tailored to meet specific site requirements. 

A notable feature of the BPS is its ability to reduce the need for extended turbine shutdowns, which in turns lowers operational costs, minimises wear and tear of materials and avoids preventable losses in overall energy generation. Independent evaluations have shown high detection efficiency with low localisation error rates. The system’s scalability and long-term design allow it to operate for the entire lifespan of a wind farm, typically 20 years. This makes BPS a sustainable and cost-effective solution, promoting harmonious coexistence between wind farms

RGI gratefully acknowledges the EU LIFE funding support:

EU LIFE funding support Logo

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the LIFE Programme. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.