Ant Colony Optimization Applied to Control of Ocean Wave Energy Converters

Abstract

Recently, various control models have been developed to optimize the performance of wave energy converters in order to enhance their long term economic value. Among others, the control of the all-electric Power Take Off (PTO) has been actively studied. This paper introduces the application of bio-inspired Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) metaheuristic as decision support for real-time wave energy extraction. It is found that the performance of the proposed algorithm is appealing as it is able to provide optimal parameter values to the control model within short interval. This provides fast-tuning capability to the PTO while sparing suffcient time for the WEC to respond to the continuously changing sea states.