Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison
College of Engineering
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Wisconsin Electric Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC)
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Jennifer Guinevere Vining
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Biography
Jennifer Vining is originally from Texas where she graduated with high honors
in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. While in Austin,
she worked at both IBM (2003-2004) and the Applied Research Laboratories
(2004-2005) before continuing
her studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Under the supervision of
Dr. A. Muetze at UW-Madison, she received her
Masters in Electrical Engineering with the thesis entitled
“Ocean Wave Energy Converters: Overview, Legal and Economic Aspects,
and Direct-Drive Power Take-Off”. Her work with ocean wave energy conversion
brought the opportunity to work at Ocean Power Technologies in Warwick, United Kingdom
in 2007.
She has published three IEEE conference
papers and one IEEE Transactions paper, all on the topic of ocean wave
energy conversion.
Jennifer is currently a doctoral student studying direct drive
generators for wave energy conversion under Professors T.A. Lipo and G. Venkataramanan
at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. This work is sponsored by the Wisconsin Electric
Machines and Power Electronics Consortium (WEMPEC) research group, the Claude & Dora Richardson Fellowship,
and the COE Distinguished Fellowship.
Publications
Presentations
Research
Research Description
Ocean energy conversion has been of interest for many years as a highly
exploitable water-based energy source. Recent developments in the area
of controlling variable speed generation have renewed interest in the topic.
The aim of this project is to explore current activities in the area of
wave energy conversion with a focus on wave energy converter control techniques,
power take-off strategies, environmental concerns, and state-of-the-art, as
well as commercial prospects, economic impact, and U.S. regulatory issues.
My current research concentrates on direct drives for wave energy converters. Through this
research, I have developed a novel hybrid flux linear generator (direct drive)
that meets the following
criteria: (1) increased shear force capability with the constraint of minimized
cost and size, (2) reduced linear bearing strain by means of minimized ripple
force, and (3) high efficiency energy conversion. It is proposed that placing
multiple parallel direct drives in one device will yield cost-reduced designs.
Recent and Upcoming Plans
Research Status: The design and optimization of this novel linear machine
has been completed, and I am in the process of machining and ordering parts for construction. This year also
brings the opportunity to present my research to
the preliminary exam committee, giving me dissertator status.
Teaching Work: I am TA'ing the Electric Power Processing for Alternative Energy Systems course (ECE 356) taught by Prof. Thomas Jahns and Prof. Giri Venkataramanan. In this position, I present the lectures on wave energy and lead discussion sections.
Upcoming Conference Presentations: I will be presenting papers at both the European
Wave and Tidal Energy Conference as well as the IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Expo.
A free PDF viewer may be obtained from the
Adobe Acrobat Reader webpage.
Please contact me for a printout or alternate format if necessary.
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Date last modified: 14-September-2009
Created by: Jennifer Guinevere Vining
Contact: vining@wisc.edu
UW-Madison : College of Engineering : Electrical & Computer Engineering : WEMPEC
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