Yaw drive

The yaw drive is an important component in horizontal axis wind turbines. To ensure the wind turbine is producing the maximal amount of electrical energy at all times, the yaw drive is used to keep the rotor facing into the wind as the wind direction changes. This only applies for wind turbines with a horizontal axis rotor. The wind turbine is said to have a yaw error if the rotor is not aligned to the wind. A yaw error implies that a lower share of the energy in the wind will be running through the rotor area. (The generated energy will be proportional the cosine of the yaw error).