News

Dopplium and MS3 awarded Holland High Tech Grant for RADBAT Project

• Tuesday, 22 July 2025

Dopplium, in collaboration with TU Delft, has been awarded a grant from Holland High Tech as part of the TKI High Tech Systems and Materials (HTSM) program. The project, titled RADBAT (Radar detection & tracking of bats in wind parks), will continue our development of an advanced radar-based system to monitor bats in wind farms and enable smarter turbine curtailment strategies.

The subsidy will fund a dedicated postdoctoral researcher at TU Delft for two years, who will lead the scientific research of real-time signal processing, tracking algorithms, and AI focused on bat detection and classification. 

Tackling the Bat-Wind Turbine Challenge

As wind energy expands, so does the risk to bat populations, which are protected under Dutch and European law. Current mitigation methods rely on blanket turbine shutdowns based on weather forecasts, causing an estimated €100 million in energy losses annually in the Netherlands.

RADBAT will enhance Dopplium systems using mm-wave radar to detect and track bats in real time, allowing turbines to curtail only when bats are actually present. This technology can reduce unnecessary curtailment by up to 50%, balancing biodiversity protection with energy efficiency.

Project Highlights

• Real-time detection of small, fast-moving bats using Dopplium’s high-resolution radar.
• AI-driven classification and 3D tracking of flight behavior.
• Integration with turbine control systems for dynamic curtailment.
• Field testing with drones and deployment in operational wind farms.

A Nationally Relevant Innovation

RADBAT directly supports the Dutch energy transition and contributes to Knowledge and Innovation Agendas (KIAs) focused on climate-neutral systems and renewable energy generation. The results will be widely applicable to wind farms in the Netherlands and beyond, while also contributing to broader fields such as environmental monitoring and autonomous sensing.

Stay up to date with RADBAT developments at www.dopplium.com. Dopplium combines radar technology and ecological insight to power a more sustainable future.