For a variable-speed wind turbine (VSWT), the primary objective of control is to maximize power generation while maintaining the desired rotor speed and avoiding equipment overloads. To fulfill the control objectives, the classical model-based control (MBC) has been widely used, which refers to two controllers: torque controller (TC) and pitch controller (PC). In this work, the drawbacks of MBC for VSWTs are studied extensively. It reveals that there are transition issues between the TC and PC,

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... and over-speed problems under large turbulent wind when only MBC is taken. To improve the control performance of the VSWT, an integrated control solution is presented, in which three fuzzy logic control modules are designed to function in parallel with MBC modules. Potential integrated structures are also given and a structure suitable for industrial application is adopted in this study. The proposed solution is applied to update the raw control system of a 3.0 MW VSWT of the Chinese Ming Yang Wind Power, which is validated with nonlinear simulations by using the commercial wind turbine simulation tool Bladed in accordance with IEC standards. The results prove that good performance of the target wind turbine is guaranteed under the proposed integrated control structure.