WindProto

Affordable wind turbine simulator built for students – prototype designs in minutes without expensive software.

Score: 8.1/10IndiaMedium BuildReady to Spawn
Brand Colors

The Opportunity

Problem

Students can't affordably prototype wind and solar models because energy simulation software is too expensive or lacks student licenses.

Solution

WindProto provides a browser-based simulator letting students input turbine specs, wind profiles, and site data to instantly visualize power output and efficiency. It uses simplified physics models validated against real data, eliminating the need for costly licenses. Export reports for assignments directly from the dashboard.

Target Audience

University students in renewable energy, engineering, or environmental science programs working on wind/solar projects

Differentiator

Student-only pricing with pre-loaded university wind datasets and one-click assignment report templates.

Brand Voice

friendly

Features

Turbine Designer

must-have20h

Drag-and-drop interface to configure blade size, hub height, and rotor diameter.

Wind Profile Simulator

must-have15h

Input or auto-generate wind speed/direction profiles to compute power curves.

Performance Dashboard

must-have12h

Real-time charts of power output, capacity factor, and annual energy production.

Report Exporter

must-have8h

Generate PDF reports with graphs and data summaries for submissions.

Preset Templates

must-have10h

Library of common turbine models and sites for quick starts.

Sensitivity Analysis

nice-to-have10h

Test variations in wind speed or turbine params with comparative charts.

Save & Share Projects

nice-to-have8h

Cloud save simulations and share links for feedback.

Historical Data Import

nice-to-have6h

Upload CSV wind data from public sources.

Total Build Time: 89 hours

Database Schema

users

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
emailtextNo
universitytextYes
created_attimestampNo

projects

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
user_iduuidNo
nametextNo
turbine_specsjsonbNo
wind_profilejsonbNo
created_attimestampNo

Relationships:

  • user_id references users(id)

simulations

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
project_iduuidNo
resultsjsonbNo
created_attimestampNo

Relationships:

  • project_id references projects(id)

API Endpoints

POST
/api/projects

Create new project

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/projects/:id

Fetch project details

🔒 Auth Required
POST
/api/simulations

Run simulation

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/simulations/:id

Get simulation results

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/export/:id

Generate report PDF

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/templates

List preset templates

Tech Stack

Frontend
Next.js 14 + Tailwind + Recharts
Backend
Next.js 14 API routes
Database
Supabase Postgres
Auth
Supabase Auth
Payments
Stripe
Hosting
Vercel
Additional Tools
pdf-lib for reportszod for validation

Build Timeline

Week 1: Core setup & auth

20h
  • Next.js project init
  • Supabase setup
  • User auth & dashboard

Week 2: Project CRUD

25h
  • Projects table/model
  • UI for create/load projects

Week 3: Simulation engine

30h
  • Wind sim logic
  • Dashboard charts

Week 4: Exports & templates

20h
  • PDF export
  • Preset templates

Week 5: Polish & nice-to-haves

15h
  • Sensitivity analysis
  • Sharing

Week 6: Payments & deploy

15h
  • Stripe integration
  • Pricing tiers
  • Launch on Vercel
Total Timeline: 6 weeks • 135 hours

Pricing Tiers

Free

$0/mo

1 sim/day

  • 3 projects
  • Basic sims
  • PDF export

Pro

$35/mo

50 sims/month

  • Unlimited projects
  • Advanced analysis
  • Priority templates

Team

$99/mo

Unlimited

  • All Pro
  • Shared projects
  • Custom reports

Revenue Projections

MonthUsersConversionMRRARR
Month 11002%$70$840
Month 68005%$1,400$16,800

Unit Economics

$8
CAC
$210
LTV
5%
Churn
92%
Margin
LTV:CAC Ratio: 26.3xExcellent!

Landing Page Copy

Prototype Wind Turbines Free from Expensive Software

Students: Simulate power output, efficiency & more in your browser. Reports ready for class.

Feature Highlights

Drag-drop turbine design
Real-time power curves
Assignment-ready PDFs
Student presets

Social Proof (Placeholders)

"'Saved my project deadline!' - Alex, MIT Eng"
"'Way better than clunky desktop apps.' - Sarah, Renewables Major"

First Three Customers

Post in r/engineeringstudents, r/windenergy, and LinkedIn groups for renewable energy students with a free beta invite. DM 10 profs from top unis like Stanford/Imperial via email with demo link. Offer lifetime Pro for first feedback.

Launch Channels

Product Huntr/SaaSr/engineeringstudentsIndie HackersTwitter #RenewableEnergy

SEO Keywords

wind turbine simulator studentsfree wind energy modeling softwarestudent wind power calculatorprototype wind farm online

Competitive Analysis

OpenWind

openwind.org
Free but desktop install
Strength

Accurate models

Weakness

No web, steep learning

Our Advantage

Browser-based, student UI

$1000+/yr
Strength

Pro features

Weakness

Too expensive for students

Our Advantage

$35 student pricing

🏰 Moat Strategy

Curated student datasets + templates building data moat over time

⏰ Why Now?

Boom in uni renewable courses post-IRA funding, but tools lag for budget constraints

Risks & Mitigation

technicalmedium severity

Sim accuracy questioned

Mitigation

Validate against NREL data upfront

marketlow severity

Low student spend

Mitigation

Freemium + uni partnerships

executionmedium severity

Solo build delays

Mitigation

Prioritize MVP features

Validation Roadmap

pre-build7 days

Survey 50 students on Reddit

Success: 70% interested in $35/mo

mvp14 days

Beta test with 20 users

Success: 50% retention week 2

launch3 days

PH launch

Success: 200 signups

Pivot Options

  • Pro wind consultants tool
  • General fluid dynamics sim
  • Add solar module

Quick Stats

Build Time
135h
Target MRR (6 mo)
$1,000
Market Size
$5.0M
Features
8
Database Tables
3
API Endpoints
6