Researchers in Thailand have developed a ZigBee-based wireless monitoring solution for off-grid PV installations capable of tracking the sun across the sky, tilting the panel hourly. The elevation for the setup is adjusted manually once per month for optimum energy collection. The prototype is controlled by a local Arduino Uno board, along an H-bridge motor driver to actuate the motor and a 12V battery that’s charged entirely by solar power.

The system features a half-dozen sensors for measuring battery terminal voltage, solar voltage, solar current, current to the DC-DC converter, the temperature of the power transistor of DC-DC converter, and the tilt angle of solar panels according to the voltage across the potentiometer. 

Data is transmitted wirelessly via an XBee ZNet 2.5 module to a remote Uno with an XBee shield. The real-time information is then passed on to and analyzed by a computer, which is also used to set the system’s time.

More details on the project can be found in the team’s paper.

Wireless sensing is an excellent approach for remotely operated solar power system. Not only being able to get the sensor data, such as voltage, current, and temperature, the system can also have a proper control for tracking the Sun and sensing real-time data from a controller. In order to absorb the maximum energy by solar cells, it needs to track the Sun with proper angles. Arduino, H-bridge motor driver circuit, and Direct Current (DC) motor are used to alter the tilt angle of the solar Photovoltaic (PV) panel following the Sun while the azimuth and the elevation angles are fixed at noon. Unlike the traditional way, the tilt rotation is proposed to be stepped hourly. The solar PV panel is tilted  in advance of current time to the west to produce more output voltage during an hour. As a result, the system is simple while providing good solar-tracking results and efficient power outputs.

Solar panels are a great way to produce power literally out of thin air, but how much power they produce depends, in part, on how they are aimed. In order to figure out just how much better his solar setup could be with active tracking, YouTuber GreatScott! decided to test this by creating a miniature solar tracking system.

His device uses four LDRs to feed position data to an Arduino Nano, which then moves the small panel to properly face the sun.

The tracker/panel was set up next to a non-moving panel lying flat on his roof, and after a 2 ½-hour test, he found that the moving configuration generated 15% more energy. Of course there are other factors to consider, including time of day and how much power the tracker itself consumes, so be sure to see the experimental project and his thoughts on the results below.

As part of a school project, Bruce Helsen built a dual-axis tracker for optimizing solar panel use during his time as exchange student in Finland. Although adding a tracking system to a larger installation isn’t really a cost-effective option, it can certainly come in handy for smaller units.

Helsen’s dual-axis tracker works by making sure that the two 12V 150W solar panels stay aligned with the sun for as long as possible, measuring the panels’ voltage and current then calculating the generated power and energy, and sending that data from the monitor to ThingSpeak. There’s also an LCD to display the readings.

The panel’s two axes are controlled by a pair of inexpensive linear actuators. It uses an Arduino Mega for a brain, and an ESP8266 for transmitting the data over to the cloud. Light direction is detected by a homemade light sensor housed inside an industrial lamp enclosure. A 3D-printed crossbeam separates the sensor into four quadrants, with a light-dependent resistor for each. By comparing the average LDR values, the panel is able to point in the best direction.

Looking to monitor your solar energy? Check out Helsen’s project page here.