Block diagram of system this paper proposes the use of dual axis solar tracker. At most, the solar tracker was perpendicular to the light source within 3 degrees. Dualaxis solar tracker worcester polytechnic institute. The proposed system uses a unique dual axis ac motor and a standalone pv inverter to accomplish solar tracking. Dual axis solar tracker panel with auto and manual mode. Our tracker is a dual axis tracker, meaning it tracks in both x and y. Pdf performance analysis of dualaxis solar tracking system.
A dualaxis tracking system is a more complex structure that includes a variety of sensors, circuits motors, and drives, power management features, and software and hardware for remote controlling. The fieldproven nx horizon is an advanced single axis solar tracker that has been deployed across more than 22 gigawatts of projects worldwide. Nextracker offers the most intelligent and reliable systems for your solar tracking system and storage needs, paving the way for the connected power plant of the future. Dual axis solar tracker with online energy monitor. The solar panel tracker is designed to follow the sun movement so that maximum light intensity hits on the solar panel, thus increasing the power efficiency. Our dual axis photovoltaic tracking systems align the solar panels to the optimum angle to the sun for power generation. Trackers generate more electricity than their stationary counterparts due to increased direct exposure to solar rays.
Thus the setup by which the above objective is achieved is known as solar tracker. Its a dual axis with two solar panels of 260wp each. The data acquisition, control, and monitor of the mechanical movement of the photovoltaic module. Circuit diagram for ttdat control board and photo sensor circuit appendix 2. Modeling dualaxis solar trackers in energy3d concord. There are two main ways to mount a solar panel for tracking. Let us design a solar tracker using two servo motors, a light sensor consisting of four ldrs and arduino uno board. The simulation results show that the dual axis tracker has better capability of tracking the sun light in two planes instead of single plane tracking of single axis tracker. Design and simulation of dual axis solar tracker for. This means once you have your tracker set up you will never need to change or adjust anything, since anywhere the sun moves your tracker will follow. Sun action trackers is committed to the innovation and manufacturing of highgrade solar tracking and racking systems in the united states.
An active, dualaxis tracking system prototype has already been designed and built by 4, which consists of the sensor system to determine the position of the sun and a control system which reads data from the sensors to command the movement of the tracker. There are many different kinds of solar trackers, such as single axis and dual axis trackers, all of which can be the perfect. It is a demanding project for elementary school students and it took us many meetings to accomplish. All project components are readily available per the detailed parts lists. Dual axis solar tracking system verified purchase after assembly it seems that the actuators were changed from the original design, and have different lengths. To also help things along and remove a bunch of wiring were using an arduino.
Gamechange solar provides a value added service for the genius tracker single axis tracker and maxspan fixed tilt systems to be utilizable on undulating and sloping ground conditions. This kit is perfect for the person that wants a quick start on building a single axis solar tracker. Pv tracker nextracker nextracker single axis tracker. At maximum, the solar tracker was perpendicular to the light source by 1. Automated tracking of daily ew movement of sun, and nt yield of solar pv system is increased upto. The result is that the maximum motion ew is 37 degrees east to 52 degrees west. The ontrack tcx2 tracker controller is a cost effective, microprocessorbased solar tracking controller suitable for dualaxis or singleaxis tracking applications. The electromechanical system consists of two drivers, the first for the joint rotating about the vertical axis shown in fig.
At maximum, the solar tracker is perpendicular to the light source. We have designed single axis solar tracking system. The function of the tracking system is based on the program embedded in. The solar tracker circuit uses a window comparator to maintain the motor in a idle state as long as the two ldrs are under the same illumination level. The allearth renewables dualaxis trackers use gps signals to determine the tracker s latitude and. The simulation results show that the dual axis tracker has better capability of tracking the sun light in two planes instead of single plane. Dual axis trackers obviously win the game when it comes to smaller arrays. Single axis trackers only work if theres enough land for a long span of panels. With headquarters in san antonio, we offer bankable solutions to residential, commercial and utility scaled projects in. Circuit diagram the circuit design of solar tracker is simple but setting. Proprietary topo analysis software reduces grading costs. In theory, at least, you could build a two axis tracker. This is a much larger and more advanced version of one of my first projects ever. But dual axis arrays can work just as well on larger projects as single axis modelsmaterial costs are similar but dual axis trackers produce more power since the sun is being followed.
The dualaxis tracker is a very compatible system to be developed with the usage of labview interface for arduino. Generally dual axis trackers are more accurate in pointing directly at the sun which is usually the brightest spot in the sky, however, dual axis comes at the price of higher complexity and lower reliability more down time and more maintenance than single axis. This project was one of my final projects i did on my exchange studies in finland. It is a networkready controller, and may be configured to operate as a single tracker application or be part of a larger commercial multitracker solar array. Two axes sun tracking system with plc control sciencedirect. An active tracker uses motors to direct the panel toward the sun by relying on a sensing circuit to detect light intensity. In this case, half the voltage is applied to the noninverting input of a1 and to the inverting input of a1. Dual axis trackers have two axes of movement, aligned with northsouth and with eastwest, giving them a wide range of position options.
A program to control the tracking system has been also developed 4. The dual axis tracker is a very compatible system to be developed with the usage of labview interface for arduino. The group has chosen to construct a dualaxis solar tracker that will not only tilt. Single axis trackers cannot exactly follow the sun but dual axis trackers can. Here for sale is electronic controller for dual axis solar tracking system, it comes with controller box and light sensor. The control implementation is a technical innovation that is a simple and effective. Energy3d has a variety of builtin tools for creating pv array layouts and analyzing their daily and annual yields. Track the sun with the stmax dual axis solar tracker that you build using the detailed plans in this book. Knowing the latitude, longitude and the datetime, the software calculates the azimuth and elevation of the sun. Since our program is rather simple weve opted to use an arudino uno. Fabrication of dualaxis solar tracking controller project. The ontrack tcx2 tracker controller is a cost effective, microprocessorbased solar tracking controller suitable for dual axis or single axis tracking applications. We wanted to implement two modes in the final product.
It is a networkready controller, and may be configured to operate as a single tracker application or be part of a larger commercial multi tracker solar array. Development of dualaxis solar tracking using arduino with. As seasons change and the suns path goes from low in the sky in winter too high in the sky in summer, dual axis trackers can optimize the amount of solar energy captured. In this solar tracker project we will design a simplest single axis solar tracker and its concept can be expanded to make a full fledged dual axis solar tracker. Usually, there are three types of solar tracking systems such as a single axis horizontal tracker, vertical axis tracker, and dual axis tracking system. To produce an efficient solar generation system, a scaled down dualaxis solar tracker was designed, built and tested. Optimal alignment is made possible by a precise astronomical control mechanism which can plot the course of. The controller received an analog input from the light dependent resistor ldr and converts it into digital signal by analogtodigital converter. Solar tracker diy do it yourself thank you for visiting my website.
The project is based on the dual axis solar tracker project from opensourceclassroom. The descriptive diagram of blocks of smart dast is shown in figure 3. Advantages and disadvantages of a sun tracker system. Rotating solar panel using arduino for solar efficiency. The built system had a calculated annual energy gain of 48. The program is designed in the environment of labview. The actual solar tracking is done entirely in software, only requiring a latitude and longitude in order to know where the sun is. Process of development a dual axis solar tracking prototype hilaris. Different researchers have reported the potential system benefits of using a simple single axis tracking solar system 7, 8. From 2006 to 2008, the spanish market gave quite an upswing to dual axis tracking. Different manufacturers use different methods of tracking to follow the sun, said paul gustafson, technical customer support for allearth. The detailed instructions include the circuit diagram, an explanation of how the circuit works, a description of how single axis sun tracking works and advice for selecting a dc gearhead motor.
Design the pcb by eagle software, the schematic circuit was drawn in the. Further mechanical enhancement can be done to the prototype, to implement dual axis tracking. Driving software has been developed using flowcode and then it is burnt into the. Design and simulation of singleaxis and dualaxis solar tracking. Are solar axis trackers worth the additional investment. Dual axis solar tracker project is to provide an efficient solar distributed generation system. Dual axis trackersdual axis trackers as shown in the figure 2. Dual axis trackers have been implemented in our energy3d software for photovoltaic pv solar panels, as is shown in the video embedded in this post. For higher latitude, avertical axis tracker is better suited. This project is based on an arduino nano, it uses a pair of linear actuators to move a set of solar panels so that they face the sun throughout the day. A tracker that accounts for both the daily and seasonal motions is known as a dual axis tracker. Othman, manan, othman and junid 20 used a microcontroller in an arduino platform to control a servo motor, in order to analyze the system efficiency of a dual axis tracking.
This increase can be as much as 10 to 25% depending on the geographic location of the tracking system. To put it into even more simple terms, it goes left, right, up, and down. Sketch up software is being used to sketch the drawing to be more real in 3 dimension 3d. Circuit implementation of dual axis solar tracker system. Dual axis solar tracker diy arduino powered duration.
Generally speaking, the losses due to seasonal angle changes is complicated by changes in the length of the day, increasing collection in the summer in northern or southern latitudes. The built system has a calculated annual energy gain of 48. Design and simulation of dual axis solar tracker for optimum solar energy absorption. In modern solar tracking systems, the solar panels are fixed on a structure that moves according to the position of the sun. Compared to stationary solar panels, a solar tracking system can increase the efficiency of solar panels by 25% to 40% using solar panel linear actuator or gear motor. The solar tracker follows the sun from east to west during the day. Conclusions an arduino solar tracker was designed and constructed in the current work. A lowcost closedloop solar tracking system based on the. The use of a highly portable, efficient solar tracker can be very useful to applications of the military, industrial, or residential variety. Dual trackers, two opinions pv magazine international. This process allows the energy usually generated using static photovoltaic panels to be increased by as much as 45%. It contains a small 5v solar panel that can rotate in two axis so as to harvest maximum power from the sun. Stepper motor functional module and ttdat software program code.