SINGLE AXIS SOLAR TRACKING SYSTEM
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
(i) Purpose
A typical solar panel converts only 30 to 40 percent of the incident solar irradiation into
electrical energy. Thus to get a constant output, an automated system is required which
should be capable to constantly rotate the solar panel. The Sun Tracking System (STS) was
made as a prototype to solve the problem, mentioned above. It is completely automatic and
keeps the panel in front of sun until that is visible. The unique feature of this system is that
instead of taking the earth as its reference, it takes the sun as a guiding source. Its active
sensors constantly monitor the sunlight and rotate the panel towards the direction where the
intensity of sunlight is maximum. With the rapid increase in population and economic
development, the problems of the energy crisis and global warming effects are today a
cause for increasing concern. The utilization of renewable OPEN ACCESS Sensors 2013, 13
3158 energy resources is the key solution to these problems. Solar energy is one of the primary
sources of clean, abundant and inexhaustible energy, that not only provides alternative energy
resources, but also improves environmental pollution. The most immediate and
technologically attractive use of solar energy is through photovoltaic conversion. The
physics of the PV cell (also called solar cell) is very similar to the classical p-n junction
diode. The PV cell converts the sunlight directly into direct current (DC) electricity by the
photovoltaic effect [1,2]. A PV panel or module is a packaged interconnected assembly of
PV cells. In order to maximize the power output from the PV panels, one needs to keep the
panels in an optimum position perpendicular to the solar radiation during the day. As such,
it is necessary to have it equipped with a Sun tracker. Compared to a fixed panel, a mobile
PV panel driven by a Sun tracker may boost consistently the energy gain of the PV panel
(ii) Scope
It can be used for small and medium scale power generations.
It can be used for power generation at remote places where power
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lines are not accessible.
It can be used for domestic and industrial power backup sytem.
Solar radiation Tracker has played a vital role in increasing the
efficiency of solar panels in recent years, thus proving to be a better
technological achievement. The vital importance of a dual axis solar
tracker lies in its better efficiency and sustainability to give a better
output compared to a fived solar panel or a single axis solar tracker.
The tracking system is designed such that it can trap the solar energy
in all possible directions
(iii) Definition
A Solar tracker is an automated solar panel which actually follows the sun to get maximum
power. The primary benefit of a tracking system is to collect solar energy for the longest
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period of the day, and with the most accurate alignment as the Sun’s position shifts with
the seasons.Dual Axis Tracker have two different degrees through which they use as axis
of rotation. The dual axis are usually at a normal of each rotate both east to west (zenithal)
and north to south. Solar tracking is the most appropriate technology to enhance the
electricity production of a PV system. To achieve a high degree of tracking accuracy, several
approaches have been widely investigated. Generally, they can be classified as either open-loop
tracking types based on solar movement mathematical models or closed-loop tracking types
using sensor-based feedback controllers [3–5]. In the open-loop tracking approach, a tracking
formula or control algorithm is used. Referring to the literature [6–10], the azimuth and the
elevation angles of the Sun were determined by solar movement models or algorithms at
the given date, time and geographical information. The control algorithms were executed in
a microprocessor controller [11,12]. In the closed-loop tracking approach, various active sensor
devices, such as charge couple devices (CCDs) [13–15] or light dependent resistors (LDRs)
[12,16–19] were utilized to sense the Sun’s position and a feedback error signal was then
generated to the control system to continuously receive the maximum solar radiation on the
PV panel. This paper proposes an empirical research approach on this issue. Solar tracking
approaches can be implemented by using single-axis schemes [12,19–21], and dual-axis
structures for higher accuracy
systems [16–18,22–27]. In general, the single-axis tracker with one degree of freedom
follows the Sun’s movement from the east to west during a day while a dual-axis tracker
also follows the elevation angle of the Sun. In recent years, there has been a growing volume of
research concerned with dual-axis solar tracking systems. However, in the existing research,
most of them used two stepper motors [22,23] or two DC motors [16,17,24,25] to perform
dual-axis solar tracking. With two tracking motors designs, two motors were mounted on
perpendicular axes, and even aligned them in certain directions. In some cases, both motors
could not move at the same time [5]. Furthermore, such systems always involve complex
tracking strategies using microprocessor chips as a control platform. In this work, employing a
dual-axis with only single tracking motor, an attempt has been made to develop and
implement a simple and efficient control scheme. The two axes of the Sun tracker were
allowed to move simultaneously within their respective ranges. Utilizing conventional
electronic circuits, no programming or computer interface was needed. Moreover, the
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proposed system used a stand-alone PV inverter to drive motor and provide power supply.
The system was self-contained and autonomous. Experiment results have demonstrated the
feasibility of the tracking PV system and verified the advantages of the proposed control
implementation.
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CHAPTER 2
OVERALL DESCRIPTION
(i) Product Perspective
a) System Interface
ATmega328p Microcontroller:-The high-performance Microchip picoPower 8-bit AVR
RISC-based microcontroller combines 32KB ISP flash memory with read-while-write
capabilities, 1024B EEPROM, 2KB SRAM, 23 general purpose I/O lines, 32 general
purpose working registers, three flexible timer/counters with compare modes, internal and
external interrupts, serial programmable USART, a byte-oriented 2-wire serial interface,
SPI serial port, a 6-channel 10-bit A/D converter (8- channels in TQFP and QFN/MLF
packages), programmable watchdog timer with internal oscillator, and five software
selectable power saving modes. The device operates between 1.8-5.5 volts.
b) User Interface
It should be the connector between the various systems and the system or between other
parts or unit of the system.
c) Hardware Interface
Solar Panel:-
Solar panel refers to a panel designed to absorb the sun's rays as a source of energy for
generating electricity or heating. Photovoltaic modules use light energy (photons) from the
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Sun to generate electricity through the photovoltaic effect. The majority of modules
use wafer-based crystalline silicon cells or thin-film cells. The structural (load carrying)
member of a module can either be the top layer or the back layer. Cells must also be
protected from mechanical damage and moisture. Most modules are rigid, but semi-flexible
ones are available, based on thin-film cells. The cells must be connected electrically in
series, one to another. Externally, most of photovoltaic modules use MC4 connectors type
to facilitate easy weatherproof connections to the rest of the system.
Modules electrical connections are made in series to achieve a desired output voltage
and/or in parallel to provide a desired current capability. The conducting wires that take the
current off the modules may contain silver, copper or other non-magnetic conductive
transition metals. Bypass diodes may be incorporated or used externally, in case of partial
module shading, to maximize the output of module sections still illuminated.
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Arduino UNO Microcontroller :-
Arduino is an open source, computer hardware and software company, project, and user
community that designs and manufactures microcontroller kits for building digital devices
and interactive objects that can sense and control objects in the physical world. The
project's products are distributed as open-source hardware and software, which are
licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL) or the GNU General
Public
License (GPL) permitting the manufacture of Arduino boards and software distribution by
anyone. Arduino boards are available commercially in preassembled form, or as do-it-
yourself kits.
Arduino board designs use a variety of microprocessors and controllers. The boards are
equipped with sets of digital and analog input/output (I/O) pins that may be interfaced to
various expansion boards (shields) and other circuits. The boards feature serial
communications interfaces, including Universal Serial Bus (USB) on some models, which
are also used for loading programs from personal computers. The microcontrollers are
typically programmed using a dialect of features from the programming languages C and
C++. In addition to using traditional compiler toolchains, the Arduino project provides an
integrated development environment (IDE) based on the Processing language project.
Arduino/Genuino Uno:- is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328P. It has 14
digital input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs), 6 analog inputs, a 16
MHz quartz crystal, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header and a reset button. It
contains everything needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a
computer with a USB cable or power it with a AC- to-DC adapter or battery to get
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started.. You can tinker with your UNO without worring too much about doing something
wrong, worst case scenario you can replace the chip for a few dollars and start over again.
LDRs :-
A Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) or a photo resistor is a device whose resistivity is a
function of the incident electromagnetic radiation. Hence, they are light sensitive devices.
They are also called as photo conductors, photo conductive cells or simply
photocells. They are made up of semiconductor materials having high resistance. A
photoresistor is made of a high resistance semiconductor. In the dark, a photoresistor
can have a resistance as high as several megohms (MΩ), while in the light, a photoresistor
can have a resistance as low as a few hundred ohms. If incident light on a
photoresistor exceeds a certain frequency, photons absorbed by the semiconductor
give bound electrons enough energy to jump into the conduction band. The resulting free
electrons (and
their hole partners) conduct electricity, thereby lowering resistance. The resistance range
and sensitivity of a photoresistor can substantially differ among dissimilar devices.
Moreover, unique photoresistors may react substantially differently to photons within
certain wavelength bands.
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Servo Motors:-
A servomotor is a rotary actuator or linear actuator that allows for precise control of
angular or linear position, velocity and acceleration. It consists of a suitable motor
coupled to a sensor for position feedback. It also requires a relatively sophisticated
controller, often a dedicated module designed specifically for use with servomotors.
Servomotors are not a specific class of motor although the term servomotor is often used
to refer to a motor suitable for use in a closed-loop control system.
A servomotor is a closed-loop servomechanism that uses position feedback to control
its motion and final position. The input to its control is a signal (either analogue or
digital) representing the position commanded for the output shaft.
The motor is paired with some type of encoder to provide position and speed feedback. In
the simplest case, only the position is measured. The measured position of the output is
compared to the command position, the external input to the controller. If the output
position differs from that required, an error signal is generated which then causes the
motor to rotate
in either direction, as needed to bring the output shaft to the appropriate position. As the
positions approach, the error signal reduces to zero and the motor stops.
The very simplest servomotors use position-only sensing via a potentiometer and bang-
bang control of their motor; the motor always rotates at full speed (or is stopped). This
type of servomotor is not widely used in industrial motion control, but it forms the basis of
the simple and cheap servos used for radio-controlled models.
More sophisticated servomotors use optical rotary encoders to measure the speed of the
output shaft and a variable-speed drive to control the motor speed. Both of these
enhancements, usually in combination with a PID control algorithm, allow the servomotor
to be brought to its commanded position more quickly and more precisely, with
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less overshooting.
d) Software
Interface
Arduino
IDE:-
A program for Arduino may be written in any programming language for a compiler that
produces binary machine code for the target processor. Atmel provides a development
environment for their microcontrollers, AVR Studio and the newer Atmel Studio
The Arduino project provides the Arduino integrated development environment (IDE),
which is a cross-platform application written in the programming language Java. It
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originated from the IDE for the languages Processing and Wiring. It includes a code editor
with features such as text cutting and pasting, searching and replacing text, automatic
indenting, brace matching, and syntax highlighting, and provides simple one-click
mechanisms to compile and upload programs to an Arduino board. It also contains a
message area, a text console, a toolbar with buttons for common functions and a hierarchy
of operation menus.
A program written with the IDE for Arduino is called a sketch. Sketches are saved on
the development computer as text files with the file extension .ino. Arduino Software
(IDE) pre-
1.0 saved sketches with the extension .pde.
2.0
The Arduino IDE supports the languages C and C++ using special rules of code
structuring. The Arduino IDE supplies a software library from the Wiring project, which
provides many common input and output procedures. User-written code only requires two
basic functions, for starting the sketch and the main program loop, that are compiled and
linked with a program stub main() into an executable cyclic executive program with the
GNU toolchain, also included with the IDE distribution. The Arduino IDE employs the
program avrdude to convert the executable code into a text file in hexadecimal encoding
that is loaded into the Arduino board by a loader program in the board's firmware.
e ) Communication Interface:-
NIL
f) Memory Requirement:-
NIL
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g) Operation
1. LDRs are used as the main light sensors. Two servo motors are fixed to the
structure that holds the solar panel. The program for Arduino is uploaded to the
microcontroller. The working of the project is as follows.
2. LDRs sense the amount of sunlight falling on them. Four LDRs are divided into
top, bottom, left and right.
3. For east – west tracking, the analog values from two top LDRs and two bottom
LDRs are compared and if the top set of LDRs receive more light, the vertical servo
will move in that direction
4. If the bottom LDRs receive more light, the servo moves in that direction.
5. For angular deflection of the solar panel, the analog values from two left LDRs and
two right LDRs are compared. If the left set of LDRs receive more light than the
right set, the horizontal servo will move in that direction.
6. If the right set of LDRs receive more light, the servo moves in that directionn.
7.
Block diagram of arduino based sun solar tracking system
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pin diagram of arduino based sun solar tracking system
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Site Adaptation Requirement
(ii) Product Functions
Algorithm –
Step1: Start
Step2: Initialise all necessary inputs and outputs to zero.
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Step3: Assign analog LDR outputs and PWM servomotor inputs to Arduino
Uno. Step4: If centre LDR = 0, then delay (longer).
Step5: Check alignment (Simultaneously for northsouth and east-west)
Step6: If up (LDR) greater than centre and down (LDR) lesser than centre,
then increase position of servomotor1 by 1 unit. Give delay.
Step7: Else if up (LDR) lesser than centre and down (LDR) greater than
centre, then decrease position of servomotor1 by 1 unit. Give delay.
Step8: (Simultaneously along with step6) If right (LDR) greater than centre
and left (LDR) lesser than centre then increase the position of servomotor2
by 1 unit. Give delay.
Step9: Else if right (LDR) is lesser than centre and left (LDR) greater than centre
then decrease position of servomotor2 by 1 unit. Give delay.
Step10:
Goto
Step 5.
Step11:
End.
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Flowchart of tracking algorithm for azimuth control and elevation control.
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(iii) User Characteristics
No particular requirement
( iv) Constraints
Higher mechanical complexity, making it more likely for something
to go wrong
Lower lifespan and lower reliability
Unreliable performance in cloudy or overcast weather
( v) Assumption & Dependencies
All the soldering and wiring are done correctly.
There must be a sunny day for the full efficiency of the system.
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CHAPTER 3
SPECIFIC REQUIREMENT
( i ) External Interface Requirement
(a) Hardware Interface Requirement
Solar Panel:-Solar panel refers to a panel designed to absorb the sun's rays as a source of
energy for generating electricity or heating.
Arduino UNO Microcontoller:-
Arduino/Genuino Uno is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328P. It has 14
digital input/output pins (of which 6 can be used as PWM outputs), 6 analog inputs, a 16
MHz quartz crystal, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header and a reset button. It
contains everything needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a computer
with a USB cable or power it with a AC- to-DC adapter or battery to get started.. You can
tinker with your UNO without worring too much about doing something wrong, worst case
scenario you can replace the chip for a few dollars and start over again.
LDRs:-A Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) or a photo resistor is a device whose
resistivity is a function of the incident electromagnetic radiation. Hence, they are light
sensitive devices. They are also called as photo conductors, photo conductive cells or
simply photocells. They are made up of semiconductor materials having high
resistance.
Servo Motors:-A servomotor is a rotary actuator or linear actuator that allows for precise
control of angular or linear position, velocity and acceleration. It consists of a suitable
motor coupled to a sensor
for position feedback. It also requires a relatively sophisticated controller, often a dedicated
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module designed specifically for use with servomotors.
(b) Software Interface
Requirement Arduino IDE:-
The Arduino IDE is a cross-platform Java application that serves as a code editor and
compiler and is also capable of transferring firmware serially to the board.
The development environment is based on Processing, an IDE designed to introduce
programming to artists unfamiliar with software development. The programming language
is derived from Wiring, a C- like language that provides similar functionality for a more
tightly restricted board design, whose IDE is also based on Processing.
(c) Communication Interface Requirement
NIL
(ii) Product Feature
The unique feature of this system is that instead of taking the earth as its
reference, it takes the sun as a guiding source. Its active sensors constantly
monitor the sunlight and rotate the panel towards the direction where the
intensity of sunlight is maximum.
(iii) Performance Requirement
There must be a sunny day for the full efficiency of the system
(iv)Design Constraint
Higher mechanical complexity, making it more likely for something
to go wrong
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Lower lifespan and lower reliability
Unreliable performance in cloudy or overcast weath.
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CHAPTER 4
CONCLUSION
As dual-axis tracking generates 40% more power from each panel, you can
achieve the same power output with fewer panels, frames and so on, which reduces
a project's upfront costs and offsets to a great extent the additional cost for tracking
hardware. On the other hand, you can use the same number of panels as originally
planned and generate 40% more power and higher revenues. This reduces the
project's payback time and also increases the overall return on investment (ROI),
depending on the financial specifics of the project.
Solar radiation Tracker has played a vital role in increasing the efficiency of solar
panels in recent years, thus proving to be a better technological achievement. The vital
importance of a dual axis solar tracker lies in its better efficiency and sustainability
to give a better output compared to a fived solar panel or a single axis solar tracker.
The tracking system is designed such that it can trap the solar energy in all possible
directions. Generally, in a single axis tracker that moves only along a single axis it
is not possible to track the maximum solar energy. In case of dual axis trackers, if
the solar rays are perpendicular to panel throughout the year. Hence, maximum
possible energy is trapped throughout the day as well as throughout the year. Thus,
the output increases indicating that the efficiency more than a fixed solar panel
(about 30 -40% more) or a single axis so36.
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