IET Renewable Power Generation

Case Study

Hardware implementation of the fuzzy logic ISSN 1752-1416

Received on 24th February 2018

MPPT in an Arduino card using a Simulink

Revised 8th October 2018
Accepted on 20th November 2018
E-First on 13th December 2018
support package for PV application doi: 10.1049/iet-rpg.2018.5667
www.ietdl.org

Mhamed Fannakh1 , Mohamed Larbi Elhafyani1, Smail Zouggar1

1Laboratory of Electrical Engineering and Maintenance – LEEM, High School of Technology, University Mohammed 1st, Oujda, Morocco
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: The work presented in this study aims to develop an intelligent algorithm, based on fuzzy logic, to track the maximum
power point (MPP) of a photovoltaic (PV) panel. Modelling and simulation steps of the PV panel are made by using the
MATLAB/Simulink environment, before passing to the description of fuzzy logic MPP tracking (MPPT) algorithm. On an Arduino
Mega 2560 controller board, a real-time implementation of the MPPT algorithm by using Simulink Support Package for Arduino
Hardware in MATLAB/Simulink was conducted to experimentally validate the preliminary results of simulations. The proposed
work outlines also the solution to modify pulse-width modulation frequency of Arduino when it is used with Simulink.

1 Introduction 2 Modelling of the PV panel and boost converter

Energy is one of the key factors of development in any country. 2.1 PV panel modelling
Morocco is one of the countries concerned with energy. Population
growth and a need of a social and economic development require a Fig. 1 shows the equivalent circuit of a PV cell under irradiation. It
continuing increased energy demand (5% per year in the period corresponds to a current generator Ipv connected in parallel with a
2006–2011 and is expected to increase by 7–8.5% per year in the diode. Two parasitic resistances are introduced in this schema.
next 10 years) [1]. Traditional energies are present on the planet in These resistors have some influence on the characteristic I = f(V) of
limited quantities and generate a massive degradation of natural the cell:
resources. This deterioration leads to pollution and emission of
greenhouse gases. This type of energy is unevenly distributed in • The series resistance (Rs) is the internal resistance of the cell.
the world which creates geopolitical conflicts. • The shunt resistor (Rp) is due to a leakage current at the
Morocco possesses a remarkable solar potential (between 5000 junction.
and 6270 Wh/m2/day) [2], which can reduce the country's
economic vulnerability in the energy sector by using photovoltaic The mathematical model for the current–voltage characteristic
(PV) energy. PV systems can be used in three types: stand-alone of the ideal PV cell [10] is given by
[3], grid-connection [4] and hybrid systems [5]. All these types
offer a long service life, require a minimum of maintenance, and qV
I = Ipv, cell − I0, cell exp −1 (1)
produce no noise or disturbing effect. Although, it is subject to akT
weather conditions which affect the power produced. The use of
PV panel to generate solar power would depend on environmental where Ipv,cell is the current generated by the incident light (it is
conditions such as irradiation, sunlight incident angle, cell directly proportional to the sun irradiation), I0,cell is the reverse
temperature and the load conditions [6]. saturation or leakage current of the diode, q is the electron charge
To produce the maximum power available from the PV panel, it (1.60217646 × 10−19 C), k is the Boltzmann constant (1.3806503 ×
is necessary to have a permanent adaptation of the charge at the PV
panel. This adaptation can be achieved by inserting a DC–DC 10−23 J/K), T (in Kelvin) is the temperature of the p–n junction and
converter (between load and PV panel) controlled by a ‘maximum a is the diode ideality constant. For a PV panel, the mathematical
power point tracking’ (MPPT). Various MPPT methods have been equation is given by
tested and implemented in digital calculators (digital signal
V + Rs I V + IRs
processor, field programmable gate array etc.) [7–9]. In the present I = Ipv − I0 exp −1 − (2)
paper, we describe the technique of the fuzzy logic MPPT NsV t Rp
controller and the different steps to implement this algorithm in the
Arduino board. where Ipv and I0 are, respectively, the PV and saturation currents of
the PV panel, Ns is the cells connected in series and V t = a k T /q
is the thermal voltage of the panel [11].
The technical parameters under standard test conditions (STCs)
of a PV panel used in this application is demonstrated in Table 1.
Fig. 2 presents, for irradiations and temperatures given (1200,
1000, 800, 600, 400 W/m2 and 20, 25, 30, 35°C), the relationship
diagram between the PV panel power output and the voltage.
Three remarkable points for each irradiation or temperature: the
short-circuit current (Isc), the open-circuit voltage (Voc) and the
MPP delivered by the PV panel [12].
It indicates that the PV panel can give maximum power only at
Fig. 1 Equivalent circuit of a solar cell a single point. For extracting the maximum power from the panel,

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Table 1 Parameters of the PV panel under STC
Parameters Value
maximum power rating 30 Wp
open-circuit voltage (Voc) 21.52 V
short-circuit current (Isc) 1.80 A
maximum power voltage (Vmp) 17.72 V
maximum power current (Imp) 1.69 A
number of cells 36

Fig. 2 Characteristic power voltage

Resistance load RL can be expressed with the equation below:

Ropt
RL = 2 (6)
1−α

The value of the load resistance RL must be

Ropt Ropt
Fig. 3 Boost as resistance emulator ≤ RL ≤ (7)
1 − αmin 2 1 − αmax 2

the operating voltage or current should be corresponding to the

We suppose that the PV panel operates in STC conditions. The
MPP (Pmpp).
optimal resistance Ropt to reach the MPP is
When we connect directly the PV module to the load, the power
delivered is seldom maximum. So, to operate in the Pmpp, we V mpp
should associate to the PV panel a DC–DC converter controlled by Ropt = (8)
Impp
the MPPT tracker.
In our case study, Ropt = 10.48 Ω. For a duty ratio between 0.1 and
2.2 DC–DC boost converter
0.9, the value of the load resistance is in between 12.94 and 1048
Consider a boost-type converter connected to a PV panel with a Ω. The load chosen in our case is a resistance of 160 Ω.
resistive load. The relationship between the converter input and Converter parameters were selected to operate the converter in
output voltages is [12] continuous conducting mode. The parameters selected for this
paper are Ce = 1000 µF, Cs = 1000 µF, L = 190 µH and the pulse-
1 width modulation (PWM) switching frequency is 3900 Hz.
V out = V (3)
1 − α pv
3 MPPT algorithms
where Vout is the output voltage, Vpv is the input voltage and α is
the duty ratio. By assuming that the converter operates at 100% MPPT algorithms maximise power output by gradually increasing
efficiency with a resistive load RL, the power delivered from this or decreasing the duty ratio of the DC–DC converter. Many MPPT
techniques have been widely developed and implemented such as
PV panel would be
the perturbing and observing (P&O) method and the incremental
2 2 2 conductance method [7].
V out 1 V pv
Ppv = = (4)
RL 1−α RL
3.1 P&O approach
Maximum power could be achieved by properly adjusting the duty P&O is the popular and most techniques used to track the MPP.
ratio command of the converter [6]. The principle of this method is to perturb the output voltage of the
The boost converter is used as variable resistance emulators as system, and consequently the produced power will be perturbed. If
shown in Fig. 3. To ensure the follow-up of the MPP, the sizing of the new power is greater than the old, we continue in the same
the load is imperative. In continuous conduction mode [13, 14], the direction of perturbation until to find the maximum power (when
relation between the load resistance RL and the emulated resistance dP/dV = 0). If not we change the direction of perturbation to find
Ropt is given by the equation below: the maximum power [15]. Fig. 4 shows the flowchart of the P&O
MPPT technique.
Ropt = RL 1 − α 2
(5) This method uses a fixed step size to increment or decrement
the duty ratio command. If the step size is too small, the tracking

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Fig. 6 MPPT principle

Fig. 4 Flowchart of P&O MPPT

Fig. 7 Membership functions of inputs variables

Ppv k − Ppv k − 1
Ek = (9)
V pv k − V pv k − 1
Fig. 5 Flow diagram of the fuzzy controller
dE k = E k − E k − 1 (10)
process would be slowed. If the step size is too large, then the
system may fluctuate about the MPP. To solve this problem, we where Ppv and Vpv are, respectively, the power and voltage of the
suggest using a technique found on artificial intelligence for PV panel. Related to Fig. 6, in case of MPP, E(k) should be zero.
adapting the step variation. The proposed method is the fuzzy logic While dE(k) expresses the moving direction of this operation point.
controller. In each iteration kth, we compare the actual position E(k) with the
previous position E(k − 1). If it increases
3.2 Fuzzy logic approach
E k > E k − 1 ↔ E k − E(k − 1) > 0 ↔ dE k > 0
Fuzzy logic is a set of multiple-valued logic, as compared with
binary set, where the variable has only two states true andr false The MPP is located on the left-hand side of the actual position
values. Fuzzy logic variable has ranged between zero and one, and if it decreases
which introduces the concept of partial truth, where the variable
value may range between complete true and complete false [16]. E k < E k − 1 ↔ E k − E k − 1 < 0 ↔ dE k < 0
Fuzzy MPPT controller would generate fuzzy input variables
needed by reading voltage and current signals from the PV panel. The MPP is located on the right-hand side of the actual position.
The fuzzy input variables would then be used to calculate the duty To determine the error variation range and change in error
ratio command for adjusting the operating point of the PV panel in variation range, we have carried out simulation tests on the studied
order to maximise the power output. Fig. 5 shows the calculation system for several irradiations and temperatures. The results
process flowchart of the FLC. obtained imply that the error interval is about [−10; 10] and the
The MPPT using the Mamdani's FLC approach [17]. The change in error interval is about [−20; 20].
Mamdani method can be formed in four steps: The choice of the membership function form depends mainly on
the experience and expertise. Triangular and trapezoidal are the
• Fuzzification. most forms used because they can provide the best results.
• Aggregation of the rule outputs. The inputs memberships functions used are given by Fig. 7. A
• Rule evaluation. five-term fuzzy set, positive big (PB), positive small (PS), zero
• Defuzzification. (ZE), negative small (NS) and negative big (NB) is defined to
describe inputs variables.
In the application of FLC for MPPT error (E) and change in Once the fuzzification is done, it is possible to define the fuzzy
error (dE) at the kth iteration is: rule-based system. Otherwise, the fuzzy MPPT algorithm must be
provided with a rule base expressed in natural language to reason
and draw conclusions. The conditions of these rules are logical
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Fig. 8 Principle of fuzzy MPPT algorithm

Table 2 Fuzzy rules

Fuzzy rules dE
PB PS ZE NS NB
E PB PB PB PB PS ZE
PS PB PB PS ZE NS
ZE PB PS ZE NS NB
NS PS ZE NS NB NB
NB ZE NS NB NB NB
Bold: zone 1 with Fig. 8; Italic: zone 2 with Fig. 8; Bold italic: zone 3 with Fig. 8; Underline: zone 4 with Fig. 8; Normal: zone 5 with Fig. 8.

• In zone 4: The slope is negative and the operating point is

located on the right-hand side but close to the MPP. In this case,
the output would be decreased slightly in order to minimise the
system oscillation.
• In zone 5: The slope is still negative. The operating point is far
from the MPP and it is located on the right-hand side. At this
time, duty ratio should be decreased big in order to return
quickly to the MPP.

A rule base consisting of 25 rules is designed as shown in

Table 2, where the inputs are fuzzy sets of error (E) and the change
in error (dE). The output of this rules table is the change in duty
Fig. 9 3D FLC surface ratio. According to the previous explication, the fuzzy rule table is
divided into five regions.
After designing the rule, we can get the surface viewer. Fig. 9 is
the plot results from 25 rules. It is a three-dimensional (3D)
representation of the relationship between error E and the change
in error dE on the input side, and controller output d_alpha on the
output side. It gives a 3D interpretation of the input–output
relationship in our system.
The output variable is the change duty ratio command, which is
transmitted to the DC–DC converter to drive the load. The change
duty ratio membership is given by Fig. 10.

Fig. 10 Membership function of the output variable 3.3 Simulation results

expressions ‘if ... then ...’. The method used for formulating the In this section, we present simulation results on the MATLAB/
fuzzy rules is the experience and the expertise. Simulink environment of the system proposed (PV panel, DC–DC
The analysis of the curve P = f(V) will lead to establish the converter, MPPT controller and load).
fuzzy rules table. According to the desired performances, we divide The system will be tested for different variations in irradiation
the characteristic P = f(V) into five zones as illustrated in Fig. 8. and temperature. Fig. 11 shows the various irradiances and
For each of these zones, the expertise is stated in the following temperatures selected in this application.
form: To demonstrate the validity and competitiveness of the
developed MPP tracker, a comparison between the designed
• In zone 1: The slope is positive. The operating point is located controller and the classical P&O [13] has been made for positive or
on the left-hand side and it is far from the MPP. At this time, the negative steps as detailed in Fig. 11. As shown in Fig. 12, the fuzzy
duty ratio should be increased largely in order to quickly achieve logic algorithm minimises ripples around the MPP compared with
the MPP. the P&O algorithm. The sudden change in temperature or
irradiation results in difficulties of rapid tracking of the maximum
• In zone 2: The slope is still positive and the operating point is
point in the P&O tracker case. In this case, the fuzzy logic
located on the left-hand side but close to the MPP. In this case,
algorithm appears more adapted because it has a short response
the output would be increased slightly in order to decrease the
time: 0.035 s (0.09 s for the P&O tracker) and low peaks. The
system oscillation.
slope at the beginning of the curve results from the fact that the
• In zone 3: The operating point is around the MPP. The objective capacitors are previously discharged.
is to maintain the same duty ratio under these conditions.

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Fig. 11 Different temperatures and irradiations tested

Fig. 12 Power produced by P&O and FLC controller

Fig. 14 Arduino Mega 2560 board

Fig. 13 Output and operate voltages under STC
• PV panel of 30 Wc, boost converter and resistive load bank.
Studies show that at the MPP, the operating voltage is near
• Control board based on Arduino Mega 2560.
linearly proportional to open-circuit voltage (Voc) of PV panel [18]
• Measuring and acquisition devices (wattmeter and digital
oscilloscope).
V op = k V oc (11)
• A computer equipped with MATLAB/Simulink platform.
where Vop is the operating voltage of the PV panel at MPP, Voc is
4.1 Hardware description
the open-circuit voltage of the PV panel and k the proportional
constant is about 0.76 (within ±2%). The Arduino Mega 2560 is a microcontroller board based on the
For example, the operating voltage calculated by (11) under ATmega2560. It has 54 digital input–output pins (of which 14 can
STCs (1000 W/m2 and 25°C) is: 15.92 ≤ V op ≤ 16.78 which is be used as PWM outputs), 16 analogue inputs, 4 universal
confirmed in Fig. 13. asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART)s (hardware serial ports),
The output voltage of the boost converter (Vout) is 51.35 V as is a 16 MHz crystal oscillator, a universal serial bus (USB)
shown in Fig. 13. The ripple resulting from the cutting of the connection, a power jack, an in-circuit serial progamming (ICSP)
output voltage can be considered negligible (relative ripple rate header and a reset button. Arduino Mega 2560 development board
0.2%). is shown in Fig. 14.
To command the boost converter, we have realised the
electronic interface card which allows to:
4 Experimental setup and results
In this section, we will proceed to the experimental validation of • Capture current and the voltage of the PV panel.
the fuzzy logic MPPT algorithm by using Simulink Support • Protect the Arduino board from malfunctioning one must
Package for Arduino Hardware. Generally speaking, the entire test precede by separating it from the power circuit part through an
bench consists of four groups which are: optocoupler.

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Fig. 15 Block diagram of the proposed hardware

Fig. 16 Experimental test bench

driver, the HCPL-3120 optically coupled driver is the effective

solution.
The boost converter is implemented between a PV panel and
load. As previously described, it is dimensioned at a frequency of
switching 3900 Hz. In this converter; we used a Schootky diode
and a MOSFET (IRF750), which presents an interesting
performance for our system [20]. The experimental test bench is
shown in Fig. 16.

4.2 Software description

The objective of this work is to develop a real-time MPP tracker.
The choice was fixed on combining MATLAB/Simulink
environment and Arduino board. This approach is relevant because
it allows associating a powerful simulation software with a
competitive prototyping board. MATLAB/Simulink provides
‘Simulink Support Package for Arduino Hardware’ to design
control algorithms in Simulink and upload it directly in hardware
platform (Arduino board).
‘Simulink Support Package for Arduino Hardware’ allows
creating and running Simulink models in various fields. It offers a
Fig. 17 Arduino blocks library block library for configuring and accessing Arduino sensors,
actuators and communication interfaces via a USB cable [21]. A
Fig. 15 illustrated a synoptic diagram of the proposed control window containing Arduino blocks library is illustrated in Fig. 17.
board. The package enables to perform tasks such as:
For current measurement, we used the LEM LA-55-P sensor
[19]. It is calibrated to precisely measure currents in the range 0–5 • Acquire analogue and digital sensor data from Arduino board.
A. The C11A063 sensor module based on resistance points’ • Control devices with digital and PWM outputs.
pressure principle is used to measure the PV panel voltage. It can • Communicate with an Arduino board over a USB cable.
reduce to five times the input voltage.
• Access peripheral devices and sensors connected over inter-
For the particular case of isolating and driving the gate of a
integrated circuit (I2C) or serial peripheral interface (SPI).
metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET)

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Fig. 18 Simulink model for implementing the MPPT FLC

To use this tool, we start with designing and verifying Simulink

model corresponding to the MPPT command in MATLAB/
Simulink environment. Once the simulation is validated, the model
is modified to the input–output signals using the Arduino package.
The Simulink model for implementing the fuzzy logic MPPT is
given by Fig. 18. The unmask diagrams of ‘calculation of E and
dE’ and ‘Fuzzy_logic_controller’ blocks are shown, respectively,
in Figs. 19 and 20.
The studied algorithm uses error E and change in error dE as
inputs; Fig. 21 gives the Simulink block to calculate them from the
Fig. 19 Simulink block to calculate E and dE PV panel voltage and current. The current sensor and the voltage
sensor are, respectively, connected to the analogue pins A0 and A1
of the Arduino board. The output of the algorithm is the duty ratio
linked at the PWM package via a gain of 255 because the PWM
target requires an integer value between 0 and 255 (0 for 0% and
255 for 100%). After connecting Arduino card to computer via
USB cable and configuring it, we can deploy the model to the
connected Arduino hardware [21].
Fig. 20 Simulink block of fuzzy logic controller PWM output block in Simulink Support Package is limited to
490 Hz. This frequency is insufficient to drive the boost converter.
To solve this problem, we are using the MATLAB S-functions. To
modify this, we propose to integrate MATLAB S-functions with
the command corresponding to increase PWM frequency in
Simulink model.
An S-function is a block defined under MATLAB/Simulink
which offers the possibility to import a C code into Simulink
model.
Arduino Mega 2560 board has 14 PWM outputs controlled by
three timers. The frequency of the PWM signal is determined by
the clock of the timers. This timer's clock is equal to 62,500 Hz
divided by a prescaler value. So to change the PWM frequency, we
modify the prescaler value.
To adjust the frequency to the 3900 Hz, it is necessary to divide
the base frequency by 16 either: 62,500/16≃3906. That is possible
by setting timer1 prescaler to 8 [22]. We use for this the following
C command:

TCCR1B = TCCR1B&0 × F8 0 × 02;

Fig. 21 S-function block
The commands for changing the PWM frequency are implemented
with an S-function under Simulink model as shown in Fig. 18.
Fig. 21 shows the unmask diagram of ‘S-function block’.

4.3 Experimental results

The preliminary experimental test is performed to find the MPP in
the conditions of experience at a given moment. According to (4),
if we vary duty ratio of the converter from 0 to 1 we achieve surely
the MPP. For that we implement on the Arduino card a simple
programme which increments the duty ratio of the PWM signal
from 0 to 1 during 30 s, for example. The power delivered by PV
panel is saved by using the digital oscilloscope during this period.
It can be seen from Fig. 22 that the MPP in these conditions is
about 22.64 W.
The second test is planned to compare the fuzzy logic controller
with the P&O controller in the same conditions of the first test.
Figs. 23 and 24 represent the power produced by PV panel using,
respectively, P&O controller and fuzzy logic controller.
Fig. 22 Power delivered during the first test Accepting that the test conditions are unchanged in the two
tests, the experimental validation of the MPPT algorithms can be
confirmed. From the power plots, it can be stated that the fuzzy
logic strategy has good steady-state performances compared with
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Fig. 23 Power delivered using P&O tracker

Fig. 26 Current and voltage waveforms of PV panel

Fig. 24 Power delivered using the fuzzy logic tracker

Fig. 27 PWM signal

Arduino board for real-time applications. Moreover, this work

presents the solution to increase the PWM frequency of the
Arduino board who presents the new trends to use it with static
Fig. 25 Power indicates the output of the boost converter
converters.
P&O strategy, especially in terms of ripple around the maximum
point. The power produced by the method FLC is greater than that 6 References
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