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The use of solar energy is in the upswing due to its environmental friendliness and abundance. That notwithstanding, efficiency remains a major problem in many of the applications. Mitigation is normally in the form of tracking systems. This paper therefore investigates dual axis solar tracking systems from two dimensions. Firstly, a review of exta...
Citations
... In contrast, Asia is thought to have among the driest, windiest, and dustiest climates worldwide [22]. Rainfall can often help clean the PV panel. ...
This paper presents an innovative system for automatically detecting dust accumulation on photovoltaic (PV) panels and notifying users to clean them. Dust, bird, or insect droppings on PV panels reduce energy generation by blocking sunlight from reaching the panel’s surface. The study investigates how dust affects the panel's output by measuring the amount of visible sunlight blocked by the accumulated dust. A light sensor-based detection system is designed, which is simple, effective, and easy to install. Additionally, image processing and machine learning algorithms are used to accurately identify bird droppings. The research demonstrates that the system can help optimize solar panel efficiency by alerting users when cleaning is needed.
... The most prevalent and efficient control strategy combines sensor-based and microprocessor-based control systems. Consequently, it is critical to optimize the energy usage of electrical devices by reducing the motor's revolution frequency [39]. Active solar trackers outperform alternative trackers, as stated in one review article, owing to their substantial energy gain of 56% and highest panel efficiency of 76%. ...
An automatic solar tracking system is an approach for optimizing the generation of solar power and modifying the angles and direction of a solar panel by considering changes in the position and path of the sun. The performance status of an automatic solar tracking system depends on various factors, including its design, location, and maintenance or repairs. The solar energy from the sun that the Earth intercepts is approximately 1.8 × 1011 MW, which is thousands of times greater than the intensity at which the Earth now uses all other commercially available energy sources combined. Currently, research into automatic solar trackers is on the rise, as solar energy is abundant in nature, but its use in a highly efficient way is still lacking. This paper provides a detailed literature review and highlights some key advancements and challenges associated with state-of-the-art automatic solar tracking systems. The performance of the dual-axis photovoltaic-tracking system outperforms that of the stationary systems by more than 27% based on the overall system efficiency. Under diverse weather conditions, the efficiency of the scheduled-based solar tracking systems was enhanced by 4.2% compared with that of the light dependent resistor-based solar trackers.
... Dual-axis systems allow solar panels to adjust in two directions (horizontal and vertical), thus enabling precise tracking of the sun's position to maintain optimal perpendicular alignment with sunlight throughout the day, and maximizing electricity generation efficiency. Mpodi et al. [30] reviewed studies concerning the dual-axis photovoltaic tracking systems and reported the dual-axis system can increase electricity generation by 30%-40% and by adjusting angles, dual-axis systems mitigate shading effects from nearby buildings or obstacles. Josely Jose et al. [31] produced a small scale automated solar ray tracking device, and studied solar radiation and PV parameters using spectral, PV panel and LDR (Light Dependent Resistor) sensors characterization techniques. ...
In this paper, a solar tracking device that can continuously track the sun by adjusting the direction and angle of the solar panel in real time is designed and fabricated to improve the power generation efficiency of the solar cell panel. The mechanical parts as well as the automatic control part of the passive sun-tracking system are described, and the efficiency enhancement with the sun-tracking solar panel is characterized in comparison with the fixed panel system. The test results show that in the spring season in Qingdao city of eastern China, the sun-tracking system can improve the solar cell power generation efficiency by 28.5%-42.9% when comparing to the direction and elevation angle fixed system in sunny days. Even in partly cloudy days, the PV power output can increased by 37% with using the passive sun-tracking system. Economic analysis results show the cost-benefit period is about 10 years, which indicates that the passive sun tracking device can substantially contribute to the solar energy harvest practices.
... Solar trackers come as single axis or dual axis, which can be operated through passive or active mechanisms (Nsengiyumva et al., 2018). Single-axis trackers rotate the collector in only one axis, while dual-axis trackers rotate the collector in two perpendicular axes (Mpodi et al., 2019). Due to the seasonal variations of the Earth's tilt, absolute tracking cannot be realized with a single-axis tracking system. ...
... The groundbreaking innovations in energy generation from solar and the availability of solar sources for power generation make a significant contribution and progress. A spectrum of innovations and various government schemes made a huge impact on power generation by solar [1]. These innovations paved the way for thin solar panels, solar paints, and power generation for farms which makes a durable and efficient power generation. ...
... Installed capacity of renewable energy sources by 2020[1]. ...
Solar energy plays a vital role in power generation as a part of renewable energy source. Due to the intermittent nature of solar input and to increase the power output a dual-axis solar tracker is considered initially, and the power output is stored in the battery. The power extracted from the solar is enhanced with a dual tracker compared with other techniques. Moreover, the stored power in the battery is effected by cycles of charging and discharge. To aid and improve the performance of batteries a novel smart battery protection scheme is introduced. This scheme considers the battery parameters such as voltage, current, and temperature within the prescribed limit. Also, during fault conditions, this scheme provides safe operation of the battery which enhances the battery life.
... Most researchers of modern automatic solar tracking systems use either a method based on multiple photosensors, or a method based on astronomical calculations of the position of the Sun during the day. Works [10,11] show that tracking systems based on optical sensors allow tracking the Sun only when the sky is clear and under good weather conditions. In this case, the problems of stability and reliability of the operation of control systems when external conditions change remain unsolved. ...
... 9. If necessary, the operator sets in the MCU memory the average correction of the influence of the terrain on the time of sunrise Δt E and sunset Δt W in minutes. 10. MCU calculation of the time correction constant for the longitude of the location of the panels as ( ) 4 15 ...
The control system for terrestrial two-axis devices for orientation to the Sun has been improved with a high-speed microcontroller operation algorithm. A geomagnetic sensor was introduced into the system to increase the reliability of monitoring the positioning of solar cells. The basis of the algorithm is a simplified astronomical and geographical model of the movement of the Sun in the celestial sphere. The control system automatically tracks the trajectory of the Sun and calculates its angular coordinates for the current moment of time on any day of the year and for any point on the globe. The derived equations of the simplified mathematical model are suitable for calculations of orientation angles to the Sun in real time on 8-bit microcontrollers with low computing power. The control system by AVR-328 microcontrollers was studied. It was established that the use of the algorithm when programming microcontrollers for two-axis orientation systems ensures high stability and reliability of the tracker`s functioning process. The technical parameters of the AVR-328 microcontrollers in the case of using the developed algorithm ensure that the control system performs one reorientation step in a time interval of less than 2 seconds, which ensures the minimum technical period of the reorientation process by the tracker drive mechanisms which is about 5 seconds. Deviations of the calculated orientation angle from the exact value do not exceed 3°, which corresponds to the relative accuracy of recording the solar radiation intensity, which is less than 0.3 %. The microcontroller program written according to the developed simplified algorithm occupies about 35 % of its memory. Therefore, the use of the developed algorithm frees up the resources of AVR-328 microcontrollers for performing additional data processing operations and automatic control over various additional devices related to the process of orientation to the Sun. In the case of solar energy, the algorithm ensures the use of about 98 % of the power of solar radiation
... 14 While active solar tracking is complex compared to passive solar tracking, passive tracking becomes ineffective in cloudy or dusty environments. 15 Many researchers applied different control strategies to orient the solar panels accurately with minimum power consumption toward the sun. Open-loop control is easy to implement but requires prior knowledge of data because it has no feedback signal if there is any error in the signals, while closed-loop control is complex in nature, but accuracy is high due to the feedback signal. ...
Climate change, global warming, and rising fossil fuel pose significant challenges in present days across worldwide. To combat these issues, governments and organizations are promoting renewable energy sources, such as solar power, which converts sunlight into electricity or thermal energy. In the current scenario, static-oriented Photovoltaic (PV) panels are hampered by fluctuations in the sun's trajectory, leading to suboptimal solar energy conversion. To address these issues, this manuscript proposes a low-cost prototype of a two-axis solar tracker that integrates four optical sensor modules as feedback sensors and two direct current geared motors to maximize solar energy harvesting. Comparative analysis between a fixed-oriented PV panel and the solar tracker, using conventional on–off and artificial intelligence-based fuzzy logic control methods, verifies the two-axis solar tracker's performance. The fuzzy logic controller-based solar tracker net energy gains approximately 14.2% more power than the fixed-oriented PV panel daily and boasts an average tracking error of 0.29°, indicating its reliability.
... Previously available reviews on solar tracking systems have covered aspects of experimental and simulation analysis of both dual-axis and single-axis solar tracking systems [82], mechanisms and principles of solar tracking systems [9], open-loop and closed-loop control mechanisms [63], dual-axis solar trackers and their current efficiency configuration [85], control algorithms applied to active solar trackers [41], and commonly used solar tracking systems [86]. However, the previously mentioned reviews have some inherent limitations. ...
Solar tracking systems have gained attention in recent years due to their potential to increase the efficiency of various solar energy applications. Both traditional machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL) techniques have been employed in various solar tracking systems. However, traditional ML models have limitations in processing large datasets and require extensive knowledge of data representation. In contrast, DL models have shown promise in addressing different problems such as temperature forecasting and solar irradiance prediction. Researchers are continuously working to improve the performance of DL models by designing new network architectures and optimization techniques. However, research advancements on DL techniques for solar tracking systems are scattered across several studies, making it difficult to select feasible approaches. Thus, this systematic literature review aims to provide an overview of the state-of-the-art of DL techniques for solar tracking systems. It examines dataset usage, preprocessing methods, feature engineering methods, DL algorithms, and performance metrics used in the identified studies. The review covers articles published from 2012 to 2022, with 37 academic papers meeting the inclusion criteria. The results indicate that deep hybrid learning models were the most popular among researchers. The study also identified research challenges and open research directions related to DL-based solar tracking systems. These include data availability, image data, data normalization, data decomposition, and feature engineering methods. This review is expected to be useful to current and future researchers in addressing trends and challenges related to the application of DL in solar trackers.
... Dual-axis sun-tracking systems have a complex control system that makes them expensive, need high maintenance, and have a longer payback period [23]. In E. K. Mpodi et al. [24], an automatic dual-axis tracking system has been developed in which dual-axis tracking in the vertical and horizontal axes is used for sun tracking. These systems are known for increasing the efficiency of sun-tracking, yielding higher temperatures by allowing the movement of the concentrator in more than one direction. ...
... These systems are known for increasing the efficiency of sun-tracking, yielding higher temperatures by allowing the movement of the concentrator in more than one direction. On the other hand, single-axis sun-tracking systems are better known for their durability, low maintenance, and long life [23,24]. Another challenge is to be able to use a solar cooker after sundown. ...
... In addition to the future work outlined above, open-source racking based on these open-source racking designs can be extended to single-axis and dual-axis trackers [116][117][118][119]. There have already been some developments in low-concentration open-source racking using true ground mounts [120], which looks promising but needs a geographic analysis similar to the one in this article to determine if it is a realistic option globally. ...
Open-source technological development is well-known for rapid innovation and providing opportunities to reduce costs and thus increase accessibility for a wide range of products. This is done through distributed manufacturing, in which products are produced close to end users. There is anecdotal evidence that these opportunities are heavily geographically dependent, with some locations unable to acquire components to build open hardware at accessible prices because of trade restrictions, tariffs, taxes, or market availability. Supply chain disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated this and forced designers to pivot towards a la carte-style design frameworks for critical system components. To further develop this phenomenon, a case study of free and open-source solar photovoltaic (PV) racking systems is provided. Two similar open-source designs made from different materials are compared in terms of capital costs for their detailed bill of materials throughout ten locations in North, Central and South America. The differences in economic optimization showed that the costs of wood-based racks were superior in North America and in some South American countries, while metal was less costly in Central and South America. The results make it clear that open hardware designs would be best to allow for local optimization based on material availability in all designs.
