Configurable IoT Open-Source Hardware and Software I-V Curve Tracer for Photovoltaic Generators

Photovoltaic (PV) energy is a renewable energy resource which is being widely integrated in intelligent power grids, smart grids, and microgrids. To characterize and monitor the behavior of PV modules, current-voltage (I-V) curves are essential. In this regard, Internet of Things (IoT) technologies...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Isaías González, José María Portalo, Antonio José Calderón
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: MDPI AG 2021
Materias:
IoT
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/4dc00731d3084d14b827c259fdf49b6e
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Sumario:Photovoltaic (PV) energy is a renewable energy resource which is being widely integrated in intelligent power grids, smart grids, and microgrids. To characterize and monitor the behavior of PV modules, current-voltage (I-V) curves are essential. In this regard, Internet of Things (IoT) technologies provide versatile and powerful tools, constituting a modern trend in the design of sensing and data acquisition systems for I-V curve tracing. This paper presents a novel I-V curve tracer based on IoT open-source hardware and software. Namely, a Raspberry Pi microcomputer composes the hardware level, whilst the applied software comprises mariaDB, Python, and Grafana. All the tasks required for curve tracing are automated: load sweep, data acquisition, data storage, communications, and real-time visualization. Modern and legacy communication protocols are handled for seamless data exchange with a programmable logic controller and a programmable load. The development of the system is expounded, and experimental results are reported to prove the suitability and validity of the proposal. In particular, I-V curve tracing of a monocrystalline PV generator under real operating conditions is successfully conducted.