Solar panel monitoring and control powered by GreenPeak chips

Friday, 06 January 2012 06:56

GreenPeak Technologies, a leading fabless semiconductor company, has launched a wireless monitoring and control system solution for solar panel installations that will allow individual panel parameter tracking and control.

Photovoltaic solar panels are increasing in popularity and users need accurate information of their solar energy installation. Currently, most residential solar panel systems only provide energy information on a monthly basis and do not allow individual panel monitoring. The Smart Junction Box reference design utilizing GreenPeak wireless chips provides a solution to monitor solar systems in more detail and to control the chain from a central unit or remote device.

The GreenPeak solution allows solar panel builders to comply with new upcoming legal requirements requiring that solar panels can be individually switched off in case of calamities, as high DC voltages from a string of panels on a rooftop can cause danger for emergency services or fire responders.

By adding wireless Smart Junction Boxes on every individual panel, up to the minute status information on electricity generation of each panel can be provided and allows the operator to switch off individual panels or panel substrings for optimized overall solar panel system performance. Performance metrics enable system owners and service provider to actually monitor the condition of the solar panels in order to properly schedule maintenance and cleaning.

The data collected from each individual panel can also be shown in a configurable GUI software application. When a problem in the solar panel system occurs, performance gradually declines or suddenly drops, remote diagnosis and controlling via a mobile App on smart phone can be one of the use cases.

GreenPeak provides communication controller chips and a complete solar panel control reference design to be integrated in the next generation solar panel monitoring and controlling systems.

Cees Links, founder and CEO of GreenPeak, said: "Solar power is emerging as the number one competitive renewable energy resource. Improvement in the efficiency of solar systems and the need for a more developed understanding of solar panel performance, tracking and maintenance becomes increasingly important because of the rapid deployment of solar technologies in the marketplace. GreenPeak solutions for wireless monitoring, measuring and controlling individual panels, will enable the solar industry to create more efficient and more cost effective solar systems."