A Solar Radiation Tracker for Solar Energy Optimisation

The need to produce readily accessible, pollution free natural energy such as solar energy has been drawing increasing attention globally. This is due to energy demand, global environmental protection, fast growing population and diminishing resources of grid supply. Effective utilisation of solar energy requires tracking of the sun. In this paper, we proposed a hybrid hardware/software embedded PIC16F877A microcontroller-based dynamic dual axis tracking system. It utilises the solar panel itself as a sensor to determine which part of the sky delivers the most power to the load using stepper motors for alignment. Employing control software, the system automatically controls the PV panel to receive maximum solar energy all day. The PIC16F877A microcontroller, two M42SP-7 stepper motors, two ULN2003 stepper motor drivers, two gear drives and a 10 Watt 12 V monocrystalline solar panel were employed in the hardware design. Programming of the hardware was conducted using mikroBasic software. Cost analysis of the design yielded GH ¢ 522.69 (US $ 124.45). The resulting sun tracking system is therefore cost effective and will go a long way to help rural electrification as well as reduce the burden on grid supply.