Author : Gerro Prinsloo,Robert Dobson
Publisher : Gerro Prinsloo
Release : 2014-10-12
ISBN : 0620615753
Language : En, Es, Fr & De
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Book Description :
This book details Solar-Tracking, Automatic Sun-Tracking-Systems and Solar-Trackers. Book and literature review is ideal for sun and moon tracking in solar applications for sun-rich countries such as the USA, Spain, Portugal, Mediterranean, Italy, Greece, Mexico, Portugal, China, India, Brazil, Chili, Argentina, South America, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Middle East, Iran, Iraq, etc. A solar tracker is a device that orients a payload toward the sun. Like a satellite tracker or moon tracker, it tracks the celestial object in the sky on its orbital path of apparent movement. A programmable computer based solar tracking device includes principles of solar tracking, solar tracking systems, as well as microcontroller, microprocessor and/or PC based solar tracking control to orientate solar reflectors, solar lenses, photovoltaic panels or other optical configurations towards the sun. Motorized space frames and kinematic systems ensure motion dynamics and employ drive technology and gearing principles to steer optical configurations such as mangin, parabolic, conic, or cassegrain solar energy collectors to face the sun and follow the sun movement contour continuously. In harnessing power from the sun through a solar tracker or practical solar tracking system, renewable energy control automation systems require automatic solar tracking software and solar position algorithms to accomplish dynamic motion control with control automation architecture, circuit boards and hardware. On-axis sun tracking system such as the altitude-azimuth dual axis or multi-axis solar tracker systems use a sun tracking algorithm or ray tracing sensors or software to ensure the sun's passage through the sky is traced with high precision in automated solar tracker applications, right through summer solstice, solar equinox and winter solstice. From sun tracing software perspective, the sonnet Tracing The Sun has a literal meaning. Within the context of sun track and trace, this book explains that the sun's daily path across the sky is directed by relatively simple principles, and if grasped/understood, then it is relatively easy to trace the sun with sun following software. Sun position computer software for tracing the sun are available as open source code, sources that is listed in this book. Ironically there was even a system called sun chaser, said to have been a solar positioner system known for chasing the sun throughout the day. Using solar equations in an electronic circuit for solar tracking is quite simple, even if you are a novice, but mathematical solar equations are over complicated by academic experts and professors in text-books, journal articles and internet websites. In terms of solar hobbies, scholars, students and Hobbyist's looking at solar tracking electronics or PC programs for solar tracking are usually overcome by the sheer volume of scientific material and internet resources, which leaves many developers in frustration when search for simple experimental solar tracking source-code for their on-axis sun-tracking systems. This booklet will simplify the search for the mystical sun tracking formulas for your sun tracker innovation and help you develop your own autonomous solar tracking controller. By directing the solar collector directly into the sun, a solar harvesting means or device can harness sunlight or thermal heat. This is achieved with the help of sun angle formulas, solar angle formulas or solar tracking procedures for the calculation of sun's position in the sky. Automatic sun tracking system software includes algorithms for solar altitude azimuth angle calculations required in following the sun across the sky. In using the longitude, latitude GPS coordinates of the solar tracker location, these sun tracking software tools supports precision solar tracking by determining the solar altitude-azimuth coordinates for the sun trajectory in altitude-azimuth tracking at the tracker location, using certain sun angle formulas in sun vector calculations. Instead of follow the sun software, a sun tracking sensor such as a sun sensor or webcam or video camera with vision based sun following image processing software can also be used to determine the position of the sun optically. Such optical feedback devices are often used in solar panel tracking systems and dish tracking systems. Dynamic sun tracing is also used in solar surveying, DNI analyser and sun surveying systems that build solar infographics maps with solar radiance, irradiance and DNI models for GIS (geographical information system). In this way geospatial methods on solar/environment interaction makes use use of geospatial technologies (GIS, Remote Sensing, and Cartography).Climatic data and weather station or weather center data, as well as queries from sky servers and solar resource database systems (i.e. on DB2, Sybase, Oracle, SQL, MySQL) may also be associated with solar GIS maps. In such solar resource modelling systems, a pyranometer or solarimeter is normally used in addition to measure direct and indirect, scattered, dispersed, reflective radiation for a particular geographical location. Sunlight analysis is important in flash photography where photographic lighting are important for photographers. GIS systems are used by architects who add sun shadow applets to study architectural shading or sun shadow analysis, solar flux calculations, optical modelling or to perform weather modelling. Such systems often employ a computer operated telescope type mechanism with ray tracing program software as a solar navigator or sun tracer that determines the solar position and intensity. The purpose of this booklet is to assist developers to track and trace suitable source-code and solar tracking algorithms for their application, whether a hobbyist, scientist, technician or engineer. Many open-source sun following and tracking algorithms and source-code for solar tracking programs and modules are freely available to download on the internet today. Certain proprietary solar tracker kits and solar tracking controllers include a software development kit SDK for its application programming interface API attributes (Pebble). Widget libraries, widget toolkits, GUI toolkit and UX libraries with graphical control elements are also available to construct the graphical user interface (GUI) for your solar tracking or solar power monitoring program. The solar library used by solar position calculators, solar simulation software and solar contour calculators include machine program code for the solar hardware controller which are software programmed into Micro-controllers, Programmable Logic Controllers PLC, programmable gate arrays, Arduino processor or PIC processor. PC based solar tracking is also