JP2012222766A - Solar panel control device and method for the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem in which the output deterioration of a solar panel is affected by an increase of the surface temperature, a quality issue such as partial degradation and damage of a cell, accumulation of dust, attachment of bird drippings, stuck fallen leaves, and yellow sands, and the like.SOLUTION: A solar panel control device that remotely controls the surface state of an installed solar panel, includes: a camera that outputs an infrared image and a visible image; a display device that displays these images; a recording device the records these images; a pole having a platform, to which the camera is attached, in a vertically movable manner; and a support member that vertically installs the pole. Alternatively, the pole having the platform so as to move up and down is vertically installed by the support member at the side of the solar panel and the camera that outputs the infrared image and the visible image is attached to the platform. Then, the pole is elongated to move up the camera, whereby the infrared image and the visible image of the surface state of the solar panel from the camera are displayed on the display device by pan tilt adjustment and the surface state is controlled by the display device and the recording device.

Description

The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for managing a surface state of solar panels that are scattered in various places. The management referred to in this specification includes checking and observing the surface state of the installed solar panel while remotely viewing the camera, recording and storing the output image of the camera, or accumulating acquired data. Including that.

  Photovoltaic power generation systems that convert solar energy into electrical energy using solar cells are widely used in local governments, companies, and homes. The photovoltaic power generation system generates power by installing a solar panel on a roof or the like that is sufficiently irradiated with sunlight, and power generation efficiency is a very important factor.

The general life of a solar panel is about 20-30 years, and the decrease in output due to deterioration over time is considered to be 10% or less in 20 years. There are various factors that decrease the power generation efficiency of solar panels, and even if they are installed with a large investment, they are almost meaningless if the power generation efficiency is low. The above-mentioned deterioration over time is based on data accumulated over many years in field tests by manufacturers, and although it is performed under various conditions, the solar panel itself is performed with almost perfect maintenance. .

  In actual installed solar panels, in addition to the output decrease due to deterioration over time, the surface temperature of the solar panel rises, quality problems such as partial deterioration and damage of the cells, and dust accumulation as an external factor Bird damage, fallen leaf adhesion, yellow sand, etc. will greatly affect output reduction.

  Solar panels that must be installed only in such a natural environment are installed on a roof or on a vast site where there is no sunlight blocking the surroundings, and sufficient maintenance cannot be performed. There are many cases. In particular, if the output drop is within an allowable range, the system is operated without any response, and the actual power generation efficiency has not been obtained.

Although the cause of the decrease in power generation efficiency, such as an increase in the surface temperature of the solar panel, can be dealt with in advance by a method such as installing a cooling device, the amount of power generated is not limited even if a subsequent factor occurs during operation as described above. Can only be grasped to a certain extent, and it is in a state where it is not possible to easily identify an essential cause or a factor that may occur in the future.

  Therefore, as a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, the present inventor has achieved the present invention. The feature of the present invention is that the invention of the device circulates solar panels scattered in various places. A device that manages the surface state of the installed solar panel by remote control, a camera that outputs an infrared image and a visible image, a display device that displays these images, and these The present invention consists of a recording device for recording an image, a pole provided with a camera platform to which the camera is mounted so as to be movable up and down, and a support for standing the pole.

  Further, in the invention of the method, it is a method for patroling and managing solar panels scattered in various places, and a pole provided with a pan head that can be moved up and down is attached to a side of the solar panel with a support. By installing a camera that outputs an infrared image and a visible image on the camera platform, the camera is lifted by extending the pole, and pan / tilt adjustment of the camera platform by remote control. The camera is managed by a display device and a recording device that display an infrared image and a visible image of the surface state of the solar panel.

  The term “solar panel” as used herein refers to a device for converting sunlight energy into electrical energy. A solar panel is configured by arranging a large number of small elements called cells in a plane, and generates a voltage by causing the cells to absorb light energy. For this reason, the surface state of the solar panel greatly affects the power generation efficiency.

  A “camera” is a camera for grasping the surface state of a large number of installed solar panels by remote operation, and in the present invention, means a device that outputs an infrared image and a visible image. In order to image the surface state of the solar panel with the camera, it is necessary to install the camera in the vicinity of the installed solar panel. In the present invention, imaging is performed by providing the camera on a transportable pole.

  A “pole” is a device that includes a camera platform to which a camera is attached and that supports the camera platform so as to be movable up and down. The camera attached to the camera platform is moved up and down by telescopic telescopic poles. The pan / tilt operation of the pan head for swinging the camera is remotely controlled by a button controller or the like. For remote operation, the pan head and the button controller are connected by wire or wirelessly. In the case of a wired connection, the cord may be passed through the inside of the pole.

  By installing this pole on the side of the solar panel with a support, even a solar panel installed on the roof, etc., can be operated from the ground without having to climb the roof to check and check the image.

  The “display device” is a device for displaying an infrared image and / or a visible image captured by a camera by remote operation, and refers to a CRT, a liquid crystal display, or the like. In the present invention, in addition to direct inspection using images displayed on the display device, these images are recorded on a recording device and managed by the transition of the solar panel over a long period of time. The recording apparatus may be any apparatus capable of storing images, such as a personal computer, a video camera equipped with a recording medium, or a DVD recorder.

  In the image of the surface state of the solar panel, if dust, dust, bird droppings, fallen leaves, etc. are attached to the surface of the solar panel as described above in the visible image, this can be easily identified. Moreover, the surface temperature of each part of a solar panel can be grasped | ascertained by an infrared image. The camera and the display device or recording device are also connected by wire or wirelessly.

In particular, it is possible to identify a hot spot phenomenon, which is an inherent phenomenon of a solar panel, from an infrared image. The hot spot phenomenon is a phenomenon in which a part of the cell generates heat, which may cause resistance reduction and damage due to resistance. This is because if a part of the solar panel remains in a shaded state, the cells in that part generate heat, and the heat generation is caused by normalization. Manufacturing problems such as poor soldering of solar panels and the attachment of bird droppings and fallen leaves also cause hot spot phenomena.

  The solar panel management apparatus and method according to the present invention makes it very easy to manage a solar panel by attaching a camera to a pole provided with a pan head. In particular, even with a solar panel installed at a high place or the like, images can be taken while operating the camera on the ground, and safe and quick management becomes possible.

In addition, the camera that captures the surface state of the solar panel displays an infrared image and a visible image on a display device, making it easy to visually observe the entire solar panel and identify the temperature distribution on the surface of the solar panel. It has a very beneficial effect such as being able to more reliably grasp the cause of the decrease.

It is the schematic which shows one Example of the solar panel management apparatus which concerns on this invention. Example 1 It is a side view which shows one Example of the solar panel management apparatus which concerns on this invention.

The solar panel management apparatus and method according to the present invention is a method for attaching a camera to a pole provided with a pan head, and installing the camera to move up and down and pan / tilt the surface state of the installed solar panel using an infrared image. The above-mentioned problems were solved by displaying the visible image on a display device for inspection and storing and managing data in a recording device.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a solar panel management device 1 according to the present invention includes a camera C, a notebook personal computer PC as a display device and a recording device for displaying an infrared image and / or a visible image captured by the camera C, and a camera. The telescopic pole 2 is provided with a pan head 21 to which C is attached and can be expanded and contracted. The pan head 21 for panning and tilting the camera C is remotely operated by the button controller 3 and the camera C is controlled by the notebook personal computer PC. The camera C of this example is a video camera, and a support 22 that supports the pole 2 is provided on the pole 2 so as to be foldable.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the solar panel management apparatus 1 according to the present invention is used in a state where a camera is mounted on a pan head 21 of a pole 2 in order to manage a solar panel P installed on a roof R of a two-story house. Install and install C. Then, the pole 2 is extended to raise the camera C, and the camera platform 21 is operated by the button controller 3 to pan / tilt the camera C. The surface state of the solar panel P thus imaged is managed by displaying an infrared image and a visible image on the notebook personal computer PC and storing them as data.

As described above, the solar panel management method according to the present invention only needs to install the pole 2 to which the camera C is attached around the solar panel P. Therefore, the surface state of the solar panel P can be easily and reliably acquired as data. It is possible to carry out the management of the solar panels P in various places while patroling.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Solar panel management apparatus 2 Pole 21 Pan head 22 Support tool 3 Button controller C Camera PC Laptop PC Solar panel R Roof

Claims (2)

  In a device that manages the solar panels that are scattered in various places, the surface state of the installed solar panels is managed by remote control, and a camera that outputs an infrared image and a visible image, and these It is characterized by comprising a display device for displaying images, a recording device for recording these images, a pole on which a camera platform to which the camera is attached is provided so as to be movable up and down, and a support for erecting the pole. Solar panel management device.   It is a method of patrol and manage solar panels scattered in various places, and a pole with a pan head that can be moved up and down is installed on a side of the solar panel with a support tool, and an infrared image and By attaching a camera that outputs a visible image to the camera platform, the pole is extended to raise the camera, and the pan / tilt adjustment of the camera platform by remote control allows the surface state of the solar panel by the camera to be adjusted. A solar panel management method comprising: managing a display device and a recording device that display an infrared image and a visible image.

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