A maintenance-free multifunctional monitoring device for photovoltaic modules

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring devices, comprising: the power management unit that can be charged by solar panel to realize capacitor energy storage;Power management unit is powered for each power module.Power management unit is based on large-capacity capacitor or super capacitor to realize battery-free energy storage, provides short-time working power by solar panel charging, fundamentally eliminates the maintenance requirement, avoids the frequent awakening and work of equipment, shortens the endurance time of battery power supply, speeds up the aging and replacement cycle of battery power supply, leads to the workload increase of the maintenance requirement of battery power supply.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a maintenance-free, multifunctional monitoring device for photovoltaic modules, belonging to the field of photovoltaic monitoring technology. Background Technology

[0002] During the operation and maintenance of photovoltaic power plants, it is necessary to monitor the operation of the equipment and acquire data. However, most traditional monitoring equipment adopts a timed upload or unconditional transmission strategy, failing to filter data based on actual changes. This leads to frequent equipment wake-ups and operation, significantly shortening the battery's battery life, accelerating battery aging and replacement cycles, and increasing the workload required for battery maintenance. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this invention provides a maintenance-free, multifunctional monitoring device for photovoltaic modules.

[0004] The present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions.

[0005] The present invention provides a maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device, comprising: a power management unit capable of capacitor energy storage through solar panel charging; the power management unit provides power to each power-consuming module.

[0006] It also includes a control unit that coordinates the work of each module, and the control unit is responsible for data processing and coordinating the work of each module.

[0007] It also includes a communication unit for data transmission, which integrates Bluetooth and WiFi modules for device networking and access to the photovoltaic power station wireless network, respectively, and supports remote monitoring startup and parameter modification based on the MQTT protocol.

[0008] It also includes a data acquisition unit that collects real-time operating data of photovoltaic module voltage, current, and temperature.

[0009] It also includes storage units for storing data, which are used to save historical data and various threshold parameters to support data comparison and intelligent decision-making.

[0010] It also includes external interfaces that provide extended connectivity.

[0011] The control unit in the monitoring device has a built-in timer that automatically wakes up at preset time intervals or immediately starts monitoring upon receiving a remote command via the MQTT protocol. After waking up, it immediately enters the data acquisition phase to obtain real-time operating data of the photovoltaic module's voltage, current, and temperature. In the data processing phase, the currently acquired data is compared and analyzed with historical records stored in the storage unit. If the data fluctuation does not exceed a preset threshold range, the process is immediately interrupted and the system enters a sleep state. Otherwise, the data is uploaded to the remote monitoring platform via the WiFi module through the MQTT protocol. This process also supports interactive operations for remotely modifying monitoring parameters. After the data transmission is completed, the system immediately returns to a sleep state, waiting for the next timed wake-up or remote command trigger.

[0012] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: the power management unit achieves battery-free energy storage based on a large-capacity capacitor or supercapacitor, and provides short-term working power through solar panel charging, fundamentally eliminating maintenance needs, avoiding frequent device wake-up and operation, shortening the battery power's runtime, accelerating battery power aging and replacement cycles, and increasing the workload of battery power maintenance needs. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram showing the distribution of the various modules of the device of the present invention; Detailed Implementation

[0014] The technical solution of the present invention is further described below, but the scope of protection is not limited to what is described.

[0015] like Figure 1 As shown.

[0016] This application discloses a maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device, comprising: The control unit 3, which coordinates the collaborative work of various modules, uses an STM32L4 series ultra-low power microcontroller. This chip is based on the ARM Cortex-M4 core, has a main frequency of up to 80MHz, and has rich communication interfaces and analog peripherals. It can efficiently process monitoring data and coordinate the collaborative work of various modules.

[0017] A power management unit 1 supplies power to each electrical module. This unit utilizes large-capacity capacitors or supercapacitors for battery-free energy storage, providing short-term operating power via solar panel charging, fundamentally eliminating maintenance requirements. The power management unit employs a dual-supercapacitor parallel architecture, with each capacitor having a specification of 10F / 5.5V. Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) charging control is achieved through a dedicated solar charging management chip. This unit also includes a voltage monitoring circuit that automatically enters undervoltage protection mode when the supercapacitor voltage is detected to be below 3.3V, ensuring stable system operation.

[0018] Communication unit 4, which transmits data, adopts a multi-mode heterogeneous network architecture. The Bluetooth module is an HC-08 module supporting BLE 5.0, with an adjustable transmit power range of -20dBm to +4dBm, and supports Mesh networking. The Wi-Fi module uses an ESP32-C3 chip, with a built-in TCP / IP protocol stack, supports STA / AP mixed mode, and can automatically select the network access point with the best signal quality. Both communication modules are connected to the control unit via a UART interface to achieve data pass-through and protocol conversion.

[0019] A data acquisition unit 2 collects real-time operating data such as voltage, current, and temperature of photovoltaic modules. The data acquisition unit 2 includes three independent acquisition channels: the voltage acquisition channel uses a resistor divider and isolated operational amplifier circuit, with a measurement range of 0-60V and an accuracy of ±1%; the current acquisition channel uses a Hall current sensor, with a range of 0-10A and an accuracy of ±2%; and the temperature acquisition channel uses a DS18B20 digital sensor, with a measurement range of -40℃ to +85℃ and an accuracy of ±0.5℃. All sensor data are transmitted to the control unit 3 via an I2C bus.

[0020] Storage unit 5, which stores data, uses a W25Q128JV series SPI Flash memory with a capacity of 16MB, supporting 1 million erase / write cycles and a data retention time of over 20 years. The storage area is divided into a parameter area, a historical data area, and a system log area, and a circular storage strategy is used to optimize storage space utilization.

[0021] External interface 6 provides necessary expansion connectivity for the system and utilizes a waterproof connector with an IP65 protection rating. This module integrates a sensor interface, a debugging interface, and an expansion communication interface, with the sensor interface supporting reliable analog and digital signal input. Each interface employs a basic sealed protection design to ensure connection stability and durability in common outdoor environments.

[0022] Each module according to Figure 1 The components are centrally located and feature a modular design, with each functional unit interconnected via a standard interface.

[0023] Upon power-up, the system first executes an initialization sequence: configuring the system clock, initializing peripheral interfaces, reading stored configuration parameters, and establishing network connections. Immediately after initialization, it enters STOP 2 low-power mode. In this mode, the system typically operates at 3.3V, consumes less than 5μA of current, and has an overall power consumption of less than 16.5μW, achieving extreme energy savings.

[0024] Wake-up events are triggered through two mechanisms: timer wake-up via RTC alarms, typically set at 30-minute intervals; and remote command wake-up via MQTT topic subscriptions, supporting instant response. Upon wake-up, the system first reads all sensor data and performs digital filtering and calibration.

[0025] The data intelligent processing stage employs a sliding window comparison algorithm, reading the five most recent valid data points from the storage unit and calculating the relative rate of change between the current data and the historical average. When the rate of change of any monitored parameter exceeds a preset threshold, the system initiates the data upload process. The uploaded data is encapsulated in JSON format and includes information such as timestamp, device ID, monitoring data, and signal quality.

[0026] During communication, the system continuously listens for remote control commands. Supported commands include parameter configuration commands, status query commands, and system management commands. All commands are transmitted via an encrypted MQTT channel to ensure secure communication.

[0027] After the task is completed, the system automatically saves the current data to the history record, updates the running statistics, and then immediately returns to a low-power sleep state. Throughout the entire work cycle, the active working time is controlled within 10 seconds to ensure minimal energy consumption.

Claims

1. A maintenance-free, multi-functional monitoring device for photovoltaic modules, characterized in that, include: A power management unit (1) that can achieve capacitor energy storage by charging through solar panels; The power management unit (1) supplies power to each power module.

2. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a control unit (3) that coordinates the work of each module. The control unit (3) is responsible for data processing and coordination of the work of each module.

3. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 2, characterized in that: It also includes a communication unit (4) for transmitting data. The communication unit (4) integrates Bluetooth and WiFi modules, which are used for device networking and access to the photovoltaic power station wireless network, respectively, and support remote monitoring startup and parameter modification based on the MQTT protocol.

4. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 3, characterized in that: It also includes a data acquisition unit (2) for collecting real-time operating data of photovoltaic module voltage, current, and temperature.

5. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 4, characterized in that: It also includes a storage unit (5) for storing data, which is used to save historical data and various threshold parameters to support data comparison and intelligent decision-making.

6. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 5, characterized in that: It also includes external interfaces (6) that provide extended connectivity.

7. The maintenance-free photovoltaic module multifunctional monitoring device as described in claim 2, characterized in that: The control unit (3) in the monitoring device has a built-in timer that automatically wakes up at a preset time interval, or receives a remote command via the MQTT protocol to start monitoring immediately; after waking up, it immediately enters the data acquisition stage to obtain real-time operating data of the voltage, current and temperature of the photovoltaic module; in the data processing stage, it compares and analyzes the currently acquired data with the historical records stored in the storage unit. If the data fluctuation does not exceed the preset threshold range, it immediately interrupts the process and enters a sleep state. Conversely, the data is uploaded to the remote monitoring platform via the WiFi module using the MQTT protocol. This process also supports interactive operations such as remote modification of monitoring parameters. After the data transmission is completed, the system immediately returns to sleep mode, waiting for the next scheduled wake-up or remote command trigger.

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