Utilising uavs for detecting defects in solar panel arrays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for inspecting solar panel arrays for defects, such as hand-held thermographic cameras and static pyranometers, are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and produce inaccurate results due to variations in solar irradiance, making it difficult to detect and assess defects like Potential Induced Degradation (PID) effectively.
Innovation Solution
A custom-made geo-referencing pyranometer is mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to measure solar irradiance during flight, allowing for precise logging of time and location data, which is then cross-referenced with thermographic images to improve defect analysis and detection of degenerative issues like PID.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If hand-held thermographic cameras are used for solar panel inspection, then portability and flexibility are improved, but inspection time and labor intensity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual handheld camera operation with an automated UAV-based inspection system. The UAV carries thermographic cameras and autonomously flies over solar panels to capture thermal images, eliminating the need for manual operation while significantly increasing inspection speed and coverage area.
2Stability of the object's composition
If static ground-based pyranometers are used to measure solar irradiance, then measurement stability is improved, but spatial and temporal accuracy deteriorates due to inability to capture variations across the array
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the static pyranometer into a dynamic measurement system by mounting it on the moving UAV. This allows the pyranometer to capture solar irradiance data at multiple locations and time points during the flight, providing spatially and temporally resolved irradiance measurements that match the thermographic imaging data.
Solution Approach 2:
The UAV platform serves multiple functions simultaneously: it carries the thermographic camera for temperature imaging, the pyranometer for irradiance measurement, and the GPS receiver for location tracking. This multi-functional integration allows all measurements to be correlated by position and time, resolving the contradiction between stability and precision.
3Productivity
If UAV-mounted thermographic cameras are used, then inspection speed and location accuracy are improved, but the ability to correlate temperature data with solar irradiance data deteriorates without co-located measurements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the thermographic camera, pyranometer, and GPS receiver into a single integrated UAV measurement system. All three instruments operate simultaneously at the same location and time, ensuring that temperature, irradiance, and position data are perfectly correlated. This eliminates the information loss that would occur with separate measurement systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables early detection and analysis of defects, including PID, by providing accurate and reliable data on temperature gradients, leading to timely repair or replacement of defective modules, thus improving the efficiency and accuracy of solar panel inspections.
Implementation Method 1
The observed temperature gradient can occur either across a panel, or within a panel in single or multiple cells. Until very recently, the standard method of inspecting a solar farm for defective panels was to use a hand-held thermographic camera.
Implementation Method 2
This mismatch is measurable as a temperature gradient, through the use of a thermographic camera.
Implementation Method 3
Reliable time- and location-specific solar irradiance data, measurable with a pyranometer, is therefore of high value when reviewing the inspection data
Data Source
Figure 1~2
AI summary
A method and apparatus are provided for detecting defects in a solar panel array (20), using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (10). The UAV (10) has mounted thereon a pyranometer (12), a GPS receiver (13), a thermographic camera (14), a visual imaging camera (15) and a data logger (16). The method comprises the steps of: (i) mapping the location of panels (22) in a solar array (20); (ii) utilising mapped data collected in step (i) to generate an optimal waypoint flight path (24) for the UAV (10); (iii) transmitting the optimal waypoint flight path data (24) generated in step (ii) to the control means of the UAV (10); (iv) flying the UAV (10) over the solar array (20) using the optimal waypoint flight path (24), whilst simultaneously recording thermographic and visual imagery, and logging solar irradiance and GPS data; and (v) processing data logged in step (iv) to identify and report defective panels (22) by temperature gradient, with cross-referenced solar irradiance data, thermographic and visual imagery and GPS location data.