What is Smart Solar Panel?

With the rapid rise of 5G communication, artificial intelligence, advanced computing, industrial Internet, and other new generations of information technology, the photovoltaic industry and information technology are developing faster than ever. They're also combining in new ways that are making it easier to use solar energy in smart ways. At PowerHome, we'll show you what smart solar panels are all about.

What is smart solar panel?

What's in store for the solar industry? Digital and intelligent technology is the key to the future of photovoltaics. "Smart photovoltaics," in simple terms, is the application of more power electronics and digital technology in traditional solar power generation systems, power station equipment, and the entire system for digitalization and intelligent upgrading.

"Intelligent PV" is a product of cross-border innovation in the fields of photovoltaic power generation and information technology. It takes the form of an intelligent photovoltaic power station. In other words, the construction of the power station, the operation and maintenance of the whole process, and the optimization and innovation that occur along the way are all part of a larger digital, information technology, Internet technology, and photovoltaic technology cross-border fusion. The goal is to achieve reasonable optimization of the initial investment, reduce the cost of operation and maintenance, and It helps the system generate more power, get a better return on investment, and adapt to different situations. This includes large-scale ground stations, mountainous areas, agricultural and fishery sites, and other locations.

Here's what makes the smart solar panel special:

High conversion efficiency

Smart solar panels use the latest photovoltaic tech, like multi-junction solar cells or thin-film technology, to boost energy conversion efficiency. They perform better at higher temperatures and reduce efficiency loss due to temperature increase.

Tracking systems

These solar panels track in a way that allows them to move with the position of the sun, which helps them absorb as much sunlight as possible.

Additional equipment

• Optimizers make sure that even if part of the panel is covered by shadows or damaged, the rest will still operate at maximum efficiency.
• Microinverters are different from traditional central inverters because they have a separate inverter for each PV panel, which makes the whole system more efficient and reliable.
• They're also equipped with environmental sensors, like temperature, humidity, and wind speed, so you can monitor and adjust system performance in real time.

Smart connectivity

You can connect smart solar panels to your home network via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. This lets you monitor and manage system performance remotely via a smartphone app. They can collect lots of data, which you can use to analyze the system's operating conditions, predict maintenance needs, and optimize energy output.

Self-cleaning

Some smart solar panels have special coatings that help keep them clean by reducing the accumulation of dust and dirt. Some even have automatic cleaning systems, like ones that use raindrops or small robots.

What's the best way to make solar panels more intelligent?

Industry insiders think that to make photovoltaics smart, you've got to go through three stages: automation, informatization, and intelligence. Automation means reducing the need for manual work at the power station site. The system is designed to be maintenance-free and require no expert on-site diagnosis or repair. Informatization means high-precision, intelligent detection of the string, high-speed, reliable, safe, and low-cost transmission of information, and high-reliable storage and monitoring of back-end data.

The idea is that it can provide comprehensive monitoring, operation and maintenance, optimization and management tools, so that the photovoltaic power generation system can be more efficient at power generation and work better with the smart grid. In other words, it can reduce human intervention, make the system fully automated and unmanned, and make automatic fault discovery, diagnosis and repair, so that power generation is enhanced, maintenance costs are reduced and system revenue is improved.

In a nutshell, the intelligentization of PV has six main areas: intelligent power generation, intelligent security, intelligent monitoring, intelligent operation and maintenance, intelligent power consumption, and intelligent grid.

In the future, intelligent operation and maintenance of power stations will keep them running smoothly, ensuring a consistent flow of operations. Take traditional solar power stations, for instance. They have a lot of equipment, but it's mostly "dumb" in terms of information collection and reporting. The equipment is isolated from one another, so it can't collaborate. Nowadays, with the help of 5G, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, sensing technology, and big data, the equipment can work together and be controlled from a central system. This allows us to see, manage, and control the whole process of generating, delivering, and using power from a photovoltaic power station.

As we all know, going solar is a great way to help the environment, and now, it's even better in terms of performance and safety. You can save tens of thousands of dollars over the lifetime of your solar system. Contact PowerHome today to start your journey to off-grid living! There's never been a better time to do it.