Tilt Sensors – Key to the Maximum Solar Power Generation

Global warming has become a serious environmental issue. This global environmental issue that affects the survival of all people and development of all countries in the world. Protecting the environment and reducing the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have become an endorsed agreement by all leading industrial countries. Some of them have already cooperated to take steps further for slowing down the pace of global warming. It has been established that burning fossil fuels is greatly related to the accumulation of greenhouse gases. For this reason, searching for alternative energy sources and developing efficient ways to convert renewable energy have attracted many research groups and companies to study and invest in these areas.
Solar energy is a clean and renewable energy. Many countries consider it as an important new energy industry for the future. In recent years, the scale of solar energy development and utilization has expanded rapidly, technology has continued to advance, and costs have been significantly reduced, showing great potential in continuous development.

The amount of solar energy that can be collected is determined by many factors, such as temperature, shadowing, and radiation level. To obtain the highest possible efficiency of solar generation, we need position the solar panel in such a way that ensures the solar panel receives the maximum intensity of sunlight. The solar panel tracking system is designed for this purpose to improve the rate of solar energy collection. It can greatly increase the amount of solar radiation received by the solar PV panels, and then significantly Increase the overall power generation capacity of the photovoltaic system. The solar tracking unit is a critical component of the solar PV (Photovoltaic) system. According to a market research company’s report, by 2023, the global solar tracking system market is expected to reach $7.54 billion US dollars.
In many places with abundant solar energy, the government has assisted companies build high efficient solar PV systems for generating electricity. One of the essential parts of the solar PV systems is the solar PV tracking system.

Solar PV tracking system illustration

The solar PV tracking system generally consists of a tilt sensor, a servo system, and a controller. Solar PV tracking system is divided into horizontal single-axis photovoltaic tracking system, oblique single-axis photovoltaic tracking system, and dual-axis photovoltaic tracking system according to specific applications.
These three types of solar PV tracking systems can not only increase the power generation capacity of the solar farms, but also be capable of adapting to local conditions as well as various complex terrain and application specifications.
The solar PV tracking system needs to adjust the tilt angle of the solar photovoltaic panel so that the solar PV panel can be positioned towards the sun in real time to ensure that the sunlight is always as vertical as possible to the solar PV panel to obtain the most solar radiation.
Although the angle of the sun relative to the solar PV panel varies greatly during the day, the angle of sunlight at certain time during a year is almost unchanged. The system can calculate the position and angle of the sun on each day of the year based on the local latitude and longitude, and stores the information in the software of the controller, so that the angle of the photovoltaic panel measured by the inclinometer/tilt sensor can be compared with the angle of the sun stored in the device, and then the motor is controlled to adjust the solar panel to the best angle facing the sun at that time.
Inclinometer or tilt sensor, detecting the real-time angular position of the solar PV panel, is the key to optimizing the solar energy harvesting efficiency. There are certain requirements for the accuracy of the tilt sensor. The tilt sensors that are independently developed by Shanghai Zhichuan Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. are mature products that have been used in many applications and key solar PV projects.
ZCT1360J-LBS-BUS-77 is an inclinometer/tilt sensor highly recommended by Shanghai Zhichuan Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. This sensor is used for single-axis photovoltaic tracking system and oblique single-axis photovoltaic tracking system is ZCT1360J-LBS-BUS-77, which offers a maximum measuring angle range of 360°, rs485 output, using industrial grade components to provide stable performance. It is stable, reliable, and has the protection from touch, reverse polarity, sandstorm, salt fog and ultraviolet, etc., Accountable for various application scenarios of solar photovoltaic.
The inclinometer or tilt sensor recommended by Shanghai Zhichuan Electronic Technology Co., Ltd. for the dual-axis photovoltaic tracking system is ZCT290L-LNT, which offers dual-axis structure, horizontal installation, measuring the inclination angle of X-axis and Y-axis, measuring range ±90 degrees, analog voltage output. The product uses industrial grade components to provide outstanding performance with stability, high reliability, and has the similar protective functions as ZCT1360J-LBS-BUS-77.

Dual-axis tilt sensor ZCT290L-LNT by Shanghai Zichuan Electronic Tech Co. Ltd.
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