Integration of a solar panel in power microgrid via internet of things

Abstract

This paper presents a method of determining the status of a solar (photovoltaic) panel (SP) and estimating its output. SP is a component of a power microgrid, which, in turn, is connected to a power smart grid (SG). Using Internet of Things (IoT) functionalities for data transmission, environmental data and information about the power output of every photovoltaic panel is sent to the Cloud, where it is processed and stored. Having access to such an amount of data, correlations and interpretations can be further processed in order to make relevant estimations about the state of every SP, as well as to take fast and reliable decisions. At the same time, knowing what the environmental conditions are, while disposing of the historical stored data for every panel, the current output can be easily computed, hence obtaining a prediction over the entire plant. With massive amounts of data stored in the cloud, the possibility to select only the relevant information will be available. The results can be used either for optimization of SP power generation, or for power balancing at SG level dependent on the load applied, with influence on the trading electricity market.