Maximum Power Point tracking for a stand-alone photovoltaic system using Artificial Neural Network

Abstract

This paper presents an intelligent method to extract the maximum power from the photovoltaic panel using artificial neural network (ANN). The inputs data required for training the ANN controller are obtained from real weather conditions and the desired output is obtained from perturb and observe (P&O) method. The proposed model is capable to improve the dynamic response and steady-state performance of the system, provides an accurate identification of the optimal operating point and an accurate estimation of the maximum power from the photovoltaic panels. The proposed ANN model is compared with conventional P&O model and shown that ANN controller could increase the power output by approximately 20%. The system is simulated and studied using MATLAB software.