Dual Axis Solar Tracking System with

Weather Sensor
Course Title: Project and Thesis
Course code: ME 400

Supervised By: Submitted By:

Md. Sekander Sujan
Mr. Shuvo Biswas Topu ID No: BME1701011558
Lecturer MD. Obaidur Rahman
Department of Mechanical Engineering ID No:​ ​BME1701011540
Sonargaon University  Habibur Rahaman
ID No: BME1701011547
Md. Shahin Sarker
ID No: BME1701011569
 
 
 
 
 
SONARGAON UNIVERSITY
147/1, Green Road, Tejgaon, Dhaka-1215
October 2020
 Declaration

We hereby, declare that the work presented in this project is the outcome of the investigation

and research work performed by us under the supervision of ​Mr. Shuvo Biswas Topu​,

Lecturer, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sonargaon University (SU). We also

declare that no part of this project and thereof has been or is being submitted elsewhere for

the award of any degree.

-----------------------------------------

Mr. Shuvo Biswas Topu

Lecturer
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Sonargaon University (SU)
.
 Approval

This is to certify that the project on ​“Dual Axis Solar Tracking System with Weather
Sensor” by Md. Sekander Sujan, ID- BME1701011558, Md. Obaidur Rahaman ,
ID-BME1701011540, Habibur Rahaman, ID- BME1701011547, Md. Shahin Sarker,
ID-BME1701011569, has been carried out under our supervisor. The project has been carried
out in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Science (BSc) in
Mechanical Engineering of the year 2020 and has been approved as to its style and contents.

-----------------------------------------

Mr. Shuvo Biswas Topu

Lecturer
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Sonargaon University (SU).
 ABSTRACT

In the present days solar energy is the most popular and cheap renewable energy which
comes from solar power without any environmental pollution. To avoid fossil fuel solar
energy has the most powerful action. If we can get maximum power from solar then we can
solve our energy demand.
This paper presents the outline and execution of a simple, easy and cheaper automatic dual
axis solar tracking system using Arduino UNO as the control element and light detecting
sensors (LDRS) as the sensing element. This project involves an advanced level of
technology to capture the maximum amount of energy using the sun's radiations. The main
purpose is to increase the efficiency of a tracking system which can rotate in all four
directions continuously according to intensity of radiations and for energy conversion. In this,
the voltage from the panel is calculated from time to time in an interval of 1hr and this
voltage is used to sense the weather conditions and display the climatic temperatures. By this
process we can get maximum solar power and know about the environment situation.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The authors want to express gratefulness, regards, gratitude and sincere thanks to supervisor

Mr. Shuvo Biswas Topu, ​Lecturer, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sonargaon

University (SU). For his guidance and valuable counsel in execution and completion of the

study without which it would be impossible to carry out the work. Also, thanks to ​Md.

Mostofa Hossain,​ Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Mechanical

Engineering, (SU)​ for giving permission to use laboratory facilities of the department.

Authors grateful to the teachers who helped us directly or indirectly which was very

necessary to complete the thesis work.

Finally, we are also grateful to the ​Vice Chancellor of Sonargaon University (SU) for his

overall support to finish the project works.

“The Authors”.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract….......…….…………………………………………………………………… 04
Acknowledgement……...……………………………………………………………… 05

CHAPTER– 1: ​INTRODUCTION ​ ------------------------------------------------------ ​0-11

1.1 ​Introduction ​: 1​1

1.2 Aim of the Project: 1​1

1.3 Objectives: 1​1

CHAPTER– ​02​: ​LITERATURE REVIEW​ ------------------------------------------- 13-​17

2​.1 ​Solar Energy System​: 13

2.2 ​Solar Panel Tracking System​: 14

2.2.1​ ​Types of Solar Panel Tracking System​: 14

2.2.2 ​Single Axis Solar Tracking System​: 14

2.2.3 ​Dual Axis Solar Tracking System​: 15

2.3 Solar Panel Tracking System: 15

CHAPTER– 03: ​WORKING PRINCIPLE OF DUAL AXIS SOLAR TRACKER

SYSTEM​ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ​19-30

3.1 How Does the Dual Axis Solar Tracker System Work? 19

3.2 Main Parts of a Dual Axis Solar Tracker System: 20

3.2.1 Solar Panel: 20

3.2.2 Arduino UNO: 21

3.2.3 Light Dependent Resistors (LDR): 23

3.2.4 Servo Motor: 24

3.2.5 Breadboard: 24
 3.2.6 PVC Board (For Body): 25

3.2.7 Resistor: 25

3.2.8 Potentiometer: 26

3.2.9 Jumper wires: 26

3.2.10 LCD For Arduino UNO: 27

3.2.11 Temperature Sensor: 29

3.2.12 Rain Sensor: 30

CHAPTER– 04: SYSTEM ALGORITHM ------------------------------------------- 32-​39

4.1 SOFTWARE DESIGN: 32

4.1.1 Programming Tools: 32

4.1.2 Coding: 33

4.1.3 Final Program Code: 35

4.2 Interfacing Dual Axis Solar Tracker Arduino Project Using LDR &
Servo Motors: 38

4.2.1 Interfacing Weather Sensors: 39

4.3 Testing Result of Solar panel: 39

CHAPTER– 05: ​WEATHER STATION​ ---------------------------------------------- 41-4​2

5.1 How Does The Weather Station Work? 41

5.2 Importance of Weather Station in Dual Axis Solar Tracking System: 41

5.3 What Does A WMS Do? 41

5.4 How Does A WMS Help Improve the Plant Performance? 42

CHAPTER– 06: ​PROJECT DESIGN AND OVERVIEW​ ------------------------ 44-4​5

6.1 Physical Model of the System: 44

6.2 Weather Station Physical Overview: 45

 6.3 Dual Axis Solar Tracker Physical Overview: 45

CHAPTER– 07: ​CONCLUSION, ADVANTAGES & APPLICATION​---------- ​47-48

7.1 Conclusion: 47

7.2 Recommendation: 47

7.3 Advantages: 47

7.4 Application: 48

REFERENCE​ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ​49

LIST OF FIGURE

Figure 1​:​ Solar Energy System 1​5

Figure 2​:​ Dual Axis Solar Tracker System with Weather Sensor 20

Figure 3​:​ Solar Panel 21

Figure 4​:​ Arduino UNO 3 22

Figure 5​:​ Circuit Diagram of Arduino UNO 22

Figure 6​:​ Light Dependent Resistor 23

Figure 7​:​ Servo Motor 24

Figure 8​:​ Breadboard 24

Figure 9​:​ PVC Board 25

Figure 10​:​ Resistor 25

Figure 11​:​ Potentiometer 26

Figure 12​:​ Jumper Wire 27

Figure 13​:​ 16X2 LCD Display 27

Figure 14​:​ Pin Details of a 16X2 LCD 29

Figure 15​:​ Temperature Sensor 29

Figure 16​:​ Rain Sensor 30

Figure 17​:​ Arduino IDE Interface 32

Figure 18​:​ Interfacing Dual Axis Solar Tracker Arduino Project Using
LDR & Servo Motors 38

Figure 19​:​ Interfacing Weather Sensor 39

Figure 20​:​ Physical Model of the System 44

Figure 21​:​ Weather Station 45

Figure 22​:​ Dual Axis Solar Tracker 45

 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction:

“Dual Axis Solar Tracking with Weather Sensor” is a modern and Innovative process which
helps to get maximum energy from solar. Dual axis system is employed for solar tracking
which is tracking the sun the whole day and solar panels will follow the sun, on the other side
weather sensors help to inform the environmental situation which is shown on a display.
During this process we can avoid the use of fossil fuel, get solar power easily and save our
environment.

1.2 Aim of the Project:

To analyze and construct Dual axis solar tracking systems with weather sensors, Its main

purpose is to save our world and protest production of ​CO​2 from

​ fossil fuel, reduce using the

fossil fuel and more use of renewable energy in every sector. By this process we can easily

produce maximum energy which is needed for our energy demand.

1.3 Objectives:

i. To generate power from solar panels using dual axis trackers.

ii. To track every position of the sun.
iii. To design and construct a simple solar tracking system which can absorb the
maximum amount of sunlight.
iv. To minimize the cost of installation and operation providing higher reliability.
v. Weather sensors are extensively used to collect data from sites and locations which
are remote.

vi. To set up and run a completely automatic low cost weather station.
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Solar Energy System:

Solar panels work by absorbing sunlight with photovoltaic cells, generating direct current
(DC) energy and then converting it to usable alternating current (AC) energy with the help of
inverter technology.

A standard solar panel (also known as a solar module) consists of a layer of silicon cells, a
metal frame, a glass casing, and various wiring to allow current to flow from the silicon cells.
Silicon (atomic #14 on the periodic table) is a nonmetal with conductive properties that allow
it to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity. When light interacts with a silicon cell, it
causes electrons to be set into motion, which initiates a flow of electric current. This is known
as the “photovoltaic effect,” and it describes the general functionality of solar panel
technology.

The science of generating electricity with solar panels boils down to the photovoltaic effect.
It was first discovered in 1839 by Edmond Becquerel and can be generally thought of as a
characteristic of certain materials (known as semiconductors) that allows them to generate an
electric current when exposed to sunlight.

The photovoltaic process works through the following simplified steps:

1. The silicon photovoltaic solar cell absorbs solar radiation

2. When the sun’s rays interact with the silicon cell, electrons begin to move, creating a
flow of electric current
3. Wires capture and feed this direct current (DC) electricity to a solar inverter to be
converted to alternating current (AC) electricity.
2.2 Solar Panel Tracking System:

A solar tracking system maximizes your solar system’s electricity production by moving your
panels to follow the sun throughout the day, which optimizes the angle at which your panels
receive solar radiation. Solar trackers are typically used for ground-mounted solar panels and
large, free-standing solar installations like solar trees.

When solar panels are exposed to sunlight, the angle at which the sun’s rays meet the surface

of the solar panel (known as the “angle of incidence”) determines how well the panel can

convert the incoming light into electricity. The narrower the angle of incidence, the more

energy a photovoltaic panel can produce. Solar trackers help to minimize this angle by

working to orient panels so that light strikes them perpendicular to their surface.

2.2.1 Types of Solar Panel Tracking System:

1. Single axis solar tracker system

2. Dual axis solar tracker system

2.2.2 Single Axis Solar Tracking System:

Single-axis tracking has three kinds of layout methods:

1. Inclined shaft installation, east–west direction for tracking

2. South–north axis horizontal installation, east–west direction for tracking
3. East–west axis horizontal installation, south–north direction for tracking

These three methods are all single-axis rotation tracking, and the work principles are similar.
According to the results of the calculation of the rotation angle of the sun, the collectors
rotate around the axis of rotation to track the sun. At noon, the angle between the incident
direction of the sun and the normal direction of the collector's aperture is the smallest;
collectors can then obtain the maximum heat flux. In the morning or afternoon the sunlight is
oblique. Single-axis tracking has the advantage of simple structure; the disadvantage is that
the incident light cannot always be perpendicular to the collector's aperture, so the collection
of solar energy is not enough to maintain the maximum.
Collectors that usually use single-axis tracking are CPCs, parabolic trough collectors (PTCs),
and linear Fresnel collectors.

2.2.3 Dual Axis Solar Tracking System:

To track the sun in two directions that is elevation and azimuth, a dual-axis tracking
prototype is developed to capture the maximum sun rays by tracking the movement of the sun
in four different directions. One axis is azimuth which allows the solar panel to move left and
right.

2.3 History:

Figure 1: Solar Energy System

In theory, solar energy was used by humans as early as the 7th century B.C. when history
tells us that humans used sunlight to light fires with magnifying glass materials. Later, in 3rd
century B.C., the Greeks and Romans were known to harness solar power with mirrors to
light torches for religious ceremonies. These mirrors became a normalized tool referred to as
“burning mirrors.” Chinese civilization documented the use of mirrors for the same purpose
later in 20 A.D.

Another early use for solar energy that is still popular today was the concept of “sunrooms”
in buildings. These sunrooms used massive windows to direct sunlight into one concentrated
area. Some of the iconic Roman bathhouses, typically those situated on the south-facing side
of buildings, were sunrooms. Later in the 1200s A.D., ancestors to the Pueblo Native
Americans known as the Anasazi situated themselves in south-facing abodes on cliffs to
capture the sun’s warmth during cold winter months.

In the late 1700s and 1800s, researchers and scientists had success using sunlight to power
ovens for long voyages. They also harnessed the power of the sun to produce solar-powered
steamboats. Ultimately, it’s clear that even thousands of years before the era of solar panels,
the concept of manipulating the power of the sun was a common practice. The development
of solar panel technology was an iterative one that took a number of contributions from
various scientists. Naturally, there is some debate around when exactly they were created and
who should be credited for the invention. Some people credit the invention of the solar cell to
French scientist Edmond Becquerel, who determined light could increase electricity
generation when two metal electrodes were placed into a conducting solution. This
breakthrough, defined as the “photovoltaic effect,” was influential in later PV developments
with the element selenium.

In 1873, Willoughby Smith discovered that selenium had photoconductive potential, leading
to William Grylls Adams’ and Richard Evans Day’s 1876 discovery that selenium creates
electricity when exposed to sunlight. A few years later in 1883, Charles Fritts actually
produced the first solar cells made from selenium wafers – the reason some historians credit
Fritts with the actual invention of solar cells.

However, solar cells as we know them today are made with silicon, not selenium. Therefore,
some consider the true invention of solar panels to be tied to Daryl Chapin, Calvin Fuller, and
Gerald Pearson’s creation of the silicon photovoltaic (PV) cell at Bell Labs in 1954. Many
argue that this event marks the true invention of PV technology because it was the first
instance of a solar technology that could actually power an electric device for several hours
of a day. The first ever silicon solar cell could convert sunlight at four percent efficiency, less
than a quarter of what modern cells are capable of.

Solar panels in outer space – Some of the earliest uses of solar technology were actually in
outer space where solar was used to power satellites. In 1958, the Vanguard I satellite used a
tiny one-watt panel to power its radios. Later that year the Vanguard II, Explorer III and
Sputnik-3 were all launched with PV technology on board. In 1964, NASA was responsible
for launching the first Nimbus spacecraft, a satellite able to run entirely on a 470 watt solar
array. In 1966, NASA launched the world’s first Orbiting Astronomical Observatory,
powered by a one-kilowatt array.

First solar residence – In 1973, the University of Delaware was responsible for constructing
the first solar building, named “Solar One.” The system ran on a hybrid supply of solar
thermal and solar PV power. It was also the first instance of building integrated photovoltaic
(BIPV) – the array didn’t use solar panels but instead had solar integrated into the rooftop,
similar to the design for Tesla’s new roof product.

Achievements in solar conversion efficiency – Between 1957 and 1960, Hoffman Electronics
made a number of breakthroughs with photovoltaic efficiency, improving the efficiency
record from 8% to 14%. The next major achievement was in 1985 when the University of
South Wales achieved 20% efficiency for silicon cells. In 1999, the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory collaborated with SpectroLab Inc. to create a solar cell with 33.3%
efficiency. The University of South Wales broke that record again in 2016 when researchers
reached 34.5% efficiency.

Solar-powered airplanes – In 1981, Paul MacCready built Solar Challenger, the first aircraft
to run on solar power, and flew it across the English Channel from France to the U.K. In
1998, the remote-controlled solar airplane “Pathfinder” set an altitude record after reaching
80,000 feet. NASA broke that record in 2001 when they reached 96,000 feet with their
non-rocket aircraft. In 2016, Bertrand Piccard completed the first zero-emissions flight
around the world with Solar Impulse 2, the world’s largest and most powerful solar-powered
airplane today.

Solar-powered presidencies – In 1979, President Jimmy Carter had solar panels installed on
the White House during his term as president. However, in 1981, President Ronald Reagan
ordered the White House solar panels to be removed. In 2010, President Barack Obama
requested that solar panels and a solar water heater be installed in the White House. Both
were installed during Obama’s first term. Cost of solar over time – Prices for solar panels
have dropped substantially over the past few decades, leading to a surge in consumer demand
that has produced more than one million U.S. installations as of early 2016. In 1956, solar
panels cost roughly $300 per watt. By 1975, that figure had dropped to just over $100 a watt.
Today, a solar panel can cost as little as $0.50 a watt. Consider this: since the year 1980, solar
panel prices have dropped by at least 10 percent every single year. The plummeting cost of
solar is largely responsible for the growing popularity of solar and the legitimacy of PV as a
reliable energy source in today’s world.

CHAPTER 3

WORKING PRINCIPLE OF DUAL AXIS SOLAR TRACKER

SYSTEM
 CHAPTER 3

WORKING PRINCIPLE OF DUAL AXIS SOLAR TRACKER

SYSTEM

3.1 How Does the Dual Axis Solar Tracker System Work?

The proposed framework does the following of daylight all the more adequately by giving PV
board revolution in two diverse pivots. Servo motors are essentially performing the capacity
of sun following. Upper board holder servo motor tracks sun directly and base stepper motor
tracks the allegorical uprooting of sun. These servo motors and sensors are interfaced with a
microcontroller which is controlling the servo motor based on sensor input. The LDR sensor
senses the light and sends the flag to the microcontroller. Microcontroller is correcting signs
obtained from LDR sensors and based on more grounded signals it is choosing the pivot
heading of the servo motor. Double hub tracker control is clarified with the assistance of a
piece chart appearing in figure. The square outline demonstrates that LDR sensors subsequent
to detecting the light forward the flag to Arduino. Arduino is an astute gadget which is taking
activities based on sensor information and initiating motor drivers circuits as needs be.
Presently assume if the sun changes its area and moves from east to west, it will make light
force be diverse on one sensor when contrasted with another one. Based on light force
contrast on the sensor, the controller enacts the driver circuit and moves servo motors to a
new position where light falling on sensor sets is the same. A similar procedure is kept on
with on changes in the sun's area in the sky. Therefore this proposed demonstration can catch
more sun beams and frameworks sun powered vitality transformation ability is enormously
improved.
 ​Figure 2: Dual Axis Solar Tracker System with Weather Sensor

3.2 Main Parts of a Dual Axis Solar Tracker System:

A Dual axis solar tracker consists of a few key components that play a vital role in the dual
axis solar energy process:

3.2.1 Solar Panel:

A PV module is an assembly of photo-voltaic cells mounted in a framework for installation.

Photo-voltaic cells use sunlight as a source of energy and generate direct current electricity.
A collection of PV modules is called a PV Panel, and a system of Panels is an Array. Arrays
of a photovoltaic system supply solar electricity to electrical equipment.

The most common application of solar energy collection outside agriculture is solar water
heating systems.
 Figure 3: Solar Panel.

3.2.2 Arduino UNO:

Arduino is an open source physical computing platform based on a simple input/output board
and a development environment that implements the Processing language [7]. Arduino can be
used to develop standalone interactive objects or can be connected to software on any
computer. The boards can be assembled by hand or purchased pre assembled; the open source
IDE (Integrated Development Environment) can be downloaded for free from
www.arduino.cc​. It is an architecture that combines Atmel microcontroller family with
standard hardware into a board with inbuilt bootloader for plug and play embedded
programming. Arduino IDE helps writing, debugging and burning programs into the Arduino
board. The IDE also comes with a Serial Communication window through which can easily
get the serial data from the board.
 Figure 4: Arduino UNO 3

Figure 5: Circuit Diagram of Arduino Uno.

3.2.3 Light Dependent Resistors (LDR):

A photoresistor (acronymic LDR for Light Decreasing Resistance, or light-dependent

resistor, or photo-conductive cell) is a passive component that decreases resistance with
respect to receiving luminosity (light) on the component's sensitive surface. The resistance of
a photo resistor decreases with increase in incident light intensity; in other words, it exhibits
photoconductivity.

Figure 6: Light Dependent Resistor

3.2.4 Servo Motor:

A servomotor is a rotary actuator or linear actuator that allows for precise control of angular
or linear position, velocity and acceleration. It consists of a suitable motor coupled to a sensor
for position feedback​.

Figure 7: Servo Motor

3.2.5 Breadboard:

A breadboard is a rectangular plastic board with a bunch of tiny holes in it. These holes let
you easily insert electronic components to prototype (meaning to build and test an early
version of) an electronic circuit, like this one with a battery, switch, resistor, and an LED
(light-emitting diode)

Figure 8: Breadboard
3.2.6 PVC Board (For Body):

PVC foam board, also known as expanded polyvinyl chloride (PVC), is a lightweight, rigid
form of expanded foam polyvinyl chloride. It is commonly used for commercial purposes like
digital and screen printing, laminating, vinyl lettering, signage, and more.

Figure 9: PVC Board

3.2.7 Resistor:

A resistor is a passive two-terminal electrical component that implements electrical resistance

as a circuit element. In electronic circuits, resistors are used to reduce current flow, adjust
signal levels, to divide voltages, bias active elements, and terminate transmission lines,
among other uses.

Figure 10: Resistor.

3.2.8 Potentiometer:

A potentiometer is a three-terminal resistor with a sliding or rotating contact that forms an

adjustable voltage divider. If only two terminals are used, one end and the wiper, it acts as a
variable resistor or rheostat.

Figure 11: Potentiometer

3.2.9 Jumper wires:

A jumper wire or jump wire is an electrical wire, or group of them in a cable, with a
connector or pin at each end (or sometimes without them, simply "tinned"), which is
normally used to interconnect the components of a breadboard or other prototype or test
circuit, internally or with other equipment or components, without soldering. Individual jump
wires are fitted by inserting their "end connectors" into the slots provided in a breadboard, the
header connector of a circuit board, or a piece of test equipment.There are different types of
jumper wire depending on their end connector such as:

a. Solid tips
b. Crocodile clips
c. Banana connectors
d. Registered jack
e. RCA connectors
f. RF connectors
 Figure 12: Jumper Wires

3.2.10 LCD For Arduino UNO:

LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) screen is an electronic display module which is a very basic
and commonly used module in various devices and circuits. These modules are preferred over
seven segments and other multi segment LEDs. The reasons being popularity of LCDs
because it is economical, easily programmable, has no limitation of displaying special & even
custom characters (unlike in seven segments), animations and so on. A 16x2 LCD means it
can display 16 characters per line and there are 2 such lines. In this LCD each character is
displayed in a 5x7 pixel matrix. This LCD has two registers, namely, Command and Data.

Figure 13: 16X2 LCD Display

PIN NUMBER SYMBOL FUNCTION

1 Vss GND

2 Vdd + 3V or + 5V

3 Vo Contrast Adjustment

4 RS H/L Register Select Signal

5 R/W H/L Read/Write Signal

6 E H - L Enable Signal

7 DB0 H/L Data Bus Line

8 DB1 H/L Data Bus Line

9 DB2 H/L Data Bus Line

10 DB3 H/L Data Bus Line

11 DB4 H/L Data Bus Line

12 DB5 H/L Data Bus Line

13 DB6 H/L Data Bus Line

14 DB7 H/L Data Bus Line

15 A/Vee + 4.2V for LED/Negative Voltage Output

16 K Power Supply for B/L (OV)

 Figure 14: Pin details of a 16X2 LCD

3.2.11 Temperature Sensor:

A temperature sensor is an electronic device that measures the temperature of its environment
and converts the input data into electronic data to record, monitor, or signal temperature
changes. Non-contact temperature sensors are usually infrared (IR) sensors.

The ​DHT11​ is a basic, ultra low-cost digital ​temperature​ and humidity ​sensor​. It uses a
capacitive humidity ​sensor​ and a thermistor to measure the surrounding air, and spits out a
digital signal on the data pin (no analog input pins needed). It's fairly simple to use, but
requires careful timing to grab data.

Figure 15: Temperature Sensor

3.2.12 Rain Sensor:

A rain sensor or rain switch is a switching device activated by rainfall. There are two main
applications for rain sensors. The first is a water conservation device connected to an
automatic irrigation system that causes the system to shut down in the event of rainfall.

Figure 16: Rain Sensor

 CHAPTER 4

SYSTEM ALGORITHM
 CHAPTER 4

SYSTEM ALGORITHM

4.1 SOFTWARE DESIGN:

4.1.1 Programming Tools:

All programm are made by us. In this project Arduino IDE or ​Arduino​ integrated
development environment is used as a coding and programing tools which is
a ​cross-platform​ application (for ​Windows​, ​macOS​, ​Linux​) that is written in the
programming language ​Java​. It is used to write and upload programs to Arduino compatible
boards, but also, with the help of 3rd party cores, other vendor development boards.

Figure 17: Arduino IDE Interface.

4.1.2 Coding:

#Include is used to include a servo header library file.

#​include​ ​<Servo.h>

Configuration for Horizontal servo.

The Servo Horizontal is set to 180 degrees.
Servo Horizontal Limit When Signal is High is set to 175 degrees.
Again, Servo Horizontal Limit when Signal value is low is set to 5 degrees​.

Servo horizontal​;​ ​// horizontal servo

int​ servoh ​=​ ​180​;
int​ servohLimitHigh ​=​ ​175​;
int​ servohLimitLow ​=​ ​5​;
// 65 degrees MAX

This is the Servo Configuration for Vertical

The Servo Vertical is set to 45 degrees.
Servo Vertical Limit When Signal is High is set to 60 degrees.
Also, Servo Vertical Limit when Signal value is low is set to 1 degree.

Servo vertical​;​ ​// vertical servo

int​ servov ​=​ ​45​;
int​ servovLimitHigh ​=​ ​60​;
int​ servovLimitLow ​=​ ​1​;

LDR Pin Connections

ldrlt is for Top Left
ldrrt is for Top Right
ldrld is for Down Left
ldrrd is for Down Right

// LDR pin connections

// name = analogpin;
int​ ldrlt ​=​ A0​;​ ​//LDR top left - BOTTOM LEFT <--- BDG
int​ ldrrt ​=​ A3​;​ ​//LDR top rigt - BOTTOM RIGHT
int​ ldrld ​=​ A1​;​ ​//LDR down left - TOP LEFT
int​ ldrrd ​=​ A3​;​ ​//ldr down rigt - TOP RIGHT
On void setup, we have attached the vertical and Horizontal servo signal pin. and the servo
rotation for the horizontal is set to 180 degrees. and similarly, the vertical servo is set to 45
degrees. We have also set a delay of 2.5 seconds.

void​ ​setup​(){
horizontal​.​attach​(​9​);
vertical​.​attach​(​10​);
horizontal​.​write​(​180​);
vertical​.​write​(​45​);
delay​(​2500​);
}

In the Void loop() Function, we read the value for the analog pin of the Arduino connected to
LDRs. and then calculate the average of vertical and horizontal.

void​ ​loop​()​ ​{
int​ lt ​=​ ​analogRead​(​ldrlt​);​ ​// top left
int​ rt ​=​ ​analogRead​(​ldrrt​);​ ​// top right
int​ ld ​=​ ​analogRead​(​ldrld​);​ ​// down left
int​ rd ​=​ ​analogRead​(​ldrrd​);​ ​// down right
int​ dtime ​=​ ​10​;​ ​int​ tol ​=​ 9 ​ 0​;​ ​// dtime=diffirence time, tol=toleransi
int​ avt ​=​ ​(​lt ​+​ rt​)​ ​/​ ​2​;​ /​ / average value top
int​ avd ​=​ ​(​ld ​+​ rd​)​ ​/​ ​2​;​ /​ / average value down
int​ avl ​=​ ​(​lt ​+​ ld​)​ ​/​ ​2​;​ /​ / average value left
int​ avr ​=​ ​(​rt ​+​ rd​)​ ​/​ ​2​;​ /​ / average value right
int​ dvert ​=​ avt ​-​ avd​;​ /​ / check the diffirence of up and down
int​ dhoriz ​=​ avl ​-​ avr​;/​ / check the diffirence og left and rigt

IF and IF-ELSE statements are defined to loop the program and calculate the average values
of the respective LDR’s. Finally, this code helps to change the degree of the servo motor. So
that it can be more effective.

if​ (​ ​-​1​*​tol ​>​ dvert ​||​ dvert ​>​ tol​)

​{
​if​ ​(​avt ​>​ avd​)
​{
servov ​=​ ​++​servov​;
​if​ ​(​servov ​>​ servovLimitHigh​)
​{​servov ​=​ servovLimitHigh​;}
​}
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avt ​<​ avd​)
​{​servov​=​ ​--​servov​;
​if​ ​(​servov ​<​ servovLimitLow​)
​{​ servov ​=​ servovLimitLow​;}
​}
vertical​.​write​(​servov​);
 ​}
if​ ​(​-​1​*​tol ​>​ dhoriz ​||​ dhoriz ​>​ tol​)​ ​// check if the diffirence is in the tolerance else
change horizontal angle
​{
​if​ ​(​avl ​>​ avr​)
​{
servoh ​=​ ​--​servoh​;
​if​ ​(​servoh ​<​ servohLimitLow​)
​{
servoh ​=​ servohLimitLow​;
​}
​}
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avl ​<​ avr​)
​{
servoh ​=​ ​++​servoh​;
​if​ ​(​servoh ​>​ servohLimitHigh​)
​{
servoh ​=​ servohLimitHigh​;
​}
​}
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avl ​=​ avr​)
​{
​delay​(​5000​);
​}
horizontal​.​write​(​servoh​);
​}

At last, we have added the delay of (dtime).

delay​(​dtime​);

4.1.3 Final Program Code:

#include <Servo.h>

Servo horizontal​;​ ​// horizontal servo

int​ servoh ​=​ ​180;
int​ servohLimitHigh ​=​ ​175;
int​ servohLimitLow ​=​ ​5;
// 65 degrees MAX

Servo vertical​;​ ​// vertical servo

int​ servov ​=​ ​45;
int​ servovLimitHigh ​=​ ​60;
int​ servovLimitLow ​=​ ​1;

// LDR pin connections

// name = analogpin;
int​ ldrlt ​=​ A0​;​ ​//LDR top left - BOTTOM LEFT <--- BDG
int​ ldrrt ​=​ A3​;​ ​//LDR top rigt - BOTTOM RIGHT
int​ ldrld ​=​ A1​;​ ​//LDR down left - TOP LEFT
int​ ldrrd ​=​ A3​;​ ​//ldr down rigt - TOP RIGHT

void​ ​setup(){
horizontal​.attach(9);
vertical​.attach(10);
horizontal​.write(180);
vertical​.write(45);
delay(2500);
}
void​ ​loop()​ ​{
int​ lt ​=​ ​analogRead(​ldrlt​);​ ​// top left
int​ rt ​=​ ​analogRead(​ldrrt​);​ ​// top right
int​ ld ​=​ ​analogRead(​ldrld​);​ ​// down left
int​ rd ​=​ ​analogRead(​ldrrd​);​ ​// down right
int​ dtime ​=​ ​10;​ ​int​ tol ​=​ 9 ​ 0;​ ​// dtime=diffirence time, tol=toleransi
int​ avt ​=​ ​(​lt ​+​ rt​)​ ​/​ ​2;​ /​ / average value top
int​ avd ​=​ ​(​ld ​+​ rd​)​ ​/​ ​2;​ /​ / average value down
int​ avl ​=​ ​(​lt ​+​ ld​)​ ​/​ ​2;​ /​ / average value left
int​ avr ​=​ ​(​rt ​+​ rd​)​ ​/​ ​2;​ /​ / average value right
int​ dvert ​=​ avt ​-​ avd​;​ /​ / check the diffirence of up and down
int​ dhoriz ​=​ avl ​-​ avr​;// check the diffirence og left and rigt

if​ (​ -1*​tol ​>​ dvert ​||​ dvert ​>​ tol​)

​{
​if​ ​(​avt ​>​ avd​)
​{
servov ​=​ ​++​servov​;
​if​ ​(​servov ​>​ servovLimitHigh​)
​{​servov ​=​ servovLimitHigh​;}
​}
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avt ​<​ avd​)
​{​servov​=​ ​--​servov​;
​if​ ​(​servov ​<​ servovLimitLow​)
​{​ servov ​=​ servovLimitLow​;}
​}
vertical​.write(​servov​);
​}
if​ ​(-1*​tol ​>​ dhoriz ​||​ dhoriz ​>​ tol​)​ ​// check if the diffirence is in the tolerance else
change horizontal angle
​{
​if​ ​(​avl ​>​ avr​)
​{
servoh ​=​ ​--​servoh​;
​if​ ​(​servoh ​<​ servohLimitLow​)
​{
servoh ​=​ servohLimitLow​;
}​
}​
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avl ​<​ avr​)
​{
servoh ​=​ ​++​servoh​;
​if​ ​(​servoh ​>​ servohLimitHigh​)
{​
servoh ​=​ servohLimitHigh​;
}​
}​
​else​ ​if​ ​(​avl ​=​ avr​)
{​
​delay(5000);
}​
horizontal​.write(​servoh​);
}​

​delay(​dtime​);

}
#include <LiquidCrystal.h>
int Contrast=75;
LiquidCrystal lcd(12,11,5,4,3,2);

const int capture_D=4;

const int capture_A=A0;
int val_analogique;

void setup()
{
analogWrite(6,Contrast);
lcd.begin(16,2);
pinMode(capture_D,INPUT);
pinMode(capture_A,INPUT);
Serial.begin(9600);
}

void loop()
{
if(digitalRead(capture_D)==LOW)
{
Serial.println("Digital value:wet");
lcd.clear();
lcd.setCursor(0,0);
lcd.print("ITS RAINING");
delay(2);
}
else
{
 Serial.println("Digital value:dry");
lcd.clear();
lcd.setCursor(0,1);
lcd.print("WHAT A DRY DAY");
delay(2);
}
val_analogique=analogRead(capture_A);
Serial.print("Analog value:");
Serial.println(val_analogique);
Serial.println("");
delay(1000);
}

4.2 ​Interfacing Dual Axis Solar Tracker Arduino Project Using LDR & Servo Motors:

Figure 18: Interfacing Dual Axis Solar Tracker Arduino Project Using LDR & Servo

Motors
4.2.1 Interfacing Weather Sensors:

Figure 19: Interfacing Weather Sensor

4.3 Testing Result of Solar Panel:

Time Voltages
(H) (V)

8 AM 10.7

9 AM 12.2

10 AM 14.6

11 AM 17.3

12 PM 19.8

1 PM 21.2

2 PM 17.9

3 PM 16.7

4 PM 13.8

5 PM 12.2
 CHAPTER 5

WEATHER STATION
 CHAPTER 5

WEATHER STATION

5.1 How Does The Weather Station Work?

So we’ve got this ultra-low-cost sensor called the DHT11 and Rain sensor. It uses a
capacitive humidity sensor, rain sensor and a thermistor to measure the surrounding air and
spits out a digital signal on the data pin. Since the output data isn’t analog, it requires some
coding to get the data, but don’t sweat it. It’s got its own library that takes care of the hard
parts. It’s fairly simple to use but requires careful timing to grab data. You can only get new
data from it once every 2 seconds, but that’s more than enough for our Arduino weather
station.

5.2 Importance of Weather Station in Dual Axis Solar Tracking System:

Weather Monitoring Station (WMS) is one of the most crucial instruments installed in dual
axis solar tracker systems. A weather monitoring station can be immensely helpful in
monitoring the efficiency and performance of any solar power plant. The data from the WMS
can be used to get many insights about the plant operation and possible avenues to
increase the plant output. As we are aware, even a small decline in the plant efficiency can
significantly affect the energy output and hence the ROI. This article tries to enlist all the
possible benefits from a WMS to the plant owners.

5.3 What Does A WMS Do?

It is very important to understand that a WMS cannot help you change the weather
parameters, but it helps you to analyze and predict them so as to get maximum output from
your solar plant. Photovoltaic (PV) system performance depends on both the quality of the
system and the weather. As the weather varies, the output of the PV system changes. The
key factor affecting the PV system performance is the solar radiation data. But along with
solar radiation data, the weather parameters like ambient temperature, relative humidity,
wind speed, wind direction, atmospheric pressure, and rain are the other important factors
affecting the performance. The air temperature, relative humidity, and module temperature
have a significant influence on the efficiency of solar modules. The performance of solar
modules is temperature-dependent. Module temperature gives an indication of a change in
the efficiency of the modules. If the module surface temperature rises beyond the specified
limit of the manufacturer, the efficiency of the panels will be reduced. This will give the poor
generation and will affect the plant performance. Data about amount and frequency of
precipitation (rainfall) can help to explain low energy yields at high solar radiation. If we can
accurately measure the total usable incident radiation under any environmental conditions
then, we will be able to calculate if the PV system is generating electricity as per the
expectations. The data of all these sensors can be used to schedule the maintenance of the
plant.
Typically, a weather monitoring station monitors parameters such as solar radiation, other
weather conditions such as wind velocity, wind direction, humidity, module temperature etc.
Weather stations also calculate the performance ratio (PR) of the solar power plant using all
the captured data. The performance ratio (PR) for a solar power plant is defined in IEC
61724 [1] and is a metric commonly used to measure solar photovoltaic (PV) plant
performance for acceptance and operations testing. The PR measures how effectively the
plant converts sunlight collected by the PV panels into AC energy delivered to the load to
what would be expected from the panel rating. This data can be accessed over the cloud as
well.

5.4 How Does A WMS Help Improve the Plant Performance?

Data from the WMS helps in planning out the maintenance activities. For optimum
operations, it is necessary that the solar panels are cleaned periodically. The decline in
efficiency, observed in the WMS data can prompt the user to carry out these maintenance
activities. Weather data and weather prediction can help in scheduling the maintenance and
repairs. Doing maintenance and repairs at the wrong time could prove to be a costly affair.
Wind velocity is important from the plant safety perspective. The heavy wind loads at a site
may cause damage to the PV modules. With accurate wind speed and direction data, a user
can take the necessary steps to prevent damages and loss.
 CHAPTER 6

Project Design and Overview

 CHAPTER 6

Project Design and Overview

6.1 Physical Model of The System:

Figure 20: Physical Model of the System.

Total model is explained here. There are two places in the model, one is a solar tracking
system and the other one is the weather station. On the top of the solar panel there are 4
LDR which track the light and send the information to the Arduino board then Arduino makes
an order to the servo motor to motion with the light. By that process we can get maximum
energy from the sun. On the other side there is a weather station which has two sensors one
is a Raindrop sensor and another one is a Temperature sensor. These sensors collect the
information of the environment like raining and temperature of the outside then it sends
information to the Arduino. Arduino shows the situation on the 16x2 LCD display.
6.2 Weather Station Physical Overview:

Figure 21: Weather Station

6.3 Dual Axis Solar Tracker Physical Overview:

Figure 22: Dual Axis Solar Tracker.

 CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSION, ADVANTAGES & APPLICATION

 CHAPTER 7

CONCLUSION, ADVANTAGES & APPLICATION

7.1 Conclusion:

The paper has presented a means of tracking the sun’s position with the help of
microcontroller and LDR sensors. Specially, it demonstrates a working software solution for
maximizing solar cell output by positioning a solar panel at the point of maximum light
intensity. Moreover, the tracker can initialize the starting position itself which reduces the
need of any more photo resistors. The attractive feature of the designed solar tracker is a
simple mechanism to control the system.

As solar power production is used in large scale worldwide increment in efficiency by 1%

then a stationary plane will increase the net power production by a large amount. Hence, no
matter by how much a tracker increases an efficiency it is always welcomed.

In conclusion, this mechanism could be manifested in a wide range of applications that

require solar tracking such as parabolic trough collector, solar dish, lens and other PV
systems to collect maximum radiation from the sun.

7.2 Recommendation:

Though we have performed our work in a much efficient way. There is still room for
improvement for this system and it is hoped that further study can be carried out to further
develop the system.

• Use higher motors with large torque value for larger panel size.
• It will be better to use a geographical equation algorithm for the real timing tracking.
• Use a diffused reflection phenomenon.

7.3 Advantages:

❑ Proposed dual axis solar tracker is cost effective.

❑ Average power gain of the solar panel with dual axis solar tracking system over
normal stationary arrangement is up to 40-50%
❑ Less power consumption by internal circuit and motor.

❑ Ability to track sunlight at any weather.

❑ Installation is easy and operates automatically.

7.4 Application:

❖ Dual axis sun tracker can be used for large and medium scale power generations.

❖ It can also be used for power generation at remote places.

❖ It may be used as a domestic backup power system.

❖ It can be used in solar street lighting systems.

❖ It may be used in water treatment technologies and solar heating.

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