New Parallax product: 30W DIY Solar Panel Kit
Ken Gracey
Posts: 7,401
Hey all,
Today we're launching a really neat product - a build-your-own 30W Solar Panel Kit. The release includes nice documentation and videos. A number of folks around the office contributed lots of effort to this project, including Matt Gilliland (Microcontroller Application Cookbook author and product designer), Stephanie Lindsay (editing), Jessica Uelman (videos), Rich Allred (photography), Dave Andreae (first article review), Lauren and Jen (marketing), etc. If they had to accept an award there are probably twenty others who deserve credit. We're very pleased with the quality of the kit, too. No expense was spared to make this a good experience (except the expense of a soldering iron and a few hand tools which you need to provide). By the end of today you will see the full release.
We hope you enjoy this product as much as we enjoyed putting it all together.
Sincerely,
Ken Gracey
Today we're launching a really neat product - a build-your-own 30W Solar Panel Kit. The release includes nice documentation and videos. A number of folks around the office contributed lots of effort to this project, including Matt Gilliland (Microcontroller Application Cookbook author and product designer), Stephanie Lindsay (editing), Jessica Uelman (videos), Rich Allred (photography), Dave Andreae (first article review), Lauren and Jen (marketing), etc. If they had to accept an award there are probably twenty others who deserve credit. We're very pleased with the quality of the kit, too. No expense was spared to make this a good experience (except the expense of a soldering iron and a few hand tools which you need to provide). By the end of today you will see the full release.
We hope you enjoy this product as much as we enjoyed putting it all together.
Sincerely,
Ken Gracey
1000 x 1333 - 259K
Comments
Was this just my old eyes playing tricks? Or is this an assembly issue that needs to be carefully noted?
Regards,
DJ
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Post Edited (davejames) : 2/25/2010 5:52:17 PM GMT
She makes note of the "cupping" in the video. I think your eyes are fine.
Rich H
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The Simple Servo Tester, a kit from Gadget Gangster.
Ken Gracey
Very nice job on the assembly videos!
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John R.
Click here to see my Nomad Build Log
I have installed solar cells on some catamarans like my own cat (I don't have them yet). Of course, we use much larger and higher power panels, like 2 or 3 210W 24V panels. Lower wattage panels (60-120W) only seem to come in 12V. Now, don't let the 12V fool you. A 12V panel will actually output up to 17.6V. Then a regulator is used to drop the voltage back to 13-14V for charging our boat batteries (often AGM - absorbed glass matt as used in aircraft, or GEL).
For our larger panels, we use an Outback MX60 (or MX80) MPPT (maximum power point tracking?) regulator which is actually an inverter (costs a fortune). Now this inverter takes the input voltage and inverts to the desired output voltage without wasting the excess voltage. This gives us about 20% extra power from our panels, which is important when you do not have a lot of space on a sailing boat.
The point of this, is that you might use some form of switcher to obtain the maximum power out of the panels here.
Just thought I would share this with you all.
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Links to other interesting threads:
· Home of the MultiBladeProps: TriBlade,·RamBlade,·SixBlade, website
· Single Board Computer:·3 Propeller ICs·and a·TriBladeProp board (ZiCog Z80 Emulator)
· Prop Tools under Development or Completed (Index)
· Emulators: CPUs Z80 etc; Micros Altair etc;· Terminals·VT100 etc; (Index) ZiCog (Z80) , MoCog (6809)·
· Prop OS: SphinxOS·, PropDos , PropCmd··· Search the Propeller forums·(uses advanced Google search)
My cruising website is: ·www.bluemagic.biz·· MultiBlade Props: www.cluso.bluemagic.biz
The whole alternative energy scene is moving along very quickly. Is there any chance Parallax could produce a harvesting circuit based on the LTC3108 or similar to complement the panels?
There's no doubt in my mind that clean energy, such as photovoltaic is "coming of age", and the cost of technology is getting·to the point where it's getting much more attractive.
We're currently looking at several "add-on" possibilities that would enhance the raw power aspects of the "Thirty".· And I, for one, am personally interested in knowing what you'all·would like to see next!
MPPT (Maximum Power Point·Tracking) is certainly high on my list.· This type of circuit -I'm working on an application note -·maximizes the amount of power that can be had from a raw cell panel.· (in short, the V/I curve is flat on voltage until too much amperage is drawn, then power output falls off a cliff and goes to zero.· MPPT manages this demand, and maximizes the power output based on what the panel can· produce vs. what the application wants to get - more on this·later).·
Inverting (to AC) is sometimes (but not·always) coupled to an MPPT circuit especially when connecting to the "grid".·
Battery charging power managment would be another application - especially in portable applications.
What do you'all think?
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Matt Gilliland
A MPPT charge controller board for 6/12 volt batteries (like the SLA/AGM deals that alot of us use with our robots) would be awesome.
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Check out the Propeller Wiki·and contribute if you can.
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Ken Gracey
Parallax Inc.
Follow me at http://twitter.com/ParallaxKen for some insider news.
Please post
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It's Only A Stupid Question If You Have Not Googled It First!!
Thomas
Another Tiny!
Phil must of had his hands in this!
Jim
believe it or not, it is not Phil having hands on the Solar SLA Battery Charger - its me - the guy who loves the SX so much. With bleeding heart, I was forced to look for another microcontroller for this project, under the light of the recent SX-End-Of-Life situation.
Using a Propeller would really be an overkill for this project, so I finally ended up with the ATtiny26. Mayby, I'll swich over to the ATtiny261 for the final design, as the 26 is no longer recommended for new designs. The 261 is pin-compatible, and seems to only require minor fixes to port 26 code to the 261.
IMO, it makes sense starting a new thread for discussing the Solar SLA Batter Charger project. Therefore, please stay tuned - I'll start a new thread covering this project in the Sandbox section soon.
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Greetings from Germany,
G
I hold both you and Phil in the highest of standards.
We know the SLA Charger is in good hands!
Jim
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It's Only A Stupid Question If You Have Not Googled It First!!
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It's Only A Stupid Question If You Have Not Googled It First!!
thanks a bunch for your kind words.
I have just opened a new topic where you can find some more information about the charger: http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?p=889035
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Greetings from Germany,
G
For those mounting your solar panels to the roof, please bird-proof the installation...
http://www.yellowbook.com/roof-repair-solar-panel/
Post Edited (kf4ixm) : 3/11/2010 10:53:03 PM GMT
-Phil
Being a wildlife refuge, things like spikes and barbed wire didn't go over too well as solutions. As it turned out, ignoring all that except the latitude and clouds, we found we needed a panel about 6 feet square to power our gear. At this size, we began having issues with the "lightning antenna" effect. At least that's what I assume blew apart (literally blew apart) the 1500 Volt diodes. I really don't think our panels or marine batteries had the power to do that.
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John R.
Click here to see my Nomad Build Log