Design and construction of a microcontroller based single axis solar tracker

Abstract

Solar energy is rapidly gaining popularity as an important means of expanding renewable energy resources. As such, it is vital that those in engineering fields understand the technologies associated with this area. This paper presents the design and construction of a microcontroller-based solar panel tracking system. Solar tracking allows more energy to be produced because the solar array is able to remain aligned to the sun. A working system will ultimately be demonstrated to validate the design. Problems and possible improvements will also be presented.

Key Words: Solar, Tracking, Microcontroller, photocells, drivers, single axis.