An Implementation of an Optimized Dual-Axis Solar Tracking Algorithm for Concentrating Solar Power Plants Deployment

A recent assessment of a pilot concentrating solar power plant in Ghana noticed the failure of the tracking system to accurately align the multifaceted heliostats toward the sun and focus the sunbeams onto the target. A further review of solar tracking systems revealed the limitation of concentrated solar power tracking systems to simultaneously improve accuracy and reduce operational cost. In this paper, a computer vision-based solar tracking system, comprising a vision controller, webcam, light sensor, Arduino microcontroller, two stepper motors, a stick, and a transparent plate, is proposed and implemented. The light sensor indicates the presence or absence of sunlight, the webcam captures the image of the stick's shadow on the plate and the vision controller reads this data from the webcam and processes it to extract the solar angles. The angles are sent to the microcontroller which uses them to orient the heliostat appropriately through the stepper motors. The proposed system is location independent and can be installed in each heliostat or a group of heliostats. the preliminary tests show it tracks the sun accurately and exhibits minimal operation cost.