Solar Panel Control

 

Industry
Energy Monitoring

Integrator/Distributor
JS Automation (www.jsautomation.fr)

A French distributor and manufacturer of solar solutions dedicated mainly to institutions like schools, hospital and commercial buildings has developed a Solar Panel Control application using XLT. Besides producing and commissioning Systems, the Solar Solutions Provider also offers training and maintenance services.

Engineers were looking for a solution that will supply the data transmission and fit seamlessly into existing building automation systems. They also wanted a compact controller that could easily be connected to a network and give the operators and installers the full control they need.

The chosen controller was the XLT because of its unique features. This ‘All-in-one’ controller is the most compact of the range of XL series and offers a great connectivity with integrated Inputs/Outputs and a wide range of communication options. Furthermore, the XLT has been transformed to meet Customer needs by adding four PT1000 Inputs. Together with the support of mass media storage and sunlight readable touch screen, the XLT from Horner was selected as a perfect device for Solar Monitoring.

XLT, renamed to ‘XL SOL’ can easily be connected to any network or building automation system via the Modbus Serial port. Data points like temperatures, quantity of energy produced and capacity of solar panels can be reported and stored for further analysis. With the XLT, The Solar Panel System Provider is also able to monitor and control the installation (in case of a breakdown) and to quickly establish the cause of failure.

To go even further, The Customer is also using the GSM/GPRS modem from Horner for remote control of the installations. Thanks to the JS solution, The Customer can be sure of its installations and guarantee a minimum quantity of the energy created by the panels.

The Customer has many XLT installations in France and hopes to expand installations with a use of remote data acquisition software (Envision) because the idea of offering the statistics to its clients (energy created, historical data) is becoming a market requirement.

The XL SOL solution has recently received the ‘Green Growth’ trophy in the French Process Innovation category .

Requirements

  • Compact controller with extensive communication options
  • Touch Screen, PT 1000 inputs and mass media storage
  • GSM/GPRS modem support
  • Remote data acquisition software
  • Reasonable price
  • Simple and intuitive navigation

Solution

  • Control system – XLT TouchScreen OCS. Sunlight readable touch screen for easy editing, monitoring and menu navigation
  • Temperature control – four PT1000 custom made inputs
  • Network Connection – two serial ports supporting Modbus Serial
  • Remote Control – XL series GSM/GPRS add-on
  • Remote Monitoring – Envision software working with GPRS add-on