Abstract
A versatile single-board controller for two-axis solar
tracking applications has been developed and tested on
operating solar tracking systems with over two years of field
experience. The operating experience gained from the two
systems and associated modifications are discussed as
representative examples of the practical issues associated
with implementing a new two-axis solar tracker design. In
this research, open and closed loop control methods were
evaluated; however, only the open loop method met the
0.125� tracking accuracy requirement and the requirement
to maintain pointing accuracy in hazy and scattered cloudy
skies. The open loop algorithm was finally implemented in
a microcontroller-based tracking system. Methods of
applying this controller hardware to different tracker
geometries and hardware are discussed along with the
experience gained to date.
