Drones bring airborne analytics to solar operations

As the cost of solar electricity has fallen, utility and energy companies are building solar power stations with hundreds of megawatts (MW). Solar PV is an inexpensive, low-carbon technology to harness renewable energy from the sun. Solar plants inspections are important to ensuring solar cells are performing properly, minimizing potential power loss and are required to maintain certification. By law, solar plants need to be scanned with an infrared camera annually. Drones give a look by providing accurate imagery of a plant in less time, and with greater accuracy, than a handheld inspection. They bring airborne analytics to utility-scale solar operations like PV equipment inspections, resulting in strong time and cost savings. They’re sophisticated software that powers transforming operations and management practices for solar companies. Drone capabilities ­­keep plants running at peak capacity at more manageable cost.
 
Unmanned aerial system (UAS) puts new and emerging data collection, analysis, change detection, and artificial intelligence applications within reach for solar operations managers. Drone capabilities­; remote sensing with LiDAR and infrared (IR) technology, high-resolution photography including UV and other spectral, HD video keep plants running at peak capacity at more manageable cost. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) mounted with a high-definition camera allows plant operators to see, capture and log detailed videos and still images of assets that need maintenance, catching them before something goes wrong. This means servicing issues are proactively identified, problem units are brought back to full capacity faster, and plant reliability and output both benefit. Software automatically  record sGPS locations, temperatures, and other metadata, so plant operators have a searchable map with photos as part of the record for each inspected asset. Plus, the flight planning aspects of a drone inspection, including Federal Aviation Administration approval to fly in busy airspace, is now automated, shaving permission time from months to literally seconds.

Ways drones aid in thorough, cost-effective solar utility inspections:

-Finding malfunctioning units in an array.

-Performing preventive maintenance. Panels, mounting systems, wiring, monitoring equipment, and other plant components can be visually imaged for dust and dirt, snail trails, leaves, corrosion, defects, cracks, and water or insect intrusion.

-Monitoring vegetation to keep foliage from casting shade on strings.

-Detecting equipment that may be in danger of overheating (combiner and junction boxes, inverters).

-Assessing damage following wind, seismic, flood, fire, or electrical storm events.

-Inspecting transmission lines.

-Monitoring fencing for security purposes.
 

Drones are cost-competitive

Drones are cost-competitive due to the flight hours necessary to just get to the site. And UAS is proving superior to manned aircraft for site assessments. Drones survey prospect plant sites, which enables quicker and easier access to remote sites than manual survey methods and allows for faster evaluation of multiple potential sites. With the global capacity of utility-scale solar PV expected to be eight times the 2014 level by 2040, drone technology and solar are well positioned for a growing, productive partnership.

Solar power is here to stay, and the sooner you explore how much you can save, the sooner you can enjoy the benefits of residential solar power. Go to HahaSmart.com and try our price checker tool. It tells you how much solar power you need, and how much you can save. Please visit our solar blog to find out more about the benefits of going solar.