System for measuring and collecting data from solar-cell systems

When planning the application of renewable energy sources it is necessary to take decisions not only on the basis of elementary information about these energy sources but also on the basis of more general and more profound knowledge than is currently available. Complex and additional information about the intended application can be obtained from measuring, collecting and analysing relevant data. The present paper describes a system for measuring, collecting, analyzing, and displaying data. A 100 W solar energy converter is used to monitor the effect of operating conditions on its loading characteristics. This photovoltaic (PV) cell and the associated measuring and data acquisition system have been installed in the solar laboratory (on a terraced roof) in the Department of Electrical Power Engineering, FEEC, BUT. Thanks to the system of collecting, archiving, and analyzing the data measured we can monitor, define, and subsequently interpret all positive and more significantly the negative external effects on the efficiency of the device.