The solar photovoltaic power generation system can be mainly categorized into centralized and distributed systems. Centralized power plants usually cover large areas, primarily located in northwestern China and some remote regions where the natural environment is often harsh. In contrast, distributed power stations are typically constructed on rooftops, greenhouses, and large water surfaces. However, after being connected to the grid, both types of photovoltaic power plants bring significant operational and maintenance challenges, such as routine equipment testing and photovoltaic panel inspections. The traditional operation and maintenance methods rely heavily on manual inspections, which are inefficient and largely dependent on the experience of the personnel involved, leading to a high risk of errors. Moreover, in the challenging natural environments of remote areas, inspecting photovoltaic power stations is not only difficult but also dangerous. For photovoltaic areas like agrivoltaics and fishery-light complements, traditional manual inspections can no longer meet the demands, making it impossible to achieve safe and efficient PV inspections.
1. Program Objectives
Our program aims to equip drones with visible light cameras, thermal infrared sensors, or EL detection devices to collect visible light images, thermal infrared images, or EL data from photovoltaic components. This will enable intelligent drone inspections, improving the efficiency and safety of photovoltaic inspections. The visible light and thermal infrared images can be stored in real-time and quickly exported to the PC end. The UAV intelligent diagnostic software processes the collected thermal infrared and visible light images to perform non-power generation component detection, dust and dirt blocking assessments, and automated hotspot diagnosis caused by component failures such as cracks. This greatly enhances the inspection efficiency of photovoltaic power stations and the accuracy of fault diagnosis.
2. Drone Inspection System
The UAV inspection system consists of four main components: the UAV system, the data acquisition system, the ground intelligent control system, and the data analysis and processing system. As shown in Figure 3-1:
Figure 3-1 UAV Inspection System
2.1 UAV System
The UAV system features an ultra-long endurance, industrial-grade quadcopter M6 with an IP56 rating, along with the latest DJI A3 flight controller that has fully optimized attitude analysis and multi-sensor fusion algorithms for precise and reliable integration. It supports high-definition image transmission with a real-time camera screen view up to 5 kilometers away, providing a picture transfer quality of 720P. The system also has an intelligent battery management system that monitors the remaining battery power in real-time. The system will automatically calculate the required return and landing power and time to avoid the risks associated with insufficient power. Additionally, it offers a 20-minute fast charging function, allowing the battery to be fully charged in a short period. The system's parameter table is as follows:
| Project | Parameter |
|---------|-----------|
| Flight Platform | M6 |
| Shaft Distance | 805 mm |
| Maximum Load Weight | 4.5 kg |
| GPS Hover Accuracy | Vertical: ±0.5 m; Horizontal: ±2.5 m |
| Maximum Ascending Speed | 5 m/s |
| Maximum Descending Speed | 3 m/s |
| Maximum Speed | 18 m/s |
| Maximum Wind Speed | 10 m/s (Sixth Level) |
| Maximum Flight Time | 50 min |
Figure 3-2 UAV System M6
2.2 Data Acquisition System
The data acquisition system includes visible light cameras for collecting obstructions and dust coverage conditions, as well as infrared cameras for detecting hotspots. The visible light integrated PTZ camera X5 and the thermal infrared integrated PTZ camera XT are separately arranged. The X5 combines a new image sensor with a powerful processor to capture 4K/30p video and 16-megapixel photos. The XT thermal imaging camera uses a range of FLIR proprietary technologies to reflect subtle temperature differences and make the target clear at a glance. The system parameter table is as follows:
| Project | Parameter |
|---------|-----------|
| Visible Light Camera | X5 |
| Pixel | 16 million pixels |
| Photo Maximum Resolution | 4096x2160 |
| ISO Range | 100~25600 |
| Video Resolution | 4K |
| Video Format | MP4/MOV |
| Thermal Infrared Head Camera | XT |
| Resolution | 640 × 512 |
| Mirror Head | 19 mm |
| Minimum Focal Length | 15.3 cm |
| Scene Range (High Gain) | -25°C to 135°C |
| Scene Range (Low Gain) | -40°C to 550°C |
| Point Temperature Measurement | Center 4×4 temperature measurement |
| Storage | Micro SD card |
| Photo Format | JPEG, TIFF |
| Video Format | MP4 |
Figure 3-3 Visible Integrated PTZ Camera X5
This project aims to revolutionize the way we conduct photovoltaic inspections by leveraging advanced drone technology, ensuring higher efficiency and safety while maintaining precision and reliability.
We adopt the advanced technology imported from Europe, patented technology, specialized software to optimize the design for dry type transformer. The core is made of cold-rolled grain-oriented silicon steel sheet which cut in step-lap by GEORG Germany TBA core cutting lines and laminated by the method of fifth-order step-by-step stacking technology, enabling the no-load performance of the core to improve greatly. The epoxy resin from American HUNTSMAN is adopted for the windings which casted in the vacuum resin casting machine imported from HEDRICH, Germany. The winding material ensures good permeability, no bubbles occur, which leads to minimum partial discharge. The HV and LV winding mate with each other tightly, which ensures solid strength of structure and capability to withstand short circuit and vibration. Under normal service condition, the service life of dry type transformer is 30 years. No crack will form on the surface of transformer winding due to temperature variation as long as the transformer runs under normal service condition.
Dry Type Transformer,High Quality Special Transformer,1600Kva Dry-Type Transformer,800Kva Dry-Type Transformer
Hangzhou Qiantang River Electric Group Co., Ltd.(QRE) , https://www.qretransformer.com