Design of a Solar Tracking System Using PIC Microcontroller

Nowadays, emphasis is being increasingly placed on finding the alternative energy
sources since we are running out of fossil-based sources such as petroleum and gas.
One of these alternative energy sources is solar energy. This source of energy has
unlimited potential as the sun will continue to shine for a very long time. In order to
commercialize the solar energy, the efficiency of absorbing the solar energy needs to
be improved. The project is concentrated in designing the system which will track
the position of the sun direct to the solar panel. So, the solar panel can get better
source of sun shine and will improve the efficiency of the output voltage.
To produce such system, further research need to be conducted on the current
technology which to enhance the concept of solar tracking system. In this project, the
system is equipped with LDR sensors, DC gear motor, and a microcontroller (PIC
16F877) chip. The heart of the system is the controller itself. It will interface the
input and the output of the system as well asprocessing the information gained from
the inputs. Knowledge of programming is important and the program will be
downloaded to the microcontroller in otherto run the system.
For the prototype fabrication, the student is concentrating on the mechanism used
and tracking the position of the sun from the sunrise until the sunset. DC motor
equipped with gear and perspex as the base of prototype are used as part of solar
module mechanism in order to move the model. Testing has been done on the
prototype so that the efficiency and reliability can be improved.