A solar tracker which has a pneumatic motor that moves a reflective surface. The pneumatic motor is power by pressurized air stored in a pedestal of the tracker. The pressurized air is replenished by a compressor that draws in air from the atmosphere. The pneumatic motor and compressor are controlled by a microcontroller. The controller, compressor and pneumatic motor are all powered by an energy system that converts solar energy into electric power, thereby providing a self-contained tracker. The output shaft of the pneumatic motor is coupled to a reflective surface support structure by a drive system which has intermediate gears and an incremental encoder. The incremental encoder provides a reference point for the position of the reflective surface. The gear is much smaller than the gimbal so that the reference point can be found with a relatively small incremental movement of the reflective surface.
A solar-powered pumping device comprising: a solar power converter for generating power from sunlight; a pump driven by power from said solar power converter; an actuator for controlling the orientation of said solar power converter; and a controller for controlling said actuator to orient said solar power converter for optimum generation of power, said controller comprising a receiver for receiving broadcast time data, and an ephemerides calculator for calculating the position of the sun on the basis of the received time data.
A method, apparatus, control system and computer program product are provided for controllably positioning the solar concentrator. The method, apparatus, control system and computer program product determine the respective errors generated by more and different error sources than prior techniques, including error sources selected from the group consisting of a gravitational residue error, an elevation transfer function error and an error attributable to atmospheric refraction. Based upon the respective errors, the method, apparatus, control system and computer program product determine an elevation command and an azimuth command to compensate for the vertical error and the horizontal error between the centerline of the solar concentrator and the sun reference vector such that the solar concentrator can be more precisely positioned, thereby improving the efficiency with which the solar concentrator collects solar energy.
