Alternate Energy Remote Access Wireless Weather Station

Electronic Design 3
8th March 2012

Group 5
Phase 1

Supervisor: Mr. B. Naidoo

Trishaul Reddy Nevlin Manicum Damien Mahadew Kushal Ramdas Prashant Doolabh

(206508941) (208518817) (208512294) (208512294) (208500161)

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UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU-NATAL HOWARD COLLEGE

SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL, ELECTRONIC AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING

Course: Electronic Design 3

Declaration:
We hereby declare that the work submitted in this report is our own, except where specific acknowledgement is made in the form of a reference.

Student: Trishaul Reddy Nevlin Manicum Damien Mahadew Kushal Ramdas Prashant Doolabh (206508941) (208518817) (208512294) (208512294) (208500161)

Date: 8 March 2012

th

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Report Breakdown
Trishaul Reddy (206508941) Editing & Compilation, Group Leader & Leadership Objectives, Relevance to Society, Communication Module, Conclusion.

Nevlin Manicum

(208518817)

Editing & Compilation, Abstract, Project Specifications, Module Breakdown & Allocation to Group Members, Solar Radiation Tracking System.

Damien Mahadew

(208512294)

Introduction, GUI and Database Log of Meteorological Data, Referencing

Kushal Ramdas

(208512294)

Weather Condition Sensing, Referencing, Proposed Solution, Proof Reading

Prashant Doolabh

(208500161)

Alternate Energy Maximum Power Point Tracking Battery Charge Controller, Referencing, Project Problem Statement, Proof Reading

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Abstract
The ensuing documentation provides insight into the research and proposed implementation regarding the deployment of an alternate energy remote access wireless weather station. A weather station comprises of meteorological condition observation and data logging. Remote weather monitoring decreases cost involved in recursive site visits and moves focus toward the study of weather conditions instead of data collection. The proposed system is segmented in a top-down manner into the following parts: Weather Condition Sensing; Wireless Transmission of Meteorological Data; Storing of Meteorological Data in a Database and GUI; Alternate Energy Solution and an Alternate Energy Efficiency Enhancement System. The details regarding this breakdown are shown graphically in Section 3: Modular Breakdown & Allocation to Group Members. Weather parameter observations are to be accomplished utilising suitable analogue sensors and microprocessor based interpretation of sensor data. Temperature, atmospheric pressure, rainfall and relative humidity (and possibly wind speed and wind direction if time permits) are the meteorological conditions to be perceived and measured. Data transmission of weather data is to be accomplished using suitable wireless technology. Suggested TM solutions included Zigbee , Long Range Wi-Fi and GPRS. GPRS is chosen for the following key reasons: low power consumption and long data ranges (16 km or more). A functional flowchart of the wireless data transmission is shown in Section 10.4: High Level Operational Overview. A network communications link is advocated for reception of wireless data transmissions. The data is to be stored in a database that can be accessed via a graphical user interface. Implementation is to occur in Visual Studio IDE using a C# based WPF Application integrated with a MS Access database. The alternate energy solution proposed for this particular system implementation is solar power. Low cost and applicability are cited as reasons for this. A sealed lead acid battery is to charge via a solar panel and discrete component DC-DC Buck-Boost MPPT charge controller. An embedded MPPT algorithm is to be implementaed. Current algorithms under investigation include perturb and observe and fuzzy logic. A system overview can be viewed in Section 8.3. Since solar energy is proposed as the energy source, a solar radiation tracking system is suggested as a means of improving alternate energy power generation efficiency. A single axis system that uses a hybrid sun tracking algorithm is described in Section 9.4.1 and Section 9.4.2. System mechanisation is to be achieved using a controlled DC motor. A rigid lightweight frame to house the panel is also required. Advice from experts has been gained and is documented in the following Section 9.8 and Section 10.5. Engineering consultants from PFK Electronics and Austria Microsystems were contacted with regard to wireless communication technologies for data transmission and magnetic rotary encoders for motor control respectively. Project planning is carried out by each person involved in the project proposal. These can be viewed in the following Sections; 7.6, 8.8, 9.9, 10.6 and 11.10. Cost Analysis and Technical Feasibility of each module is also documented. The outcome of which is an achievable system that is able to be implemented provided well thought-out system hardware choices and adequate simulation pending phase 2 and ultimately construction and testing in phase 3.

Keywords: microprocessor, remote access, alternate energy, Zigbee, Wi-Fi, GPRS, Visual Studio IDE, WPF,MPPT ,DC-DC Buck-Boost, sun tracking algorithm, weather, single axis, C#,MS Access, meteorological

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Contents
Report Breakdown ...................................................................................................................................................... ii Abstract ...................................................................................................................................................................... iii 1 2 3 4 5 6 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................................... 1 Project Problem Statement................................................................................................................................. 2 Proposed Solution ............................................................................................................................................... 3 Relevance to Society ............................................................................................................................................4 Modular Breakdown & Allocation to Group Members .................................................................................... 5 Project Specifications ......................................................................................................................................... 6 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 7 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.3.1 7.3.2 7.4 7.5 7.5.1 7.5.2 7.5.3 7.5.4 7.5.5 7.6 8 8.1 8.2 8.2.1 8.2.2 8.2.3 8.3 8.4 8.4.1 Monitoring of Meteorological Parameters ............................................................................................. 6 Wireless Transmission of Weather Data ................................................................................................ 6 Data Capture & Information Logging ..................................................................................................... 6 Alternative Energy Solution ..................................................................................................................... 6 Increased Efficiency use of Alternative Energy ...................................................................................... 6 Relevance......................................................................................................................................................... 7 Overview ..................................................................................................................................................... 7 Feasibility study ............................................................................................................................................. 8 Meteorological sensors ......................................................................................................................... 8 Central processing device .................................................................................................................... 8 High level system breakdown .................................................................................................................. 9 Modular analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 9 Thermometer ........................................................................................................................................ 9 Hygrometer ........................................................................................................................................... 9 Barometer ............................................................................................................................................. 10 Rainfall sensor ...................................................................................................................................... 10 Anemometer.......................................................................................................................................... 11 Project Schedule for Weather Condition Sensing ................................................................................ 12 Problem Statement........................................................................................................................................13 Alternate Energy .......................................................................................................................................13 Wind: .....................................................................................................................................................13 Hydro-electricity: ................................................................................................................................. 14 Solar Energy: ........................................................................................................................................ 14 High Level System Design ....................................................................................................................... 14 Integral Modules Feasibility Discussion ................................................................................................ 15 MPPT Algorithm .................................................................................................................................. 15

Weather Condition Sensing ............................................................................................................................... 7

Alternate Energy Maximum Power Point Tracking Battery Charge Controller...........................................13

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8.4.2 8.4.3 8.4.4 8.4.5 8.4.6 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 9 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.4.1 9.4.2 9.4.3 9.4.4 9.4.5 9.4.6 9.5 9.6 9.7 9.8 9.9 10 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.3.1 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 11 11.1 11.2

DC-DC Converter ................................................................................................................................ 15 Rechargeable Battery ........................................................................................................................... 15 PV Module ............................................................................................................................................ 16 Charge controller ................................................................................................................................. 16 Sensing Networks ................................................................................................................................ 16 Overview of System Implementation..................................................................................................... 16 Technical feasibility ................................................................................................................................. 17 Economic feasibility ................................................................................................................................. 17 Project Schedule for MPPT Charge Controller ..................................................................................... 18

Solar Radiation Tracking System ..................................................................................................................... 19 Problem Statement....................................................................................................................................... 19 Functional Specifications ........................................................................................................................20 Identification of System Elements .........................................................................................................20 Consideration of System Elements......................................................................................................... 21 Solar Tracker Topologies .................................................................................................................... 21 Solar Tracking Techniques ................................................................................................................. 22 Electro-mechanical Drive System Considerations ........................................................................... 23 Control System Considerations .......................................................................................................... 25 Mechanical Design Aspect ..................................................................................................................26 Microcontroller Choice .......................................................................................................................26 Suggested System Diagram .....................................................................................................................26 Technical Feasibility ................................................................................................................................ 27 Cost Analysis & Economic Feasibility .................................................................................................... 27 Advice from an Expert .............................................................................................................................29 Project Schedule for Solar Radiation Tracking System ........................................................................ 30 Problem Statement ...................................................................................................................................31 Proposed Solution .....................................................................................................................................31 Feasibility Study ........................................................................................................................................31 Modem Specifications ......................................................................................................................... 34 High Level Operational Overview .......................................................................................................... 35 Interaction with an Expert in the Field.................................................................................................. 37 Project Schedule for Communication Module ......................................................................................39 Future Developments ..............................................................................................................................39 Problem statement ...................................................................................................................................... 40 Proposed solution ................................................................................................................................... 40

Communication Module ....................................................................................................................................31

GUI & Database Log of Meteorological Data ................................................................................................. 40

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11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 11.6.1 11.7 11.7.1 11.8 11.9 11.10 12 13 14

Breakdown of GUI & Database Log of Meteorological Data .............................................................. 40 Database system ....................................................................................................................................... 41 Database feasibility study ........................................................................................................................ 41 Front end user application ...................................................................................................................... 41 Front end application feasibility study ..............................................................................................42 Network communication ........................................................................................................................42 Network communication feasibility study ........................................................................................42 Programming language ........................................................................................................................... 43 Usage of the system ................................................................................................................................. 43 Project Schedule for GUI & Database Log ............................................................................................ 44

Group Leader and Leadership Objective ........................................................................................................45 Conclusion......................................................................................................................................................... 46 Works Cited .......................................................................................................................................................47

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List of Tables
Table 1: Comparison of Considered Sensors ............................................................................................................ 8 Table 2: CHN05- High Efficiency Polycrystalline Solar Panel .............................................................................. 16 Table 3: Comparison of Electro-mechanical Drive Systems..................................................................................24 Table 4: Comparison of Feedback Sensors.............................................................................................................. 25 Table 5: Projected Solar Tracking System Cost ......................................................................................................28

List of Figures
Figure 1: Micro-controller as central processing device ......................................................................................... 9 Figure 2: Operation of Tipping Bucket Mechanism ............................................................................................... 10 Figure 3: Revolving Cup Anemometer...................................................................................................................... 11 Figure 4: High Level System Diagram ..................................................................................................................... 14 Figure 5: Overview of System Implementation ...................................................................................................... 16 Figure 6: Illustration of Incident and Absorbed Solar Energy on a Fixed Angle PV Module (15) ..................... 19 Figure 7: World Solar Energy Map (42) ...................................................................................................................20 Figure 8: Elements of a Solar Tracking System ...................................................................................................... 21 Figure 9: Illustration of Single and Dual Axis Tracking Topology (43) ............................................................... 22 Figure 10: High Level Flow Chart of Proposed Tracking Technique .................................................................... 23 Figure 11: Proposed Solar Tracking Solution ........................................................................................................... 27 Figure 12: Operational Overview of the Communication Module........................................................................ 35 Figure 13: High Level Overview of the GUI and Database .................................................................................... 40 Figure 14: Three-Way Handshake ............................................................................................................................42

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Introduction

In the light of current events such as Cyclone Irina which was predicted to hit Madagascar and Southern Mozambique, the impact that the weather and by extension, its observation, has on the world around us, is highly significant. Meteorology refers to the study of changes in the atmosphere i.e. the earths major weather elements such as wind, temperature, pressure, humidity and rainfall and is generally used in context with weather forecasting. Events such as droughts which lead to water shortage, increased wild life potential, low river flow rates etc. tend to bring more focus on the study of meteorology. Monitoring of weather conditions therefore has a meaningful impact on the real world and a system which is able to perform these monitoring of tasks could aid organizations with the safety of people and animals as well as the preservation of nature. This is where the primary focus of the Alternate Energy Remote Access Wireless Weather Station rests. Additional emphasis is placed on cost and energy efficiency, the ability to allow for remote access, and the gathering of important meteorological data.

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Project Problem Statement

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Proposed Solution

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Relevance to Society

The significance of meteorological events has long been a subject of importance due to the impact these events have on the world around us. As an example, consequences of a drought include water shortages, low river flow rates, crop damage, and increased wildfire potential. These consequences may then result further ramifications such as restricted river travel, stress on various plant and animal species, saltwater infiltration in aquifers and coastal bays, stress on various plant and animal species, population shifts, and economic hardship. The critical impact of weather on human activity has led to an increased amount of interest in the study of the weather. The Alternate Energy Remote Access Wireless Weather Station will be designed and developed to assist meteorologist, climatologists, scientists as well as any individuals interested in studying the weather, in the monitoring of the general environment around the station. Possible uses and benefits of the station are listed below: The system will inform people of current weather conditions in certain areas. The system allows climatologists and weather departments to monitor focus more on data analysis as opposed to the tedious task of taking repetitive measurements. The system may be deployed for extended periods, enabling the study of long term climate trends etc. The weather station also decreases cost and risk by eliminating the need for physical visits to remote areas for weather evaluation. The system may also be used to monitor the driving conditions of remote mountain passes as well as highways and roads The station also caters for weather monitoring of agricultural areas such as remote crop sites Television and Radio Station Weather Networks may also make use of the system to collect meteorological data.

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Modular Breakdown & Allocation to Group Members

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6 Project Specifications
6.1 Monitoring of Meteorological Parameters
A weather station, by definition is a meteorological observation post where data is measured and recorded. This system must therefore function in a similar capacity. Performing observations of relevant weather conditions such as temperature, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity and rain fall should occur. Wind speed and wind direction is also of great significance, however, sensing and measurement of this parameter is to be achieved only if time permits.

6.2 Wireless Transmission of Weather Data

Being remotely accessible, as suggested by the title of the project, entails a communication link between the point at which meteorological data is measured and at which it is recorded. This communication link must be implemented using a suitable wireless technology. Transmission of weather data from the weather station to a base station must be facilitated. Both the weather station and base station can exist, in theory, anywhere. As such the communication link is to incorporate this requirement.

6.3 Data Capture & Information Logging

The base station, at which weather data is received, must log all measurements in an appropriate database and information management system. Previous measurement information should be accessible via a graphical user interface in order to be utilized for the purpose of weather analysis.

6.4 Alternative Energy Solution

Seeing as the weather station system, in its measurement and data transmission capacity, is to exist in any region of the world, a suitable alternative energy solution must be implemented in order to source power to the system. The alternative energy solution is not a generic solution. Different locations may make some alternative energy solutions more lucrative than others. For the purposes of the current weather station system we consider Durban as the region wherein the system is to be implemented.

6.5 Increased Efficiency use of Alternative Energy

A common problem with alternative energy solutions is that many are dependent on favorable weather conditions. Inclement weather conditions may compromise the operation of the system. With this being said, the proposed alternative energy technology selected for implementation must be made more efficient. A system that maximizes the available alternate energy source at any given time can accomplish this requirement.

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Weather Condition Sensing

7.1 Relevance

The aim of this project is to design an alternate energy remote access wireless weather station. The term weather station illustrates that the sensing and monitoring of meteorological parameters that positively or negatively affect the surrounding environment is vital. The measured physical conditions could also be anything that affects the behavior of organisms. The system should include sensing of parameters that are relevant to the target market of the product. This product is aimed at targeting climatologists, weather departments, oiling and mining industries. It will permit them to focus more on data analysis rather than taking repetitive measurements.

7.2 Overview
This part of the project entails the measurement of surrounding meteorological parameters. It is intended to use transducers to measure these parameters. There are several areas of consideration herein that need to be considered prior to a choosing the sensing options that would finally be implemented. These namely are: Practicality, Cost, Design intensity, integration within the entire system. A microcontroller will be used for analog to digital conversion, and the data will be made available for transmission via GPRS to the base station for visualization and further analysis. The sensing system will include the following sensors for measurement of the corresponding physical condition of interest: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Thermometer temperature measurement Barometer pressure measurement Hygrometer relative humidity Rain gauge rainfall Anemometer measurement of wind speed (If time permits)

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7.3
7.3.1

Feasibility study

Meteorological sensors

Research was carried out in order to evaluate what meteorological sensors are available on the market, costing and availability. This is shown in Table 1: Comparison of Considered Sensors below.
Table 1: Comparison of Considered Sensors

Power Local availability Humidity RHT 22 HMZ 435 Pressure MPX 4115 MPL115A1 Temperature LM 35 TMP35GT9Z AD7314ARMZ Yes Yes No R16.80 R13.18 R14.52 2% 2% 2% 0.3mW 0.3mW 0.05W Commonly used and reliable High power consumption relative to lm35 On board ADC converter Yes No R178.00 R17.28 1.5% 1% 0.035W 0.25W High cost relative to budget 10 bit ADC output No Yes R74.72 R64.52 2% 1% 0.00075W 0.01W Inbuilt temperature and humidity sensor Small, economical and easy operation Cost Accuracy Consumption (5V supply) Comments

After noteworthy research it can be concluded that digital output sensors which use serial peripheral interface to transmit data will not be used. These devices have higher cost and power consumption in comparison to analogue sensors. Sensing of the meteorological parameters will be done using analogue sensors for the following reasons: can be easily implemented; require low power; locally available and cost efficient.

7.3.2

Central processing device

The central component of the design is the embedded system that will be will be responsible for linking the peripheral modules and processing the data which will be passed to it via the different sensing circuits. The microprocessor needs to be able to manage and communicate between the wireless modules. Bearing in mind the use of a self-sustaining system that requires minimal maintenance, it was imperious that when the microcontroller was chosen, power and current usage had to be considered. Two types of microcontrollers were looked into; these were namely AVR and PIC microcontrollers. The language of programming would preferably be C. Ideally for a prototyping and conceptual design such as this, a DIP package is preferred. In general the choice of the microcontroller depends on the number of pins, the peripherals, the cost, operating voltage and current consumption. Microcontroller hasnt been finalised in phase 1.

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7.4 High level system breakdown

Figure 1: Micro-controller as central processing device

7.5 Modular analysis

7.5.1 Thermometer

Temperature is the measure of some stored thermal potential of matter (1).The temperature will be measured with a thermo-electric device. The thermoelectric effect is the direct conversion of temperature differences to electric voltage and vice-versa (2). A possible sensor choice could be an LM35 temperature sensor, which is cost efficient and locally available. It also possesses good accuracy. The sensor will be interfaced to the microcontroller using a single ended ADC. The sensor outputs a voltage which is linearly proportional to the Celsius temperature. It requires a minimum of 4V from the supply, and draws a mere 60A.

7.5.2 Hygrometer
An important atmospheric factor is humidity. This is the measure of water content present in the atmosphere. Relative humidity is the amount of moisture in the air compared to what the air can "hold" at that temperature (3). The sensors can be either capacitive or resistive type. Analogue humidity sensors output a voltage which is linearly proportional to the relative humidity. The output will be mapped into digital domain, there needs to be some numeric analysis before the final outcome is achieved, this can be done via a central processing device such as a microcontroller. A transducer for the measurement of this parameter hasnt been finalised in this phase.

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7.5.3

Barometer

The requirement of this parameter is to provide electronic measurement of atmospheric pressure. Atmospheric pressure is just another term for air pressure. One way to explain air pressure is to think of it as the force the atmosphere places on a specified area (4). A device with an inbuilt conditioning circuit will be chosen. This device will output an analogue voltage relative to the atmospheric pressure. This analogue voltage will be read into the microcontroller for analogue to digital conversion. An analogue to digital converter inputs an analogue electrical signal such as voltage or current and outputs a binary number. A typical calibration curve will be used to obtain the characteristic equation of the device which will be programmed into the data processing device. A transducer for the measurement of this parameter hasnt been finalised in this phase.

7.5.4 Rainfall sensor

This sensor is required to measure the amount of rainfall that occurs within a specified period of time. It will be measured in mm/hr. Tipping bucket is the most commonly used rain gauge, which measures rain rate. A bucket will collect a calibrated amount of incoming rain, when the calibrated amount of rain has been collected via a funnel, the bucket tips off and thereby emptying itself. During each tip a switch which generates an external interrupt will be triggered and a count will be incremented. The amount of rainfall for a specific period of time will be calculated using the volume of the bucket and the count value. A fairly precise illustration of this method can be seen in the Figure 2 below. This system can be implanted without purchasing any major costly components.

Figure 2: Operation of Tipping Bucket Mechanism

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7.5.5

Anemometer

An anemometer is a device used for measuring wind speed, which is a fundamental atmospheric rate. Wind speed affects weather forecasting, aircraft and maritime operations, construction projects, growth and metabolism rate of many plant species, and countless other implications (5). The revolving cup anemometer is the most commonly used application for measuring wind. A generator induces a voltage relative to its speed at which the revolving cups rotate. The wind speed can hence be determined form this voltage. Figure 3 below provides an illustration of the revolving cup anemometer in operation.

Figure 3: Revolving Cup Anemometer

The aforementioned wind sensing discussion with regard to the anemometer is at this point in time, purely research due to its relevance to society; however this sensor will be implemented if time permits. Alternatively it may be implemented by any other member of the group, again, time permitting.

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7.6 Project Schedule for Weather Condition Sensing

Feb 2012

Mar 2012 4/3 11/3 18/3 25/3 1/4

Apr 2012 8/4 15/4 22/4

ID

Task Name

Start

Finish

Duration
19/2 26/2

1 Phase 1 Research 2 Finalize sensor choices 3 4 5 6 7 Order and purchase of required sensors and processing devices Research on detailed functioning of sensors Implementation and beta design of the sensing system Complete paper design and phase 2 preperation Iterative redesign of the system until full functionality is achieved

2/15/2012 3/8/2012 3/8/2012 3/15/2012 3/22/2012 3/26/2012 4/2/2012 4/16/2012 4/24/2012

3/7/2012 3/12/2012 3/14/2012 3/21/2012 3/26/2012 3/29/2012 4/13/2012 4/23/2012 4/30/2012

16d 3d 5d 5d 3d 4d 10d 6d 5d

8 Integration with the rest of the system 9 System debugging

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Alternate Energy Maximum Power Point Tracking Battery Charge Controller

8.1 Problem Statement

Solar Power is the Primary Energy Source for an alternate energy remote access wireless weather station, however due to principle of operation of solar power being sunlight dependent (6). The Solar Power source is only capable of optimal performance for a period of time for which sufficient sunlight is available, hence there is need for a secondary energy source which will be dominant when insufficient sunlight is available, this shall be employed in the form of a suitable rechargeable battery which will be monitored by a charge controller. The charge controller is required to control the charging process of the battery and ensure the battery is protected from overcharge or discharge to maximize battery lifetime as our project is to be deployed in a remote area. The PV (Photovoltaic) modules chosen are able to provide peak voltages greater than the 12v battery they required to charge, if the PV module and battery are connected in the direct conventional manner the PV modules are forced to operate at an non optimal electrical point below it capacity(maximum power output) (7) . This is simply solved by implementing a Maximum Power Point Tracking algorithm which allows for control of the electrical operating point of the PV module which will then be configured to operate around its Maximum PowerPoint and therefore we are able to maximise the use of the excess power generated, in favourable climate conditions, by the PV module when the battery requires charging. There are cases for which the PV (Photovoltaic) modules sources voltages below and above the voltage of the battery during the day, this is dependent on climate conditions, therefore an additional interface between the PV Module and rechargeable battery in the form of a dc-dc converter is required to ensure the correct voltage is sourced to the battery, the dc-dc convertor controls the power flow from PV modules to the battery. Further components are required to assist in achieving the role of the MPPT charge controller, these are a microcontroller to implement the MPPT algorithm ,control the duty cycle of the dc-dc convertor and interpret and process the measurements of the voltage, current and temperature sensing networks. The MPPT Battery Charger controller is seen as a feasible component of the project as it ensures that the use of renewable energy and battery life is maximised as the charging of the battery shall be controlled intelligently hence overall power efficiency is increased.

8.2 Alternate Energy

The following alternate energy sources were investigated:

8.2.1

Wind:

Good power generation characteristics, approximately 300 W may be generated when suitably implemented. Small units range between $600 and $2000. Wind as an energy source seen to be unfeasible due to this high cost and the increased mechanical complexity that will present itself as this will be a great challenge for computer and electronic engineering students.

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8.2.2 Hydro-electricity:
Hydro-electricity is a well-established alternate energy source as 20% of the worlds power is generated using water, however using hydro-electricity limits the location of the weather station to within the general proximity of running water therefore this option was discarded.

8.2.3 Solar Energy:

Solar Energy was chosen as the source of energy as reasonable cost small sized PV modules are available with suitable power to size ratio and with a cost varying between R50 and R200. The CHN-05 PV module is 2 capable of generating 5 W of power from a 0.05 m surface area. Solar Energy may be used in a wider range of locations than the previously mentioned technologies and is environmentally friendly. The only disadvantage being PV modules are unable to function under low light intensities. E.g. at night

8.3 High Level System Design

MPPT Battery Charge Controller

PV Module

Battery Charger

MPPT

DC-DC convertor

Battery

Microcontroller

Voltage Sensing

Microcontroller

Volltage and Current Sensing

12 V

MPPT Algorithm

PWM to Control Duty Cycle Figure 4: High Level System Diagram

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8.4 Integral Modules Feasibility Discussion

8.4.1 MPPT Algorithm

The MPPT algorithm will be designed to have maximum effect when the battery is in need of charging the most. There are numerous well established MPPT techniques, the following 3 were found to be most feasible. The algorithm shall be based on one of the following MPPT techniques, 1. 2. Incremental conductance, most commonly used for PV systems. Perturb and observe another common method which has easier implementation than incremental conductance and most suited to a standalone PV system. Fuzzy Logic Control, a more recent artificial intelligence technique that has presented itself for MPPT applications as it has great advantage of being able to handle systems with nonlinearities.

3.

Further research upon these 3 techniques will carried out and the technique chosen will be dependent on its ability to interface with the battery charging algorithm. (8) (9)

8.4.2 DC-DC Converter

A buck-boost convertor is required; there are 3 solutions to the implementation, 1. Design and use of discrete components to build your own converter according to the ideal personal specs required, however the ability to achieve a very high efficiency (>90%) will be questionable. Use of a Buck Boost controller ,LM5118, this allows freedom to design the integral discrete components such as the inductance and output capacitance for your required input voltage range hence high efficiency is achievable however this is not PWM controlled by user therefore an important degree of control is lost . (10) Buck-Boost IC regulator with wide input voltage range, however the maximum current that these ICs can source is not sufficient for our application as we require larger currents.

2.

3.

The first solution is seen to be most feasible as it allows the designer most amount of control at minimal cost.

8.4.3 Rechargeable Battery

The Battery is required to supply a voltage to the Sensing and Communication modules; upon discussion with group members it was found that 12 V battery will be adequate for the needs of both sensing and communication modules. There are two types of commonly used storage batteries used currently for solar power storage, acid or alkaline. Alkaline batteries are made with nickel cadmium or nickel iron. The difference between the two is nickel cadmium batteries have a faster discharge rate. However, nickel cadmium batteries are bad for the environment while the nickel iron does not have any environmental problems. The most common type of battery used in solar systems is the lead-acid battery. They are used because they have a low cost. Lead-acid batteries come in deep cycle and shallow cycle. Deep cycle batteries are designed 15 | P a g e

for discharging and recharging over and over which is ideal for our application. They are not to be discharged completely or overcharged; this will be ensured by our charge controller, therefore sealed Lead Acid batteries with Deep cycles are most feasible for our application. Other advantages of SLA are a wide operating temperature range and low self-discharge rates as opposed to the alkaline batteries. (11)

8.4.4 PV Module
The System Power requirements define the choice of PV module, the following PV module was found to be sufficient and the integral characteristics are listed below. (12)
Table 2: CHN05- High Efficiency Polycrystalline Solar Panel

Typical Power (W) Voltage @ Maximum Power (VDC) Current @ Maximum Power (A) Open Circuit Voltage (VDC) Short Circuit Current (A) Dimensions (mm) 5-36P

5 17.0 0.3 21 0.33 180x292x17

8.4.5 Charge controller

The Charge controller is to comply with IEEE standards for charging of Lead Acid batteries for PV (photovoltaic) systems. A 3 stage charge cycle is recommended. The 3 stages are known as Bulk, Absorption and Float. (13) The main requirements of the charge controller are to prevent overcharge, over discharge and ensure battery maintains a high state of charge during the day.

8.4.6 Sensing Networks

Simple voltage and current sensing networks will be required to monitor the Battery & PV module voltages and current being supplied to the battery , these networks will output analogue signals which will be process by the microcontroller which houses the MPPT algorithm and adjustment to the switching duty cycle of the dc-dc converter will be made accordingly.

8.5 Overview of System Implementation

Figure 5: Overview of System Implementation

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8.6 Technical feasibility

The technical characteristics of the MPPT Battery charge controller are within our capabilities as we are final year engineering students, who have experience with the majority of software and hardware principles required to implement the MPPT controller. A few unfamiliar concepts will present itself in the design and this can be overcome with extensive research, advice from supervisors and possibly field engineers as well. PV Module 12 V Rechargeable Lead Acid Battery MOSFET IC and Driver Diodes Inductors Capacitors Resistors Micro-Controller

The software used will be dependent on choice of microcontroller.

8.7 Economic feasibility

The cost of implementation for the MPPT charge controller will lie within budget limits made by our group for each segment of the design with the most expensive hardware being the 12 V lead acid batteries and microcontroller for the MPPT controller, a rough estimate of a maximum of R200 will be required. This is seen to be very feasible as market research shows minimal cost of a charge controller to be R 810. (14)

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8.8 Project Schedule for MPPT Charge Controller

Feb 2012

Mar 2012 26/2 4/3 11/3 18/3 25/3 1/4 8/4

Apr 2012 15/4 22/4 29/4

ID

Task Name

Start

Finish

Duration
12/2 19/2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Phase 1 Research MPPT Research MPPT Algorithm Development Charging Algorithm Development Buck -Boost Converter Design Voltage and Current Sensing Design Phase 2 Preparation Integration of MPPT and Charging Algorithm Iterative Design till Satisfactory Functionality Interfacing with Solar Tracker Interfacing with Communication Module and Sensors Testing and Debugging Phase 3 Preparation

2/15/2012 3/7/2012 3/7/2012 3/15/2012 3/19/2012 3/24/2012 3/20/2012 3/30/2012 4/5/2012 4/11/2012 4/11/2012 4/5/2012 4/20/2012

3/5/2012 3/12/2012 3/14/2012 3/18/2012 3/23/2012 3/26/2012 3/29/2012 4/4/2012 4/11/2012 4/20/2012 4/20/2012 4/30/2012 5/1/2012

20d 6d 8d 4d 5d 3d 10d 6d 7d 10d 10d 26d 12d

The Project schedule above outlines the plan of development for the MPPT Charge Controller, and will be followed strictly according to deadlines made, however there will be overlapping of the above tasks as some tasks have dependence on others and therefore those shall be carried out concurrent.

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9 Solar Radiation Tracking System

9.1 Problem Statement

An alternate energy remote access wireless weather station, as suggested by the title of the proposed project, is one that is able to function based on power derived from an alternative energy system. Being a weather station the primary sources of alternate energy for the proposed land based system were solar energy and wind energy. Solar energy was evaluated as the most feasible with regard to power generation due to the following reasons: Ease of availability of photovoltaic modules. (R145 compared to wind systems costing in excess of $600) Conditionally, better cost to power generation characteristic in comparison to wind energy systems (Solar tracking systems require less mechanical complexity). No additional components such as generators and purpose engineered mechanical structures.

A photovoltaic module is required to charge a battery which in turn supplies power to the system. The power generation scheme is to exist as a stand-alone, off grid solar energy system. The system, under estimated worst case circumstances, is to run a total of two days without sunlight. This entails power requirement of approximately 100WH (an average of 2W for 48 hours). The primary concern governing the systems power generation was deciding on a method of maximising incident radiation on the panel. In harnessing the suns energy, there exist certain circumstantial considerations to ensure the power needs of the system are met. According to (15)

The amount of solar radiation incident on a tilted module surface is the component of the incident solar radiation which is perpendicular to the module surface.
(9-1)

Figure 6: Illustration of Incident and Absorbed Solar Energy on a Fixed Angle PV Module (15)

A fixed solar panel may not be adequate in all regions of the world. This is further evident if one is to consider Figure 7: World Solar Energy Map shown below. Regions such as the United Kingdom for example 2 2 have incident solar radiation intensities between 700W/m and 1000W/m . This may compromise system 2 operation as certain panels require effective radiation intensity in excess of 800W/m . (16)

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Figure 7: World Solar Energy Map (42)

A solar radiation tracking system is to be implemented in order to accomplish this. This however is required to be performed in a manner that does not impede the ultimate generation of power. Furthermore unnecessary monetary implications are to be avoided by evaluation of various design metrics (Cost, Performance, Power Consumption, Availability, Reliability, etc.).

9.2 Functional Specifications

Solar tracking is the process of varying the angle of a solar panel to take full advantage of the suns energy (17) Bearing in mind the above description of solar tracking the specifications of the solar radiation tracking system are outlined below. A microprocessor based tracking system aimed at aligning the photovoltaic panel with the solar azimuth. The alignment is to be accomplished via an appropriate electromechanical element/s which, if required, incorporates a suitable embedded closed loop control system. A mechanical structure to support the solar panel and that allows for movement of the panel. Alignment is to occur at discrete time intervals in order to conserve system energy. A suitable housing such that electronic equipment is protected from elemental damage.

9.3 Identification of System Elements

After consideration of the functional specifications outlined in Section 9.2 the tracking system was segmented, in a top-down manner, into the various key components. The major constituents that were identified in the implementation of a successful solar tracking system are outlined in Figure 8: Elements of a Solar Tracking System

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Figure 8: Elements of a Solar Tracking System

The above considerations are detailed in Section 7.4. These considerations illustrate the manner in which the solar tracking system is intended to be implemented.

9.4 Consideration of System Elements

9.4.1 Solar Tracker Topologies
Solar tracker implementations are classified based on the number of degrees of freedom they offer. Single axis trackers follow either the elevation (North-South trajectory) or azimuth (East-West trajectory) of the sun. Dual axis trackers follow both. 9.4.1.1 Dual Axis Trackers Dual axis trackers maximise solar energy collection. They ensure panel inclination and orientation is such that the suns rays strike normal to the surface of the panel at all times. In comparison to fixed angle photovoltaic (PV) modules they offer an efficiency improvement of between35% to 40% (18) 9.4.1.2 Single Axis Trackers Single axis azimuth trackers and single axis elevation trackers, on the other hand, offer a sub-optimal efficiency enhancement of approximately 27%-32% and 10%-15% respectively in comparison to fixed angle PV modules. (18) 9.4.1.3 Comparison Single & Dual Axis Trackers There exists thus a marginal 8% efficiency improvement of a dual axis tracker in comparison to a single axis azimuth tracker. Dual axis trackers however involve additional costs which include additional circuitry, electromechanical drives and control considerations. This further compounds the complexity of the 21 | P a g e

mechanical design aspect. Of greater importance, however, is the power consumption of an additional electromechanical device geared at driving the PV module. This offsets the potential efficiency improvement in a small scale alternative energy system.

Figure 9: Illustration of Single and Dual Axis Tracking Topology (43)

9.4.1.4 Proposed Tracker Topology Based on the aforementioned knowledge a single axis azimuth tracker is to be implemented for the purposes of an alternate energy remote access wireless weather station. Considering the lack of mechanical resources and limited budget (R700) this is a logical decision.

9.4.2 Solar Tracking Techniques

Tracking the solar path of the sun can be accomplished by the use of various methods. These fall into two broad categories, namely closed loop tracking techniques or open loop tracking techniques. (19) 9.4.2.1 Open Loop Tracking Techniques Open Loop/ Passive techniques involve the implementation of an astronomical algorithm that predetermines the suns position in the sky. The algorithm is based on data regarding the current time, day, month and year as well as upon the geographical latitude at which the tracking system is to find place. (20) Tracking performed in an open loop manner is a sound approach to mapping the suns position as it is governed against changing weather conditions due to the intelligence of the tracking algorithm. With this being said, a lack of feedback and misalignment in panel installation exist as possible sources of erroneous solar panel positioning. (21) 9.4.2.2 Closed Loop Tracking Techniques These techniques involve the use of sensors that detect the radiant energy of the sun at its maximum point and upon doing so point the solar panel in this direction. (19) Active tracking techniques are very much dependant on the light sensor being utilised in the sensing of solar intensity. They do however nullify the effects of panel misalignment and require a lesser degree computational complexity in comparison to open loop techniques. Although providing reasonably good accuracy in good weather conditions, inclement weather and shadowing decreases the effectiveness of this tracking technique. (21) Sensors available for use in closed loop tracking include photo-resistors (LDRs), phototransistors and photodiodes and solar cells.

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9.4.2.3 Proposed Tracking Technique Both closed and open loop tracking techniques have their associated advantages and disadvantages as discussed in Section 9.4.2.1 and Section 9.4.2.2. For the purposes of the solar tracker to be implemented a hybrid tracking technique that utilises both active and passive means of tracking the solar azimuth. The technique proposed for implementation aims at offsetting the disadvantages of each technique whilst simultaneously maximising their advantages. A high level flow chart of the intended implementation is shown and better detailed in Figure 10.

Sleep Mode

Night

Day/Night?

Day Good Light

Good/Bad Light ? Bad Light Calculate Position of Sun

Read mounted inline Sensors

Approx.= Radiation? N Sensor 1> Sensor 2

Compare to Position of Panel Adjust Panel Right Y

Adjust panel Left

Positions Different? Y Align Solar Panel to new Positon

Figure 10: High Level Flow Chart of Proposed Tracking Technique

9.4.3

Electro-mechanical Drive System Considerations

The definition of solar tracking cited in Section 9.2 suggests an aspect of the tracker design that entails motion. The motion in this design is to be achieved by means of an electromechanical system that is able to position the solar panel as dictated by the tracking mechanism described in Section 9.4.2.3. Drive systems that availed themselves for possible use were servo motors, stepper motors, geared DC motors and linear actuators. The drive systems are comparatively detailed in Table 3: Comparison of Electromechanical Drive Systems below. It compares the drive systems based on the following estimated requirements:

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Cost is to be at most R200 (budget constraint on project is R700). Preferably available in South Africa. Should be able to withstand wear for about 5 years. Suitable Control is required for precise positioning. The panel is to be rotated at low speed (10rpm or less). Adequate Stall torque to rotate a load that may be in excess of 2Nm. Low Power consumption typically less than 5 W 10 W (motor does not work continuously and as such a higher power consumption does not critically impact the system).

Table 3: Comparison of Electro-mechanical Drive Systems

Servo Motor Cost Local Availability Reliability Degree of Control Speed High Yes Good Very High Low High

Stepper Motor Moderate High Yes Good High Discontinuous LowModerate Moderate

DC Motor (Geared) Low Moderate Yes Moderate Low LowModerate

Linear Actuator High No Good Low LowModerate High High

System requirements Low - Moderate Yes Good High Low

Stall Torque Reqd. Power

High Moderate

Moderate High Low

Moderate Low

Considering that DC geared motors, servo motors and stepper motors fulfill most of the aforementioned requirements it was decided that they be further investigated for use in implementation. Servo motors, after quotation of their cost, ($50-$100 excl. delivery and relative to these application specifications) were immediately ruled out. The discussion that follows is thus confined to stepper motors and DC motors. 9.4.3.1 Stepper Motors vs. DC Motors Stepper motors are defined as follows: a brushless DC motor whose rotor rotates in fixed angular increments when its stator windings are energized in a programmed manner. (22) Stepper motors, as described above have rotate in fixed angular increments. A fair degree of accuracy is visibly evident and excess costs on encoders or other feedback mechanisms are avoided. (22) DC motors, for precise positioning, require a closed loop implementation and hence additional costs regarding feedback sensing must be considered. Stepper motor shaft positioning is however limited by the resolution or steps per revolution of the stepper motor. In order to be applied in an application requiring precise shaft positioning a high resolution motor would be required. The implication of the above is a higher cost. This may however be negated by operating the stepper in micro-stepping mode. Micro stepping allows the current in stator windings to be controlled in a manner that is independent of one another thereby facilitating improved resolution. (23) While micro stepping makes this motor an attractive type, there exist numerous other considerations. 24 | P a g e

Stepper motors usually operate in an open loop manner and as such may encounter large errors. Vibrations and low torque capacity relative to DC motors makes them somewhat unfavourable. Controlled DC motors do not have the associated problems and offer improved response times. In summation a DC motor and H-Bridge are likely choices for implementation as part of the proposed solution. The reasons for this are summarized in Table 3: Comparison of Electro-mechanical Drive Systems and in the preceding discussion. Their only downfall, which is a lack of control, is to be overcome by the implementation of an embedded control system to be discussed in Section 9.4.4.

9.4.4 Control System Considerations

It was proposed above that a DC motor be implemented as the electro-mechanical drive element in the solar tracking system. DC motors, however, have no explicit control mechanism. It is also of vital importance that the solar panel is positioned correctly to absorb conditionally maximal incident solar energy. Considering this a motor position control system is implemented. Sensor considerations and control methods are discussed below. 9.4.4.1 Feedback Sensors Motor control systems, as do all control systems, require some form of feedback to be implemented via the use of an appropriate sensor. In a solar tracking system the shaft position of a motor is the control variable. In order to implement a successful closed loop system an appropriate sensing technology is to be employed. (24) The considered sensing technologies that may prove adequate for the purposes of shaft positioning are outlined in Table 4. The table provides an approximate idea of the device characteristics by considering a generic of device each type.
Table 4: Comparison of Feedback Sensors

Brush Potentiometer (25) Resolution or Accuracy Operating Temperature Power Consump. Cost Undefined

Optical Shaft Encoder (25) 500 positions/rev 0C-60C

Mechanical Shaft Encoder (26) 16 positions/rev

Magnetic Hall Effect Sensor (27) 1024 positions/rev -40C- 125C

System Requirements High

0C-70C 500mW1500mW Low

0C-40C

-20C-55C

450mW

8mW

80mW

Low

Moderate

Low

Moderate

Low - Moderate

The sensor technologies described above are currently being considered; however, no choice decision has yet been taken regarding sensor as availability and lag time are an unknown quantity. Granted that the Magnetic Hall Effect sensor technology can be obtained, it is likely to be used in implementation.

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9.4.4.2 Method of Control A further consideration is the type of control to be utilized in an embedded implementation. For the purposes of the solar tracker two methods of control are under consideration: Proportional Integral Derivative (PID) Control and variations thereof as well as Fuzzy Logic Control. The method of control is to be decided at a later stage in the design process. A comparative performance of the PID and Fuzzy Logic control systems is hoped to be achieved through adequate simulation. The choice of control methodology is to be based on best performance is terms of responsiveness and ease of implementation. Cost does not influence this decision due to no additional hardware requirements.

9.4.5 Mechanical Design Aspect

A successful execution of a solar tracker, over and above an operational electronic system, requires a sound mechanical implementation. This should consist of a rigid, robust frame that is able to hold a maximum load 0f 1.5kg. A gearing mechanism and/or suitable bearings are required such that the solar panel is able to be rotated. Currently a sprocket-chain system may prove the most feasible solution owing to low cost and ease of implementation. A lightweight frame design that minimizes the moment of inertia of the panel and associated rotating elements is conceptualized. This would limit the strain on the electro-mechanical drive system (Load torque Moment of Inertia of Load) and prolong system life span. An adequate material analysis is to be carried out in phase two, at which time the frame design is to be accomplished. The analysis is to compare the cost, weight and durability of different materials. The frame is to be designed in either Solid Edge or Autodesk Inventor once final system parameters are known.

9.4.6 Microcontroller Choice

The choice of microcontroller is an important design consideration. All algorithms require an embedded implementation. This choice is however not simplistic as the microcontroller to be utilized in this portion of the system is to be shared with the MPPT charge control system. Microcontrollers that being considered currently are the PIC 24, PIC32 , Atmel ATMega and Atmel XMega series microcontrollers.

9.5

Suggested System Diagram

Figure 11: Proposed Solar Tracking Solution below shows the proposed implementation of a solar radiation tracking system. The diagram shows components that are forecasted as being used. Final decisions regarding the motor, sensors, encoder and H-Bridge have not yet been made. The indicated components were used to perform a system cost analysis. Cost analysis is documented in Section 9.7.

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Embedded Tracking & Control Algorithms

DS1307 Real Time Clock Module Real Time Clock Microcontroller Atmel ATMega/ Xmega Series Or PIC24/PIC32

Solar Cell/ Photo Resistor

Light Sensors

Voltage Regulator 5V/3.3V

DIP IC L298/ L6209 Rotary Encoder AS5040 Magnetic Rotary Encoder Pololu 12V DC Geared Motor 10RPM 42kg-cm Torque HBridge 12V 12AH Sealed Lead Acid Battery

DC Motor
3/5/2012

Legend
Electrical Signals Gearing/ Bearing Mechanism Shaft to Turn Panel
Figure 11: Proposed Solar Tracking Solution

Mechanical Drive Embedded Program

9.6 Technical Feasibility

The solar tracking system proposed has a degree of difficulty that befits a final year electronic engineering student. Adequate knowledge of hardware and software should ensure the majority of the project is accomplished without having to learn an exorbitant amount of skills. With this being said, the mechanical design and drawing aspects of the proposed system do present a novel challenge. Tools and knowledge outside the electronic engineering discipline are thus required to be learned. The implication is a challenge that presents an opportunity to gain an improved overall engineering knowledge. This is not beyond the scope of what an engineer in his/her total capacity is expected to achieve and it is hoped that the same can be said for this engineering student.

9.7 Cost Analysis & Economic Feasibility

The systems major components are outlined in Table 5. The table evaluates the projected cost of a solar tracking system and an economic evaluation of the proposed solution is thereafter documented.

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Table 5: Projected Solar Tracking System Cost

Component Microcontroller (PIC 24/32 or Atmel XMega Series or Atmel ATMega Series) Pololu 12V 10RPM 42kg-cm DC Geared Motor H-Bridge (L298/L6209) Gearing Mechanism Magnetic Rotary Encoder AS5040 2 x 1/8 Solar Cells Real Time Clock Module (Maxim DS1307) Framework Material

Projected Cost

Manufacturer/Supplier

Local Supplier

R 50 R 70

RSOnline

Donation

Rasigan Govender

R 37.75 $ 9.00 R 67.59* $ 5.40 R 40.55* $ 4.00 R 30.04* R 36.25 Donation

RSOnline ServoCity Austria Microsystems Solarbotics RSOnline Yugen Govender R 212.18 R 232.18

Total Projected Cost

1

(28)

The solar tracking system is estimated to cost a total of approximately R212.18-R232.18. This represents about 30% of the R700 budget. However, in considering that certain expensive modules were donated and much of the work is software based, the estimated costs are of a reasonable magnitude.

*Exchange Rates Quoted on 5 March 2012

th

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9.8

Advice from an Expert

With regard to the viability of utilising a magnetic rotary encoder, Nevlin Manicum had engaged in e-mail correspondence with Roberto Scotti, an engineering consultant from Austria Microsystems. The details of the correspondence are shown below. Good Day I am a student doing a project concerned with motor position control. I am considering purchasing one of the following magnetic rotary encoders (AS5040/AS5045/AS5055) for this purpose. What I essentially intend to implement is described below. When required the encoder would give an absolute angular position reading (via SSI) which will be compared with a desired angular position. The result will generate an angular position error. The error will be fed through a controller to be implemented in software which should generate a PWM signal to drive a HBridge to facilitate the motor motion. I intend also to measure the speed of the motor (using Quadrature Mode) and based on the current speed and rate of change in error to decrease/increase the speed of the motor appropriately. At a certain tolerance of angular position error (0.3 deg. or so typical tolerance of AS5040) the motor should be stationary.

Does the above solution sound feasible and will I be able to implement it on an embedded microcontroller. Regards, Nevlin Manicum
Hello Mr. Manicum, For motor application I can recommend one of the rotary encoders taken from the AUT series AS51XX (instead of the IND series AS50XX) The AS51XX series is better designed for noise environments, wider temp range, and better design in general; all our motor customers prefer them to the AS50XX. The most used for application like yours (read absolute position via SSI and then go fast with ABI) are: AS5134 8.5 bits with SSI 70K rpm with ABI this is the most used for BLDC (it has a very small propagation time 22us) AS5140H 10 bits with SSI 10K rpm with ABI AS5145A 10 bits with SSI 30K rpm in ABI AS5145B 12 bits with SSI 30K rpm in ABI You might choose based on a compromise between the requirements for resolution and max RPM Kind Regards,

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9.9 Project Schedule for Solar Radiation Tracking System

ID Task Name Finalisation of Electronic & Electromechanical Hardware Order Required Hardware Conceptualisation of Mechanical Framework & Material Choice Development of Motor Model in Simulink (Using Estimated Parameters) Simulation of Control Methodologies Analysis of Simulation Results & Decision of Method to be Implemented in an Embedded System Schematic Layout & PCB Development Development of Embedded Control Algorithm Development of Embedded Sun Tracking Algorithm Flowchart and Program Flow of Embedded Solution Autodesk Learning & Framework Design Drawings Phase 2 Report and Oral Presentation Preparation Embedded System Implementation Construction & Testing Phase 3 Report & Oral Presentation Preparation Start Finish Duration Mar 2012 3/4 3/11 3/18 3/25 4/1 Apr 2012 4/8 4/15 4/22 4/29 5/6

1 2 3 4 5

3/7/2012 3/8/2012 3/9/2012 3/9/2012 3/12/2012

3/9/2012 3/9/2012 3/10/2012 3/12/2012 3/15/2012

3d 2d 2d 4d 4d

3/15/2012

3/16/2012

2d

7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

3/16/2012 3/19/2012 3/19/2012 3/22/2012 3/15/2012 3/20/2012 3/29/2012 4/8/2012 4/23/2012

3/17/2012 3/21/2012 3/23/2012 3/23/2012 3/20/2012 3/26/2012 4/7/2012 4/20/2012 4/30/2012

2d 3d 5d 2d 6d 7d 10d 13d 8d

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10 Communication Module
10.1 Problem Statement
As the project title An Alternate Energy Remote Access Wireless Weather Station suggests, a key aspect of the project is remote access to the data collected by the various sensors onboard the station. The fact that the system needed to be designed for deployment in remote locations, and have no need of any human control or intervention to function, necessitated the inclusion of a communication module, which forms the remote weather stations end of the interface between the station and the front end user application.

10.2 Proposed Solution

To address the problem laid out in the problem statement defined above, the design and deployment of a long ranged wireless communication channel is needed. The channel will enable the reliable transmission of low volumes of data at regular intervals, under a variety of different environmental conditions.

10.3 Feasibility Study

Most communication channels may be broadly classified into two categories, namely wired and wireless. Due to the fact that the station needed to be deployable outdoors, possibly far away from any existing network infrastructure, a wired communication link was immediately discounted due to the impracticality of running cables many kilometers to the closest existing network. Within the wireless communication category there are a number of technologies which were investigated for use in this system. As a key element of the system is its ability to function and transmit data from remote locations, short ranged wireless technologies such as infrared and Bluetooth were first eliminated, due to the limited range at which they are able to operate (Class 2 and class 3 Bluetooth devices typically have a range of between one and ten metres (29). Infrared range is even shorter and with the additional drawback of being a line of sight technology). After the elimination of the aforementioned communication mediums, there were four major wireless technologies which were investigated; namely Wi-Fi, Zigbee, Radio Modems and GSM/GPRS Modems. These were all evaluated under the following metrics (listed in descending order of importance): Range: o As mentioned early, communication range is of paramount importance when dealing with data transmission from remote locations. Environment sensitivity: o As the system will be designed to operate in a vast array of sometimes extreme outdoor environments, the communication medium needs to be relatively immune to harsh environmental conditions. Power Consumption o Due to the limited amount of power available from the battery powered system, substantial emphasis was placed on both energy efficiency and power consumption. Reliability o As the time frame within which the data has to be transferred between the station and the front end user application is relatively large, the reliability of the connection is not considered as important as the abovementioned metrics, as multiple retransmissions are permissible. However the communication link still needs to be reliable enough such that the data is transferred within an acceptable time.

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Cost o

As is the case with almost all facets of the system, the cost which it would take to implement the various systems played a significant role in choosing a technology.

The first of the technologies which was extensively investigated was Wi-Fi, the wireless LAN IEEE 802.11 based standard, via the use of a wireless network interface card or module. A highly popular and widely used wireless standard, both because of its relatively cheap cost and fast data transfer rates, the range of the Wi-Fi standard falls short of the requirements of this system, with typical Wi-Fi ranges varying between twenty and hundred metres in most conditions. Even with the advent of long-range Wi-Fi, which operates in the unlicensed 2.4 GHz band, requires less power than most long ranged wireless devices which operate at lower frequencies, and which, when combined with range extender amplifiers (30) and more sensitive Wireless LAN adapters, result in ranges which are orders of magnitude larger than those of standard Wi-Fi devices, Long-range Wi-Fi is still generally limited to at most, a couple of kilometres, a range which is highly sensitive to the topology of the general area, due to the poor signal penetration of the 2.4 GHz connection. Although there are exceptions to this (most notable of which are the 382 km link created by Ermanno Pietrosemoli and EsLaRed between two mountain peaks in Venezuela (31), as well as the 420 km link used by the Swedish Space Agency to transfer data to a stratospheric balloon (32), these systems were extremely expensive and required exceedingly high amounts of power to operate. Another technology which was investigated was the Zigbee specification, another IEEE 802 based standard, made famous by its comparatively small module size and tiny power footprint, the latter of which makes it an ideal candidate for this system. Although the data transfer rates of Zigbee devices are relatively low (generally between 20 and 250 kbit/s), the amount of bandwidth required for the data collected by the wireless weather station is low enough for most Zigbee devices to handle comfortably, especially considering the intermittent nature of the transmissions. However, Zigbee networks are generally limited to the same room or building (slightly larger when using Zigbee Pro devices which support ranges of up to 1500 metres in ideal conditions), making Zigbee devices unsuitable for the purposes of this system. It should be noted though, that there are certain products which are commercially available such as the XBee XTender RF Bridge, and the XBee XStream RF Modem, which are able to form wireless links between Zigbee networks over vast distances (the XTends RF Bridge is able to connect to Zigbee networks which are up to 64 km away (33)), using radio modems, which are discussed below. One of the oldest and most widely applied wireless technologies, on which all the aforementioned standards have been built, and from which the term wireless was first derived is radio communication. Using a radio modem, data may be transmitted reliably over many tens of kilometers, generally over VHF or UHF bands. Although the range of radio modems is somewhat lessened by obstacles between the receiver and transmitter, it is still significantly higher than any of the other technologies researched. However, a subsequent result of the increased range if radio modems are their larger power footprints. As the range data is able to travel over and RF channel is directly dependent on the amount of power the signal carries, the power consumed by most long range radio modems are significantly higher than any of the shorter ranged technologies; most long range radio modems require between 1 and 5 Watts when transmitting (34). Along with the increased power consumption of radio modems are their increased costs (the XBee XTender RF Bridge costs $300, with the typical cost of long range radio modems being $450 plus). On these grounds it was deemed that although the range of the radio modems surpassed any of the other wireless communication channels researched, the combination of their high cost combined with their increased power consumption, rendered the radio modems unfeasible for use in this system. Another wireless communication technology which was investigated was the GPRS/GSM modem. Arguably the most widely used wireless technology in the world with more than six billion subscribers worldwide (35), GPRS/GSM modules, which constitute the core of all modern mobile phones are common place in many remote access applications. With typical ranges of up to ten miles and further, as well power footprints which are low enough to enable their use in mobile phones, GPRS/GSM modems are ideal candidates for the system. Additionally, the modems are generally resilient against all but the most extreme weather conditions, something that is further aided by the many redundancies built in to modern mobile networks, which help ensure continued service under most adverse circumstances. Apart from offering a certain guaranteed quality of service, the mobile networks over which the modems operate, help simplify 32 | P a g e

the data communication process by shielding the end users from the intricacies which occur within the network. The data communication process is further aided by the presence of a TCP/IP stack onboard most modules, which greatly diminish the complexity of using protocols such as HTTP or FTP, both of which may prove useful in the development of this system. However, GPRS/GSM modems are not without their downsides, chief of which are the cost involved in using the GPRS/service, their moderate to slow data transmission rates which typically vary between 56 and 296 kbit/s (36), and their sole reliance on existing mobile network infrastructure, although these do not pose significant problem to the system, as mentioned earlier, the intermittent low volume data transmission required by the weather station requires a relatively low bandwidth (and hence relatively low cost, data-wise), and with the abundance of cell phone towers (in 2010 there were 170 000 towers in the United States of America alone, with 3 500 new towers being built every year (37)), the areas which mobile networks cover is fast expanding. Though it may be argued that a vast number of black spots, or areas with no mobile reception do exist, especially in rural and remote areas, the areas which GPRS/GSM modems are able to cover far outstrips those covered by the other technologies investigated. Although GPRS/GSM modems are slower than Wi-Fi, have a larger power footprint than Zigbee devices, and have a smaller range than certain long range radio modems, the GPRS/GSM modems still prove to be the best all-rounders, and for this reason have been selected as the core component of the communication module of the autonomous remote access wireless weather station.

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10.3.1 Modem Specifications

In terms of the selection of a specific modem, various manufacturers and models were considered and evaluated according to cost, availability, power consumption and additional features, such as the presence of an onboard TCP/IP stack. The modem which was selected was the GT-64 Dual SIM Quad Band GSM/GPRS Modem manufactured and distributed by RF Design, and which was made available to us by the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The relevant specifications of the modem are highlighted below: Telit GE-864 kernel with PYTHON script interpreter o Most GPRS/GSM modules are controlled via the usage of simple AT-commands which are generally sent to the modules over an SPI or USART connection, which necessitates the usage of an external device such as a microcontroller to drive the module, which apart from being cumbersome, also results in greater power consumption. However, the Telit GE-864 kernel eliminates the need for an external controller, by allowing the storage of PYTHON scripts on the modules internal memory, which are thereafter used to control the module itself, resulting in improved power management (due mainly to the lessened usage of the serial port), and more efficient communication management. 10.8 V DC supply or USB powered o The module may be powered either through a 10.8 V DC supply or a USB port (5V 100mA) Serial Interface o Although the AT-commands which control the module do not have to be transmitted serially to the module, multiple USART ports are provided to allow for data collection. These ports will be used to interface the modem with the rest of the system. Embedded TCP/IP stack o The module contains an onboard TCP/IP stack with support for the FTP and HTTP protocols, which will be used to form the client-server based connection between the modem and the front end user application. Taoglas range-boosting antenna o The module also contains a lower power antenna capable of transmitting data reliably over distances of up to 16 km. Low power interruptible sleep mode o Due to the fact that data transmissions will only occur intermittently, to conserve power, the module will enter a low power sleep mode between transmissions. Dual SIM operation o To increase the probability of the modem being within range of a cellular network, two SIM cards, from two different cellular service providers, will be used, with the module selecting a SIM and hence a network, on the basis of signal strength, latency etc., prior to each transmission.

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10.4 High Level Operational Overview

1. SLEEP MODE

10. Transmit Data

YES

2. SLEEP MODE interrupted by sensing module

11. ACK received? YES 9. Time Out occurred? NO NO NO YES YES 8. ACK received? 12. Time OUT occurred? NO

3. Module attempts to connect to NETWORK 1

4. Connection Successful? NO NO 5. Module attempts to connect to NETWORK 2

YES

7. Initiate TCP/IP connection to server

13. Close Connection

YES 6. Connection Successful?

Return to SLEEP MODE

Figure 12: Operational Overview of the Communication Module

1. 2. 3. 4.

5.

6.

SLEEP MODE The modem is initially in low power sleep mode. SLEEP MODE interrupted by sensing module The modem is woken up from sleep mode by the arrival of data on one of the serial ports. Module attempts to connect to NETWORK 1 The modem then attempts to connect to the network associated with SIM 1. Connection Successful? If the modem succeeds in connecting to NETWORK 1, it may then proceed to setting up a connection with the front end application. Module attempts to connect to NETWORK 2 If the modem was unsuccessful in connecting to NETWORK 1, it switches to SIM 2 and thereafter attempts to connect to NETWORK 2. Connection Successful? 35 | P a g e

7.

8.

9. 10.

11.

12. 13.

If the modem succeeds in connecting to NETWORK 2, it may then proceed to setting up a connection with the front end application. If the connection is unsuccessful, steps 3 thru 6 are repeated. Initiate TCP/IP connection to server The modem (which acts as the client) then issues a TCP/IP connection request to the server which forms part of the front end application, using the servers IP address. Note: As cellular service providers in South Africa do not assign static IP addresses to the public, it is not possible for the modem to act as the server in any client server connections. However this is of no consequence in this system, as the modem is still able to achieve the required functionality when acting as a client. ACK received? The modem then waits for the server to respond with an acknowledgement that the connection has been accepted. Time-Out occurred? If a Time-Out occurs before an acknowledgement is received, steps 7 thru 9 are repeated. Transmit Data Once the connection is accepted, the transmission of the data collected by the sensing module commences. ACK received? The modem then waits for the server to respond with an acknowledgement that the data has been received. Time-Out occurred? If a Time-Out occurs before an acknowledgement is received, steps 10 thru 12 are repeated. Close Connection Once positive acknowledgement that the data has been successfully transmitted is received, the TCP/IP connection is closed, and the modem returns to sleep.

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10.5 Interaction with an Expert in the Field

Whilst researching the feasibility of using an RF link to perform the data transfer, an engineer specializing in RF communication (Y. Ramparsad) was consulted. Below are excerpts from some of the email correspondence. Author: What considerations should be taken into account when designing and fabricating a long range wireless communication link using RF technology? Y. Ramparsad: Before you start your project, think about these five questions: 1) Do I have line of sight between the destination and source? "Line of sight" is literally being able to see the target you want to provide connectivity to, without obstruction. 2) How far apart are the two locations that you want to link? Equipment that's needed for a 500 metre link is much different than that for a 5 kilometre link. 3) How much money are you willing to spend on this project? Long-range wireless solutions can cost lots of money. You need to plan how much you're going to spend for each part before you start the project. You don't want to start the project, then not have enough money to finish it. 4) What kind of equipment are you going to use? Are you going to be using consumer-grade equipment or are you willing to use business-level equipment. There is a big difference in the two types. Reliability and support are typically gained, with the price being the trade-off. 5) How much time are you willing to spend trying to get this to work? If you don't want to spend more than a few days on this project, you probably shouldn't start it. It's going to take weeks, even months to get long range solutions setup and working properly. Don't think it will take thirty minutes and everything will work just like you planned. Author: Due to the transmitting end of the communication link possibly being situated in a variety of different areas, line of sight between the destination and source may not always be possible. How much would this affect the range of the system? The range of the link will vary, though we would ideally like to support ranges of up to at least ten kilometres if possible. As this is a university project, we do not have an exceedingly large budget, and will therefore probably be confined to consumer grade equipment. With regards to the time frame, we have approximately two months to fully design and deploy the system. Will this be enough time? Y. Ramparsad: Although RF technology is generally flexible, in terms of the constraints of your project, an RF link does not seem suitable for your project. 1) Although RF technology is not technically a line of sight technology, to achieve long ranges, highly directional antennae are generally used, which effectively limit communication to line of site or very soft obstacles. If omni directional antennae are used, the range of the system is greatly decreased. 2) A range of ten kilometres is achievably with high powered directional antennae. If this is not an option, you may want to consider using a system of repeaters. 3-4) To deploy a fully operational long range system such as the one you have described, a budget of at least a few thousand Rands is required, which I assume is out of range of your student budget? 5) A time frame of 2 months is acceptable for this project, if all you intend to achieve in the time is a prototype for demonstrative purposes. However if a market ready product is desired, you would require atleast 6 months to a year. After considering your constraints I would advise one of the following three options:

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1)

Considering a smaller ranged model. With your current budget you would be able to comfortably design and deploy a system that operates over a few hundred metres. 2) Acquiring a bigger budget through corporate funding or similar. Perhaps you might be able to persuade a company to loan you some of the equipment? 3) Consider an alternate technology. Possibly something Wi-Fi related? Consulting an IP such as Telkom may prove useful. Alternately consider the use of a 3G modem or similar? These devices are able to offer the ranges you require. We would like to express our gratitude to Yashveer Ramparsad (yashveer@pfk.co.za) of PFK electronics for his help, insight and advice regarding the project.

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10.6 Project Schedule for Communication Module

Feb 2012 Mar 2012 26/2 4/3 11/3 18/3 25/3 1/4 Apr 2012 8/4 15/4 22/4

ID

Task Name

Start

Finish

Duration
19/2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Phase 1 Research Familiarization with PYTHON script Familiarization with modem ATCommands Revision of TCP/IP protocol beta design of the system Iterative redesign of system until fully functional Interfacing with rest of the system Debugging

2/15/2012 3/8/2012 3/8/2012 3/15/2012 3/22/2012 3/29/2012 4/12/2012 4/17/2012

3/7/2012 3/14/2012 3/14/2012 3/21/2012 3/28/2012 4/11/2012 4/25/2012 4/30/2012

16d 5d 5d 5d 5d 10d 10d 10d

10.7 Future Developments

As can be seen from the project schedule, a major portion of the second phase has been allocated to the familiarization of the different concepts needed to design and fabricate the system, so that a thorough understanding of the basic underlying principles of the system is achieved. The remainder of the second phase will be spent designing a limited functionality beta version of the system. Phase 3 will then be spent expanding, testing, debugging and redesigning the beta system until full system functionality is achieved. Thereafter a portion of time has been dedicated to the interfacing of the communications module with the rest of the system. The remainder of the time allocated to phase 3 will be used for debugging and troubleshooting any problems which may have arisen from the interfacing.

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11 GUI & Database Log of Meteorological Data

11.1 Problem statement
In order for the full Alternate Energy Remote Access Wireless Weather Station to be active and to be able to view data that the system has collected, an application is needed such that all information captured over the period of time that the system has been active can be viewed. Information that has been captured needs to be stored in some sort file storage system in which can be accessible at any time by the application. The application with also needs to have some communication with the remote system. Basically the problem can be broken up into three main aspects which are: The user application File storage system A network interface to the system

11.2 Proposed solution

This section of the design can be broken down into three parts namely the front end application, the database and the network communications. All three aspects have to be working accordingly in order for the user to be able to interact correctly with the system as the database generally relies on the network communication to receive data to be stored and the front end application is needed to view the relevant information stored in the database.

11.3 Breakdown of GUI & Database Log of Meteorological Data

Figure 13: High Level Overview of the GUI and Database

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11.4 Database system

A database system essential as it is needed in order to store relevant information with regards to the system. Without a storage system a user can only view weather conditions at the same instance whereas with a database previous data can be extracted for other usage e.g. determining weather patterns in a specific area. The database can be created by many methods such as: MS Access MySQL MS Excel Oracle Many others

11.5 Database feasibility study

MS Access was chosen in order to create a database for the storage of information due to its understandable architecture. Although many would consider MySQL over MS Access to create a database the following reasons were considered before coming to a conclusion. MS Access has a fairly understandable user interface to grasp. Can be easily integrated to other systems If needed, the database created by MS Access can be upsized to MySQL through ODBC(Open Database Connectivity) tools. (38) Speed is not of great issue. Database will be relatively small as the entries are limited to the number of sensors introduced into the weather station.

MS Access isnt a database but merely a front end was used in order to create the database due to its understandable infrastructure and linkage ability. MS Access was used in conjunction with OleDB (Object Linking and Embedding Database) in order to link the actual database (.mdb file) to other bases and in this situation, the front end application. This is more effective as this method prevents the actual database from a fail in the front end user application and could save important information that could be used for other use.

11.6 Front end user application

The front end application is basically serves an interface with the user and the system. In other words it hides the lower levels of the software based fragments (e.g. high level coding using a particular language) by displaying simple commands to the user in order for simplicity and usability . This application is designed in order to make full use of all capabilities of the system. In the case of the remote weather station the front end application will be used to retrieve records in the database in order to view specific weather patterns at any instance of time providing that the weather station was there at particular time. The front end application will include features such as the view of statistics on days specified by the user, graphically displaying the change in weather patterns and a user friendly interface. There were two methods which was looked upon in creating the application, these are: Windows forms WinForms Windows Presentation Foundation - WPF Both these forms can be created using MS Visual Studio.

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11.6.1 Front end application feasibility study

Windows Presentation foundation was used to create the application due to the following reasons:
WPF is faster and more efficient in creating applications when compared to Windows Forms. (39) Better design tools and methods in creating an outstanding application. It is the new technology that is being used for new Operating systems. WPF is able to support several other types of media which could be helpful in displaying the change in weather patterns for this particular design. (40) Is able to incorporate Windows Forms controls in WPF

Therefore with regards to the previous advantages of WPF, this method of creating the application tends to weigh heavier in choosing between WPF and WinForms. The front end application will contain a fairly simple but attractive user interface and will contain all options in manipulating data.

11.7 Network communication

A server needs to be established in order to receive data, since a computer sets a fixed IP address, it is sensible to make the computer in which the software is running the server allowing for reliable and secure connection.

11.7.1 Network communication feasibility study

Client/server based network architecture is most suitable for this type of operation mode. The advantages of this network with regards to the overall system are: Centralization Scalability Flexibility Backup the remote weather station(s) links up to one main server. (41) - server is able to upgrade itself independently from the clients. (41) -different or newly released software can be incorporated into the system. (41) -data can be backed up easily from one station i.e. the server. (41)

By using a TCP/IP based connection with regards to communication of data, a secure transfer of data is done as a connection is first established between the client and the server and thereafter the data transfer is done and the connection is terminated after when compared to a connectionless system. This system of operation is known as the three way handshake in which is explained in the figure below.

Figure 14: Three-Way Handshake

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As from the above diagram, there is a secure connection established before the data is transferred from the client to the server ensuring no data loss and since sequence numbers will also be used, if there is a loss in data, the server is able to pick it up easily and prompt for the data to be sent again. This is quite important considering all data in this design received from the weather station is important and a few bytes of information missing could cause a severe change graphs and would also cause concern to users viewing the weather patterns. Therefore the weather station will establish a connection with the server and transfer data securely thereafter being stored in the database in which all the information can be viewed in the front end application.

11.8 Programming language

Two languages were considered when dealing with MS Visual studio in order to create the front end application as well as implementing the TCP/IP Client Server based network. These were: VB. Net C#

When considering the C# is part of the C family, there is easy reading and understanding of the code itself. C# also has better error catching when it is compared to VB.Net. Although both these coding languages are able to perform almost about the same amount of operations, C# is the new and upcoming language and many would advise the use of C# over VB.Net.

11.9 Usage of the system

The front end application will allow for user interface to the system. By the user selecting their desired requests the database will be accessed and the application will return with the corresponding result. At regular intervals the server will receive data and will be stored in the data base. This section of the design will interface with rest of the system wirelessly. Once the data is received then the data is stored in the database system in which can be viewed via the front end application. Records of previous weather conditions in the same area can also be viewed via the front end application.

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11.10 Project Schedule for GUI & Database Log

Feb 2012 Mar 2012 26/2 4/3 11/3 18/3 25/3 1/4 Apr 2012 8/4 15/4 22/4

ID

Task Name

Start

Finish

Duration
19/2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Phase 1 research Creating a database with MS Access Understanding of C# and OleDB commands Learning the basics for MS Visual Studio for the GUI Understanding of Client/server network and TCP/IP connection Phase 2 Preparation Designing of the entire GUI Integration with the rest of the system Debuging

2/15/2012 3/9/2012 3/12/2012 3/18/2012 3/23/2012 3/26/2012 3/30/2012 4/14/2012 4/22/2012

3/5/2012 3/11/2012 3/17/2012 3/22/2012 3/25/2012 3/29/2012 4/13/2012 4/21/2012 4/30/2012

20d 3d 6d 5d 3d 4d 15d 8d 9d

Phase 1 research includes the problem statement and all the possible solutions as well as the chosen solution that could be implemented with regards to the entire GUI. Thereafter familiarization with MS Access, MS Visual Studio, C# and TCP/IP will be done. After a full understanding of the how the individual sections work, the entire GUI will be designed in accordance with the specifications. Integration will then be performed and thereafter debugging for any errors.

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12 Group Leader and Leadership Objective

To ensure effective management of the group, the selection of a group leader was necessary. The group leader that has been chosen for our group is Trishaul Reddy. The central role of the group leader will revolve around the management of the design process by directing the members towards the project goals. The initial task assigned to the leader will be to define the project objectives and goals as specifically and explicitly as possible by expanding on the original project requirements. During phase one of the project, the detailing of the system consists mainly of high level abstractions, which will become more specific further into the project. An additional responsibility of the group leader will be the equitable allocation of tasks and objectives to each member of the group. This must be done in a manner which ensures that the workload of each member does not exceed those of the rest of the other members. This allocation also entails the leader ascertaining the suitability of each member to their respective tasks by taking into account the prior experiences skills and aptitudes of each member. Following the aforementioned delegation of tasks, the leader must then define these tasks as unambiguously and specifically as possible, in such a manner that leaves no room for misunderstanding. The focal goal and overall objective of the project, is the design and fabrication of a fully functional mobile weather station which satisfies the requirements detailed in the problem statement and proposed solution. Thereafter, to promote optimal time management, minor objectives and milestones for each member will be set on a weekly basis. To ensure that the weekly targets are adhered to, and to gauge the amount of progress made by each group member during the week, mandatory weekly meetings will be held every Monday morning, where each member will be required to present a report on the work covered in the previous week. These meetings will also include the creation of the objectives and tasks for the following week, as well as to deal with any problems and issues which have arisen in the previous week. During the rest of the week all communication will occur electronically. Furthermore the leader must acquire a basic understanding of the modules designed be each group member as well as the interfaces between modules with each other to ensure the overall compatibility of the design. Notable factors which will influence the decisions made by the leader whilst managing the design process also include: Resource availability Deadlines and milestones Budgeting Time constraints Unforeseen circumstances

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13 Conclusion
This report has outlined a proposal to design and fabricate a weather station powered by an alternate energy source, which is intended for deployment in the field, and is able to remotely log data on a central database. It first highlights the relevance of such a system, and then goes on to list the specifications of the system, and expand on its modular decomposition, which is constituent of the following components: A weather condition sensing module which comprises of a collection of sensors and transducers which when combined are able to detect and measure rainfall, temperature, humidity, pressure, and wind speed. Assigned to K Ramdas An alternate energy source, which after extensive research was chosen to be solar power, which when used in conjunction with a rechargeable battery, enables the system to be deployed in the field for extended periods of time such as months or years. To maximize the efficiency of this module, the system makes use of a maximum power point tracking algorithm, implemented through either fuzzy logic or a perturb and observe algorithm. Assigned to P Doolabh A solar tracking system with one degree of freedom which provides for periods of insolation by maximizing the amount of solar radiation absorbed photovoltaic modules, by ensuring that the modules are always aligned with the sun, achieved through a hybrid control mechanism which is based on astronomical principles as well as sensor feedback. Assigned to N Manicum A communications module which forms a link between the station and the central server, by transmitting the data collected by the sensing module at periodic intervals. The link is achieved via the use of a Quad Band Dual SIM GSM/GPRS modem, with an onboard TCP/IP stack and PYTHON script interpreter. Assigned to T Reddy A front end user application, which receives and logs all data received, and allows users access the data via a graphical user interface. Achieved via an MS Access database, linked to a C# based interface, with an inbuilt TCP/IP server. Assigned to D Mahadew

Each module is then expanded on in detail by eliciting the specifications and functionality of each module, as well as any relevant feasibility studies, problem descriptions, proposed solutions and high level overviews. Project costing and proposed scheduling are also discussed, as well as the group leadership objectives and discussions with field experts. After investigating the aforementioned points, the project was deemed feasible, and is currently being further investigated in preparation for the next phase.

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