Report on practical experience with SunEye 210

My name is Yaroslav Korneev. I’m studying Business Administration and Engineering (B. Eng.) with specialization in logistics management and renewable energy at the HARZ UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES, Wernigerode, Germany. During the last seventh semester I was in internship in the international service and sales company “EXALAND GmbH” based in Wernigerode, Germany. My main responsibilities as a project manager were to find suppliers and organize the distribution of the new product (surveillance systems) on the Russian and CIS countries markets. To implement my knowledge and experience that I have gathered at the university, I have suggested to try the new product “fully autonomous surveillance system”. Extreme changing weather conditions in the Moscow region (from -25 °C to 40 °C, rainy, snowy and cloudy, dust and dry air, foggy) were the great opportunity to find out how challenging could be the solar technologies.

After a long research I have only a dozen suppliers who have already had some final products ready to install. We have ordered a couple of 50 W solar monocrystalline panels with different low voltage wireless cameras and controllers. Unfortunately, I haven’t found enough reliable and relevant information about the solar energy resources in Moscow, because this kind of renewable energy is not that popular in the region yet. That’s why I have asked my internship supervisor Prof. Dr. Johann Krauser. He has taught us Physic and Photovoltaic and I remembered how we have used the SunEye 210 shade tool to measure the monthly solar access, annual sunpath and shading obstructions. I want to thank him one more time for explaining me the principle of operation and working with this tool. For the further successful results my internship company has bought this tool and send me to Moscow to take all the data for mounting of solar powered wireless surveillance camera. During this business trip to Moscow I have made different “Sky” pictures and angle measurements in different places, where it was needed to install the camera. With the help of PV designer I have found the optimal angle and exact direction. In the following days the first test camera was installed on the 9 m pole with 70Ah LiPo battery and 2.4 Ghz directed antenna. The weather conditions in November 2014 were not that good and solar panels gave only maximum 40 % of their power that’s why the batteries were discharged approx. in three weeks. We will improve the system with additional solar panel and low voltage controller to increase the power going to the batteries.

In those difficult weather conditions when sun comes out from the clouds only for one or two days in the whole month during the autumn and winter periods, it is very important to have such an amazing tool as SunEye 210 giving you the full information about further possible sun energy resources. I was surprised how easy it is to use and how helpful it could be from the measurements made outside till the implementation in the project. It is very important to mention that the forecast and predicted information about the energy resources in particular place is very reliable. Prof. Dr. Johann Krauser has showed me the actual power received during 2014 from the university solar plant and the predictable power capacity from PV-designer, the similarity for each month and in the total was amazing.

The project I have been working at is being developed and improved. It couldn’t be so quickly and easy to start without the help I have received from my university and data gained with from special tools.

Yaroslav Korneev