DIY Solar Tracking System Inspired by NASA (Parker Solar Probe)

In this video I demonstrate a simple autonomous solar tracking system that can be used with solar panels or parabolic mirrors to improve their performance in producing renewable energy. For this system I use two 10rpm, 6v geared electric motors, and four 5v, 0.6w solar panels connected in a configuration that allows the motors to constantly move the panels into shade (purchasing links for these items below). The cost of the electronics was about $10, and could easily be scaled up or down as necessary for a variety of solar applications.

A big thanks to my Patreon supporters who continue to support my videos through thick and thin! You all are awesome. A special thanks to my top Patrons: Syniurge, Matthew Leitzke, TheBackyardScientist, Enzo Breda Lee, John Johnson, & Thibaud Peverelli!

Let me know if you try this project for yourself. Thanks for watching!

[joea]

This is NOT a "crazy" invention. It is practical, simple and elegant.

[buffplums]

It’s great to see someone who finds a solution that doesn’t require a flipping arduino … can’t beat good old fashioned analogue and op amps

[AndrewGilpatric]

To see something used by NASA and have the insight to change it into something people can use everyday is a gift in itself great video thanks

[FrnnkEducation]

I am DISGUSTED at how amazingly brilliant and simple this is. This is exactly what I needed for my own system. And it uses the age old crankshaft rotor system from automobiles. Lol I'm blown away.

[cornpop]

I design machines for a living and I often design low budget scale prototypes like this for proof of concept. In that vein, think what you've done here is excellent!

[paulcartwright]

This is a perfect example of the design philosophy of Colin Chapman, the legend behind Lotus Cars, with his remark that to make the car faster "you need to add lightness".
Simplify it.
With the deluge of content on YT it's become a rare thing to be truly impressed by anything anymore.
Hats off to you Sir, I'm impressed. 👍

[SaltGrains_Fready]

Congratulations !!!! You've done it dude !!!

You Get The Preppers Nobel Prize !!!
100% SIMPLE and Minimalist !! LESS IS MORE !!
You have created the total OFF GRID simple control of all time.
There's no limit to the way this can be built out with motors, bearings, and components !!

[carll]

I built a single axis solar tracker in college in 1980 that used an op amp and a couple of transistors to move a detector wheel. My device balanced the light hitting four 1 x 2 cm cells and it would set toward the west at night and spin to the east in the morning. It always found the sun from every possible position. Good work Night Hawk.

[hu]

Great video! I had seen a one axis version of this in other videos, but they all had the problem of the solar cells being in the light all the time, and therefore always fighting each other to drive the motor in opposite directions. This ended up causing very jerky motion, because there was not enough current to drive the motor until the sun had moved substantially, and then the stall torque finally let loose and let it move, resulting in a jerk motion. Yours is smooth as butter because all the cells are shielded from the sun until the sun has moved, and then only one in that axis gets the light. Absolutely one should baffle it the way you showed, because that will further block light from undesirable direction. Bravo, on a wonderful design!

[rodkirt]

Adding a tracking system only increases the power of the power by only 33% using a directional system; electronic directional aiming circuit. I get it! My system has 170 “static” 225 to 300 watt panels, that can produce about 29 kilowatts per hour With your suggestive control system, the expensive unpractical controller electronic controller would increase my system’s by 10 kilowatts per hour: = to 39 kilowatts per hour. Yeappers, a very nice increase. My system cost me about $40.000. A 33% increase would definitely be worth the small cost of your basic sensor. Bravo to you. !👍

[DIYPerks]

Very cool! I enjoyed following your thought process on this one. Such a clever idea!

[bettingru]

Simple yet genius invention. Thank you for sharing publicly before a big company claims patent rights.

[mickeyfilmer]

The simplicity of this makes it a brilliant concept design

[Bicyclehub]

That's not a crazy invention. It's just about the most sensible and brilliantly simple solution to this problem! You have done something wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing it.

[wyattfisher]

We designed a system that was exactly this for a class in college (18ish years ago). We realized that we could do it with one pair instead of 2 as long as we were willing to make weekly elevation adjustments manually.
We also built a system that was time-based with a wind-up alarm clock. It worked surprisingly well for having zero feedback.

[magisterchief]

This is without a doubt the smartest thing I've seen in a long time! So simple yet so brilliant.

[donm]

Very awesome and simple. For the Sunrise reset issue, inside of the East panel, mount 1 or 2 mirrors or more panels at around 45° each to form a 90°or so that will catch the rising sun and deflect it to down to the East panel causing it to rotate back to sunrise. I love this one, thanks, I'm going to build it, or multiple ones.

[Kahsimiah]

You know what? I LOVE that you're not 3D printing this! You're a craftsman, I respect that!
Plus, printing all the parts would take way more time than just putting in a bit of elbow grease!
Nice!

[SeanFarbolin]

I saw a guy at the Bay Area Maker Faire this year that had an electric assist bike that he made a solar panel trailer for. The panel could only tilt left to right, but the tracking method he used was really clever. It was two photoresistors mounted on the side of the panel, each pointing about, say 20-30 degrees off perpendicular in the axis of movement. These ran to a mini arduino which controlled a tiny linear actuator. It didn't use the shade. Instead, it took the analog input from the to photoresistors and tried to move the panel so that they would equal out. Similar in concept to how yours works, but I'm extremely impressed with the simplicity of your design. I spent the first half of the video looking for where the arduino!

[igornoga]

Adding aditional pannel facing backwards wired to the latteral motor should flip it in the morning. Angling your pannels outwards a bit will reduce deadzones. Also don't forget some diodes, pannels get damaged by reverse current.