PORTABLE SUN SPOTTER PORTABLE

Setting the tracker to the solar altitude, unlike orienting to North -or pivoting the solar panel to face the sun, is NOT intuitive. And my digital compass will not give readings if any magnetic interference is detected.ДЄnd my trusty vintage handheld GPS device will not funtion as a compass, when standing still. Rose, will provide highly accurate results.ДЄ standard, traditional compass, even when set for magnetic declination, can all to often beДЄffected by nearby power lines and metallic objects, producing faulty readings. Then rotating the pda until the thin shadow crosses both the 'sun' and the center of the compass Holding the pda stylus perpendicular to the screen, to create a shadow across the screen, and And, when the program is opened, the 'sun' will always appear in the exact position. It's easy to initially set up: Just enter the time and select your city, from a long list on the program. Version 1.8' (freeware), on my Palm TX pda. To quickly and accurately orient the sun tracker to true north, I prefer to use the 'Sun Compass

PORTABLE SUN SPOTTER PORTABLE

Portable 12 Volt, 12 Watt solar panel, a real work horse, is set up and now ready to generate power. But I love to see how these things progress. Let me know if you try this, as I have to move on to other projects and simply don't have time to develop and refine it. Only upper and lower reflectors would then be needed, to compensate for latitude and solar angle. But, in the case of a solar oven, it seems that the best way, for a solar tracker, would have the cooking pot resting securely on a firm foundation, with a lightweight clock-driven reflector / glass window housing revolving around the heavy cooking pot. Two clock mechanisms, mounted in tandem, should work quite well for even larger solar panels -or a lightweight solar oven, mounted on a horizontal 'lazy susan' ball bearing base. But serendipity played its hand to perfectly match the rotation of the panel to the path of the sun.ДЄ larger solar panel could be mounted on the rig, and solvent could be used to remove the grease from the ball bearings, and light machine oil added instead, to track at the same rate.

The mass of the panel, the power-out cord, and the internal resistance of the grease, retards the speed of the geared down clock mechanism only about 1/3rd of one percent.

The solar panel pivots on roller bearings, with internal greased ball bearings. Holes were then drilled and short 1/4' threaded shafts inserted and tightened down with nuts and large washers to provide an absolutely straight axis. 21 tooth gear: Part Number: A 1T 2-Y24021 36 tooth gear: Part Number: A 1T 2-Y24036ДЄ lightweight, 12VDC, 12 Watt solar panel was mounted to a wooden frame (varnished in advance) and carefully balanced, between two push-pins, to find the center of gravity, for the axis. The spur gears were ordered from: Sterling Instrument / Stock Drive Products 51 fax: 51 Excellent schematics provided online for all gears. The massof the lightweight 12 Volt, 12 Watt mono-crystalline solar panel, delicately balanced, slows the speed of the clock mechanism about a third of one percent. The electrical contacts of the Intermatic timer were gutted to reduce drag. The heart of the unit is a standard Intermatic wall timer (Model FD12HC), with a 21 tooth spur gear mounted on the 3/16' diameter timer knob shaft, and a 36 tooth spur gear mounted on the 1/4' threaded axis that holds and rotates the solar panel. The lightweight, but sturdy device is a real workhorse, ready to provide power in the field for contractors, third world homesteads, camping trips, vacation cabins, scientifc research field stations, recharging electric powered radio controlled model aircraft, and sound systems for park events. Another little-known advantage of sun tracking solar panels is that they run cooler, which enhances their output, versus rooftop mounted panels, or panels flat on the ground, which tend to build up a considerable amount of heat. The tracking ability of the panel provides about 40% more power than a fixed panel.

I've just designed and built a homemade solar tracker than can be easily set to accurately align to the altitude of the sun (as it changes daily, with the seasons), and also faithfully track the sun, from sunrise to sunset.

Portable sun spotter