Defect Detection in PV Arrays Using Image Processing

Renewable energy continues to be an important part of the energy field. New wind, photovoltaic (PV) and hydro plants continue to be installed. Many PV farms have been in operation for years and are exhibiting defects and less efficient operation due to age as well as being constantly exposed to weather conditions, such as rain, ice, cold, heat and hail. In this research image processing operations are applied to PV panels to determine defects or damaged areas/panels. The proposed method can be utilized in real-time to determine the damaged areas and count the number of damaged panels.