Good points, jmiller - there are several variables to consider. Not only could the system optimize tracking with energy efficiency, I could also envision an automated protective cover for extreme weather protection (hail) and a system that could remove debris accumulation - perhaps some type of blower or rake - I wonder if that is on those systems...
I suppose it would also depend on the amount of cloud cover, the time of year, the amount of daylight available. Several different complex variables for a complex system.
I agree I would like to see a follow up later. However, I have never really known the government to follow up and make sure our tax dollars were spent wisely.
That's a good point about the expected deliverables. But, I think ROI will take more than 6-12 months. The US gov't doesn't historically get a quick return on investment. It would be interesting to look at how the development not only helps Qbotix but all solar companies.
More details from Qbotix on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKiDeEL0leY
Very interesting - it must be hard to find the balance between energy used tracking the sun and the optimum tracking interval for energy gained tracking the sun.
For the amount of money invested into this technology, it seems that the expected deliverables from this company will be:
"reducing the electricity requirement of the system by 20 percent while increasing the output of the panels by up to 15 percent"
It would be good to see the DoE follow up after 6-12 months to make sure that these deliverables are on-track and that this investment into this solar technology will pay off and come to fruition.
A new battery design, which replaces lithium with abundant and low-cost elemental sulfur, is still in its nascent stages but shows real promise for giving batteries more energy potential.
PTC will offer a virtual desktop environment for its Creo product design applications, potentially freeing engineers to run them from remote desktops on a variety of operating systems and mobile devices.
The push to achieving more intelligent, integrated manufacturing is putting a strong focus on networking and connectivity as key enabling technologies.
Now that solar and wind harvesting technologies are a thriving market, researchers are seeking other environmentally related energy sources for which they can create harvesting devices.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
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For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
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