Toolkit for I-V Characterization of Photovoltaic Cells
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This toolkit is part of the article on photovoltaic cell I-V characterization theory: Part II – Photovoltaic Cell I-V Characterization Theory and LabVIEW Analysis Code. The other two articles in this series are:
Downloads
Filename: solarivtoolkit_with_smu.zip
Requirements: View
Filename: solarivtoolkit_nohardware.zip
Requirements: View
Toolkit for I-V Analysis with LabVIEW
Using NI LabVIEW analysis capabilities, you can assess the main performance parameters for photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules. To facilitate the I-V analysis, National Instruments has created hardware-independent LabVIEW functions to perform the forward-bias I-V characterization analysis. There are two versions available for download: one is hardware independent and can be used with previously acquired data, while the other can, in addition, acquire the data using a NI PXI-4130 Power SMU. Figure 1 shows a screenshot of the toolkit’s main VI that reads data from a file (the sample data is included with the download).
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Figure 1. LabVIEW VI for Photovoltaic Solar Cell Characterization
The downloadable toolkits contain the following code for forward-bias I-V characterization tests:
- Project file that contains the main VIs, sample data, I-V analysis functions
- A main VI set to read and analyze data that was previously acquired and saved in LVM format
- A main VI that can be run with National Instruments hardware, as described in Part III of this series. It acquires, analyzes, and presents the results of the I-V characterization. (SMU version only)
- Sample data that has been collected in nonstandard conditions from a poly-crystalline solar module
- I-V analysis functions (can be used within the projects, or in creating one's own code).
Some consideration to take into account are that the code was developed in LabVIEW 8.6 and that the toolkit contains functions from the Math Analysis palette (for example, “Linear Fit.vi”) that come with the LabVIEW Full Development System.
Figure 2. LabVIEW Project for Photovoltaic Solar Cell Characterization
Requirements
Filename: solarivtoolkit_with_smu.zip
Software Requirements
Application Software: LabVIEW Full Development System 8.6
Language(s): LabVIEW
Hardware Requirements
Hardware Group: Power Supplies
Hardware Model: PXI-4130
Driver: NI-DCPower
Software Requirements
Application Software: LabVIEW Full Development System 8.6
Language(s): LabVIEW
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This example program (this "program") was developed by a National Instruments Applications Engineer. National Instruments does not support this code or guarantee its quality in any way. THIS EXAMPLE PROGRAM IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND AND SUBJECT TO CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS AS MORE SPECIFICALLY SET FORTH IN NI.COM'S TERMS OF USE (http://ni.com/legal/termsofuse/unitedstates/us/).