subject: All About Solar Pathfinder [print this page] Today in this hi-tech world where people are tired of pollution, global warming, increase in global temperature people are shifting to natural ways. Everybody wants to go green. Solar power is an eco-friendly way to things. Solar energy is the energy of sun which is very important in all the tasks such as electricity generation etc.
What is a solar pathfinder?
Solar Pathfinder is the device which helps with harness suns energy. It helps to find out the amount of solar energy that a given point will receive in a year, taking into account shading from nearby buildings or plant growth. It is a non electronic device.
What is the solar pathfinder made of?
The Solar Pathfinder is made up of highly polished, transparent and convex plastic dome to give a wide view of the whole site. It consists of three sections-base section, dome section and instrument section. All the plants, buildings and the other obstructions to the sun can be clearly seen as reflections on the surface of the dome. At the same time the sun path diagram can also be seen on the transparent dome.
How do solar pathfinder works?
The solar pathfinder can work at any time of day. It can even be used in the moonlight, cloudy or clear weather since it works on a reflective principle rather than actually showing shadows. The actual position of the sun at the time of the solar site analysis is irrelevant. In fact, the device can be easily used in the absence of direct sunlight.
It works by using the reflections of surrounding shadows and shading on the wide and transparent plastic dome that covers the instrument. Under the plastic dome a replaceable paper diagram of the sun path with specific daily figures on it for a complete solar year. When the shading is traced on the paper sun path with the help of the slots on the dome sides, this helps the users calculate the absolute amount of solar energy that point will get.
With this information, placement of solar arrays and panels can be precise to the area itself, allowing for corrections if a specific area is not fulfilling the power production requirements, etc
What are the uses of solar pathfinder?
Solar pathfinder will help in calculating the amount of power generation. Architects can use the device for solar calculation and also for more important uses. It includes the need of afforesting in an area have better shading in high temperatures. It could also be used to decide the exact angle to make buildings, keeping in mind the solar movement throughout the year. The device will help a lot in industries such as landscape management, as different plants can have different light requirements.
Plants planted in one month and planted in another month may not get enough sunshine that it needs for growth, or some may get too much for their proper growth. With the help of the Pathfinder, a number of guesstimates which used to be made regularly for these projects would drop down to zero and hence it will eliminate replanting costs. Recreational industries will also be at an advantage form the use of this instrument by finding out how much tree trimming will be needed.
The solar pathfinder will help in the use of solar devices and hence people will start using eco-friendly methods solving problems like global warming, pollution and increase in global temperature etc.
