Case study

Introduction

The diagnostics of large-scale PV power plants using drones equipped with thermal cameras plays a crucial role in maintaining their optimal performance. In 2022, together with Nomad Electric, we initiated work on creating an innovative product that automates the analysis of photos taken during inspections.

Nomad Electric is a leader in the field of operation and maintenance (O&M) of large-scale photovoltaic farms. The company has a portfolio of projects with a total capacity of over 1.1 GWp, manages PV power plants through a modern Monitoring Center, and utilizes proprietary SCADA software called Nomad NX. The company continuously maximizes the profitability of the installations it manages by employing the latest technologies. They were seeking a technological partner with whom they could create a tailor-made solution for the O&M area. We began our collaboration, during which Nomad Electric contributed their extensive experience and specialized knowledge.

Challenge

Manual processing and interpretation of thermal imaging photos are very time-consuming and require significant effort, resulting in long waiting times for the final report. Nomad Electric was looking for an artificial intelligence-based solution that would automate this process and accelerate the identification of faults or failures.

The solution consists of the following elements:

Advanced algorithms

Get Vision utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning for the automatic processing and interpretation of thermal imaging photos. The algorithms accurately identify and categorize various types of faults or failures in photovoltaic panels (such as damaged bypass diodes, full string failures, hotspots, shading caused by vegetation growth). They also automatically generate information about the impact of identified failures on electricity production and indicate the location of the damage in the solar park (orthophotomap).

User interface

The user interface is highly intuitive and allows technicians to easily navigate the platform, including file uploading, browsing analysis results, and generating reports.

Reporting module

The reporting module enables the monitoring of individual inspection indicators over time, both for individual objects and entire farms.

Benefits

With this innovative product, inspections become more precise, reliable, and efficient, contributing to increased performance and durability of PV panels.