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Issue #223 February 2009
PV Technology, Microstrips, and More
by C. J. Abate
In the February 2008 issue, we ran the last article in Steve Ciarcia’s three-part series about the design and installation of his photovoltaic (PV) system. That series marked an important point in this magazine’s history. We made it clear that we planned to focus on, and cultivate articles about, intelligent embedded technology solutions to energy-related problems. We challenged you to use the technologies introduced by Circuit Cellar authors and advertisers in your own embedded systems, whether that meant designing an energy-efficient, stand-alone system or developing MCU-based components to be used in larger “green” systems. This winter, we continue in this vein with Ed Nisley’s article, “Solar Measurements” (p. 24). If you plan to design a PV system, large or small, you should first make an effort to understand Ed’s techniques for evaluating panels. He focuses on the topics of PV technology, instrumentation, and circuit modeling.
Many discussions about “energy” or “green” topics end up at the important subject of water—the scarcity of water, water conservation systems, and the positive and negative effects of various forms of water usage. One thing is for sure: designing a system to monitor and control an area’s irrigation system is an important endeavor. In “Wireless Module Control,” Tom Kibalo describes his recently updated microcontroller-based irrigation control system (p. 14).
As usual, we also present articles about several other interesting subjects. On page 30, Larry Standage introduces the topic of processor modification. You can use the flexibility of soft-core processors to your advantage.
The second installment in Steve Hendrix’s series about power switching begins on page 43. This month, he describes practical solid-state power switching arrangements.
For an introduction to some exciting new wireless technologies, turn to Tom Cantrell’s article on page 50. These wireless gadgets—or wadgets, as Tom calls them—are sure to work well in your next embedded communications project.
On page 57, Jeff Bachiochi continues his series about using SD memory cards with embedded applications. He covers everything from implementing the FAT file format to move data to adding new commands and using ring buffers.
Do you know how microstrips are used in PBC designs? In “Microstrip Techniques,” Robert Lacoste introduces the topic of microstrips and describes microstripping techniques that you will find useful for many of your upcoming design projects (p. 64).
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