Installing the solar panel is an important part of the platform since it will supply power needed to operate long term out at sea.
There are many options on how to set-up solar panel circuitry with this. I’m not even sure which one is the best setup.
Anyway, I have a distrust for the solar charge controllers that I bought because somehow the solar charge controllers are not functioning properly. It’s charging more than 12v during day light then when it outputs in the evening, its reading is 11v to 10v. The advantage of having the solar charge controller is the 24 hour cycle of power since it works with a battery to store power for use during night time and voltage protection.
The solar charge controller is ideal for 24 hour operation if the goal of the coastal platform is mitigation of Illegal, Unreported, or Unregulated fishing.
If the purpose of the coastal platform is coral watching, then the platform does not need a solar charge controller since it will operate only during daylight when the solar panel is powering
Circuit I used:
I chose this setup since I have an 18.5v solar panel which the solar charge controller can converter for the 12v battery. The solar charge controller provides power for both microcontrollers and the PROFET shield.
Note: PROFET shield not supplying power to stacked microcontroller such as Arduino uno or the xmc4700
With all this hooked up, I’m beginning to think that my power management is mediocre. I haven’t tested how long the battery will last with all this power consumption. To compensate, I can add more solar panels or batteries by connecting them in parallel to maintain the 12v mark to make it last longer.