Design and Development of Microcontroller Based Solar Charge Controller

Abstract — Solar Energy- the ultimate and future source of energy is getting its importance day by day and will become the most prime important source of energy for mankind in the near future. Solar powered equipment and applications are gradually getting its way into the various sector of our day to day life. We need a storage or battery to store the solar energy which was harnessed during the day time and to supply power or energy when the sunlight is not available. Smart Solar Charge Controller which is part of solar power system is designed such that the solar battery gets recharged quickly and does not get over discharged thereby ensuring the prolonged lifespan of the solar battery. Once it reaches fully charged condition, a logic system in the charger will keep the battery on trickle charge. The charge controller will have smart battery management system in built. The charge controller will also take care of the deep discharge protection and cut off the load when the battery reaches a certain level when discharged. Keywords—Charge controller, Battery, Solar panel, Microcontroller, trickle charge