Positioning a UAV for Infrared Inspection of Several Rows of Solar Panels Simultaneously

When photovoltaic (PV) solar panels in a PV power plant deteriorate after some time of operation, a thermographic inspection with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be necessary. Often, faulty panels, or cells within panels, radiate heat that is visible with infrared (IR) cameras. When performing a thermographic inspection of solar panel faults from a UAV, the correct choice of position for the UAV depends on several factors. The camera's pixel resolution and field of view (FOV) set a distance threshold between the panel and the UAV according to a minimum resolution requirement. This threshold is also dependent on the angle between the panel and the UAV. Because of the vast size of some PV power plants, inspecting several rows of panels simultaneously is often appropriate. Latitude-dependent row-to-row distances limit the number of rows which fit inside the FOV which leads to site-dependent strategies. This paper analyzes several key factors, concerning the choice of position for a thermographic inspection of a solar PV power plant with a UAV.