Real-Time Solar Monitoring with Charging and Grid Control Using IoT

This paper presents the design and implementation of a real-time solar monitoring system with an integrated charging and smart grid control mechanism, emphasizing the novelty of grid integration into a hybrid power system. The system utilizes an ESP8266 microcontroller interfaced with voltage, current, and temperature sensors to monitor solar panel performance and environmental conditions. Data is transmitted to the IoT platform ThingSpeak for real-time display and analysis. A 12V lead-acid battery is charged via a solar charging circuit, and smart grid control is achieved through relays, enabling automatic switching between solar, battery, and grid power for uninterrupted power supply. When solar energy is sufficient, the system powers the load directly from the solar panel while charging the battery. When solar panel output is insufficient, it intelligently switches to grid power, which supplies the load and also charges the battery. If both solar and grid power are unavailable, the system seamlessly transitions to battery power. The system is implemented using an 18V solar panel, and an Arduino microcontroller is employed to manage the relay-based switching mechanism. This hybrid power system integrates real-time solar monitoring with smart grid functionality to enhance energy efficiency and reliability.