Servo positioning power tower collectors for solar heat conversion to electricity

An overview of Honeywell's Power Tower concept for conversion of solar generated heat to electricity is presented. The Solar Collector Subsystem control problem is defined. Operating modes including normal tracking, offset pointing, periodic calibration, stowage, and initialization are explained. Mathematics of sun vector computation and atmospheric refraction compensation are discussed. The process of attitude command generation and communication to the individual heliostats is outlined. Features of the control concept which contribute to cost effectiveness are highlighted throughout.