Open Access
OPTIMIZING OPEN HARDWARE FOR SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC RACKING: A GEOGRAPHICAL CASE STUDY APPROACH
4
School of Renewable Energy, Ontario Tech University, Canada
Abstract
This study investigates the geographical dependence of open hardware optimization in the context of solar photovoltaic (PV) racking systems. Open hardware, which is often developed through community-driven initiatives, can significantly impact the scalability and cost-effectiveness of renewable energy systems. The case study focuses on the optimization of PV racking systems, which are critical components for the proper installation and performance of solar panels. By analyzing the variations in environmental, climatic, and regulatory conditions across different geographical regions, the research aims to identify key factors that influence the design and performance of open-source racking hardware. The results demonstrate that optimizing solar racking systems for local conditions such as wind speed, temperature, and material availability can enhance the overall efficiency and sustainability of solar PV installations.
Keywords
Geographical dependence,
open hardware,
solar photovoltaic
References
Raymond, E. The cathedral and the bazaar. Knowl. Technol. Policy 1999, 12, 23–49. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Herstatt, C.; Ehls, D. Open Source Innovation—The Phenomenon, Participant’s Behavior, Business Implications; Routledge: New York, NY, USA, 2015; ISBN 1-317-62425-4. [Google Scholar]
Lee, S.-Y.T.; Kim, H.-W.; Gupta, S. Measuring open source software success. Omega 2009, 37, 426–438. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Weber, S. The Success of Open Source; Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA, USA, 2005; ISBN 0-674-04499-1. [Google Scholar]
Lakhani, K.R.; Von Hippel, E. How Open Source Software Works: “Free” User-to-User Assistance. In Produktentwicklung Mit Virtuellen Communities: Kundenwünsche Erfahren und Innovationen Realisieren; Gabler Verlag: Wiesbaden, Germany, 2004; pp. 303–339. [Google Scholar]
Zeitlyn, D. Gift economies in the development of open source software: Anthropological reflections. Res. Policy 2003, 32, 1287–1291. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Comino, S.; Manenti, F.M.; Parisi, M.L. From planning to mature: On the success of open source projects. Res. Policy 2007, 36, 1575–1586. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Hiteshdawda. Realising the Value of Cloud Computing with Linux; Rackspace: San Antonio, TX, USA, 2020. [Google Scholar]
Parloff, R. How Linux Conquered the Fortune 500; Fortune: New York, NY, USA, 2013. [Google Scholar]
Supercomputers: All Linux, All the Time. Available online: https://www.zdnet.com/article/supercomputers-all-linux-all-the-time/ (accessed on 16 February 2023).
IDC. Smartphone Market Share. Available online: https://www.idc.com/promo/smartphone-market-share (accessed on 16 February 2023).
Eclipse IoT. IoT Developer Survey. 2019. Available online: https://iot.eclipse.org/community/resources/iot-surveys/assets/iot-developer-survey-2019.pdf (accessed on 13 March 2023).
Gal, M.S. Viral open source: Competition vs. synergy. J. Compet. Law Econ. 2012, 8, 469–506. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Hausberg, J.P.; Spaeth, S. Why makers make what they make: Motivations to contribute to open source hardware development. R D Manag. 2020, 50, 75–95. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Gibb, A. Building Open Source Hardware: DIY Manufacturing for Hackers and Makers; Pearson Education: London, UK, 2014; ISBN 0-321-90604-7. [Google Scholar]
Spaeth, S.; Hausberg, P. Can Open Source Hardware Disrupt Manufacturing Industries? The Role of Platforms and Trust in the Rise of 3d Printing. In the Decentralized and Networked Future of Value Creation; Springer: Cham, Switzerland, 2016; ISBN 3-319-31684-2. [Google Scholar]
Powell, A. Democratizing production through open source knowledge: From open software to open hardware. Media Cult. Soc. 2012, 34, 691–708. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Petrovič, P.; Vaško, J. An Open Solution for a Low-Cost Educational Toy. In Proceedings of the Robotics in Education: Current Research and Innovations 10, Vienna, Austria, 10–12 April 2019; Springer: Cham, Switzerland, 2020; pp. 196–208. [Google Scholar]
Petersen, E.E.; Kidd, R.W.; Pearce, J.M. Impact of DIY Home Manufacturing with 3D Printing on the Toy and Game Market. Technologies 2017, 5, 45. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Pearce, J.M. Open-Source Lab: How to Build Your Own Hardware and Reduce Research Costs; Newnes: New South Wales, Australia, 2013; ISBN 0-12-410486-X. [Google Scholar]
Oellermann, M.; Jolles, J.W.; Ortiz, D.; Seabra, R.; Wenzel, T.; Wilson, H.; Tanner, R.L. Open Hardware in Science: The Benefits of Open Electronics. Integr. Comp. Biol. 2022, 62, 1061–1075. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Chagas, A.M.; Molloy, J.C.; Prieto-Godino, L.L.; Baden, T. Leveraging open hardware to alleviate the burden of COVID-19 on global health systems. PLoS Biol. 2020, 18, e3000730. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Stirling, J.; Bowman, R. The COVID-19 Pandemic Highlights the Need for Open Design Not Just Open Hardware. Des. J. 2021, 24, 299–314. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Pearce, J.M. Distributed Manufacturing of Open Source Medical Hardware for Pandemics. J. Manuf. Mater. Process. 2020, 4, 49. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
EVerest: The Open Source Software Stack for EV Charging Infrastructure. Available online: https://www.zdnet.com/article/everest-the-open-source-software-stack-for-electric-vehicle-charging-infrastructure/ (accessed on 16 February 2023).
All Our Patent Are Belong to You. Available online: https://www.tesla.com/blog/all-our-patent-are-belong-you (accessed on 16 February 2023).
The Green Living Guy. Ford Motor Company Announces Open Source Portfolio of EV Patents. Available online: https://greenlivingguy.com/2015/06/ford-motor-company-announces-open-source-portfolio-of-ev-patents/ (accessed on 16 February 2023).
Dobbelaere, T.; Vereecken, P.M.; Detavernier, C. A USB-controlled potentiostat/galvanostat for thin-film battery characterization. Hardwarex 2017, 2, 34–49. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Sylvestrin, G.R.; Scherer, H.F.; Junior, O.H.A. Hardware and Software Development of an Open Source Battery Management System. IEEE Lat. Am. Trans. 2021, 19, 1153–1163. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Carloni, A.; Baronti, F.; Di Rienzo, R.; Roncella, R.; Saletti, R. An Open-Hardware and Low-Cost Maintenance Tool for Light-Electric-Vehicle Batteries. Energies 2021, 14, 4962. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Fleming, J.; Amietszajew, T.; McTurk, E.; Towers, D.P.; Greenwood, D.; Bhagat, R. Development and evaluation of in-situ instrumentation for cylindrical Li-ion cells using fibre optic sensors. Hardwarex 2018, 3, 100–109. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Yensen, N.; Allen, P.B. Open source all-iron battery for renewable energy storage. Hardwarex 2019, 6, e00072. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Most read articles by the same author(s)
- Prof. Priyank Mehta, SECURING CLOUD ENVIRONMENTS WITH HOMOMORPHIC ENCRYPTION , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024): Volume 01 Issue 01 2024
- Dr. Prakash Kumar, INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF WELDING CONDITIONS ON THE TENSILE STRENGTH OF GMAW JOINTS , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024): Volume 01 Issue 01 2024
- Dr. Rajni Ayer, SHAPING CONSUMER CHOICES: THE ROLE OF ADVERTISEMENTS IN FMCG PURCHASES IN THANJAVUR TOWN , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024): Volume 01 Issue 01 2024
- Michael Lee, David Zhang, FROM INSPECTION TO INNOVATION: THE GROWTH OF STRUCTURAL HEALTH MONITORING IN MODERN ENGINEERING , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 03 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 03
- Dr. Dakota Johnson, ADVANCED MULTI-ATTRIBUTE DECISION-MAKING: A PICTURE FUZZY EINSTEIN OPERATOR AND TOPSIS APPROACH , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 04 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 04
- Dr. Parth Gautam, IOT and AI-Based Automatic Crash Detection Systems for Emergency Services: A Review , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 07 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 07
- Muhammad arslan Shabbir, Seismic Performance Evaluation of Reinforced Concrete Buildings Using Nonlinear Analysis , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 04 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 04
- Illia Porokhnavets, Application of Reverse Engineering Methods for Manufacturing Lost Components of Rare European Car Engines , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 05 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 05
- Prof. Kenji A. Takada, EVALUATING CONVERSATIONAL AND PLATFORM-INTEGRATED GENERATIVE AI FOR AUTOMATED, TIMELY FEEDBACK IN PROGRAMMING EDUCATION: A QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL STUDY UTILIZING GPT-4O-MINI , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 10 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 10
- Diego Martínez, Nicolás Cabrera, Laura Benítez, Optimizing Software Deployment: A Framework for Automation through DevOps, CI/CD, and Containerization , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 10 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 10
Similar Articles
- Dr. Mostafa Jamali, Dr. Elham Khosravi, Intelligent Fuzzy Logic-Based Control Framework for Enhanced Efficiency in Dual-Axis Solar Tracking System Design and Implementation , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 06 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 06
- Dr. Elena Rossi, Dr. Samuel O. Mensah, Brain-Inspired Computing: Bridging Neurobiology and Artificial Intelligence , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 06 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 06
- Dr. M. S. Wibowo, A Novel Two-Point Velocity Method for Determining Manning's Roughness Coefficient Under Equilibrium and Nonequilibrium Sediment Transport Conditions , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 10 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 10
- Kodirov Shokhrukh, The Impact of AI Automation on Reducing Operating Costs and Improving Decision-Making Accuracy in Enterprise Platforms , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 2 No. 11 (2025): Volume 02 Issue 11
- Dr. Abdullah Al-Harbi, Dr. Reem Al-Zahrani, Development of an IoT-Based Automated Clothesline Retrieval and Monitoring System Using the Blynk Mobile Application Framework , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 06 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 06
- Dr. Parth Gautam, IOT and AI-Based Automatic Crash Detection Systems for Emergency Services: A Review , International Research Journal of Advanced Engineering and Technology: Vol. 3 No. 07 (2026): Volume 03 Issue 07
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.