Enphase Energy is now able to deliver microinverter technology for the solar power industry that is said to increase energy production, simplify design and installation, improve system reliability, reduce fire risk, and provide a platform for intelligent energy management.
The Enphase monitoring platform, Enlighten, receives 600 million messages and carries 1.2 terabytes of data daily, a number that is growing rapidly as new solar energy systems are deployed. This critical data, managed and analysed by Enlighten in the cloud, enables the monitoring of energy generation as well as facilitating remote maintenance and repair to ensure seamless system operation.
According to Farshad A Samimi, PhD, Sr Product Manager, Enphase, “Consumers may change their smartphone every year or two, but with solar energy systems and related communication devices, reliability and longevity are far more important — we need devices that can run for 10 plus years. MultiTech’s family of rugged, industrial cellular modems and routers, combined with advanced M2M network connectivity ensures long-term stability.”
Since communications gateways like Enphase’s Envoy have traditionally relied on a WiFi® or wired broadband system in the home, the system installer and third-party system owner have had to contact homeowners to get access to their internet — which may not even be available or reachable depending on where the gateway is installed. Each time a homeowner changes his or her password or switches internet providers, the solar system owner has to arrange with the homeowner to reconfigure the gateway to keep it connected.
Addressing connectivity issues can take days or weeks to identify and resolve. As a result, a non-trivial percentage of systems are typically unconnected each day and technicians must spend time dealing with connectivity issues.
Now, Enphase and MultiTech have found a solution with the introduction of an M2M approach that ensures reliable connectivity and does not rely on the homeowner’s personal internet service. Enabled by the MultiConnect® Cell 100 Series cellular modem, Enphase’s cellular solution features a plug and play configuration that simply connects the modem to the Envoy communications gateway, which then transmits via a cellular network to Enlighten. Globally certified, carrier approved and designed specifically for rugged M2M communications, MultiTech’s modems are reported to be durable and easy-to-install providing a long, stable lifecycle.
The low cost of deploying reliable cellular solutions and advances in M2M and big data technologies means that a future “where tens of millions of solar rooftops add up to a cleaner planet” is within reach, says Samimi.
