SOLAR IT Electronic Measurement User Manual

: August 17, 2024
: Solar

SOLAR IT Electronic Measurement

Product Information

Specifications

Model: SOLAR03
Language Options: IT, EN, ES, DE, FR, PT
Technical Specifications: Refer to section 7

Product Usage Instructions

Precautions and Safety Measures
Before using the product, carefully read and adhere to the safety precautions outlined in the manual to prevent damage or harm.

General Description
The product is designed for measuring environmental parameters. It should not be used in humid environments or near explosive materials.

Preparation for Use

Initial Checks
Prior to use, perform initial checks to ensure the product is in proper working condition.

During Use
Follow the operational instructions provided during product use to obtain accurate measurements.

After Use
Properly store the product after each use to maintain its functionality.

Powering the Instrument
Refer to the manual for instructions on powering the instrument.

Storage
Store the instrument in a safe and dry place when not in use.

Nomenclature
Understand the different parts and buttons of the instrument as described in the manual.

PRECAUTIONS AND SAFETY

The MinEstArumSeUntR has been designed in compliance with the essential prescriptions of safety directives relevant to electronic measuring instruments. For your own safety and to avoid damaging the instrument we suggest you follow the procedures hereby described and to read carefully all the notes preceded by the symbol. Before and after carrying out measurements, carefully observe the following instructions

CAUTION

Do not take measurements in wet places as well as in the presence of explosive gas and combustibles or in dusty places
Avoid any contact with the circuit being measured if no measurements are being carried out.
Avoid any contact with exposed metal parts, with unused measuring probes, circuits, etc.
Do not carry out any measurement in case you ﬁnd anomalies in the instrument such as deformation, breaks, substance leaks, absence of display on the screen, etc.
Only use original accessories
This instrument has been designed for use in the environmental conditions speciﬁed in section § 7.2.
We recommend following the normal safety rules devised to protect the user against dangerous voltages and currents, and the instrument against incorrect use.
Do not apply any voltage to the instrument’s inputs.
Only the accessories provided together with the instrument will guarantee safety standards. They must be in good conditions and be replaced with identical models, when necessary.
Do not subject the instrument’s input connectors to strong mechanical shocks.
Make sure that batteries are correctly installed

The following symbol is used in this manual and on the instrument:
CAUTION : keep to what described by the manual. An incorrect use could damage the instrument or its components This symbol indicates that equipment and its accessories shall be subject to a separate collection and correct disposal

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The remote unit SOLAR03 has been designed to measure irradiance [W /m2] and temperature [°C] both on Monofacial and Bifacial photovoltaic modules by means of the relevant probes connected to it. The unit has been designed for use in combination with a Master instrument, to carry out measurements and recordings during maintenance operations on photovoltaic installations.
The unit can be connected to the following Master instruments and accessories:

PVCHECKs-PRO
Master instrument – Bluetooth BLE connection I-V600, PV-PRO HT305 Irradiance sensor, PT305 Temperature sensor
Table 1: List of master instruments and accessories
The remote unit SOLAR03 has the following characteristics:

Measurement of tilt angle of PV panels
Connection to irradiance and temperature probes
Real-time display of irradiance and temperature values of PV modules
Connection to a Master unit via Bluetooth connection
Synchronization with a Master unit to start recordings
Power supply through alkaline or rechargeable batteries with USB-C connection

PREPARATION FOR USE

INITIAL CHECKS

Before shipping, the instrument has been checked from an electric as wel as a mechanical point of view. All possible precautions have been taken so that the instrument is delivered undamaged. However, we recommend generally checking the instrument in order to detect possible damage suffered during transport. In case anomalies are found, immediately contact the forwarding agent. We also recommend checking that the packaging contains all components indicated in § 7.3.1. In case o discrepancy, please contact the Dealer. In case the instrument should be returned, please follow the instructions given in § 8

DURING USE
Please carefully read the following recommendations and instructions:

CAUTION

Failure to comply with the caution notes and/or instructions may damage the instrument and/or its components or be a source of danger for the operator.
The symbol “ ” indicates that the batteries are low. Stop testing and replace or recharge the batteries according to the indications given in § 6.1.
When the instrument is connected to the circuit being tested, never touch any terminal, even if unused.

AFTER USE
When measurements are completed, turn off the instrument by pressing and holding the ON/OFF key for a few seconds. If the instrument is not to be used for a long time, remove the batteries.

POWER SUPPLY
The instrument is powered by 2×1.5V batteries type AA IEC LR06 or 2×1.2V NiMH type AA rechargeable batteries. The condition of low batteries corresponds to the appearance of “low battery ” on the display. To replace or recharge the batteries, see § 6.1

STORAGE
To guarantee precise measurement, after a long storage time under extreme environmental conditions, wait for the instrument to come back to normal operating conditions (see § 7.2).

NOMENCLATURE

LCD display
USB-C input
Key (ON/OFF)
Key MENU/ESC
Key SAVE/ENTER
Arrow keys

Description

Slot for insertion of strap belt with magnetic terminal
Inputs INP1… INP4
Slot for insertion of strap belt with magnetic terminal
Battery compartment cover

DESCRIPTION OF FUNCTION KEYS

Key ON/OFF
Press and hold the key for at least 3s to switch on or off the instrument
Key MENU/ESC
Press key MENU to access the instrument’s general menu. Press key ESC to exit and go back to the initial screen
Key SAVE/ENTER
Press key SAVE to save a setting within the instrument. Press key ENTER to conﬁrm the selection of the parameters within the programming menu
Arrow keys
Keys used within the programming menu to select the values of the parameters

SWITCHING ON/OFF THE INSTRUMENT

SOLAR03 HT ITALIA S/N: 23123458 HW: 1.00 – FW: 1.02
Calibration Date : 22/03/2023

Press and hold the key for approx. 3s to switch on/off the instrument.
The screen to the side indicating the model, manufacturer, serial number, internal firmware (FW) and hardware (HW) version,and the date of the last calibration is shown by the unit for a few seconds
The screen to the side, which indicates that no probe is connected (indication “Off”) to inputs INP1… INP4 is shown on the display.
The meaning of the symbols is the following:
Irr. F Irradiance of the module’s front (monofacial)
Irr. BH Irradiance of the top part of the (Bifacial) module’s back
Irr. BL Irradiance of the bottom part of the (Bifacial) module’s back
Tmp/A Cell temperature / tilt angle of the module with regard to the horizontal plane (tilt angle)
Bluetooth Symbol of active Bluetooth connection (steady on the display) or searching for a connection (flashing on the display)

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

FOREWORD
The remote unit SOLAR03 carries out the following measurements:

Inputs INP1…INP3 à measurement of Irradiance (expressed in W m2) on Monofacial (INP1) and Bifacial (INP1 front and INP2 + INP3 back) modules through sensor(s) HT305
Input INP4 à measurement of Temperature of PV modules (expressed in °C) through sensor PT305 (only in connection with the Master unit – see Table 1)

The remote unit SOLAR03 operates in the following modes:

Independent operation with no connection to a Master instrument fo measurement in real time of irradiance values
Operation in Bluetooth BLE connection with a Master instrumen for the transmission of irradiance and temperature values of PV modules
Recording synchronized with a Master instrument, to record the PV modules’ irradiance and temperature values to be sent to the Maste instrument at the end of the test sequence
Press key MENU. The screen on the side appears on the display. Use the arrow keys and press key ENTER to enter the internal menus.
The following menus are available:
SETTINGS allows showing the probes’ data, setting the language and the system date/time.
MEMORY allows showing the list of saved recordings (REC), see the residual space and deleting the memory’s content
PAIRING allows pairing with the Master unit via Bluetooth connection
HELP activates the help on line on the display and shows the connection diagrams
INFO allows displaying the data of the remote unit: serial number, internal version of FW and HW
STOP RECORDING (displayed only after a recording has been started). It allows stopping a recording of the irradiance/temperature parameters in progress on the remote unit, previously started by a Master instrument paired with it (see § 5.4)

CAUTION: If a recording is stopped, the values of irradiance and temperature will be missing for all measurements carried out by the

Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “Inputs” as shown to the side and press ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Connect the reference cell HT305 to the input INP1 (monofacial module) or the three reference cells to the inputs INP1, INP2 and INP3 (Bifacial module). The instrument automatically detects the serial number of the cells and shows it on the display as indicated in the screen to the side. In case detection fails, the serial number is not valid or a cell is damaged, the message “Fault” appears on the display.
In case of connection of the input INP4, the following options are available:
Off no temperature probe connected
1 x °C temperature probe PT305 connection (recommended)
2 x °C coefﬁcient for the connection of a double temperature probe (currently not available)
Tilt A à setting of the measurement of the modules’ tilt angle
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “Date & Time” as shown to the side and press SAVE/ ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Use the arrow keys or to select options: Year, Month, Day, Time and Minutes
Use the arrow keys or to set the corresponding values, also considering the selection made in menu “Country & Language” o f the European (EU) or American (US) format.
Press key SAVE/ENTER to save the set values or ESC to go back to the main menu
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “Country & language” as shown to the side and press SAVE/ ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Use the arrow keys or to select the following parameters:
- Language Setting the system language among the available options
- Data Form. Setting of European (EU) or American (US) format
- Time Form. Setting of the time format between the options “24h” or “AM/PM”
Use the arrow keys or to set the corresponding values
Press key SAVE/ENTER to save the set values or ESC to go back to the main menu

The menu “Memory” allows displaying the list of the recordings saved in the instrument’s memory, the residual space (bottom part of the display) and deleting the saved recordings.
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “DATA” as shown to the side and press SAVE/ ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
The instrument shows on the display the list of recordings in a sequence (max 99), saved in the internal memory. For recordings, the initial and ﬁnal dates are indicated
Press the ESC key to exit the function and go back to the previous
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “Clear last recording?” to delete the last recording saved in the internal memory as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following message is shown on the display
Press the SAVE/ ENTER key to conﬁrm or the ESC key to exit and go back to the previous menu
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “Clear all data?” to delete ALL recordings saved in the internal memory as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following message is shown on the display
Press the SAVE/ ENTER key to conﬁrm or the ESC key to exit and go back to the previous menu

The remote unit SOLAR03 needs to be paired (Pairing) via Bluetooth connection to the Master unit upon ﬁrst use. Proceed as follows:

Activate, on the Master instrument, re pairing request (see the relevant instruction manual)
Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “PARING” as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Upon the request for pairing, conﬁrm with SAVE/ENTER to complete the pairing procedure between the remote unit and the Master instrument.
Once completed, the symbol “ BLUETOOTH ” appears steady on the display

Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “HELP” as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Use the arrow keys or to cyclically display the help screens for the connection of the instrument to the optional irradiance/temperature probes in case of Monofacial or Bifacial modules. The screen to the side appears on the display
Press the ESC key to exit the function and go back to the previous menu

Use the arrow keys or , select the menu “INFO” as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
The following information about the instrument are shown on the display:
- Model
- Serial Number
- Internal version of the Firmware (FW)
- Internal version of the Hardware (HW)
Press the ESC key to exit the function and go back to the previous menu

DISPLAY ENVIRONMENTAL PARAMETERS VALUES

The instrument allows the real-time display of the modules’ irradiance a temperature values. The temperature measurement of the modules ONLY possible if it is coupled to a Master unit). The measurements a performed using probes connected to it. It is also possible to measure t angle of inclination of the modules (tilt angle).

Switch on the instrument by pressing key Power button.
Connect one reference cell HT305 to input INP1 in case of Monofacial modules. The instrument automatically detects the presence of the cell, providing the value of irradiance expressed in W/m2. The screen to the side appears on the display
In case of Bifacial modules, connect the three reference cells HT305 the inputs INP1…INP3: (INP1 for Front Irr., and INP2 and INP3 for Ba Irr.). The instrument automatically detects the presence of the ce providing the corresponding values of irradiance expressed in W/m The screen to the side appears on the display
Connect the PT305 temperature probe to the INP4 input. The instrument recognizes the presence of the probe ONLY after being coupled to Master instrument (see § 5.2.3) providing the module temperatu value expressed in °C. The screen to the side is shown on the display
Rest the remote unit onto the modules’ surface. The instrument automatically provides the value of the module’s tilt angle with respect to the horizontal plane, expressed in [°]. The screen to the side appears on the display

CAUTION: The values read in real time are NOT saved in the internal memory

RECORDING VALUES OF PARAMETERS

The remote unit SOLAR03 allows saving in the instrument’s internal memory the references of the recordings over time of irradiance/temperature values during a measuring campaign carried out by the Master instrument to which it was associated.

CAUTION

Recording of irradiance/temperature values can ONLY be started by the Master instrument associated with the remote unit.
The recorded values of irradiance/temperature CANNOT be recalled on the remote unit’s display, but can only be used by the Master instrument, to which they are sent once measurements are complete, to save STC values

Associate and connect the remote unit to the Master instrument via Bluetooth connection (see the Master instrument’s user manual and § 5.2.3). The symbol “ BLUETOOTH ” must turn on steadily on the display.
Connect the irradiance and temperature probes to the remote unit, checking their values beforehand in real time (see § 5.3)
Activate the recording of SOLAR03 through the relevant control available on the associated Master instrument (see the Mast instrument’s user manual). The indication “REC” is shown on the disp l as indicated in the screen to the side. Recording interval is always (cannot be changed). With this sampling interval it is possible carry out recordings with the duration indicated in secti o “Memory”
Bring the remote unit near the modules and connect the irradiance temperature probes. Since SOLAR03 will record all values with interval of 1s, the Bluetooth connection with the MASTER unit is N longer strictly necessary
Once measurements carried out by the Master unit are complete, bri the remote unit near again, wait for the automatic connection and st recording on the Master instrument (see the relevant user manua The indication “REC” disappears from the display of the remote un Recording is automatically saved in the remote unit’s memory (see 5.2.2)
At any time it is possible to manually stop the recording of paramete on the remote unit. Use the arrow keys or , select control “STO RECORDING” as shown to the side and press key SAVE/ENTER. The following screen appears on the display
Press key SAVE/ ENTER to conﬁrm that recording should be stopped. The message “WAIT” shortly appears on the display and recording is automatically saved

CAUTION : In case recording is stopped from the remote unit, values of irradiance/temperature will be missing for the measurements subsequently carried out with the Master instrument, and therefore measurements @STC will not be saved

MAINTENANCE

CAUTION

To prevent possible damage or danger while using or storing the instrument, carefully observe the recommendations listed in this manual.
Do not use the instrument in environments with high humidity levels or high temperatures. Do not expose to direct sunlight.
In case the instrument is not to be used for a long time, remove the alkaline batteries to avoid liquid leaks that could damage the internal circuits

REPLACING OR RECHARGING THE BATTERIES
The presence of symbol “ ” on the display indicates that the internal batteries are low and that it is necessary to replace them (if alkaline) or recharge them (if rechargeable). For this operation, proceed as follows:
Battery replacement

Switch off remote unit SOLAR03
Remove any probe from its inputs
Open the battery compartment cover on the back (see Fig.3 – part 2)
Remove the low batteries and replace them with the same number of batteries of the same type (see § 7.2), respecting the indicated polarity.
Restore the battery compartment cover to its position.
Do not scatter old batteries into the environment. Use the relevant containers for disposal.

The instrument is capable of keeping data stored even without batteries.
Recharging the internal battery

Keep the remote unit SOLAR03 switched on
Remove any probe from its inputs
Connect the USB-C/USB-A cable to the instrument’s input (see Fig.1 – part 2) and to a USB port of a PC, or use a 230V/5V, 50/60Hz, – part 2) and to a USB port of a PC, or use a 230V/5V, 50/60Hz, >500mA mains power supply, not provided with the instrument. The symbol “ ” is shown on the display, to indicate that recharging is in progress.
As an alternative, it is possible to use the optional external battery charger (see attached packing list) to recharge the rechargeable batteries.
Periodically check battery charge status by associating the remote unit to the Master instrument and opening the information section

CLEANING
Use a soft and dry cloth to clean the instrument. Never use wet cloths, solvents, water, etc.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Accuracy is indicated at reference conditions: 23°C, <80%RH

Irradiance Inputs INP1, INP2, INP3
- Range [W/m2] : 0 ÷ 14001(*)
- Resolution [W/m2] : ±(1.0%reading + 3dgt)
- *Accuracy ()**
  Accuracy of the sole instrument, without probe HT305
Module temperature Input INP4
- Range [°C]: -40.0 ÷ 99.9
- Resolution [°C] :0.1
- Accuracy : ±(1.0%reading + 1°C)
Tilt angle (internal sensor)
- Range [°]: 1 ÷ 90
- Resolution [°] : 1
- *Accuracy ():* ±(1.0%reading+1°)
  () Accuracy referred to the range: 5° ÷ 85°

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

Reference guidelines

Safety : IEC/EN61010-1
EMC : IEC/EN61326-1

Display and internal memory

Characteristics : LCD graphic, COG, 128x64pxl, with backlight
Updating frequency : 0.5s
Internal memory : max 99 recordings (linear memory)
Duration : ca. 60 hours (fixed sampling interval 1s)

Available connections

Master unit : Bluetooth BLE (ca. 100m on open field)
Battery charger : USB-C

Characteristics of Bluetooth module

Frequency range :2.400 ÷ 2.4835GHz
R &TTE category: Class 1
Max transmission power : <100mW (20dBm)

ACCESSORIES
Provided accessories: See the attached packing list

SERVICE

WARRANTY CONDITIONS
This instrument is warranted against any material or manufacturing defect, in compliance with the general sales conditions. During the warranty period, defective parts may be replaced. However, the manufacturer reserves the right to repair or replace the product. Should the instrument be returned to the After-sales Service or to a Dealer, transport will be at the Customer’s charge. However, shipment will be agreed in advance. A report will always be enclosed to a shipment, stating the reasons for the product’s return. Only use original packaging for shipment; any damage due to the use of nonoriginal packaging material will be charged to the Customer. The manufacturer declines any responsibility for injury to people or damage to property.
The warranty shall not apply in the following cases:

Repair and/or replacement of accessories and batteries (not covered by warranty).
Repairs that may become necessary because of an incorrect use of the instrument or due to its use together with non-compatible appliances.
Repairs that may become necessary because of improper packaging.
Repairs which may become necessary because of interventions performed by unauthorized personnel.
Modifications to the instrument performed without the manufacturer’s explicit authorization.
Use not provided for in the instrument’s specifications or in the instruction manual.

The content of this manual cannot be reproduced in any form without the manufacturer’s authorization. Our products are patented, and our trademarks are registered. The manufacturer reserves the right to make changes in the specifications and prices if this is due to improvements in technology

SERVICE

If the instrument does not operate properly, before contacting the After-sales Service, please check the conditions of the battery and replace it, if necessary. Should the instrument still operate improperly, check that the product is operated according to the instructions given in this manual. Should the instrument be returned to the After-sales Service or to a Dealer, transport will be at the Customer’s charge. However, shipment will be agreed in advance. A report will always be enclosed to a shipment, stating the reasons for the product’s return. Only use original packaging for shipment; any damage due to the use of non-original packaging material will be charged to the Customer