Paper provides an overview of passive thermographic analysis of photovoltaic panels. Operation state of real photovoltaic system, power plant ETFOS 1, is described through detailed thermographic documentation. The importance of education needed for correct measurement and interpretation of thermodynamic state of photovoltaic (PV) modules has been emphasized. Influences that can change apparent temperature as reflection, transmission and emissivity of analyzed object are described. All parameters that influence on formation of thermographic records are analyzed. Problems in determining the actual temperature of PV module are illustrated with a scientific background. Through the analysis of 16 thermographs and their corresponding visual images, the state of the photovoltaic modules was presented. Three unexpected thermal patterns were observed and compared with the relevant literature.

This paper presents an intelligent electronic device (IED) utilized for automatic meter readings (AMR) scheme using “Open-Source” software. This IED is utilized to measure a low-voltage intelligent electronic device) system with a boundless number of sensors, and it is accessible on the Internet of Things (IoT). The utilized equipment for this task is Arduino UNO R3 motherboard and fringe sensors, which are used for measurement of the referenced information. The Arduino motherboard is used not only for sole tranquility of equipment but also for serving as wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) switch for the sensors. The personal computer is utilized to gather information and perform client-side calculations. The server works based on an open-source program written in Java programming language. The underlying objective of the proposed scheme is to make the meter based on the “Do It Yourself” methodology which requires considerably fewer funds. Also, it is conceivable by keeping easy to understand interface, information legitimacy, precision of measured information and convenience for the conclusive client. The information is measured in just about 1 ms which is superb for custom-designed IED. Furthermore, the measured qualities are calculated based on their RMS values to be used for analyzing and further presentation of data.

SUMMARY: The paper presents an educational system for teaching and research in robotics which consists of a manipulator, controller and a PC compatible host computer. The advanced design of host-computer user-interface software makes the system very suitable for teaching. It allows the user not only to follow the system states but also to change the control structure on-line. In the first part of this paper the architecture of the system, window-oriented user interface, specially designed robot language and several build-in students lessons will be described as well as the data acquisition system and advanced graphical capabilities.In the second part of this paper the executive controller architecture is described. Besides the manipulator control function and IO operations, the controller supports communication with the host-computer. The controller is programmable, i.e. it executes various tasks within user-defined and build-in students lessons. By the use of simple host-computer commands the controller can execute various algorithms both for trajectory generation and dynamically compensated digital servo control. The dynamic model components in the feed-forward and feed-back control loop can be selectively included and changed during the manipulator's motion. Experimental results with a 4-link educational robot are presented.

A main focus in microgrids is the power quality issue. The used renewable sources fluctuate and this fluctuation has to be suppressed by designing a control variable to nullify the circulating current caused by voltage fluctuations and deviations. The switching losses across power electronic switches, harmonics, and circulating current are the issues that we discuss in this article. The proposed intelligent controller is an interface between a voltage-sourced converter and a utility grid that affords default switching patterns with less switching loss, less current harmonic content, and overcurrent protection, and is capable of handling the nonlinearities and uncertainties in the grid system. The interfaced controller needs to be synchronized to a utility grid to ensure that the grid–lattice network can be fine-tuned in order to inject/absorb the prominent complex reactive energy to/from the utility grid so as to maintain the variable power factor at unity, which, in turn, will improve the system’s overall efficiency for all connected nonlinear loads. The intelligent controller for stabilizing a smart grid is developed by implementing a fuzzy-built advance control configuration to achieve a faster dynamic response and a more suitable direct current link performance. The innovation in this study is the design of fuzzy-based space vector pulse width modulation controller that exploits the hysteresis current control and current compensation in a grid-connected voltage source converter. By using the proposed scheme, a current compensation strategy is proposed along with an advanced modulation controller to utilize the DC link voltage of a voltage source converter. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme, offline digital time-domain simulations were carried out in MATLAB/Simulink, and the simulated results were verified using the experimental setup to prove the effectiveness, authenticity, and accuracy of the proposed method.

Infrared thermography as contactless method for determining the temperature distribution on the surface is used for analyzing the impact of intense pulsed light hair removal device (IPL) on the skin. Depth of light penetration depending of wavelength is described as well as absorption curves and IPL impulse shapes. Energy balance and IPL impulse influence on the skin is analyzed. Melanin temperature rise by different fluence operation and temperature distribution in the modeled hair is used in order to determine overall skin temperature rise. Estimated energy balance provided by mathematical model has been confirmed with experimental results. Performed measurements, beside determination of the right emissivity, required the identification of most significant parameter in the process which proved to be the skin reference temperature and real temperature rise. Practical IPL application with detailed body temperature analysis is comprehensively described and thermal imaging interpretation problem and determination of the temperature rise is observed.

This paper aims to present carefully selected scientific papers that have pushed the boundaries in the application of advanced computational intelligence–based methods in power engineering, mainly in optimal power system management. Contemporary development of the Smart Grid and detailed framework for power grid digitalization enabled the real and efficient application of advanced optimization algorithms presented in this paper. Papers that are not directly related to Smart Grid management are also considered, since they solve the partial challenges of planning and development with metaheuristic procedures, and according to the authors, they are highly applicable and represent a fundamental starting point for wider application. This paper covers papers and research whose results are reproducible and can be realized in production-grade software. The emphasis of the paper is on the considerate and impartial way of providing a concise overview of the methods for solving technical challenges within the accepted Smart Grid architecture. The paper is the result of many years of research and commitment to this field and represents the foundation for present research and development.