India’s Vivasvan Solar has designed a foldable solar structure mounted on a trolley. The system has mechanisms to prevent damage to the panels during transit and is especially useful for agricultural farms.
Image: Vivasvan Solar
Vivasvan Solar, based in India, has created a foldable solar structure that can efficiently power water pumps for irrigation by easily moving within or between farms. The system, which consists of PV panels and a variable frequency drive, is mounted on a trolley.
“In Sangli district, a farmer can have two-three sources of water for irrigation, such as a borewell, open well, and an artificial pond. Our mobile system with variable frequency drive is compatible with different solar pumping solutions, providing farmers the flexibility to pump water from any of these water resources on their farm,” Rahul Chavan, director at Vivasvan Industries OPC, told pv magazine.
Transporting portable solar systems can lead to the development of microcracks, particularly on rough, uneven terrains of the field. To address this concern, Chavan noted that spring suspension has been installed on all four corners between the panel arrangement and the trolley platform, with a rubber dampener lining between solar module frames. These act as shock absorbers to avoid damage to the panels. Additionally, the PV panels use a frame made from mild steel that was developed in-house.
Vivasvan Industries has already installed its portable solar structure on a farm at Kharsundi in the Sangli district of Maharashtra. The PV system consists of 15 Axitec 335 Wp panels. Chavan said that the system can be customized from 1 kW up to 7 kW on a single trolley.
