"Space photovoltaic cell string testing: Traditional equipment cannot restore the AM0 space spectrum, and the power assessment deviation exceeds 15%." "Manual testing is inefficient. It takes 10 minutes to test a single string, and 20 workers are needed to produce 10,000 strings annually, with labor costs exceeding 1.5 million." "The consistency sorting of cell strings is inaccurate, and the stability of on-orbit power supply is poor." "Satellite mission risks increase" - In the production of space photovoltaic modules in fields such as aerospace and space exploration, the pain points of "difficulty in replicating space spectra, low detection efficiency, poor consistency in sorting, and high labor costs" have once plunged countless aerospace enterprises and research institutions into a predicament of "data distortion, production capacity bottlenecks, and high mission risks".
Saifan Optoelectronics has been deeply engaged in optoelectronic detection and space technology for 20 years. It has specifically launched the AM0 battery string automatic testing and sorting machine. With the three core advantages of "precise replication of AM0 space spectrum + automatic battery string testing + AI intelligent sorting", it perfectly meets the efficient detection and precise grading requirements of space photovoltaic battery strings. Today, this "space photovoltaic quality control tool" has served over 150 aerospace enterprises and research institutions worldwide, increasing the efficiency of battery string detection by 8 times, with power testing errors ≤±1%, sorting consistency deviations ≤0.5%, and reducing the labor cost of a single production line by 90%. It has become the "core quality inspection equipment" for the mass production of space photovoltaic modules.
1. AM0 spectral precise adaptation: Replicating space light, battery string power test error ≤±1%
Mr. Zhao, a space power supply engineer at a certain aerospace technology group, was once worried about the distortion of battery string test data Space photovoltaic cell strings receive AM0 spectra (without atmospheric absorption and scattering) in space. Traditional testing equipment mostly uses AM1.5 ground spectra, which cannot reproduce the real lighting environment in space. This leads to core parameter test deviations such as open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current of the cell strings exceeding 15%, directly affecting the assessment of the on-orbit power supply capacity of spacecraft. A certain satellite was forced to reduce its mission payload due to insufficient power supply, resulting in a loss of over 30 million. What's more troublesome is that traditional equipment can only test individual battery cells, and the overall performance after battery string assembly cannot be accurately evaluated, posing a hidden risk of failure.
After the introduction of the Saifan AM0 battery string automatic testing and sorting machine, the testing accuracy has achieved a "qualitative leap". The core highlight of this device is the precise replication of the AM0 space spectrum - it adopts an imported high-consistency xenon lamp array + the 8th generation spectral fitting algorithm, covering the entire band from 300nm to 1100nm, and the spectral matching degree with the ASTM E490-00 AM0 standard is ≥98.5%. Especially in the ultraviolet (300-400nm) and near-infrared (760-1100nm) bands, the energy restoration accuracy exceeds 97%, perfectly replicating the lighting conditions in space. Meanwhile, the equipment supports single-string/multi-string (1-10 strings) synchronous testing, capable of accurately measuring core parameters such as open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current, fill factor, and conversion efficiency of battery strings. The test error is ≤±1%, and the consistency with the in-orbit measured data exceeds 96%.
"Now, the assessment error of the battery string power supply capacity is controlled within 3%, and the subsequent satellite mission payloads fully meet the standards. There has been no further issue of insufficient power supply." " Engineer Zhao introduced that the equipment adopts a super-large size uniform light system, with irradiation uniformity ≤±2%, ensuring that each cell in the battery string receives consistent light and avoiding test deviations caused by local light differences. It supports the adaptation of 2-20 series-parallel/series battery strings of different specifications without the need to change fixtures, with a changeover time of no more than 15 minutes. It is suitable for the production requirements of multiple types of space photovoltaic modules. More importantly, each string of solar cells generates a unique "traceability code", and the test data is bound and archived with the AM0 spectral parameters and environmental conditions, meeting the requirements of aerospace-grade data traceability. "Previously, test data could not be reproduced, but now the entire test process can be fully queried through the traceability code. It has passed the review and certification of institutions such as the 8th Academy of Aerospace and the Chinese Academy of Sciences."
2. Automatic testing + intelligent sorting: 8 times efficiency increase, saving 18 workers on a single production line
Mr. Li, the production manager of a certain space photovoltaic module manufacturer, once encountered the "efficiency predicament" of manual testing and sorting: Traditional battery string testing requires manual wiring of each string and data recording. The detection of a single string takes 10 minutes. Sorting needs to be done manually by grading according to power parameters. Each person can only sort 6 strings per hour. To produce 10,000 strings annually, 20 workers are needed, with an annual labor cost exceeding 1.5 million yuan. What is even more troublesome is that manual operation has problems such as wiring errors and incorrect data recording. The consistency deviation of classification exceeds 3%, resulting in poor power supply stability of battery series in orbit, with a return rate of 8% and a loss of over 5 million yuan per batch."
The "automation + intelligence" function of the Saifan AM0 battery string automatic testing and sorting machine precisely solves the problems of human resources and efficiency. The equipment is equipped with an automatic connection and wiring system. Through a mechanical arm, the entire process of battery string positioning, wiring, testing and material cutting is automatically completed without manual intervention. The detection time for a single string is only 75 seconds, which is 8 times more efficient than traditional manual methods. The daily detection capacity of a single production line has increased from 48 strings to 384 strings, and the annual production capacity can reach 120,000 strings. Meanwhile, it is equipped with an AI intelligent sorting algorithm, which can customize the classification standards according to the requirements of aerospace missions (supporting 1-8 levels of sorting), and automatically perform precise classification based on parameters such as power and efficiency under the AM0 spectrum. The classification accuracy rate is ≥99.5%, and the consistency deviation is ≤0.5%.
"Now, only two operation and maintenance personnel are needed for a single production line. The annual labor cost has dropped from 1.5 million to 150,000 yuan, saving 1.35 million yuan a year. The equipment investment can be recovered within two years." " Engineer Li did a detailed calculation: "The error rate of traditional manual testing is 5%, and the annual repair loss exceeds 5 million yuan." The error rate of automatic testing is ≤1%, the return rate drops to 0.8%, and the annual loss is reduced by 4.6 million. Moreover, the equipment supports continuous operation for 24 hours, generating 20% more output than manual operation, and the annual additional output value exceeds 8 million." The intelligent early warning function of the equipment is more practical: "When the power deviation of a certain batch of battery strings exceeds the standard, the equipment will issue a real-time alarm and coordinate with the previous welding process to adjust the parameters, avoiding batch defects in advance and making aerospace-level quality control more proactive."
Iii. Aerospace-grade stable Adaptation: Compatible with extreme environments and reliable for long periods, meeting the requirements of demanding missions
Wang, the quality director of a certain satellite manufacturing enterprise, was once worried about the stability and adaptability of the equipment: "The testing of space photovoltaic cell strings has extremely high environmental requirements. The testing accuracy of traditional equipment drifts by more than 3% when the temperature changes by ±5℃, which cannot meet the requirements of aerospace-grade testing environments." Moreover, after long-term operation, the equipment is prone to problems such as light source attenuation and loose wiring. For monthly calibration, the production line needs to be shut down for three days, resulting in a production capacity loss of over 800,000. More importantly, traditional equipment does not support vacuum environment testing and cannot simulate the vacuum conditions of spacecraft in orbit, so the reference value of test data is limited.
The aerospace-grade design of the Saifan AM0 battery string automatic test and sorting machine perfectly meets the demanding requirements. The equipment adopts a high-rigidity body and a constant temperature control system. The body is made of 6061-T6 military-grade aluminum alloy and is equipped with an internal temperature compensation algorithm. The test accuracy drift is ≤±0.5% in an environment ranging from -10 ℃ to 40℃, meeting the complex usage requirements of aerospace workshops. The light source module adopts long-life xenon lamps (with a lifespan of ≥1500 hours) + an automatic calibration system. It automatically performs spectral and light intensity calibration for every 100 strings tested. It operates continuously for 720 hours with stable accuracy. The annual off-line calibration time is ≤12 hours, reducing production capacity loss by 95%.
Core performance is more hardcore: The equipment supports vacuum environment adaptation (vacuum degree ≤10⁻³Pa), can simulate the vacuum conditions of spacecraft in orbit, and the test data is closer to the real in-orbit performance. Equipped with redundant design test units and sorting mechanisms, the fault alarm response time is ≤1 second, and the mean time between failures (MTBF) is ≥ 10,000 hours, meeting the high reliability requirements of aerospace products. Previously, importing AM0 testing equipment cost 16 million yuan, with a delivery period of 12 months. The customized version of Saifan saved 8 million yuan, with delivery within 60 days. It also offers aerospace-grade installation, commissioning and operation training, and quickly passed our aerospace product production certification. Engineer Wang praised, "Now the stable operation time of the battery string in orbit has been extended from 5 years to 8 years, and the mission success rate has increased to 99.8%."
Iv. Core Technology Revelation: Why Can It Balance "Space Spectrum Replication" and "Aerospace-grade Reliability"?
The core competitiveness of the Saifan AM0 battery string automatic testing and sorting machine stems from four breakthrough technologies:
AM0 Precision Spectral Technology: Adopting "high consistency xenon lamp array + 8th generation spectral fitting algorithm", it is equipped with the AM0 standard spectral database, with a spectral matching degree of ≥98.5%, meeting aerospace-grade standards such as ASTM E490-00 and ISO 9040;
Automatic test integration technology: Independently developed mechanical arm automatic wiring module + synchronous test unit, achieving full-process automation of battery string positioning, wiring, testing and material cutting. The detection time for a single string is only 75 seconds, with an efficiency increase of 8 times.
AI intelligent sorting algorithm: Trained on over 100,000 aerospace-grade battery string test data, it supports custom grading standards, with a grading accuracy rate of ≥99.5% and a consistency deviation of ≤0.5%, suitable for multi-task requirements.
Aerospace-grade stable design: Military-grade fuselage structure + constant temperature compensation system + vacuum environment adaptation. The accuracy drift is ≤±0.5% after continuous 720-hour operation, and the MTBF is ≥ 10,000 hours, meeting the high reliability requirements of aerospace products.
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