Performance and longevity: it’s all about design

Home Solar lighting blog About solar lighting Performance and longevity: it’s all about design

Style and appearance are important, of course, but sunna design has patented a crucial set of exclusive systems to deliver superior solar lighting performance

Theoretically, A solar LED lamp post is a combination of standard components such as a photovoltaic panel, a battery, a charge/discharge management unit, an array of LEDs. and a mast. Real world practice tells a very different story. As Sunna Design was looking to deliver both the fastest installation process and extreme durability, patents were submitted, and granted, for temperature and Depth of Discharge (DoD) management solutions that proved their validity over the course of a decade.

Thermal management: saving batteries from extreme daylight temperatures

Even up on a 10 feet mast, and whatever the battery technology – Lead, Lithium or NiMH – daylight exposure generates a thermal stress of 100+°F to a solar lighting enclosure. Sunna Design has patented a very unique way to put the full structure of the lamp post to work as a heat sink between the back of the solar panel and the battery. Implementing this element of design enhances drastically the lifespan of the battery itself while ensuring the best performance to the battery + charge circuit duo.

Energy management algorithms: keeping optimal battery charging cycles whatever the dod or external temperature situation

The best way to kill prematurely a battery is to fully charge it after having it fully depleted. Some battery manufacturers have developed a peculiar way to overestimate the durability of their products by minimizing temperature and/or DoD.

The second biggest « stealth » technology that Sunna Design was granted patents for is a proprietary electronic module that optimizes the battery’s charge and discharge cycles. This module uses a set of patented algorithms to adapt the amount and duration of power release according to the battery specifications and type, might it be lead acid, lithium or NiMH. The idea is to fight over extensive cycles by finely monitoring and adjusting all electrical and thermal parameters according to the data provided by onboard sensors. Parameters are stored and help in keeping a minimal DoD on the long run.

Even if our competitors were sourcing quality components like we do, they wouldn’t achieve our overall performance and durability scores. It takes SUNNA Design’s patented solutions to thrive in autonomous solar lighting systems.