Prototype Smart Street Light System with PV Source

Abstract

This study presents the design and development of a photovoltaic (PV)-based smart public street lighting system integrated with Internet of Things (IoT) technology for real-time monitoring and adaptive energy management. The system utilizes solar panels as the primary energy source, with energy stored in a LiFePO₄ battery and monitored using a PZEM-017 sensor via RS485 communication. An ESP8266 microcontroller serves as the main control and communication unit, enabling remote monitoring and control through the Blynk application. Key operational parameters, including PV voltage, battery voltage, state of charge (SOC), and lamp power consumption, are continuously monitored in real time. To improve energy efficiency, a passive infrared (PIR) sensor is implemented to enable adaptive lighting, allowing the lamp to operate in dim mode under no-motion conditions and switch to full brightness when movement is detected. Experimental results show that during daytime operation the PV voltage reached up to 4 V with a battery SOC of approximately 66%, while at night the lamp consumed 8–9 W during motion detection and only 0.8–0.9 W in dim mode. These results demonstrate that the proposed system effectively reduces energy consumption while maintaining adequate lighting performance. The developed prototype provides an efficient, reliable, and integrated solution for smart street lighting, particularly suitable for energy-saving applications in resource-constrained environments.