PV*SOL 4.0 Press Release

Valentin Software’s PV*SOL is a powerful, highly accurate and easy-to-use design and simulation tool to design optimal PV systems, whether utility-scale, commercial or residential.  The program is used worldwide by solar project developers, engineers, designers, and sales and installation companies.  PV*SOL gives the system designer the ability to easily and accurately design, optimize and analyze a broad variety of PV systems, ranging from grid-connected residential systems to off-grid systems to complex multi array systems comprised of a variety of inverters and modules including thin-film and crystalline.

The built in design assistant helps simplify and guide the user through the design process.  The Quick Design assistant will help you determine the basic design parameters for the system, including system size and loads.  Advanced users are able to enter and modify detailed technical parameters.  After testing all the relevant physical parameters, the program recommends the right inverter and PV array configurations.  Assistant screens are also in the Economic Efficiency section to ease the entry of data needed to perform the detailed financial analysis and develop a project’s financial reports.

PV*SOL includes one of the most comprehensive integrated climate and component databases.  The climate database contains annual irradiation and weather data in hourly intervals for thousands of locations worldwide, including over 1,000 US locations.  The component database includes technical data on over 4,000 PV modules (including both crystalline and thin-film modules) and nearly 1,000 inverters.  Users can add their own data to both the module and inverter database. Also included is MeteoSyn, which lets users create climate data for locations outside of the included database.

The new roof parameter dialogue allows PV*SOL 4.0 users to reproduce any kind of roof type by simply entering the required coordinates. A number of standard settings are also included, such as rectangular, trapezoid, or triangular roof shapes. Restricted areas can be reproduced, which will be accounted for when PV modules are automatically positioned on the roof. It is also possible to configure a number of different PV installation areas on the roof and reposition them. This means that flat roof systems can now be simulated with the modules facing in a different direction than the roof perimeter. Object positioning in relation to the roof edges is possible and the distance to the edges are adjusted accordingly.