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When it comes to long-term time lapse recording projects in off-grid environments, a self-sustaining power source is the utmost issue that needs to be resolved.

Among all, using solar energy is the most popular and economical choice. With the proper choice of solar panel, solar power together with a rechargeable battery can offer a reliable power source for most geographic locations.

Below is a typical topology diagram for deploying an ATL3500 Construction Time Lapse Camera in an off-grid environment.

solar power system for atl3500 construction time lapse camera

The 3 Major Components of Solar Power System

The key component added is the solar power system which includes:

  • Solar Panel
  • Solar Charge Controller
  • 12V Lithium Battery – This battery provides power to the camera at night time or when there is not sufficient light to generate enough power for the camera.

It is recommended to buy the solar power system as a kit when available. In some countries, you can only buy the solar panel and the charge controller as a kit and buy the 12V Lithium battery separately.

Calculate the Power Consumption of All Components

When mobile service is available, an optional 4G LTE can be added for internet connectivity as shown in the topology diagram above.

Before choosing the right solar power system, it is important to know or estimate the power consumption of the ATL3500 and the mobile Wi-Fi hotspot:

1. The ATL3500 consumes no more than 30WH daily.

2. Mobile Wi-Fi Router (optional) – Please check with the technical specification of your router to estimate its power consumption.

Most routers may not specify its power consumption explicitly. If you buy one with a built-in lithium battery, you can then estimate its power consumption from its battery capacity and working hours.

For example:

If the battery capacity is 1800mAH and working hours is 6hrs. Then its hourly power consumption is 0.3AH. In general, lithium battery voltage is less 4V. This means the daily power consumption is roughly 30WH.

Which Solar Power Kit is Right for You?

For most sites, we recommend the following Solar Panel kit and Battery for off-grid ATL3500 deployment. This setup should cover most of the weather and geological site.

However, if the site has very strong and long period of sunlight, you could lower the solar power and battery capacity requirements. On the contrary, you could also increase the requirements if necessary.

The most important consideration is to secure adequate power supply to ATL3500 and the mobile Wi-Fi router (if any). Please make sure that there is enough head room for extreme conditions that may occur.