International Business Machines Corporation

Sukanya Randhawa

Shivkumar Kalyanaraman

Ninad D Sathaye

Ashwin Srinivas

Pankaj Satyanarayan Dayama

Pratyush Kumar

Nitin Singh

Ranjini Bangalore Guruprasad

Vikas Chandan

Praveen Jayachandran

Jagabondhu Hazra

Anush Sankaran

Methods, systems, and computer program products for user-preference driven control of electrical and thermal output from a photonic energy device are provided herein. A system includes a solar photovoltaic module, and a fluid positioned on the solar photovoltaic module. The system also includes configurable reflective surfaces that collect and distribute direct solar and diffuse solar radiation across multiple portions of the fluid and/or portions of the solar photovoltaic module. Additionally, the reflective surfaces is physically connected to the solar photovoltaic module at an angle that is variable in relation to the surface of the solar photovoltaic module. Further, the system includes a controller that modulates an amount of thermal output and/or electrical power output generated by the solar photovoltaic module by transmitting a signal to adjust at least one variable pertaining to the fluid, and transmitting a signal to adjust at least one variable pertaining to the reflective surfaces.

User-preference driven control of electrical and thermal output from a photonic energy device

One embodiment provides a method, including: obtaining, for each step in a food supply chain, information corresponding to extraneous factors, wherein the extraneous factors comprise factors that may affect quality of a food product within the food supply chain; generating a rating, for each step in the food supply chain, indicating a level of pollution to which the food product was exposed at the corresponding step, wherein the rating comprises (i) scoring each of the extraneous factors based upon a level of pollution identified from the extraneous factors and (ii) aggregating the scores for the extraneous factors to determining a rating; generating, using the rating for each of the steps, an aggregate food supply chain score for the food product, wherein the aggregate food supply chain indicates an impact of pollution across the food supply chain on the food product; and producing a quality rating for the food product.

Quality score for a food supply chain

One embodiment provides a method, including: receiving information, from at least one energy subsystem, indicating a desired amount of photovoltaic output to be produced by at least one photovoltaic panel, wherein the at least one photovoltaic panel comprises at least one photovoltaic harvester; ascertaining the amount of photovoltaic output being produced by the at least one photovoltaic panel; determining the difference between the desired amount of photovoltaic output and the amount of photovoltaic output being produced; identifying the maximum possible amount of photovoltaic output that could be produced by the at least one photovoltaic panel; and optimizing, using an optimization technique, the amount of photovoltaic output produced by the at least one photovoltaic harvester by adjusting at least one characteristic of the at least one photovoltaic harvester, wherein the adjusting comprises: if the difference is less than the maximum possible amount, adjusting at least one characteristic of the at least one photovoltaic harvester to produce the desired amount of photovoltaic output; and if the difference is more than the maximum possible amount, adjusting at least one characteristic of the at least one photovoltaic harvester to produce the maximum possible amount of photovoltaic output.

Dynamic photovoltaic adaption for managing grid volatility using a photovoltaic harvester

Methods, systems, computer program products, and devices for in-pipeline optical interference-based cognitive systems for leak and defect detection are provided herein. A computer-implemented method includes obtaining optical interference-related data pertaining to at least one interior portion of a pipeline; obtaining multiple items of sensor data pertaining to the at least one interior portion of the pipeline; generating one or more pipeline-irregularity predictions by applying an inference-based algorithm to the optical interference-related data, the multiple items of sensor data, and one or more additional items of data, wherein each of the one or more pipeline-irregularity predictions comprises an identified location within the interior surface of the pipeline of a predicted irregularity and an estimated size of the predicted irregularity; and outputting the one or more pipeline-irregularity predictions to one or more users.

In-pipeline optical interference-based cognitive system for leak and defect detection

Methods, systems, and computer program products for in-pipeline maintenance, delivery and management of sensors are provided herein. An exemplary computer-implemented method includes detecting a sensor within a pipeline via an in-pipeline sensor management system, determining a path for the in-pipeline sensor management system to travel to the detected sensor, and automatically attaching the in-pipeline sensor management system to the detected sensor upon a determination that the in-pipeline sensor management system has completed the path and reached the detected sensor. The method also includes determining maintenance operations to be performed on the detected sensor based on real-time data pertaining to the sensor and historical operation records pertaining to the detected sensor. Further, the method includes performing the maintenance operations, via the in-pipeline sensor management system, on the detected sensor, and automatically detaching the in-pipeline sensor management system from the detected sensor upon determining that the maintenance operations have been completed.

In-pipeline maintenance, delivery and management of sensors

One embodiment provides a method, including: determining a light profile of light falling onto a solar module, wherein the light profile identifies (i) a position of the light with respect to the solar module and (ii) the intensity of the light with respect to solar panels within the solar module; identifying at least one solar panel within the solar module having partial light coverage; and changing the light profile by shaping the reflection of the light onto the solar module created by a flexible curved reflector in proximity to the solar module, thereby increasing the amount of light falling onto said at least one solar panel within the solar module; the changing the light profile comprising modifying the geometry of the flexible curved reflector by activating at least one actuator to move at least a portion of the flexible curved reflector.

Dynamically controlled curved solar reflectors for flexible photovoltaic generation

Methods and systems for cost-effective precision solar farming with mobile photonic harvesters are provided herein. An example computer-implemented method includes automatically determining, for each of multiple solar photovoltaic modules within a system, the angle of captured solar radiation with respect to the surface of the solar photovoltaic module, wherein the system comprises (i) the multiple solar photovoltaic modules and (ii) multiple moveable reflective surfaces used in conjunction with at least some of the multiple solar photovoltaic modules; automatically detaching one or more of the reflective surfaces from one or more respective first positions within the system based on the determined angles of captured solar radiation; and automatically attaching the one or more detached reflective surfaces to one or more respective second positions within the system based on the determined angles of captured solar radiation, such that the amount of solar radiation captured by the solar photovoltaic module is increased.

Solar farming with mobile photonic harvesters

Methods, systems, and computer program products for user-preference driven control of electrical and thermal output from a photonic energy device are provided herein. A computer-implemented method includes automatically modulating an amount of thermal output and/or electrical power output generated by a solar photovoltaic module in response to an input of one or more user preferences by: adjusting at least one variable pertaining to a fluid positioned on the solar photovoltaic module based on the one or more user preferences; and adjusting at least one variable pertaining to one or more reflective surfaces physically connected to the solar photovoltaic module based on the one or more user preferences.

Methods, systems, and computer program products for in-pipeline maintenance, delivery and management of sensors are provided herein. A multi-component, in-pipeline sensor management system includes a self-propelled sensor explorer component comprising (i) one or more communication sub-components and (ii) one or more navigation assistance sub-components, wherein the self-propelled sensor explorer component is configured to move through a liquid within a pipeline; a sensor coupling unit comprising one or more attachment structures, wherein the one or more attachment structures enable the system to attach to one or more sensors within the pipeline; and a sensor maintenance unit comprising (i) a cleansing unit, wherein the cleansing unit comprises (a) an inlet valve for one or more cleaning liquids and (b) an outlet valve for one or more waste liquids, (ii) a cleaning liquid storage component coupled to the inlet valve, and (iii) a waste liquid collector coupled to the outlet valve.

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Bengaluru, India

Sukanya Randhawa