PV-Data2Assist

Fraunhofer IFF in Magdeburg is looking for European consortium partners for the CETPartnership Joint Call 2026.

With PV-Data2Assist, we offer a research idea, digital methods and Energy Systems & Infrastructures expertise for data-driven operation, maintenance and planning of photovoltaic systems.

The core idea is to transform heterogeneous PV data into useful technical information and operator support. Relevant data sources include RGB, thermal and drone images, electrical time series, weather and site context data, IV curves, metadata and documentation. These data sources are often evaluated separately today. PV-Data2Assist investigates how they can be combined in a multimodal analysis pipeline to derive more robust fault indicators, condition insights, confidence information and explainable outputs.

The proposed research focus includes:

• discovery, evaluation and harmonisation of heterogeneous PV data sources,

• baseline models for image data, electrical time series, weather data and IV-curve-related information,

• multimodal fusion of model outputs, anomaly scores, technical KPIs and context information,

• uncertainty-aware and explainable condition assessment,

• translation of structured model outputs into understandable technical explanations and maintenance-relevant guidance,

• transfer of results into dashboards, digital twins, operator support and Energy Operations Center concepts.

Fraunhofer IFF can contribute:

• PV-related digital-energy expertise,

• experience from ZeroDefect4PV in monitoring, anomaly detection and predictive maintenance for photovoltaic generators,

• Energy Systems & Infrastructures know-how in digital operation, data processing, monitoring and operator assistance,

• methods for data harmonisation, AI-based anomaly detection, explainable assessment and decision support,

• experience in transferring data-driven methods into integrated clean-energy infrastructures.

We are particularly interested in cooperation with:

• PV plant operators and O&M partners,

• PV data owners and providers of real operating data,

• sensor, drone, thermography and inspection partners,

• AI, machine learning, data analytics and digital-twin partners,

• maintenance, diagnostics and service providers,

• industrial, building, infrastructure and energy-system use-case partners.

The concept is open for adaptation to different CETP-relevant consortium settings. Fraunhofer IFF is open to joining European consortia as a committed research partner and to shaping the final proposal focus together with suitable partners.

(Patrali Majumder: https://www.b2match.com/e/clean-energy-transition-partnership-2024/participants/2601228 )