Randolph Brost

High optical accuracy required for concentrating solar power (CSP) systems needs accurate metrology to assess mirror optical parameters. Researchers have developed a variety of CSP optical metrology systems, which include complex calculations and calibration terms. This raises the question: How do we know these methods’ accuracy? One approach is to compare metrology system measurements against a ground truth reference. An ideal ground truth reference is simple, inherently accurate, and easy to replicate. In this paper we seek ground truth references to enable CSP metrology developers to easily cross-check the accuracy of their systems. These fall into two broad categories: Ground truth methods and ground truth physical standards. We describe fundamentals and present several examples. This is an abbreviated version of a full-length detailed report [1].

In Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) there is a need for mirrors that are optically accurate, as they are used to focus light onto a receiver at high concentration. To test the accuracy of the mirrors’ optical slopes, we employ a technique called deflectometry [2, 4]. Deflectometry measures mirror slope directly. A projector displays an image onto a screen or wall, and a mirror is positioned to reflect the image to a camera. The camera sees the mirror’s reflection of the screen and sends imaging i

We are announcing OpenCSP, an open-source platform including source code, applications, and data to enable collaborative development for the CSP community worldwide, supporting industry, research, and education. OpenCSP includes components of code, data, mechanical designs, tools, and documents, all provided under an open-source license allowing unlimited use. The OpenCSP code development environment is set up to enable collaborative team development of high-quality software, yet OpenCSP welcomes both polished code and rough code-in-progress. The goals of OpenCSP are to accelerate transfer of CSP metrology and analysis tools to industry, provide a resource for businesses supporting CSP, support CSP education, and to provide a community collaborative development environment to enable teams to build new advanced CSP applications more quickly, and to speed their deployment.

The high optical accuracy required for concentrating solar power (CSP) systems in turn requires accurate metrology to assess mirror optical parameters during design, manufacturing, and operation. To meet this need, researchers have developed a variety of CSP optical metrology systems, which include complex calculations and calibration terms. This raises the question: How do we know these methods’ accuracy? One approach is to compare metrology system measurements against a ground truth refere

Final report for the swept lookback Exploratory Express project.

A discussion of some fundamental issues in heliostat optics.

This document provides a step-by-step tutorial on how to set up OpenCSP for both users and developers. It is meant to support novice users and does not require software engineering experience. It is a detailed extension of the OpenCSP getting started on-line documentation, found here: https://opencsp.readthedocs.io/en/main/contributing.html#getting-started For an overview of OpenCSP overall, see the OpenCSP website: https://opencsp.sandia.gov. For details on OpenCSP components and algorithm