Hybrid Solar - Grid Smart Street Lightning with Fault and Battery Monitoring System

Abstract

Street lighting consumes a considerable amount of energy, especially in rural and off-grid areas where grid-based systems are inefficient and unreliable. This work presents a hybrid solar–battery powered smart street-light system using an ESP32 microcontroller for autonomous and energy-efficient operation. Solar energy is harvested through a photovoltaic panel and stored in a rechargeable battery, which powers an LED street light during nighttime. Automatic ON/OFF control is achieved using an ambient light sensor (LDR).The system employs dual voltage-sensing circuits to monitor battery and solar-panel voltages, enabling intelligent power management and system health monitoring. Fault-detection logic identifies lamp failure, battery issues, and solar-panel performance degradation. Real-time monitoring and fault alerts are provided through a WiFi-enabled dashboard using ESP32.The proposed system offers a reliable, off-grid-capable, and low-maintenance street-lighting solution suitable for rural areas and smart-city applications.

Introduction

The text discusses the design and development of a hybrid solar–battery powered smart street-light system aimed at improving energy efficiency, reliability, and automation in street lighting. Traditional street-light systems rely on grid electricity and manual or timer-based control, leading to high energy consumption, increased operational costs, maintenance issues, and inefficient operation. These problems are especially serious in rural and remote areas where power supply is unreliable.

To address these challenges, the proposed system uses solar energy, which is renewable, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective. Solar-powered street lights use photovoltaic panels to generate electricity during the day and store it in rechargeable batteries for nighttime operation. This reduces dependence on grid power, lowers carbon emissions, and minimizes electricity costs.

The project introduces an intelligent street-lighting system controlled by an ESP32 microcontroller. The system integrates:

• Solar energy harvesting
• Rechargeable battery storage
• Automatic ON/OFF switching using an LDR (Light Dependent Resistor)
• Dual voltage monitoring for battery and solar-panel performance
• Fault detection mechanisms
• WiFi-based real-time monitoring dashboard

The ESP32 controller manages power efficiently by selecting suitable power sources and preventing battery deep discharge. The fault-detection system can identify issues such as lamp failure, battery charging problems, and reduced solar-panel performance caused by dust or shading. Real-time monitoring through a WiFi-enabled dashboard allows remote supervision and preventive maintenance.

The literature survey highlights the evolution of automatic street-light systems. Early systems focused mainly on basic automation using microcontrollers and LDRs. Later research introduced solar-powered and hybrid systems, motion sensors, adaptive lighting, and IoT-based monitoring. Recent advancements use ESP32 controllers, voltage/current sensors, and cloud dashboards for better visibility and maintenance. However, existing systems often focus only on automation or monitoring separately and lack integrated diagnostics and dual-voltage sensing.

The proposed system aims to fill these gaps by combining:

• Hybrid solar–battery power management
• Intelligent automation
• Real-time monitoring
• Fault detection and diagnostics
• IoT-based remote supervision

The paper also includes equations for:

1. Solar panel output power
2. Battery stored energy
3. Battery charging power

These equations help analyze energy generation, storage, and charging performance. Overall, the proposed smart street-light system offers a sustainable, low-maintenance, and energy-efficient solution suitable for rural regions, highways, and smart-city infrastructure.

References

[1] S. Vadi, “Design and Implementation of an Off-Grid Smart Street Lighting System,” Sensors, 2025. [2] J.V. Anchitaalagammai and S. Mohamed Alim, “IoT Based Automated Street Light Control with Fault Detection and Reporting System,” Proc. 5th ICIRCA, 2023. [3] “Hybrid Solar-Powered Street Lighting System with Battery Storage and Grid Integration,” ResearchGate summary/article, 2023. [4] T. Szi Hui et al., “Solar Powered LED Street Light with Movement Detection and Intensity Control,” International Journal of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Sept. 2024. [5] “Monitoring Battery and Load Control of Solar Power Plants (using INA219 and ESP32),” JES/ESR Groups article, 2024. [6] A. Nawawi et al., “Off-grid Solar System Monitoring Based on ESP-32,” VUBETA / Unesa Journal, 2024. [7] “IoT Based Street Light Fault Detection and Location Tracking,” IJRPR (pdf), 2024. [8] “IoT based smart street light fault detection management,” WJARR, 2024. [9] H. J. El-Khozondar, “Sustainable street lighting in Gaza: Solar energy solutions,” ScienceDirect, 2025. [10] R. Ricci, “An innovative wind–solar hybrid street light,” International Journal of Low-Carbon Technologies, 2015. [11] “Automatic Street Light Control System Using Microcontroller,” (early/ foundational implementation), 2013. [12] “Street Light Fault Detection and Control System,” IJERECE paper (2024 pdf). [13] “IOT Based Automatic Street Light Fault Detection and Reporting System,” IJSRDR / related proceedings, 2024/2025. [14] “LDR and IR based Automatic Street Light” (conference paper / proceedings PDF), iipseries, 2024. [15] “IoT Based Solar Power Monitoring” (system document / implementation notes), Scribd / technical report.

Copyright

Copyright © 2026 Prof. Aparna Gale, Simran Punekar, Sonam Channe, Sakshi Kude, Kartik Nakade, Dinesh Asdeo. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.