New user management, improved DC bus configuration
pvDesign - backend v7.0.17, frontend v3.0.0
In July we released a huge improvement to the user management system of pvDesign. We changed the architecture of the system used to control what users have access to what information, known as the roles system. The new architecture is a massive step forward in terms of security and code quality, and will allow us to grow pvDesign even further in the future.
New Features
These new features were released in July:
- New user management: We changed the architecture of the roles system of pvDesign. The new architecture is more secure and scalable, and will significantly change how pvDesign is developed in the future. The change also included a revised user management screen, with a better user experience than before.
- Improved DC bus configuration: Following user feedback, we changed some important aspects of the DC bus electrical configuration. The DC bus cables are now installed in air as one single cable. Combiner boxes are now used to collect the power of individual DC bus cables, with the box output cable buried in a trench which goes up to the inverter. This change is reflected in the layout SLDs, reports, listing of cables and BoQ
- Automatic map centering: The maps in the pvDesign application will now automatically be centered, and the zoom level adjusted, to match the extents of the information being displayed. For example, you will see this feature in action when clicking the BESS tab in the design process page.
Bug fixes and improvements
The following bug fixes and improvements were released in July:
- Added an error description for the error which occurs when the battery area exceeds the maximum size.
- Increase the size of the close window action in the design process modals.
- Fixed a bug which caused users to be missing from the "created by" list in the project filters.
- Fixed an error which caused a simulation failure if the available area polygon had spikes.
- Fixed an error which caused a simulation failure if a power station could not be placed.
- Improved the quality of the results of the grouping algorithm, which determines the shape of the power stations.
- Fixed a bug which caused a discrepancy between the financial analysis, bill of quantities and layout, only when some specific inputs were selected. The affected entries were the number of structures, number of piles, and earthworks quantities.
- Improved the PV Collada file generation to fix compatibility issues with PVsyst.
- Fixed an issue with the plant capacity estimation used in the power factor algorithm.
- Improved simulation speed when there are small areas or gaps which are smaller than the size of a structure.
- Fixed some bugs which where found after the release of the new user management feature.
- Changed the behavior of the financial analysis document, which now shows all entries defined by the user, even if the result is zero.
- Fixed a bug which caused the first simulation started by the batch design tool to fail.
- Fixed an error in an API call made during the simulation which could cause simulation failures.
- Improved the generation of the estimate power map so that now if there are too many tables, polylines are used instead of polygons, increasing rendering performance in the frontend.
- Fixed a bug which caused the custom topography upload feature not to work.
- Fixed a bug which caused the topography details modal to fail in some situations.
- Added battery symbols in the interconnection facility SLD.
- Fixed a bug which caused the archive project button not to work.
- Fixed an error in the connection of DC bus equipment.