Petra Solar's tech marries sun energy, smart grid

A technology that combines solar energy generation with smart-grid communications has won the top title in two categories of TechAmerica Foundation’s American Technology Awards.

New Jersey-based Petra Solar’s SunWave system is a smart-grid-enabled photovoltaic module that can be mounted directly onto utility distribution and streetlight poles to deliver solar-generated electricity straight into the grid. SunWave modules can also be deployed in both residential and commercial settings.

The SunWave system was the top winner in both the Clean Tech/Green Tech and Smart Grid/Smart Instruments categories of the American Technology Awards.

The awards, known as “The Termans,”  are  named after Frederick Terman, who is widely credited as being the father of Silicon Valley.

Founded in 2006, Petra Solar designed its SunWave system to be quickly and easily integrated into the existing grid infrastructure. In addition to providing distributed solar energy that’s fed directly into the grid, SunWave  uses smart-grid technology to improve power quality and grid reliability. When deployed at a large scale, the system also provides remote monitoring and control through an IP-based communications network.