Abstract
Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) is a well-known methodology in the development of social surveys. In this work, CAPI is used to guide the flow of a questionnaire aiming for the acquisition of data and information fundamental to optimise a photovoltaic (PV) design. The questionnaire is implemented in an app, developed in the frame of the PV SPREAD project, which is aimed to support the supplier/designer of PV plants during all the stages of its development. To demonstrate how different choices of a client, specified during the interview with the designer, will have distinct economic results, two configurations are presented. In the first, the system is_allowed to determine and use the optimum inclination angle of the modules, while in the second a low angle is selected by the client, to comply with aesthetic restrictions. The first configuration improves naturally the internal rate of return of the investment, as this is the optimising cost function, but the system allows comparing both ones. The CAPI methodology and its use in the context of PV design show to be a relevant tool to support designers and to provide more informed investments to clients.
Highlights
Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) is a type of interview which is conducted with the support of a computer [1]
The CAPI methodology is implemented in the app and the designer may change from the interview to the field measurements and vice versa, e.g. to collect images and measurements on a visit with the client while performing the interview
This scenario will analyse the optimum inclination angle (35°), which corresponds to the inclination that allows for the highest global average irradiance throughout the year
Summary
Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) is a type of interview which is conducted with the support of a computer [1]. CAPI has been extensively used and analyzed in the context of Social Sciences but could be extended to several other fields, to the context of assisting the photovoltaic (PV) design process, as proposed in this paper This process has a primordial stage related to enquiring the client, before commissioning the system, to obtain information of a very distinct nature (financial, electrical, aesthetical, among others). These should be answered in a language adequate for non-experts, preferably supported by diagrams, photographs, and technical data, aiming to engage the client, to secure him in his legitimate expectations, and to establish an environment of confidence [2].
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