Fig 1Solar string test benchHover to slide the shadow over a panelstring 83% rated · shading panel 3
Pistons and needle: the parts that move when a panel is shadedSix fixed-tilt panels; one bypassed out by the shadowA six-panel solar string on a test bench. Each panel's piston rises with its own output; the dial reads the whole string's share of rated power. Slide the shadow over a panel and it drops out of the series string, so five of six panels supply the load — the string falls to about 83% rated. One shaded panel does not cripple the whole series; without its bypass diode the loss would be far larger.