Patent ID: 8717187

Claim:
An apparatus for controlling a solar-powered device comprising a rechargeable battery, said apparatus comprising: means for determining a location of said solar-powered device; memory means for storing said location and solar insolation information related to said location; a user interface for receiving a set of operational parameters for said solar-powered device from a user upon initialization of said apparatus, said set of operational parameters comprising at least one operational parameter; a controller configured to determine upon initialization a minimum energy requirement to operate said solar-powered device according to said set of operational parameters and to compare said minimum energy requirement to a maximum available energy level determined from said solar insolation information; said controller being further configured to operate said solar-powered device according to said set of operational parameters only if said minimum energy requirement is less than said maximum available energy level and to reject said operational parameters during said initialization if said minimum energy requirement exceeds said maximum available energy level.