In-Depth Review of YOLOv1 to YOLOv10 Variants for Enhanced Photovoltaic Defect Detection

This review presents an investigation into the incremental advancements in the YOLO (You Only Look Once) architecture and its derivatives, with a specific focus on their pivotal contributions to improving quality inspection within the photovoltaic (PV) domain. YOLO’s single-stage approach to object detection has made it a preferred option due to its efficiency. The review unearths key drivers of success in each variant, from path aggregation networks to generalised efficient layer aggregation architectures and programmable gradient information, presented in the latest variant, YOLOv10, released in May 2024. Looking ahead, the review predicts a significant trend in future research, indicating a shift toward refining YOLO variants to tackle a wider array of PV fault scenarios. While current discussions mainly centre on micro-crack detection, there is an acknowledged opportunity for expansion. Researchers are expected to delve deeper into attention mechanisms within the YOLO architecture, recognising their potential to greatly enhance detection capabilities, particularly for subtle and intricate faults.