HK1182832B - Collapsible solar module - Google Patents

Description

Solar module

Technical Field

The invention relates to a solar module comprising a plurality of solar panels in the form of sheets, which are mounted on an elongated carrier so as to be pivotable about a common axis and which can be moved between a first position, in which they are placed one above the other substantially in full overlap and parallel to the carrier, and a second position, in which they are placed substantially side by side with a fan-shaped extension about the axis.

Background

Solar modules of this type are known, for example, from US2004/0069341a1, EP1885038a1, CN2893950Y or CN201252107Y and are used for the mobile power supply of small electrical appliances, such as mobile telephones, laptops, etc. The known apparatus is designed as a hand-held or table-top apparatus, wherein the solar panels can be fanned out in a fan-like manner and can be pushed together for transport purposes.

Disclosure of Invention

In contrast, the object of the invention is to provide a solar module which is suitable for stationary use outdoors, for example as an electrical energy supply for a single-family dwelling.

This object is achieved with a solar module of the type mentioned at the outset, which is characterized according to the invention in that the carrier can be removed from a housing, which accommodates the carrier with the solar panels in the first position, via a closable opening of the housing, wherein the housing has the form of a shallow box, the opening being located on the upper side of the box, and wherein the carrier is supported in the housing so as to be pivotable and, in the removed position, is parallel to and below the upper side, and, in the removed position, is pivoted through the opening. In this way, at night or in bad weather, such as high winds, lightning strikes, hail or heavy rain, the vulnerable solar panels can be moved in order to protect them from damage. The solar module according to the invention has a small installation depth, which facilitates its installation in the ground or in a facade or a roof of a building.

It is known from US2010/0000592a1 to lift a solar module comprising a plurality of linearly movable solar panels out of a motor vehicle by means of a fixedly mounted telescopic arm, wherein in the retracted position of the telescopic arm the motor vehicle space around the telescopic arm is not utilized.

In a first preferred embodiment, the housing forms a sealed tub for fitting flush into the floor on the upper side, so that in the moved-in rest position the solar panels are fully protected, while at the same time ground moisture is also prevented.

In an alternative preferred embodiment, the housing is equipped with means for flush installation on the upper side into a building facade or a building roof, whereby the existing building surface can be used to a sufficient extent for the extraction of electrical energy.

According to another preferred feature of the invention the opening is closable by at least one cover which slides substantially parallel to the upper side of the housing. Such a cover embodiment requires little space for opening and does not hinder the removal and movement of the solar panels in the open state.

It is particularly advantageous if the cover forms a shallow, plantable pot, by means of which the solar module can be incorporated inconspicuously and protectively in a garden surface or green belt. The cover is planted while being thermally isolated.

According to a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one solar panel is provided on its rear side with a sweeping flange which slides on the solar panel below it when fanned out. In this way, a self-cleaning solar module is provided. When fanned out and also in reverse motion, the sweeping flange of one solar panel clears the surface of the adjoining solar panel of dust, snow, rain, leaves, etc., thereby maintaining the optimum effective power of the solar panel even under changing weather influences and over the course of the year. Preferably all but the lowermost one of the solar panels is provided with such a sweeping flange.

For this purpose, according to a further feature of the invention, the opening of the housing can be provided with a cleaning collar which slides on the uppermost of the solar panels lying one above the other when the support is removed, whereby the uppermost solar panel is also automatically cleaned.

Alternatively, such a cleaning function can also be achieved by: the cover is provided with a sweeping flange which slides over the uppermost one of the overlapping solar panels when it is opened.

In each case, it is particularly advantageous if the support has a deflection head at one end thereof for supporting the solar panel. Therefore, each solar panel can be accurately aligned to the sun at the fanned-out position. Preferably, for this purpose, the support and/or the yaw head (if a yaw head is present) are equipped with a drive controlled by the position of the sun for automatic sun tracking of the solar panels, in order to always achieve optimum efficiency in the course of the day and the course of the year.

The solar panels may be substantially removed from the housing by hand and fanned out or vice versa. It is particularly advantageous, however, if the solar panels can be moved between their positions by means of an electric drive and the carrier can be moved in and out by means of the electric drive, so that the operation of the solar modules can be automated. In this way, for example in the case of full sunlight and safe climatic conditions, the individual solar panels can be automatically moved out and fanned out, and in the case of darkness or bad climatic conditions automatically synthesized in a single fan and moved in.

Preferably, each electric drive is a worm gear which engages into a toothed ring of the driven shaft, which provides a space-saving drive with a high reduction ratio between the rotational speed of the motor and the output rotational speed.

The solar panels may be of essentially any type known in the art that is capable of converting sunlight into a fully utilizable energy, for example, by means of a heat transfer flow heated by sunlight that circulates in the solar panels. Preferably, however, each solar panel is formed by a planar arrangement of photovoltaic solar cells in order to generate electrical energy directly. This also facilitates the wiring of the individual solar panels to one another and to their connection to the support or the deflecting head, since here only electrical connections have to be established.

Drawings

The invention is explained in more detail below with the aid of an exemplary embodiment shown in the drawing. Wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the solar module of the present invention in a pushed-together and moved-in position;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the solar module of the present invention in a fanned out and removed position;

figures 3a to 3f are perspective views of the solar module of the invention in successive stages of rack removal and fanning out of the solar panels;

FIG. 4 is a side view of a drive arrangement for the solar module;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of two solar panels placed one above the other to show the sweeping flange between the two panels; and is

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of the housing and its opening, the housing including a cleaning flange for the uppermost solar panel.

Detailed Description

According to fig. 1 to 3, a solar module 1 comprises a housing 2 in which a rectangular carrier 3 is mounted so as to be pivotable about an axis 4. The housing 2 has substantially the form of a shallow box and is constructed in the example shown in the form of a frame. The housing 2 has an opening 5 on its upper side, through which the carrier 3 is deflected during the removal and insertion (see fig. 3 c).

The opening 5 is closed by at least one cover 6, which cover 6 can be folded over or, as in the example shown, slid sideways in order to remove the holder 3. For this purpose, the cover 6 is mounted in a sliding manner on guide rails 7 (see fig. 3b), which can themselves be raised over a section of the upper side of the housing 2 via linear guides 8 (fig. 3a), whereby the cover 6 can be slid off laterally over the edge of the housing 2.

After the complete rotation out of the holder 3, the cover 6 can be slid back into its position again (fig. 3 d). In this position, an auxiliary cover 6' is in the open position, which can be opened over, and which closes the opening 5 in the position through which the holder 3 passes in the removed state.

The housing 2 can be installed with its upper side surface flush in the ground, in the facade of a building or in the roof of a building. When installed in the floor, the housing 2 is preferably designed as a sealed pot in order to protect the floor from moisture. The cover 6 may form a shallow, plantable pot so that the solar module can be incorporated into a green space.

For surface flush installation in the facade or roof of a building, the housing 2 can be provided with connecting elements for flush fixing in a corresponding opening in the facade or roof, for example with fixing webs or fixing flanges (not shown).

The support 3 has a deflector head 9 at the end opposite its support shaft 4 for adjustably supporting a stack of laminated solar panels 10. The solar panels 10 are supported on the carrier 3, more precisely on the deflecting head 9 of the carrier, so as to be pivotable about a common axis 11 and in this way can be moved from a first position (see fig. 1 and 3a-3d), in which they lie substantially completely overlapping one another and parallel to the carrier 3, to a second position (see fig. 2 and 3f), in which they are fanned out about the axis 11 and thus lie substantially side by side, or vice versa. As is apparent, each solar panel 10 preferably has a fan shape such that they complement a full circle in the fanned out position.

In the example shown, each solar panel is formed by a planar arrangement of photovoltaic solar cells 12. The electrical or wire connections of each solar cell 12 and each solar panel 10 are not shown for clarity; for example, solar panels 10 are contacted at deflection head 9 via flexible connecting cables or sliding contacts and rigid contact rings and connected to further energy-transmitting electrical devices.

The pivoting head 9 is mounted on the support 3 so as to be pivotable about a vertical axis 13 and about a horizontal axis 14, so that the axis 11 or the solar panels 10 can be optimally aligned with the sun. For this purpose, drives controlled by respective sun position sensors (not shown) can also be provided for automatic sun tracking of solar panels 10, for example by means of respective adjusting drives which position deflecting head 9 along its rotational axes 13, 14.

These actuating drives can be, for example, motor-driven worm drives, which act on toothed rings, which are coupled to the shafts 13, 14. The same worm drive is preferably used for the pivoting out and into of the carrier 3 and for the fanning out and the synthesis of individual solar panels 10.

Fig. 4 shows such a drive in detail. The motor 15 drives a worm 16 which engages in a toothed ring 17 which is directly coupled to a component 18 of a ball bearing, the other component 19 of which is fixedly mounted. The element 18 is coupled to the components to be driven, such as the carrier 3 relative to the housing 2, the deflecting head 9 relative to the carrier 3, a support element 20 of the deflecting head 9 for the solar panel 10 relative to the remaining deflecting head 9 or to the support element 20 of each solar panel 10. For the fanning out of solar panels 10 about axis 11, it is sufficient to drive, for example, only the uppermost or lowermost solar panel 10, as long as each solar panel 10 pulls solar panel 10 lying below it or lying above it together via pulling hooks or pulling slats 21 (fig. 5).

The sliding of solar panels 10 on each other during this dragging movement may be sufficient for the cleaning of solar panels 10. For this purpose, according to fig. 5, each solar panel (except for the lowermost solar panel 10) is provided on its rear side with a sweeping flange 22 which, when fanned out, sweeps off the respective solar panel 10 lying therebelow. Each sweeping flange 22 may be, for example, a rubber flange or a brush flange.

The sweeping flanges 22 may simultaneously constitute the trailing strip 21. Each dragging slat 21 stops at its end of movement on the solar panel 10 lying below it against a stop slat 23 of the solar panel lying below.

For the uppermost solar panel 10, a further sweeping flange 24 provided in the housing 2 can be provided, for example on a guide rail 7, see fig. 6. The sweeping flange 24 sweeps the uppermost solar panel 10 as the carrier 3 is deflected out of and into the housing 2. Alternatively, the further cleaning flange 24 can also be arranged on the cover 6 and be moved by the cover over the uppermost solar panel 10 when the cover is opened (not shown).

The invention is not limited to the embodiments shown. For example, the holder 3 can be moved out of the housing 2 in a linear movement, rather than by deflection, if the housing is correspondingly designed, for example, upright. If desired for the sake of simplicity, a flip-open cover can also be provided instead of the sliding cover 6. Furthermore, the solar module 1 is also suitable for preferably surface-flush installation in the top platforms or surfaces of land and water vehicles, for example in the roofs of large camping recreational vehicles and in the decks of ships.

Claims (14)

1. Solar module (1) comprising a plurality of solar panels (10) in the form of thin sheets, which are supported on an elongated support (3) so as to be pivotable about a common axis (11) and which can be moved between a first position, in which they are placed one above the other in a completely overlapping manner and parallel to the support (3), and a second position, in which they are placed side by side so as to be fanned out about the axis (11); characterized in that the carrier (3) can be removed from the housing (2) via a closable opening (5) of the housing, which accommodates the carrier with the solar panels (10) in the first position, wherein the housing (2) has the form of a shallow box, on the upper side of which the opening (5) is located, wherein the carrier (3) is supported in the housing (2) so as to be pivotable and, in the moved-in position, is parallel to and below the upper side, and, in the moved-out position, is pivoted through the opening (5).

2. Solar module according to claim 1, characterized in that the housing (2) forms a sealed basin for fitting flush into the ground on the upper side surface.

3. Solar module according to claim 1, characterized in that the housing (2) is provided with means for fitting flush on the upper side surface into a building facade or a building roof.

4. Solar module according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the opening (5) can be closed with at least one cover (6) sliding parallel to the upper side of the housing.

5. Solar module according to claim 4, characterized in that the cover (6) forms a shallow, plantable pot.

6. Solar module according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that at least one solar panel (10) is provided on its back side with a sweeping flange (22) which slides on the solar panel (10) located below it when fanned out.

7. Solar module according to claim 6, characterized in that all solar panels (10) except the lowermost one are provided with such a sweeping flange (22).

8. Solar module according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the opening (5) of the housing (2) is provided with a sweeping flange (24) which slides on the uppermost one of the solar panels (10) lying one above the other when the carrier (3) is removed.

9. Solar module according to claim 4, characterized in that the cover (6) is provided with a sweeping flange which slides on the uppermost one of the solar panels (10) placed one above the other when it is opened.

10. Solar module according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the support (3) has a deflection head (9) at one end thereof for supporting the solar panel (10).

11. Solar module according to claim 10, characterized in that the support (3) and/or the yaw head (9), if present, are equipped with drive means (15-19) controlled by the position of the sun for automatic sun tracking of the solar panel (10).

12. Solar module according to claim 11, characterized in that the solar panels (10) are movable between the positions of the solar panels by means of electric drives (15-19) and the carrier (3) is movable in and out by means of the electric drives (15-19).

13. Solar module according to claim 12, characterized in that the electric drive (15-19) has a worm gear (16) which engages in a toothed ring (17) of the driven shaft (11).

14. Solar module according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that each solar panel (10) is formed by a planar arrangement of photovoltaic solar cells (12).