Solar panel

Abstract

A solar panel that utilizes the sun's rays to heat a liquid to be used for providing heat or hot water includes front and rear parallel clear plastic panels. The front panel is intended to face the sun and is substantially transparent so that the sun's rays can pass there through The rear panel has a reflective coating thereon wherein rays from the sun are reflected back toward the space between the panels. Located within the space are a plurality of conduits formed by a plurality of internal walls that extend between the panels and the left and right side edges. Within the conduits is a darkened oily liquid that is heated by the incoming rays of the sun and the rays reflected by the rear panel. In a preferred embodiment, the front and rear panels and the internal walls are extruded as a single unit.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention is directed toward a device in the nature of a solar panel of the type that utilizes the sun's rays to heat a liquid to be used for providing heat or hot water to a home or other building.BACKGROUND ART[0002]Solar panels, also known as solar heat collectors, of the type stated generally above have been known for many years. During the 1970's and 1980's a significant number of different solar panels were constructed and used as a result of the intensive energy debate which took place during this period with regard to alternative renewable sources of energy. Many of the solar panels built during that period were manufactured in relatively small production series in an often unprofessional manner, which in time caused problems with water leakage amongst other things.[0003]The early solar collectors were generally constructed of rigid materials such as glass and metal tubing. Consequently, they were heavy and cumbersome to handle and install, a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The present invention is a solar panel that uses the sun's rays to heat a liquid to provide heat or hot water. It is efficient, inexpensive, and easy to mass produce. The panel has front and rear parallel but spaced apart clear plastic panels, with the front panel facing the sun and being transparent. The rear panel has a reflective coating to reflect the sun's rays back towards the space between the panels. The panel has internal walls that form conduits where the heated liquid flows. The goal is to absorb as much sun energy as possible on the first pass. Overall, the invention provides a simple and effective way to utilize solar energy for heating purposes."

Problems solved by technology

Many of the solar panels built during that period were manufactured in relatively small production series in an often unprofessional manner, which in time caused problems with water leakage amongst other things.

Consequently, they were heavy and cumbersome to handle and install, and were also undesirably expensive to construct and to use.

Non-rigid solar collectors constructed of plastic materials have also been proposed but none has proven successful.

While this may be an improvement on other prior art systems, it is still inefficient as much of the energy from the sun's rays is used merely to heat the darkened back panel and is not transferred to the liquid.

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