A photovoltaic tracker bearing block

Abstract

This invention proposes a bearing housing for a photovoltaic tracker, relating to the field of photovoltaic equipment technology, including a bearing cavity; a plurality of first arc-shaped plates and a plurality of second arc-shaped plates. Through an elastic "X"-shaped deformation and a graded airbag drive design, this invention can adapt to strong and weak vibration scenarios under alternating wind load excitation. During weak vibrations, it triggers micro-damping adjustment to avoid damping redundancy; during strong vibrations, it progressively enhances vibration reduction efficiency, achieving full-frequency resonance avoidance. This completely solves the defects of traditional structures, such as a single vibration reduction frequency band and poor adaptability. Simultaneously, disordered radial vibration is transformed into directional, regular deformation, significantly reducing fatigue damage to the bearing and housing caused by vibration impacts, eliminating accuracy attenuation caused by resonance. Under normal conditions, it maintains rigid clamping to ensure tracking and positioning accuracy; during vibration, it achieves adaptive flexible buffering, balancing operational stability and long service life, meeting the harsh operating conditions required by outdoor photovoltaic trackers.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of photovoltaic equipment technology, and in particular to a photovoltaic tracker bearing housing. Background Technology

[0002] Photovoltaic trackers are deployed in outdoor open environments for extended periods, constantly subjected to alternating loads from strong winds, gusts, and sandstorms. Their slewing bearings are highly susceptible to radial disordered vibrations, which is a core challenge restricting the stability and lifespan of the tracking system.

[0003] Existing photovoltaic tracker bearing housings mostly adopt an integral rigid casting structure, relying solely on adding rubber pads, damping blocks, and other methods to achieve passive vibration reduction. However, traditional passive damping structures are only effective for vibrations of fixed intensity, with a single vibration reduction frequency band and poor adaptability. They cannot adapt to the strong and weak alternating excitations brought about by wind load fluctuations. The damping is redundant during weak vibrations and fails during strong vibrations, making it difficult to achieve resonance avoidance across the entire frequency band. This easily leads to resonance fatigue of the bearing and housing, resulting in a significant decrease in tracking and positioning accuracy. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides a photovoltaic tracker bearing housing, which solves the technical problems mentioned in the background section.

[0005] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention provides the following technical solution: a photovoltaic tracker bearing housing, comprising:

[0006] Bearing cavity;

[0007] A plurality of first arc-shaped plates and a plurality of second arc-shaped plates are arranged opposite to each other and form an elastic “x”-shaped structure that is spaced apart along the circumference of the bearing cavity. The inner arc surfaces of each second arc-shaped plate together enclose the space for clamping the bearing, and the outer arc surfaces of each elastic “x”-shaped structure form a dynamic fan-shaped groove.

[0008] Several Venturi channels are opened along the spatial axis of the device on the inner wall of each of the second arc-shaped plates;

[0009] Several grooves, which are opened through the inner arc surface of each of the second arc-shaped plates in the same direction as the Venturi channel, and communicate with the throat of the Venturi channel;

[0010] Several sets of airbags are arranged sequentially in the fan-shaped groove along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove and are connected to the inlet of the Venturi channel. When the bearing vibrates, the two ends of the second arc plate slide and deform along the inner wall of the bearing cavity, and work with the fan-shaped groove to compress and squeeze each set of airbags in sequence to supply air to the corresponding Venturi channel.

[0011] Several elastic surfaces surround the corresponding groove to form a closed cavity. When the gas flows sequentially inside each Venturi channel, a negative pressure is generated at the corresponding throat and transmitted to the closed cavity, forcing the elastic surfaces to deform in sequence to form graded vibration suppression.

[0012] Preferably, the cross-section of each group of airbags is arranged in an arc shape with increasing curvature along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, and the cavity of each airbag is arranged in a gradient increasing manner along the expansion direction.

[0013] Preferably, the grooves are symmetrically arranged along the inner arc surface of the corresponding second arc plate with the connection point with the first arc plate as the boundary, and the width of each groove is gradually increased in a gradient along the increasing direction of the cavity of each airbag.

[0014] Preferably, the enclosing area of ​​the plurality of elastic surfaces is arranged in a gradient increasing direction along the width of the corresponding groove, and is adapted to the cavity gradient of the corresponding airbag and the width gradient of the corresponding groove, forming a vibration damping surface with graded response increasing along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove.

[0015] Preferably, under the sequential air supply and driving of each of the airbags, the corresponding elastic circumferential surface deforms and is recessed into the corresponding groove in sequence and then resets in sequence, forming a wave-like propagation contact interface dynamic modulation structure.

[0016] Preferably, in the wave-like dynamic modulation structure of the contact interface, the concave amplitude of each elastic surface changes proportionally to the compression of the corresponding airbag.

[0017] Preferably, the first arc-shaped plate has sliding parts at both ends, and the inner wall of the bearing cavity has a corresponding guide groove, and the sliding parts are slidably embedded in the guide groove.

[0018] By employing the above technical solution, the present invention provides a photovoltaic tracker bearing housing, which has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0019] This invention, through its elastic "X"-shaped deformation and graded airbag drive design, can adapt to strong and weak vibration scenarios under alternating wind load excitation. During weak vibrations, it triggers micro-damping adjustment to avoid damping redundancy, and during strong vibrations, it progressively enhances vibration reduction efficiency, achieving resonance avoidance across the entire frequency band. This completely solves the defects of traditional structures, such as single vibration reduction frequency band and poor adaptability. At the same time, disordered radial vibration is transformed into directional regular deformation, significantly reducing the fatigue damage of vibration impacts to bearings and housings, eliminating the accuracy attenuation problem caused by resonance. Under normal conditions, it maintains rigid clamping to ensure tracking and positioning accuracy, and during vibrations, it achieves adaptive flexible buffering, balancing operational stability and long service life, meeting the harsh operating conditions of outdoor photovoltaic trackers. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of this application and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments and are used to explain this application, but do not constitute an undue limitation of this application. In the drawings:

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the first and second arc-shaped plates of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the internal cross-sectional structure of the second arc-shaped plate of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of one state of the airbag and elastic enclosure of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the airbag and elastic enclosure of the present invention in two states.

[0026] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the three-state structure of the airbag and elastic enclosure of the present invention.

[0027] In the diagram: 1. Bearing cavity; 21. First arc plate; 22. Second arc plate; 221. Venturi channel; 222. Groove; 3. Airbag; 4. Elastic enclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0028] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0029] Please refer to Figures 1-6 This embodiment proposes a photovoltaic tracker bearing housing, comprising:

[0030] Bearing cavity 1;

[0031] A plurality of first arc-shaped plates 21 and a plurality of second arc-shaped plates 22 are arranged opposite to each other and form an elastic “x” shaped structure that is spaced apart along the circumference of the bearing cavity 1. Each end of the first arc-shaped plate 21 is provided with a sliding part, and the inner wall of the bearing cavity 1 is provided with a guide groove. The sliding part can be slidably embedded in the guide groove.

[0032] The inner arc surfaces of each second arc plate 22 together enclose the space for clamping the bearing, and the outer arc surfaces of each elastic "x" shaped structure form a dynamic fan-shaped groove.

[0033] Several Venturi channels 221 are opened along the spatial axis of the device on the inner wall of each second arc-shaped plate 22;

[0034] Several grooves 222 are opened in the same direction as the Venturi channel 221 through the inner arc surface of each second arc plate 22 and are connected to the throat of the Venturi channel 221.

[0035] Several sets of airbags 3 are arranged sequentially in the fan-shaped groove along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove and connected to the inlet of the Venturi channel 221. When the bearing vibrates, the two ends of the second arc plate 22 slide and deform along the inner wall of the bearing cavity 1, and work together with the fan-shaped groove to compress and squeeze each set of airbags 3 to supply air to the corresponding Venturi channel 221.

[0036] Several elastic surfaces 4 surround the corresponding grooves 222 to form a closed cavity. When the gas flows sequentially inside each Venturi channel 221, the corresponding throat generates negative pressure and is transmitted to the closed cavity, forcing the elastic surfaces 4 to deform in sequence to form graded vibration suppression.

[0037] Under normal conditions with no or minimal vibration, each of the second arc-shaped plates 22 forms a continuous support interface for the outer wall of the bearing. At this time, the bearing is stably clamped within the device space, and the bearing housing provides conventional rigid support, ensuring the operational accuracy and positioning stability of the photovoltaic tracker. When the bearing is subjected to external wind load excitation or vibrates itself during rotation, the outer wall of the bearing generates radial vibration within the device space. The vibration energy is first transferred to the second arc-shaped plate 22, which is in direct contact with it, and then through the second arc-shaped plate 22 to the first arc-shaped plate 21. The first arc-shaped plate 21 has sliding portions at both ends, and a corresponding guide groove is provided on the inner wall of the bearing cavity 1. The sliding portions are slidably embedded in the guide grooves. When the first arc-shaped plate 21 is subjected to force, its two ends undergo sliding deformation along the guide grooves, forming a primary buffer. This sliding deformation transforms the disordered radial vibration of the bearing into regular movement along a specific direction, achieving efficient capture of vibration energy while preventing impact energy from directly acting on the bearing cavity 1 body.

[0038] The sliding deformation of the first arc plate 21 causes the fan-shaped groove formed by its outer arc surface to be compressed, and the compression direction is gradually transmitted along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove. As the fan-shaped groove is compressed, its groove width decreases sequentially, thereby squeezing the airbags 3 arranged therein sequentially along the expansion direction. The compressed airbags 3 supply their internal gas to the corresponding Venturi channels 221 through the inlet. At this stage, the mechanical energy is converted into pneumatic kinetic energy, and the conversion process is matched with the vibration intensity: when the vibration is small, only the fan-shaped groove is locally compressed; when the vibration increases, the compression stroke is extended, and each airbag 3 intervenes step by step, and the air supply volume and air supply sequence are adaptively matched with the vibration intensity. Venturi channels 221 are formed on the inner wall of the second arc-shaped plate 22. They include a contraction section, a throat, and an expansion section. The outlet of the expansion section is directed to the outside. When gas flows sequentially through the Venturi channels 221, a significant negative pressure is generated at the throat according to fluid dynamics principles. This negative pressure is directly transmitted through the connecting structure to the closed cavity enclosed by the elastic surrounding surface 4, achieving a secondary conversion of airflow kinetic energy into negative pressure potential energy. When the negative pressure is transmitted to the closed cavity, the elastic surrounding surface 4 is drawn inward, concave into the groove 222, thus temporarily detaching from the bearing outer wall. As the airbags 3 are supplied sequentially along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, the corresponding Venturi channels 221 sequentially generate negative pressure, and the corresponding elastic surrounding surfaces 4 are sequentially concave along the circumference of the bearing cavity 1. When the corresponding airbags 3 are completely compressed and the gas supply stops, the airflow in the Venturi channels 221 disappears, the negative pressure at the throat disappears, and the elastic surrounding surface 4 returns to its original elastic state, re-contacting the bearing outer wall. This process forms a cycle in which the elastic surrounding surface 4 is successively concave and then reset. By replacing one with another, the contact area with the outer wall of the bearing is reduced, which changes the overall stiffness distribution of the bearing-bearing housing system, causing the natural frequency to shift, effectively avoiding the occurrence of resonance, and significantly reducing fretting wear.

[0039] The cross-section of each airbag 3 is arranged in an arc shape with increasing curvature along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, and the cavity of each airbag 3 is arranged in a gradient increasing manner along the expansion direction.

[0040] Furthermore, such as Figure 4 As shown, each group of airbags 3 is arranged in an arc shape with increasing cross-sectional curvature and increasing cavity gradient along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, so that the exhaust capacity of the airbags 3 is strongly correlated with the vibration amplitude. When the vibration is small, the compression stroke of the fan-shaped groove is short, triggering only the front airbags 3 with small cross-sections and small cavities, resulting in a small output air volume and gentle airflow, forming a first-level fine air supply; when the vibration increases, the compression stroke of the fan-shaped groove is extended, and subsequent airbags 3 with large cross-sections and large cavities are gradually introduced, significantly increasing the output air volume and enhancing the airflow pressure, forming a second-level and third-level enhanced air supply; thus, an adaptive graded air supply with stronger air supply capacity is achieved as the vibration becomes stronger, providing the Venturi channel 221 with airflow power matching the excitation intensity.

[0041] Several grooves 222 are symmetrically arranged along the inner arc surface of the corresponding second arc plate 22, with the connection point with the first arc plate 21 as the boundary. The width of each groove 222 gradually increases along the increasing direction of the cavity of each airbag 3. The enclosing area of ​​several elastic surrounding surfaces 4 gradually increases along the widening direction of the corresponding groove 222, and is adapted to the cavity gradient of the corresponding airbag 3 and the width gradient of the corresponding groove 222, forming a vibration damping surface with graded response increase along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove.

[0042] Furthermore, such as Figures 3-6 As shown, several grooves 222 are symmetrically arranged around the connection between the second arc-shaped plate 22 and the first arc-shaped plate 21, ensuring balanced circumferential force and symmetrical vibration suppression of the bearing. Simultaneously, the width of the grooves 222 and the area enclosed by the elastic surrounding surface 4 gradually increase along the increasing direction of the airbag 3's cavity, matching the gradient of the airbag 3's cavity, ensuring a precise correspondence between the negative pressure area and the air supply intensity. When the small-cavity airbag 3 is supplied with air, the corresponding narrow-width, small-area grooves 222 and elastic surrounding surface 4 move, forming a small-scale, localized first-level vibration suppression surface, only slightly altering the system stiffness. When the large-cavity airbag 3 is supplied with air, the corresponding wide-width, large-area grooves 222 and elastic surrounding surface 4 move synchronously, forming a large-scale, integrated enhanced vibration suppression surface, significantly altering the system stiffness. This constructs an adaptive vibration suppression interface with graded response and progressively increasing vibration suppression effect along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove. During vibration, the first arc plate 21 undergoes directional sliding deformation, and the fan-shaped groove is compressed step by step. This drives the airbags 3 to move in sequence, with the cavity size increasing, the groove width increasing, and the area of ​​the elastic enclosure 4 increasing. The negative pressure at the throat of the Venturi channel 221 increases with the increase in air supply, and the concave amplitude and range of action of the elastic enclosure 4 expand synchronously. This causes the contact area between the bearing and the bearing seat to decrease step by step, and the system stiffness to decrease step by step. The natural frequency is continuously and gradient-shifted. When the vibration is weak, it achieves fine vibration suppression and slight resonance avoidance. When the vibration is severe, it achieves strong vibration suppression and significant vibration reduction, avoiding resonance phenomena under different intensity excitations from the root. At the same time, it reduces contact pressure and fretting wear in stages. After the vibration disappears, each component synchronously and elastically resets, quickly restoring the rigid support state. Thus, while ensuring the positioning accuracy of the photovoltaic tracker, it significantly improves the vibration resistance, operational stability, and service life of the bearing seat.

[0043] Driven by the sequential air supply to each airbag 3, the corresponding elastic surfaces 4 deform and concave into the corresponding grooves 222 in sequence, and then reset in sequence, forming a wave-like dynamic modulation structure of the contact interface. In the wave-like dynamic modulation structure of the contact interface, the concavity amplitude of each elastic surface 4 changes proportionally with the compression amount of the corresponding airbag 3.

[0044] Furthermore, such as Figures 4-6As shown, when the bearing vibrates radially, each group of airbags 3 is sequentially compressed and supplied with air along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, driving the corresponding elastic surrounding surface 4 to form a cyclic action of sequential inward concavity and sequential reset. This creates a wave-like dynamic contact modulation structure between the bearing and the support interface. This dynamic structure is not discontinuous but achieves continuous switching of the contact state in a time-sequential, circumferentially progressive manner, visually presenting a wave-like propagation effect that advances in an orderly manner along the circumference. From the perspective of the contact mechanism, this provides a basic dynamic adjustment capability for the vibration damping system.

[0045] During this wave-like dynamic modulation process, the concave amplitude of each elastic surface 4 and the compression of the corresponding airbag 3 maintain a proportional and coordinated change: the lower the vibration intensity, the lower the compression of the airbag 3, the smoother the negative pressure generated by the air supply, the smaller the concave amplitude of the elastic surface 4, and the closer the contact state with the bearing outer wall is to the normal rigid support; the greater the vibration intensity, the higher the compression of the airbag 3, the stronger the negative pressure effect, the greater the concave amplitude of the elastic surface 4, and the correspondingly lower the contact pressure with the bearing outer wall. This characteristic of adaptively matching the concave depth with the vibration intensity enables the support stiffness to achieve a smooth transition, avoids secondary impacts caused by abrupt changes in stiffness, and forms a synergistic mechanism with the gradient-based vibration suppression.

[0046] By utilizing the aforementioned wave-like alternating contact and proportional concave adjustment, this structure achieves a dynamic reduction in the contact area of ​​the bearing outer wall through a one-to-one replacement mechanism. While maintaining continuous support in certain areas, it breaks the fixed stiffness distribution of full-contact rigid supports. Combined with a graded vibration suppression gradient response, it achieves small-range, small-amplitude stiffness fine-tuning under weak vibration conditions, precisely avoiding resonance caused by micro-vibrations; under strong vibration conditions, it achieves large-range, large-amplitude stiffness reconstruction, significantly improving damping dissipation capacity and thoroughly suppressing resonance across the entire frequency range and strength dimension.

[0047] Meanwhile, the wave-like dynamic contact interface creates a cyclical contact-micro-disengagement-re-contact state between the bearing and the support surface, effectively cutting off the path of continuous fretting friction, avoiding long-term alternating stress on local contact areas, and significantly reducing fretting wear, surface scratches, and structural fatigue damage. Graded vibration suppression adjusts the suppression level and range of action according to vibration intensity, while wave-like dynamic modulation optimizes the contact state and smooths stiffness changes. The two work synergistically to ensure high-precision rigid support and positioning stability under normal conditions, while achieving adaptive, graded, and wave-like efficient vibration suppression under vibration conditions.

[0048] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing, characterized in that, include: Bearing cavity; A plurality of first arc-shaped plates and a plurality of second arc-shaped plates are arranged opposite to each other and form an elastic "x"-shaped structure that is spaced apart along the circumference of the bearing cavity. The inner arc surfaces of each second arc-shaped plate together enclose the space for clamping the bearing, and the outer arc surfaces of each elastic "x"-shaped structure form a dynamic fan-shaped groove. Several Venturi channels are opened along the spatial axis of the device on the inner wall of each of the second arc-shaped plates; Several grooves, which are opened through the inner arc surface of each of the second arc-shaped plates in the same direction as the Venturi channel, and communicate with the throat of the Venturi channel; Several sets of airbags are arranged sequentially in the fan-shaped groove along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove and are connected to the inlet of the Venturi channel. When the bearing vibrates, the two ends of the second arc plate slide and deform along the inner wall of the bearing cavity, and work with the fan-shaped groove to compress and squeeze each set of airbags in sequence to supply air to the corresponding Venturi channel. Several elastic surfaces surround the corresponding groove to form a closed cavity. When the gas flows sequentially inside each Venturi channel, a negative pressure is generated at the corresponding throat and transmitted to the closed cavity, forcing the elastic surfaces to deform in sequence to form graded vibration suppression.

2. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cross-section of each airbag is arranged in an arc shape with increasing curvature along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove, and the cavity of each airbag is arranged in a gradient increasing manner along the expansion direction.

3. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 2, characterized in that, The grooves are symmetrically arranged along the inner arc surface of the corresponding second arc plate with the connection point with the first arc plate as the boundary, and the width of each groove is gradually increased in a gradient along the increasing direction of the cavity of each airbag.

4. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 3, characterized in that, The enclosing area of ​​several elastic surfaces is gradually increased along the width expansion direction of the corresponding groove, and is adapted to the cavity gradient of the corresponding airbag and the width gradient of the corresponding groove, forming a vibration damping surface with graded response increase along the expansion direction of the fan-shaped groove.

5. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 4, characterized in that, Under the sequential air supply and driving of each of the airbags, the corresponding elastic surfaces deform and are recessed into the corresponding grooves in sequence and then reset in sequence, forming a wave-like propagating dynamic modulation structure of the contact interface.

6. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 5, characterized in that, In the wave-like dynamic modulation structure of the contact interface, the concave amplitude of each elastic surface changes proportionally to the compression of the corresponding airbag.

7. A photovoltaic tracker bearing housing according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first arc-shaped plate has sliding parts at both ends, and the inner wall of the bearing cavity has a corresponding guide groove. The sliding parts are slidably embedded in the guide groove.

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