solar panel

Abstract

The invention relates to a solar module comprising - a front element (6) with an outer side (62) and a cell side (61), - a plurality of solar cells (7) which are electrically connected to form a solar cell string and are arranged on the cell side (61) of the front side element (6), - a rear element (1) with an outer surface (12) and a cell side (11) on which the plurality of solar cells is arranged, - an opening (2) extending through the back element (1) from the cell side (11) to the outside (12) with an opening edge enclosing the opening (2), - a cross connector (3) which is electrically connected to the solar cell string and extends from the cell side (11) through the opening (2) to the outside (12), - a reinforcing element (4) with a head section (42) dimensioned and designed such that the head section (42) covers the opening (2) with a cover area (44) and is fixed in a material-bonded manner beyond the opening (2) along at least 80% of the opening edge on the outside (12) of the back element (1) with at least one fixing area (45) immediately adjoining the cover area (44), wherein the head section (42) has at least one through-groove (43) in a section not fixed in a material-bonded manner with the outside (12) of the back element (1), through which the cross connector (3) extends such that it exits the reinforcing element (4) along the outside (12).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a solar module having a plurality of solar cells electrically interconnected to form a solar cell string. The solar module is constructed from a front element having an outer side and a cell side, and a rear element having an outer side and a cell side. The plurality of electrically interconnected solar cells are arranged between the cell side of the front element and the cell side of the rear element. The solar module further has an opening extending through the rear element from the cell side to the outer side, with an opening edge enclosing the opening, and a cross connector electrically interconnected to a solar cell string and extending from the cell side through the opening to the outer side of the rear element. The cross connector can therefore be electrically contacted outside the solar module.

[0002] At such an opening through which the cross connector is passed, mechanical stress concentrations occur which can lead to fractures in the back element due to tensile bending stresses in the solar module. This opening therefore represents a type of predetermined breaking point, as mechanical stresses act on the edge of the opening at approximately twice to three times the value compared to the remaining surface of the back element. A current thickness of the back element, which is usually made of glass, of 2.0 mm, for example, is sufficient for an acceptable load-bearing capacity of a solar module mounted in the field. However, it is advantageous to further reduce the thickness of the back element and the front element. In particular, reinforcement in the area of ​​the opening in the back element is necessary in order to be able to absorb the mechanical loads that normally occur there without risk of damage.By reducing the thickness of the back element, the sensitivity of the solar module to mechanical stress increases.

[0003] DE 10 2020 134 218 A1 describes a solar module with a plate-shaped front element and a plate-shaped rear element, wherein the rear element has at least one recess, with an encapsulation material arranged between the front element and the rear element, with a single solar cell or with a plurality of electrically interconnected solar cells arranged between the front element and the rear element and encapsulated in a weather-resistant manner in an encapsulation volume by means of the front element, the rear element and the encapsulation material enclosing the solar cells in the form of a laminate, with at least one electrical connection element protruding from the encapsulation volume into the recess,with a connection device fixed above the recess on the solar module for weather-resistant sealed electrical contacting of the at least one electrical connection element, with a sealing material extending from the encapsulation material into the recess and partially out of the recess, and with a plate which is fixed from the outside under contact pressure on the sealing material above the recess.

[0004] US 2013 / 0 263 909 A1 describes a solar cell module comprising: a light-transmitting member arranged on the light-receiving side; a photovoltaic device arranged on the light-transmitting member; a wiring member configured to allow electrical energy generated by the photovoltaic device to be discharged to the outside; a backside member having an opening configured to allow a lead wire to pass therethrough and arranged to face the light-transmitting member; a shielding member arranged to overlie the through-hole and configured to shield the through-hole; and a sealing member configured to seal the through-hole.The lead wire is arranged to pass through a gap between the shielding element and the backing element, bypassing the shielding element on the outlet side of the through-hole. The sealing element is configured to seal the gap in addition to sealing the through-hole.

[0005] It is an object of the invention to provide a solar module which, regardless of the thickness of its back element, withstands the stress caused by stress concentrations occurring at an opening of the back element through which the cross connector is passed.

[0006] According to the invention, this problem is solved by a solar module having the features of patent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments and further developments of the invention emerge from the following subclaims.

[0007] The invention relates to a solar module comprising - a front side element with an outer side and a cell side, - a plurality of solar cells electrically connected to form a solar cell string and arranged on the cell side of the front element, - a back element having an outer side and a cell side on which the plurality of solar cells are arranged, - an opening extending through the back element from the cell side to the outside with an opening edge enclosing the opening, - a cross connector that is electrically connected to the solar cell string and extends from the cell side through the opening to the outside, - a reinforcing element with a head part, dimensioned and designed such that the head part covers the opening with a cover area and is fixed in a material-to-material manner beyond the opening along at least 80% of the opening edge on the outside of the rear side element with at least one fixing area directly adjacent to the cover area, wherein the head part has at least one feed-through groove in a section which is not fixed in a material-to-material manner to the outside of the rear side element, through which groove the cross connector extends such that it emerges from the reinforcing element along the outside.

[0008] The reinforcement element provides a flat, preferably one-piece cover for the opening in the rear element with the cover area of ​​the reinforcement element. To ensure that this cover area permanently fulfills the function of covering the opening, the reinforcement element is firmly bonded to the outside of the rear element by means of fixing areas directly adjacent to the cover area. This increases the module stability at this critical point against the mechanical stresses that regularly occur in the field. At the same time, a reliable seal is provided for the opening in the rear element. The outer shape of the reinforcement element takes into account the geometry of the opening and the cross connector to be led out. The reinforcement element is firmly bonded to the outside of the rear element by means of its fixing areas in the area of ​​the opening edge directly adjacent to the opening.This reinforcement achieved by the material-to-material connection increases the cross-section in areas of the rear element where maximum mechanical stress concentrations occur in the field and thus reduces the peak mechanical stresses occurring there.

[0009] The front and rear elements are preferably each disk-shaped or plate-shaped. Both the front element and the rear element each have an outer side and a cell side. The cell side represents a side of the respective element that faces the plurality of electrically connected solar cells, while the outer side represents a side of the respective element that faces away from the plurality of solar cells.

[0010] The cohesive fixation serves to permanently and weather-resistantly bond the reinforcing element to the backing element by fusion and / or through intermolecular or chemical bonding forces, or by using an additive, for example, in the form of an adhesive. The cohesive fixation is preferably achieved by means of an adhesive bond.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment, the feedthrough groove has a sealing means for sealing the penetrating cross-connector between the rear element and the reinforcement element. The mechanical reinforcement provided by the reinforcement element can be combined with the sealing means providing a seal. The sealing means is preferably arranged on the outer side of the rear element.

[0012] Preferably, the reinforcement element is formed in one piece. This ensures that the solar module is permanently weatherproof in the area of ​​the opening.

[0013] The reinforcing element is preferably designed as a two-part cylinder with a cylinder axis oriented perpendicular to the rear element, wherein the head part is designed as a first partial cylinder and a base part is designed as a subsequent second partial cylinder with a larger diameter than the first partial cylinder. The sealing means is preferably also designed as a cylinder with a diameter such that it is arranged circumferentially around the head part on the base part.

[0014] The front element represents a side facing the incident sunlight during operation of the solar module, while the rear element represents a side facing away from the incident light during operation. The front element and the rear element can be made of glass and / or plastic. In view of the better weather resistance, the front element is preferably made of glass. In a further preferred embodiment, the rear element is also made of glass. Advantageously, the solar module further comprises an embedding material in which the plurality of electrically interconnected solar cells are embedded. The front element and the rear element sandwich the solar cell string embedded in the embedding material, so that it is encapsulated in a weather-resistant manner.

[0015] The reinforcing element is preferably made of a carbon material, a glass material, or a metal material. The carbon material can be a material made of 100% carbon or a material that is a carbon fiber-reinforced plastic. Alternatively, the reinforcing element is preferably made of 100% glass.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment, the reinforcement element is firmly fixed by means of a glued, bonded, welded, preferably laser-welded, or ultrasonically soldered connection between the glass backing element and the reinforcement element. The glued connection can be realized, for example, using a UV-curing adhesive such as an epoxy resin. Particularly if the reinforcement element is made of a glass material or a metal material, it can be welded, laser-welded, or ultrasonically soldered to the glass backing element.

[0017] In a preferred embodiment, the solar module has a sealing means arranged between the backing element and the reinforcing element. The sealing means arranged between the reinforcing element and the backing element is preferably designed as a butyl seal.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment, the backing element has a thickness extending from the outer side to the cell side that is less than 2.0 mm, preferably less than or equal to 1.6 mm. The thinner the backing element, the more essential the reinforcement element is.

[0019] Particularly preferably, the solar module has a front element with a thickness of 1.6 mm and a rear element with a thickness of 1.6 mm.

[0020] The opening preferably represents a bore. The opening may further be reinforced by means of a ring, a cylinder, a spiral made of glass, a steel sheet, carbon fibers and / or steel wire.

[0021] Further properties and advantages of the solar module according to the invention are explained in more detail in the context of the preferred embodiments described below. It shows schematically and not to scale: Fig. 1 an exploded view of a solar module according to the invention; and Fig. 2 a perspective partial view of the Fig. 1 shown solar module with assembled components.

[0022] Fig. 1 shows an exploded view of a solar module according to the invention. The solar module has a flat front element 6, shown only in part, with an outer side 62 and a cell side 61, and a plurality of solar cells 7, which are electrically interconnected by means of interconnection elements 8 to form a so-called solar cell string. Purely by way of example, three solar cells 7 are shown, which are electrically interconnected by means of the interconnection elements 8. The solar cells 7 are arranged on the cell side 61 of the front element 6. Furthermore, the solar module has a flat rear element 1, also shown only in part, with an outer side 12 and a cell side 11, on the cell side 11 of which the plurality of solar cells 7 are arranged. The solar cells 7 are further embedded in an embedding material (not shown) and laminated in the product between the front element 6 and the rear element 1 in a sandwich-like manner.

[0023] The solar module has an opening 2 extending through the rear side element 1 from the cell side 11 to the outer side 12, with an opening edge directly surrounding the opening 2, which represents the transition from the outer side 12 to the opening 2. Furthermore, the embodiment of the solar module shown here has - purely as an example - two cross connectors 3, which are electrically connected to the solar cell string and extend from the cell side 11 through the opening 2 to the outer side 12. The solar module has a reinforcing element 4 with a head part 42, a base part 41, and a feed-through groove 43. Furthermore, the solar module has a sealing means 5 for sealing the cross connector 3 passing through between the rear side element 1 and the reinforcing element 4.

[0024] Fig. 2 shows a perspective partial view of the Fig.1 in an assembled arrangement of the components. For the sake of clarity, the solar cells, the interconnection elements of the solar cells, and the front element have been omitted. Shown are the rear element 1, the opening 2, the cross connectors 3, the reinforcement element 4, and the sealing means 5. The reinforcement element 4 with its head part 42 is dimensioned and designed such that the head part 42 covers the opening 2 with a cover region 44 and is firmly fixed beyond the opening 2 along at least 80% of the opening edge on the outer side 12 of the rear element 1 with at least one fixing region 45 directly adjacent to the cover region 44.The head part 42 has, in a section which is not fixed in a materially bonded manner to the outer side 12 of the rear side element 1, the feed-through groove 43 through which the cross connectors 3 extend in such a way that they emerge from the reinforcing element 4 and thus from the solar module in an orientation oriented along the outer side 12 of the rear side element. List of reference symbols: 1 back element 11 cell page 12 Outside 2 Opening 3 cross connectors 4 Reinforcing element 41 Base part 42 headboard 43 Groove 44 Lid area 45 Fixing area 5 Sealants 6 Front panel element 61 cell page 62 Outside 7 solar cells 8 interconnection element

Claims

[1] Solar module, comprising - a front side element (6) with an outer side (62) and a cell side (61), - a plurality of solar cells (7) which are electrically connected to form a solar cell string and are arranged on the cell side (61) of the front element (6), - a back element (1) having an outer side (12) and a cell side (11) on which the plurality of solar cells (7) are arranged, - an opening (2) extending through the rear element (1) from the cell side (11) to the outside (12) with an opening edge enclosing the opening (2), - a cross connector (3) which is electrically connected to the solar cell string and extends from the cell side (11) through the opening (2) to the outside (12), - a reinforcing element (4) with a head part (42), dimensioned and designed such that the head part (42) covers the opening (2) with a cover region (44) and is fixed in a material-to-material manner beyond the opening (2) along at least 80% of the opening edge on the outer side (12) of the rear side element (1) with at least one fixing region (45) directly adjoining the cover region (44), wherein the head part (42) has at least one feed-through groove (43) in a section which is not fixed in a material-to-material manner to the outer side (12) of the rear side element (1), through which groove the cross connector (3) extends such that it exits from the reinforcing element (4) along the outer side (12). [2] Solar module according to claim 1, wherein the through-groove (43) has a sealing means (5) for sealing the passing cross connector (3) between the rear side element (1) and the reinforcing element (4). [3] Solar module according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the reinforcing element (4) is formed in one piece and / or is formed as a two-part cylinder with a cylinder axis oriented perpendicular to the rear side element (1), wherein the head part (42) is formed as a first partial cylinder and a base part (41) is formed as an adjoining second partial cylinder with a larger diameter compared to the first partial cylinder. [4] Solar module according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the rear side element (1) is made of glass, the reinforcing element (4) is made of a carbon material or a glass material or a metal material. [5] Solar module according to claim 4, wherein the reinforcing element (4) is fixed in a materially bonded manner by means of an adhesively bonded, bonded, welded or ultrasonically soldered connection between the rear side element (1) formed from glass and the reinforcing element (4). [6] Solar module according to one of the preceding claims 2 to 5, wherein the sealing means (5) arranged between the reinforcing element (4) and the back element (1) is designed as a butyl seal. [7] Solar module according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the back element (1) has a thickness extending from the outer side (12) to the cell side (11) which is less than 2.0 mm.

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