CARPORT

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a method for assembling a carport for a motor vehicle with a substructure and a superstructure, wherein the substructure has a plurality of support elements for attachment to a floor structure and the support elements form a receiving space for a motor vehicle, wherein the substructure has a mounting structure which is arranged on the support elements, wherein the superstructure is mountable on the mounting structure, wherein the superstructure has a base structure for attachment to the mounting structure and a support structure for attachment of photovoltaic cells.

[0002] Carports with photovoltaic cells to supply electrical loads are well-known. Such carports can have the disadvantage that they are difficult to install and may even require the use of heavy tools. Furthermore, the substructure must be aligned in such a way that the photovoltaic cell arrangement is optimally aligned to ensure the most efficient power generation, since the cell arrangement can usually only be mounted precisely on the substructure.

[0003] ES 2368544 A1 discloses a two-axis solar tracker. US 2013 / 0118099 A1 discloses a frame-like mount with a two-axis tracking function for photovoltaic cells. DE 20 2014 007 891 U1 discloses solar module tracking on carport and building roofs. US 2013 / 0234645 A1 discloses a portable modular solar tracking system for solar modules.

[0004] Based on this, it is the object of the present invention to provide an improved method for assembling a carport, which enables the photovoltaic cells to be aligned independently of the alignment of the substructure.

[0005] The object is achieved by a method for assembling a carport having the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are described in the subclaims.

[0006] For the carport, it is proposed that the superstructure be mounted so that it can rotate around at least one spatial axis.

[0007] The spatial axis can preferably be the axis that extends essentially orthogonally from the floor structure, i.e. in the longitudinal direction of the carport.

[0008] For example, the superstructure can be mounted so it can rotate at an angle of up to 360 degrees. However, it is also conceivable for the superstructure to be mounted so it can rotate more than 360 degrees around the spatial axis. This allows the superstructure to rotate several times around the spatial axis on the substructure.

[0009] A photovoltaic cell is an electrical component that converts radiant energy into electrical energy. Several photovoltaic cells can be combined to form a module, with several modules forming an array of photovoltaic cells.

[0010] Due to the rotatable mounting of the superstructure around the spatial axis, the photovoltaic cells can be aligned to the position of the sun in such a way that efficient power generation, or efficient conversion of solar energy into electrical energy, of the photovoltaic cells can be ensured.

[0011] Furthermore, the assembly of the carport can be simplified by the setup described above. The superstructure can initially be attached to the mounting structure without any special alignment. The superstructure can then be rotated so that the photovoltaic cells are aligned according to the position of the sun. The superstructure can thus be attached to the substructure before any fine adjustments are made, and the superstructure can be moved into an optimal position by simply rotating it around the spatial axis.

[0012] The superstructure is then secured to the mounting structure, preventing accidental changes in the orientation of the photovoltaic cells without loosening the fixation. Fixation can be achieved, for example, using a hose clamp or a hose clamp mechanism.

[0013] The support structure can be mounted so that it can be displaced along the spatial axis to adjust the angle of inclination of the photovoltaic cells. Furthermore, the angle of inclination can advantageously be adjustable continuously or to at least two discrete positions.

[0014] The tilt angle is the angle between a plane spanned by the photovoltaic cell and a plane spanned by the soil structure. For efficient operation of the photovoltaic cells, it is advantageous if the photovoltaic cells are aligned at a 90-degree angle to the solar radiation.

[0015] The angle of inclination can be adjusted between 0 degrees and 60 degrees, in particular between 20 degrees and 40 degrees, depending on the location of the carport. In particular, the angle of inclination can be set to two discrete positions, so that the angle of inclination can be set to the respective discrete position in summertime and wintertime. The discrete position is the position at which the solar radiation hits the photovoltaic cell at a 90-degree angle during the sun's zenith. The discrete position changes depending on the sun's zenith, so that the angle of inclination can be set to at least two discrete positions, for example, for the sun's zenith in summertime and for the sun's zenith in wintertime.

[0016] In particular, it is conceivable that the tilt angle could be automatically adjusted depending on the calendar date. The tilt angle could thus be automatically adjusted depending on the current date, ensuring efficient operation of the photovoltaic cells.

[0017] In this way, a carport can be provided with photovoltaic cells that can be aligned to the position of the sun both by rotating them around the spatial axis and by adjusting the angle of inclination.

[0018] The angle of inclination can be adjusted, for example, using a lifting element.

[0019] The superstructure can be rotated around the spatial axis at an angle of up to 90 degrees.

[0020] The rotation allows the photovoltaic cells to be easily aligned with the sun's position during carport assembly. The photovoltaic cells can be roughly adjusted to the sun's position during installation. The superstructure can then be finely adjusted by rotating it at an angle of up to 90 degrees around the room's axis, ensuring that the photovoltaic cells are aligned with the sun's position. Reducing the angle also simplifies the carport assembly, requiring only one rotation of up to 90 degrees.

[0021] The mounting structure can be circular, with the superstructure being mounted so as to be rotatable around the spatial axis along the circular mounting structure.

[0022] The circular design of the mounting structure allows for easy rotation of the superstructure along the mounting structure around the spatial axis while ensuring a stable construction.

[0023] The circular mounting structure is particularly ring-shaped, with the entire superstructure mounted so that it can rotate around the spatial axis along a circular path of the ring-shaped mounting structure. The circular path is to be understood as a continuous circular path and, in particular, not as a polygon that describes a circle. This has the advantage that the entire superstructure can be rotated around the spatial axis, simplifying the assembly of the superstructure on the substructure. It is conceivable that the superstructure can be rotated 360° around the spatial axis as often as required until the desired position on the substructure is achieved.

[0024] The circular mounting structure can be formed from at least one cylindrical element. Furthermore, the cylindrical element can advantageously form a ring structure, wherein the ring structure is designed to be connectable to the support elements via at least one connecting element.

[0025] The connecting elements can, in particular, be designed as bearing bushes, with the ring structure being mounted in the connecting elements designed as bearing bushes. The connecting elements designed as bearing bushes allow the support elements to be moved along the ring structure of the mounting structure before being attached to the floor structure, so that the support elements can be positioned at the installation location and subsequently attached to the floor structure.

[0026] The mounting structure can also be designed as a ring structure regardless of the presence of the connecting element.

[0027] The basic structure can be designed to be connectable to the ring structure with at least one further connecting element.

[0028] The additional connecting element can, in particular, be of the same type as the connecting element between the ring structure and the support elements. The additional connecting element can thus, in particular, be designed as a bearing bush, so that the superstructure can be easily rotated around the spatial axis by guiding the ring structure through the bearing bush.

[0029] Stabilizing elements can be arranged on the substructure and / or the superstructure to stabilize the mounting structure and / or to stabilize the support structure. Furthermore, the stabilizing elements can advantageously be designed to be adaptable to the angle of inclination.

[0030] The support structure and / or the mounting structure are supported by the stabilizing elements, so that the support structure and / or the mounting structure are braced against the weight of the photovoltaic cell or the entire superstructure. For example, it is conceivable that the stabilizing elements protrude from the support elements and are connected to the mounting structure, so that the weight can also be dissipated via the stabilizing elements.

[0031] The basic structure can be square. This has the advantage that the photovoltaic cells can be mounted more easily on a square profile.

[0032] The base structure can be supported on the mounting structure at support points, whereby the base structure is movably mounted on wheels at the support points on the mounting structure.

[0033] The wheels allow the superstructure to be easily moved on or along the substructure mounting structure, so that the alignment of the photovoltaic cells can be simplified by rotating the superstructure.

[0034] It is also conceivable that a sliding element such as a glider made of plastic can be used instead of the wheels.

[0035] A charging element for charging an electrical energy storage device can be arranged on the carport.

[0036] The superstructure may have a tracking system, wherein the tracking system is configured to align the photovoltaic cell with the position of the sun.

[0037] The tracking system automatically aligns the photovoltaic cell according to the current position of the sun, allowing the superstructure to rotate continuously and allowing the sun's rays to strike the photovoltaic cell at an angle of approximately 90 degrees, essentially orthogonally. This allows the photovoltaic cell to operate efficiently.

[0038] It is conceivable that the tracking system can allow the photovoltaic cells to be rotated around the spatial axis and moved in the direction of the spatial axis to adjust the angle of inclination to the position of the sun.

[0039] Furthermore, the present invention relates to a system according to claim 13, comprising a plurality of the above-described carports, wherein the photovoltaic cells of the carports are connected to one another at the DC voltage level by means of an intermediate MPPT converter.

[0040] The photovoltaic cell generally supplies direct current to a connected load. This allows multiple electrical consumers to be supplied with a single electrical current in parallel. If only one electrical consumer is to be supplied, the output currents of several photovoltaic cells in the carports can be combined at the DC voltage level, either directly or via MPP tracker DC / DC converters, or via inverters at the AC voltage level as single- or three-phase current.

[0041] It is conceivable that the photovoltaic cells of a carport form a photovoltaic cell array, whereby the photovoltaic cell arrays of the carports are connected to each other at the DC voltage level or at the AC voltage level.

[0042] It is conceivable that the large number of carports are connected to a single central inverter and that the central inverter converts the output currents of the photovoltaic cells into a three-phase current.

[0043] If necessary, a single electrical storage unit can be charged faster using the energy from multiple carports than from one. However, it is still possible to supply power to multiple electrical devices in parallel. This allows the carport according to the invention to be used more flexibly.

[0044] The connection of several photovoltaic cells of the carports on a DC voltage level has the further advantage that fewer lossy voltage conversions occur.

[0045] The photovoltaic cells of the system's carports can be connected to each other at the DC voltage level using an intermediate MPPT converter.

[0046] The MPPT (Maximum Power Point Tracking) converter allows the maximum possible power to be extracted from the photovoltaic cells and fed into the system. The optimal operating point for photovoltaic cells is not constant, as it fluctuates depending on factors such as temperature or irradiance. A downstream MPPT converter allows the maximum possible power to be extracted from the photovoltaic cells and fed into the system, eliminating the need for an additional DC-DC converter to adjust the different voltages to a consistent level.

[0047] Furthermore, a DC-DC converter for charging an electric vehicle can be advantageously connected to a DC link of the inverter, or the inverter's DC link voltage can be adjusted to match the charging voltage for the electric vehicle. This eliminates the need for an additional DC-DC converter, which would otherwise adjust the voltage, and reduces the resulting losses.

[0048] The DC link allows an electric vehicle, for example, to be charged directly from the DC link. The DC link voltage corresponds to the charging voltage of the electric vehicle.

[0049] However, it is also conceivable that a DC-DC converter is coupled to the intermediate circuit, whereby the DC-DC converter converts the intermediate circuit voltage to the charging voltage of the vehicle with electric drive.

[0050] The inverter serves to feed excess electrical energy into the general power grid, for example, in addition to the electrical energy used to charge the electric vehicle. Conversely, it is also possible to draw electrical power from the general power grid if the output from the photovoltaic cells is insufficient to charge the electric vehicle. The inverter is therefore designed to convert direct current to alternating current and vice versa.

[0051] It is conceivable that the system according to the invention also exists independently of the carport described above. The system described above therefore also functions solely through the combination of a plurality of photovoltaic cells. A system without the direct application of a carport described above can be described as follows: a system with a plurality of photovoltaic cells, characterized in that the photovoltaic cells are connected to one another at a direct voltage level or via at least one intermediate inverter at an alternating voltage level. The advantageous embodiments correspond to the embodiments with a carport described above.

[0052] Furthermore, the system can advantageously be formed from several arrangements of photovoltaic cells.

[0053] The indefinite term "a" is to be understood as such and not as a number. It is also conceivable, for example, that the substructure has a plurality of mounting structures, in particular two or four mounting structures, for the superstructure. Accordingly, the superstructure can have a plurality of base structures, in particular two or four base structures, for mounting on the mounting structure(s).

[0054] The invention is explained in more detail below using exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings. They show: Figure 1 - a substructure of a carport according to the invention in a perspective view; Figure 2 - a superstructure of a carport according to the invention in a perspective view; Figure 3 - a carport according to the invention in a perspective view; Figure 4 - a carport according to Figure 3 in an exploded view.

[0055] Figure 1shows a perspective view of a substructure 2 of a carport according to the invention. The substructure 2 has four support elements 4, which can be attached to a floor structure, for example, by a screw connection. The support elements 4 form a receiving space 5, which is dimensioned for a motor vehicle, such as a car.

[0056] A mounting structure 6 is arranged on the substructure 4, with each support element 4 being connected to the mounting structure 6 via a connecting element 10. It is clear that the mounting structure 6 is circular. The circular mounting structure 6 is formed from a cylindrical element, in which the cylindrical element forms a ring structure.

[0057] The connecting elements 10 are designed as bearing bushes, with the ring structure being mounted in the connecting elements 10 designed as bearing bushes. The connecting elements 10 designed as bearing bushes allow the support elements 4 to be moved along the ring structure of the mounting structure 6 before being attached to the floor structure. In this way, the support elements 4 can be positioned at the installation location and subsequently attached to the floor structure.

[0058] It can also be seen that the mounting structure 6, designed as a ring structure, is stabilized by stabilizing elements 11, so that the mounting structure 6 is secured against bending. Two stabilizing elements 11 protrude from a support element 4 and are connected to the mounting structure 6 at their diametrically opposite ends.

[0059] Figure 2shows a perspective view of a superstructure 3 of a carport according to the invention. The superstructure 3 has a base structure 7, wherein the base structure 7 is formed as a rectangular profile. A support structure 8 is arranged on the base structure 7, wherein the support structure 8 is configured for attaching photovoltaic cells 9. The support structure 8 is supported by stabilizing elements 11, so that the support structure 8 is braced against the weight of the photovoltaic cell 9.

[0060] Furthermore, it can be seen that a connecting element 10 is arranged at each corner of the base structure 7, wherein the connecting element 10 is designed as a bearing bush or as a sliding bearing. Via the connecting element 10, the base structure 7 can, for example, be connected to a mounting structure 6 of the substructure 2 according to Figure 1 be mounted.

[0061] The photovoltaic cells 9 are mounted on the support structure 8 at a specific angle of inclination. The angle of inclination is the angle between a plane spanned by the photovoltaic cells 9 and a plane spanned by the ground structure. For efficient operation of the photovoltaic cells 9, it is advantageous if the photovoltaic cells 9 are aligned at a 90-degree angle to the solar radiation. In Germany, this corresponds to an angle of inclination between 30 degrees and 75 degrees; high overall performance is achieved particularly between 30 degrees and 40 degrees, depending on the location of the carport.

[0062] Figure 3 shows a carport 1 according to the invention in a perspective view with a substructure 2 according to the Figure 1 and a superstructure 3 according to the Figure 2 . In addition, Figure 4 the carport 1 to Figure 3 in an exploded view.

[0063] It is clear that the superstructure 3 is fastened to the base structure 7 on the annular mounting structure 6 of the substructure 2 via connecting elements 10. It is also clear that the superstructure 3 is rotatably mounted along the circular mounting structure 6 by the connecting elements 10, which are designed as bearing bushes or plain bearings. The superstructure 3 is rotatably mounted about a spatial axis along the circular mounting structure 6, wherein the spatial axis corresponds to the direction of extension of the carport 1 or the support elements 4. The spatial axis therefore protrudes essentially orthogonally from the ground structure.

[0064] It is conceivable that the superstructure 3 could be rotated 360 degrees around the spatial axis. However, a rotation of only 90 degrees is also advantageous. In this way, the superstructure 3 can be arranged on the substructure 2, then aligned for optimal sunlight exposure by rotating it around the spatial axis, and then fixed to the mounting structure 6. This simplifies the assembly of the carport 1 by allowing the superstructure 3 to be mounted on the substructure 2 prior to any fine adjustments, and only needs to be rotated into the optimal position. List of reference symbols

[0065] 1Carport 2Substructure 3Superstructure 4Supporting element 5Receiving space 6Mounting structure 7Basic structure 8Support structure 9Photovoltaic cell 10Connecting element 11Stabilizing element

Claims

1. Method for mounting a carport (1) for a motor vehicle, - whereby the carport (1) has a substructure (2) and a superstructure (3), wherein the substructure (2) has a plurality of support elements (4) for attachment to a floor structure and the support elements (4) form a receiving space (5) for a motor vehicle, - wherein the substructure (2) has a mounting structure (6) which is arranged on the support elements (4), - the superstructure (3) being mountable on the mounting structure (6), - wherein the superstructure (3) has a base structure (7) for attachment to the mounting structure (6) and a support structure (8) for attachment of photovoltaic cells (9) - wherein the superstructure (3) is mounted so as to be rotatable about at least one spatial axis, - wherein a charging element for charging an electrical energy storage device of a vehicle with electric drive is arranged on the carport (1), with the following assembly steps: a) the superstructure (3) is initially attached to the mounting structure (6) without special alignment, b) the superstructure (3) is then rotated around at least one spatial axis on the substructure (2) in such a way that the photovoltaic cells (9) are aligned according to the position of the sun, c) the superstructure (3) is then fixed to the mounting structure (6) so that it is not possible to accidentally change the alignment of the photovoltaic cells (9) without loosening the fixing.

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the support structure (8) is mounted so as to be displaceable in the direction of the spatial axis in order to adjust an angle of inclination of the photovoltaic cells (9).

3. Method according to claim 2, characterized in that the angle of inclination is adjustable to at least two discrete positions.

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the superstructure (3) can be rotated about the spatial axis at an angle of up to 90 degrees.

5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the mounting structure (6) is circular, the superstructure (3) being mounted so as to be rotatable about the spatial axis along the circular mounting structure (6).

6. Method according to claim 5, characterized in that the circular mounting structure (6) is formed from at least one cylindrical element.

7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that the cylindrical element forms a ring structure, wherein the ring structure is designed to be connectable to the support elements (4) via at least one connecting element (10).

8. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the base structure (7) is designed to be connectable to the ring structure by means of at least one further connecting element (10).

9. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that stabilizing elements (11) for stabilizing the mounting structure (6) and / or for stabilizing the support structure (8) are arranged on the substructure (2) and / or on the superstructure (3).

10. Method according to claim 9, characterized in that the stabilizing elements (11) are designed to be adaptable to the angle of inclination.

11. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the base structure (7) is quadrangular.

12. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the base structure (7) is supported at support points on the mounting structure (6), the base structure (7) being displaceable on the mounting structure (7) via wheels at the support points.

13. System with a plurality of carports (1) for a motor vehicle, - whereby the carport (1) has a substructure (2) and a superstructure (3), - wherein the substructure (2) has a plurality of support elements (4) for attachment to a floor structure and the support elements (4) form a receiving space (5) for a motor vehicle, - wherein the substructure (2) has a mounting structure (6) which is arranged on the support elements (4), - the superstructure (3) being mountable on the mounting structure (6), - wherein the superstructure (3) has a base structure (7) for attachment to the mounting structure (6) and a support structure (8) for attachment of photovoltaic cells (9), - wherein the superstructure (3) is mounted so as to be rotatable about at least one spatial axis, characterized in that the photovoltaic cells (9) of the carports (1) are each connected to one another with an intermediate MPPT converter at the DC voltage level .

14. System according to claim 13, characterized in that a DC / DC converter for a vehicle with electric drive is connected to the DC link or that the DC link voltage corresponds to a required charging voltage for the vehicle with electric drive.