Photovoltaic power generation device

Abstract

To provide a photovoltaic power generation device having a nut member usable for fastening in a narrow space using a nut.SOLUTION: Provided is a photovoltaic power generation device including a solar panel having a frame, the solar panel being fixed to a cradle by a nut member. The nut member includes a through-hole corresponding to a frame mounting hole provided in the frame and a cradle mounting hole provided in the cradle, a first female screw part including a threaded screw structure, and a second female screw part corresponding to a specific use hole provided in the frame and to be used for a use specific to a device and including a threaded hole. The frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the cradle mounting hole provided in the cradle, and the through-hole of the first female screw part are fixed in a concentrically matched manner, and the specific use hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole of the second female screw part are fixed in the concentrically matched manner.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6B

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a photovoltaic power generation device that uses a nut member when fixing a solar panel to a mounting base. [Background technology]

[0002] Renewable energy power generation devices and natural energy power generation devices such as photovoltaic power generation devices have been used for some time. Solar panels used in photovoltaic power generation devices are installed in various ways, but for example, they may be installed on a metal structure generally called a mount. As shown in FIG. 2, mount 510 is fixed to bracket 530 or the like and installed on the ground or the like via support 550. The mount is selected and designed to maximize the amount of power generation taking into account the characteristics of the land, and in areas with a lot of snowfall and typhoons, the mount is selected taking into account the strength and material according to those conditions.

[0003] The solar panel is fixed to the stand by inserting a bolt 570 (FIG. 2, etc.) into a frame mounting hole 331 (FIG. 1B(A)) provided in a solar panel frame (hereinafter also simply referred to as a frame) 330 that surrounds and supports a panel body (hereinafter also referred to as a panel part) 310 of the solar panel 300 as shown in the upper diagram (A) of FIG. 1A and a stand mounting hole 511 (see FIG. 3C described later) provided in a stand 510 as shown in FIG. 2, and fixing it with a nut. On the other hand, instead of a nut, a clip nut as in the conventional technology shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2 may be used for fixing. As shown in the lower diagram (C) of FIG. 1A, positive and negative cables 351PW and 351G that transmit the generated power are drawn out from a terminal block 350 of the panel part 310 (the cable 351G is the negative (earth, ground, earth) side). The ground wire is screwed or otherwise fastened to one of the ground wire holes 333 (see FIG. 1B(A)), which are specific purpose holes used for a purpose specific to the photovoltaic power generation device 500 (FIG. 2) provided on the frame 330 and exist in the portions indicated by the four rectangles A1 to A4, to ground the solar panel 300. Therefore, the specific purpose referred to here is the purpose of grounding the solar panel. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2005-308078 A [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 2877806 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] First, an outline of a method for fixing a frame and a stand using general nuts and bolts will be described. The above-mentioned frame mounting hole 331 and stand mounting hole 511 are aligned, and the solar panel 300 is placed on the stand 510 (FIG. 3A). As shown in FIG. 3B, a general nut 577 is screwed onto a bolt 570 that sandwiches and fixes the frame 330 and the stand 510, and a spring washer 571 and flat washers 573 and 575 are interposed between the bolt 570 and the nut 577, and the general nut 577 is present between the frame 330 and the panel section 310. As shown in FIG. 3C, frame mounting hole 331 in frame 330 and platform mounting hole 511 in platform 510 are aligned concentrically, and nut 577 is also aligned concentrically. Then, bolt 570 is inserted through platform mounting hole 511 etc. and screwed into nut 577 (FIGS. 3D and 3E). As shown in FIG. 3F, a tool TL such as a wrench or spanner is inserted between frame 330 and panel portion 310 to fix nut 577 between frame 330 and panel portion 310, while tightening bolt 570 with another tool such as a wrench or spanner.

[0006] However, the above-mentioned fixing method has the problem that (i) because of the narrow space between the frame 330 and the panel section 310, it is difficult to hold the nut 577 concentrically with the frame mounting hole 331 and the rack mounting hole 511, and the nut 577 is likely to come off the hand or tool holding it and fall. Also, (ii) when holding the nut 577 with the tool TL, since the space between the frame 330 and the panel section 310 is narrow as described above, the nut 577 between the frame 330 and the panel section 310 cannot be visually observed, and therefore it is difficult to insert the tool TL and also difficult to check whether it is being held correctly.

[0007] In addition, an outline of a method for fixing a frame and a stand using clip nuts and bolts as in the conventional arts shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2 will be described. The above-mentioned frame mounting hole 331 and stand mounting hole 511 are aligned, and the solar panel 300 is placed on the stand 510 (FIG. 4A). As shown in FIG. 4B, a clip nut 579 is screwed onto a bolt 570 that clamps and fixes the frame 330 and the stand 510, and a spring washer 571 and a flat washer 573 are interposed between the bolt 570 and the clip nut 579, and the clip nut 579 is present between the frame 330 and the stand 510. As shown in FIG. 4C, the clip nut 579 is attached to the frame 330 so that the frame mounting hole 331 provided in the frame 330 and the tap hole 579a of the clip nut 579 are concentric. Next, tapped hole 579a of clip nut 579 is concentrically aligned with mount mounting hole 511 provided in mount 510, and then bolt 570 is inserted through mount mounting hole 511 etc. and screwed into clip nut 579 (Figures 4D and 4E), and bolt 570 is tightened using a tool TL such as a wrench or spanner as shown in Figure 4F.

[0008] When fastening nuts in a narrow space, the above-mentioned fixing method using clip nuts overcomes the problems (i) and (ii) when using normal nuts. However, when aligning the solar panel 300 with the mounting base 510, another problem occurs in that when the frame 330 of the solar panel 300 and the mounting base 510 are aligned, the clip nut 579 comes into contact with the mounting base 510, and the position of the clip nut 579 is easily shifted with respect to the mounting hole 331 of the frame 330.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT In order to solve the above problems of the conventional technology, an object of the present invention is to provide a solar power generation device having a nut member that is useful for fastening with a nut in a narrow space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] In order to achieve the above object, a solar power generation device according to the present invention comprises: A solar power generation device comprising a solar panel having a frame, the solar panel being fixed to a mounting stand by a nut member, The nut member includes a first female screw portion including a through hole corresponding to a frame mounting hole provided in the frame and a frame mounting hole provided in the frame, and a threaded screw structure; A second female threaded portion including a hole that corresponds to a specific purpose hole provided in the frame and is used for a specific purpose of the device, and is threaded; The frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and the through hole of the first female screw portion are fixed concentrically and aligned, and The specific purpose hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole of the second female threaded portion are fixed in a concentric manner. The nut member refers to a nut part which will be described below.

[0011] In order to achieve the above object, the nut part comprises: A nut part used to fasten a solar panel surrounded by a frame to a mounting base, A first female screw portion including a through hole and a threaded screw structure corresponding to a frame mounting hole provided in the frame and a frame mounting hole provided in the frame; and a second female threaded portion including a threaded hole corresponding to a specific purpose hole provided in the frame for use in a specific purpose of the device.

[0012] In order to achieve the above object, the solar power generation device is The solar panel includes the nut part, the solar panel, and a stand on which the solar panel is mounted, The frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and the through hole of the first female screw portion are fixed concentrically and aligned, and The specific purpose hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole in the second female threaded portion may be fixed in a concentric manner. Here, when discussing dimensions such as coincidence, it is assumed that dimensional tolerances, geometric tolerances, etc. are taken into consideration (the same applies throughout this application).

[0013] In order to achieve the above object, the installation method of the solar panel is as follows: Using the above nut parts, The frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and the through hole of the first female screw portion are concentrically aligned with each other, and A method for installing a solar panel, comprising a step of concentrically aligning the specific purpose hole provided in the frame with the threaded hole of the second female thread portion, After a step of threading a screw member through the specific application hole into the threaded hole of the second female threaded portion, The solar panel may be installed on the stand by performing a fixing step of fixing the frame mounting hole, the stand mounting hole, and the screw structure of the first female screw portion to one another.

[0014] In the above, the specific purpose hole may be a hole used for grounding the solar panel.

[0015] According to the above configuration, in the solar power generation device according to the present invention, the nut part includes a first female threaded part including a through hole corresponding to the frame mounting hole provided in the frame and the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, a threaded screw structure, and a second female threaded part including a hole corresponding to a specific purpose hole provided in the frame and used for a specific purpose of the device. Here, the distance between the center of the frame mounting hole and the center of the specific purpose hole, and the distance between the center of the through hole of the first female threaded part and the center of the threaded hole of the second female threaded part are almost the same (taking into account dimensional tolerances, geometric tolerances, etc.). As described above, the nut part according to the present invention can be used in an installation method that has the effects described below, and can provide a solution that is useful when fastening a nut in a narrow space.

[0016] The solar panel installation method using the nut part includes a step of concentrically aligning the frame mounting hole, the mounting base mounting hole, and the through hole of the first female threaded portion, and concentrically aligning the specific-purpose hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole of the second female threaded portion. In the installation method, after a screwing step of screwing a screw member into the threaded hole of the second female threaded portion through the specific-purpose hole, a fixing step of fixing the frame mounting hole, the mounting base mounting hole, and the thread structure of the first female threaded portion to each other is performed.

[0017] Therefore, as shown in Figures 3A to 3F and 4A to 4F, the method of installing a solar panel on a stand using the nut part according to the present invention does not insert a general nut or a tool for fixing a nut that is screwed onto a bolt or the like for fixing the frame mounting hole, the stand mounting hole, and the screw structure of the first female threaded portion to each other between the frame and the stand, but instead inserts the nut part, and after screwing a screw member or the like into the threaded hole of the second female threaded portion through the specific purpose hole, the frame mounting hole, the stand mounting hole, and the through hole of the first female threaded portion (or including a screw hole of a nut or the like having the screw structure that is concentric with the through hole included in the first female threaded portion described later) are fixed to each other, so that the nut does not fall off, the tool is difficult to insert (problems (i) and (ii) above), and another problem such as the clip nut being easily displaced does not occur, and a useful solution can be provided when fastening a nut in a narrow space. A solar power generation device using the nut part also has such an effect.

[0018] The first female threaded portion may have the threaded structure formed by threading the through hole, or a nut having the threaded structure and concentric with the through hole may be provided adjacent to the through hole. The threaded structure of the first female threaded portion may be, for example, the threaded through hole or a nut concentric with the through hole, as long as the bolt or the like for fixing the frame mounting hole and the rack mounting hole to each other is screwed into the threaded structure. Effect of the Invention

[0019] A solar power generation device having the nut member according to the present invention can provide a solution that is useful when fastening nuts in a narrow space. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1A] FIG. 1A is a front view of an example solar panel surrounded by a frame, FIG. 1B is a bottom view of the solar panel, and FIG. 1C is a schematic rear view of the solar panel. [Figure 1B] 1A is an enlarged view of a rectangular portion A1 in FIG. 1A, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 1A. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the solar panel mounted on the stand. [Figure 3A] Figure (A) is a top view of the solar panel mounted on the stand, and Figure (B) is a rear view of the solar panel mounted on the stand. [Figure 3B] 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 3A (B). [Figure 3C] 3B is an enlarged rear perspective view showing an attachment procedure at part B in FIG. 3A (B). [Figure 3D] 13 is an enlarged rear perspective view showing the installation procedure at part B of the same. FIG. [Figure 3E] 13 is an enlarged rear perspective view showing the installation procedure at part B of the same. FIG. [Figure 3F] FIG. 11 is an enlarged rear view showing the installation procedure at part B of the same. [Figure 4A] FIG. 1A is a bottom view of the solar panel mounted on a stand, and FIG. 1B is a rear view of the solar panel mounted on the stand. [Figure 4B] 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 4A (B). [Figure 4C] 4B is an enlarged rear perspective view showing an attachment procedure at part D in FIG. 4A (B). [Figure 4D] FIG. 13 is an enlarged rear perspective view showing the installation procedure at part D of the same. [Figure 4E] FIG. 13 is an enlarged rear perspective view showing the installation procedure at part D of the same. [Figure 4F] FIG. 13 is an enlarged rear view showing the installation procedure at part D of the same figure. [Figure 5A] FIG. 1A is a schematic front view of a nut part according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a schematic bottom view of the same nut part. [Figure 5B] FIG. 2A is a schematic front view of a nut part according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2B is a schematic bottom view of the same nut part. [Figure 6A] FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the nut part before it is attached to the frame of the solar panel. [Figure 6B] FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view of the nut part after it has been attached to the frame of the solar panel. [Figure 7A] 13 is a front view showing frame mounting holes and the like provided in the frame of the solar panel to which the nut part is attached. FIG. [Figure 7B] FIG. 7B is an enlarged front view of part G in FIG. 7A. [Figure 7C] FIG. 7B is an enlarged side view of part G in FIG. 7A (the solar panel is a cross-sectional view). [Figure 8A] FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view of the solar panel when it is attached to the stand using the nut part. [Figure 8B] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the solar panel mounted on the stand. [Figure 8C] 8C is a cross-sectional view taken along line JJ in FIG. 8B. [Figure 8D] 8C is a cross-sectional view taken along line KK in FIG. 8B. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] A solar power generation device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The solar power generation device according to this embodiment is a solar power generation device equipped with a solar panel having a frame, and the solar panel is fixed to a mount by a nut member. Furthermore, in the solar power generation device according to this embodiment, as described later, the nut member includes a first female screw portion including a through hole corresponding to a frame mounting hole provided in the frame and a mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and a threaded screw structure, and a second female screw portion including a threaded hole corresponding to a specific purpose hole provided in the frame used for a specific purpose of the device. In addition, in the solar power generation device according to this embodiment, as described later, the frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and the through hole of the first female screw portion are fixed, for example, concentrically aligned, and the specific purpose hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole of the second female screw portion are fixed, for example, concentrically aligned.

[0022] 1A and 1B are an example of a solar panel surrounded by a frame having a frame mounting hole and a specific purpose hole described later. FIG. 2 is an oblique rear external view of a solar panel attached to a rack. FIG. 3A to FIG. 3F are diagrams showing a procedure for attaching a solar panel to a rack using a general nut and bolt. FIG. 4A to FIG. 4F are diagrams showing a procedure for attaching a solar panel to a rack using a clip nut and bolt. FIG. 5A is a diagram showing a nut part according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5B is a diagram showing a nut part according to another embodiment. FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are diagrams explaining the operation of attaching the nut part to the frame of the solar panel. FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are diagrams showing the nut part attached to the frame of the solar panel and frame mounting holes provided on the frame. FIG. 8A to FIG. 8D are diagrams showing the operation of attaching the solar panel using the nut part to the rack, and the solar panel attached to the rack.

[0023] The nut part includes a female threaded portion (in this embodiment, a first female threaded portion and a second female threaded portion) having a thread structure in which a female thread is threaded to be screwed onto a male thread of a bolt, a screw member, etc., like a so-called normal (general) nut. In this embodiment, the first female threaded portion further includes a through hole passing through the nut part and capable of being screwed onto a bolt. In addition, the second female threaded portion includes at least a threaded female threaded hole passing through the nut part and capable of being screwed onto a screw member.

[0024] The upper diagram (A) of FIG. 5A shows a schematic front view of a nut part 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention, and the diagram (B) shows a schematic side view of the nut part. In this embodiment, the nut part 100 uses a member 110 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape with a little thickness for threading the through hole 130 described later. In the nut part in the diagram, the through hole 130 of the first female thread portion has a threaded structure (thread structure 130). As described above, the female thread hole 150 of the second female thread portion is also threaded. In addition, the upper diagram (A) of FIG. 5B shows a schematic front view of a nut part 100A according to another embodiment of the present invention, and the diagram (B) shows a schematic side view of the nut part. In this embodiment, the nut part 100A uses a thin plate-shaped member 110A. In the nut part in the figure, the through hole 130A of the first female thread part is not threaded, and a (general) nut 120 having a thread structure 121 concentric with the through hole 130A is provided adjacent to the through hole 130, and is welded, for example, near the open end of the through hole 130 (the nut 120 is also called a welded nut 120). In this way, the nut part may be composed of multiple members, and for example, the nut part 100A is composed of two members, the member 110A and the welded nut 120. As shown in the figure, the nut part 100A (nut part 100) is larger in size than a normal nut, so there is a low possibility of it being dropped from the hand.

[0025] Next, a method of installing the solar power generation device and the solar panel on the stand using the above-mentioned nut parts 100 and 100A will be described. The installation method using the nut part 100A is the same as the installation method using the nut part 100, so the nut part 100 will be described as an example. As shown in FIG. 6A, the nut part 100 is first inserted between the frame 330 and the panel part 310. The frame mounting hole 331 provided in the frame 330, the stand mounting hole 511 provided in the stand 510 shown in FIG. 8A, and the through hole 130 of the first female thread part shown in FIG. 5A are made to correspond (concentrically matched in this embodiment) [first step]. In addition, the specific purpose hole 333 used for the device-specific purpose of FIG. 6A provided in the frame 330 is made to correspond (concentrically matched in this embodiment) to the threaded hole (female thread hole) 150 of the second female thread part shown in FIG. 5A [second step]. The device-specific use in this embodiment refers to the use of grounding a solar panel (photovoltaic power generation device), and the specific-use hole 333 is a ground wire hole 333 used for a use specific to the photovoltaic power generation device 500 provided in the frame 330. Other device-specific uses include passing wiring through, intake and exhaust, drainage, and the like.

[0026] Here, the screw member 170 is screwed into the female screw hole 150 of the second female screw portion through the ground wire hole 333 of Fig. 6A (screwing step). This fixes the position and angle of the nut part 100 relative to the frame 330 (Fig. 6B). After this, the screw structure (through hole 130) of the first female screw portion of Fig. 6A, the frame mounting hole 331, and the frame mounting hole 511 of Fig. 8A are fixed to each other by, for example, inserting and screwing a bolt 570 therethrough (fixing step). As described above, since the nut part 100 is fixed to the frame 330 by the screwing procedure (FIGS. 6B, 7C), there is no deviation in the concentric relationship between the frame mounting hole 331, the frame mounting hole 511, and the through hole 130. Therefore, in the subsequent fixing procedure (FIG. 8A), the frame mounting hole 331, the frame mounting hole 511, and the through hole 130 are fixed to each other, thereby attaching the frame 330 to the frame 510 (FIGS. 8B to 8D).

[0027] As described above, the first and second steps may be performed in any order as long as the fixing step is performed after the screwing step. Also, the second step may be performed first, followed by a lighter screwing step in which the nut part 100 is not strongly fixed, and then the first step may be performed and then the fixing step may be performed. The screw member 170 screwed into the female screw hole 150 of the second female screw part may be left screwed into the female screw hole 150 as it is after the fixing step, i.e., after the frame 330 is attached to the mount 510, or may be removed from the female screw hole 150. If the screw member 170 is left screwed as it is, for example, when the bolt is next removed from the frame mounting hole 331, the mount mounting hole 511, and the through hole 130, the nut part 100 can be prevented from rotating or falling off. When removed, the specific purpose hole 333 can be used for the original device specific purpose, i.e., for grounding the solar panel (photovoltaic power generation device), and the ground wire 351G in Fig. 1A(C) can be attached to the specific purpose hole (ground wire hole) 333. Since there are four specific purpose holes 333 in this embodiment, the screw members 170 may be removed from only some of them.

[0028] As described above, the method of installing the nut parts 100, 100A, the solar power generation device 500, and the solar panel 300 on the mounting base does not require inserting a general nut screwed onto the bolt 570 (FIG. 3B) or a tool TL (FIG. 3F) for fixing the nut between the frame 330 and the mounting base 510. Instead, the nut part 100 is inserted between the frame 330 and the mounting base 510, and the screw member is screwed into the threaded female threaded hole 150 of the second female threaded portion through the specific purpose hole 333, and then the frame mounting hole 331, the mounting base mounting hole 511, and the through hole 130 of the first female threaded portion (or the welded nut 120) are fixed to each other. This provides a solution that is useful when fastening nuts in a narrow space, without causing problems such as the nut 577 falling off or difficulty in inserting the tool TL (problems (i) and (ii) above), or another problem such as the clip nut 579 being easily displaced.

[0029] Specifically, the nut parts 100 and 100A are fixed to the solar panel side by the fastening force of bolts, screws, etc., and can be entirely stored inside the frame of the solar panel (specifically, between the frame and the mounting base). Therefore, the nut parts 100 and 100A have the following effects. (a) Since the nut parts that are coupled with bolts, etc. are provided on the solar panel side, it is not necessary to hold the nut parts by hand or with tools when attaching the solar panel to the mounting base, as in the case of using a normal nut. (b) It is not necessary to hold the nut parts with tools when tightening the bolts, as in the case of using a normal nut. (c) Since the nut parts are entirely stored inside the frame, the mounting base and the fastening parts do not come into contact with each other during work, and the position of the nut parts relative to the frame mounting holes does not shift.

[0030] The embodiments disclosed herein should be considered to be illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] 100, 100A Nut Parts 120 Welded nut (nut provided adjacent to the through hole of the first female threaded portion) 121, 130 Screw structure 130, 130A through hole 150 Female threaded hole (threaded hole of the second female threaded section) 300 Solar Panels 330 frames 331 Frame mounting hole 333 Ground wire hole (specific use hole) 500 Solar power generation equipment 510 Mount 511 Mounting hole

Claims

1. A solar power generation device comprising a solar panel having a frame, the solar panel being fixed to a mounting stand by a nut member, The nut member includes a first female screw portion including a through hole corresponding to a frame mounting hole provided in the frame and a frame mounting hole provided in the frame, and a threaded structure; a second female threaded portion including a hole that corresponds to a specific purpose hole provided in the frame and is used for a specific purpose of the device, and is threaded; The frame mounting hole provided in the frame, the mount mounting hole provided in the mount, and the through hole of the first female screw portion are fixed to each other in a concentric manner, and The specific purpose hole provided in the frame and the threaded hole of the second female thread portion are fixed in a concentric manner. Solar power generation equipment.

2. The solar power generation device according to claim 1, The specific purpose hole is a hole used for grounding a solar panel. Solar power generation equipment.

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