Foil Deployment Mechanism With Intersecting Cable Drums
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing solar panel systems face challenges in efficiently and cost-effectively deploying optical concentrators, which are necessary to increase light incidence and replace expensive solar cells with cheaper concentrator surfaces while maintaining electrical output.
Innovation Solution
A foil deployment mechanism comprising rotatable drums and a cable system that allows for the extension and retraction of a foil, enabling the use of optical concentrators as a reflector, with a compact design and automatic blocking mechanisms to prevent retraction once fully extended, allowing for easy scaling and stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a cable system with intersecting sections is used to deploy foils, then the device complexity is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but the reliability may be affected by the intersecting cable sections
Solution Approach 1:
The cable is divided into multiple sections (first section, second section, third section, fourth section) that are wound around different drums in specific patterns. This segmentation allows each drum to control specific foil deployment independently while maintaining overall system simplicity through the standardized cable configuration.
2Ease of operation
If drums are used to control cable movement for foil deployment, then the ease of operation is improved, but the device complexity increases due to additional rotating components
Solution Approach 1:
The cable system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it connects multiple drums, controls foil deployment and retraction, and provides mechanical advantage through the intersecting cable pattern. The same cable structure enables both extension and retraction operations across multiple foils without requiring separate control systems for each function.
3Volume of moving object
If the cable sections are arranged to intersect between drums, then the compactness of the mechanism is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cable is wound around cylindrical drums in a specific pattern that creates curved paths for each cable section. The intersecting sections follow arc trajectories determined by the drum geometries, which naturally guide the cable through the compact space between drums while maintaining consistent tension and alignment.
Data Source
Figure 1a~1c
Figure 2a~2c
Figure 3a~4b
AI summary
A foil deployment mechanism (100) comprises a first drum (102) rotatable about a first longitudinal axis (A1), and a second drum (104) rotatable about a second longitudinal axis (A2). The foil deployment mechanism (100) further comprises a cable (106) which can be moved by rotating the first drum (102) in a first rotation direction (R1) and by rotating the second drum (104) in a second rotation direction (R2) opposed to the first rotation direction (R1), the cable (106) comprising a first section (S1) which extends from a lower part (108) of the second drum (104) to an upper part (110) of the first drum (102), a second section (S2) which is wound around a part of the first drum (102) facing away from the second drum (104), a third section (S3) which extends from a lower part (112) of the first drum (102) to an upper part (114) of the second drum (104), and a fourth section (S4) which is wound around a part of the second drum (104) facing away from the first drum (102), wherein the first section (1I) and the third section (S3) intersect each other between the first drum (102) and the second drum (104) when being viewed along the first longitudinal axis (A1). A longitudinal rigid element (116) having a first end (118) and a second end (120) is also provided, wherein the first (118) end is connected to the cable (106), and wherein the second end (120) is connected to a foil (124). By moving the cable (106), the longitudinal rigid element (116) can be moved between a first state in which the first end (118) of the longitudinal rigid element (116) is connected to the first section (S1) of the cable (116), and in which the second end (120) of the longitudinal rigid element (116) protrudes from the first drum (102) in a direction pointing away from the second drum (104), and a second state in which the second end (120) of the longitudinal rigid element (116) protrudes in a direction pointing away from the second drum (104), wherein a distance (Dl1) between the second end (120) and the first drum (102) is smaller in the first state than in the second state.