Foldable Portable Solar PV Array with Flexible Angle Constraint
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current portable solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays are costly and lack the cost and installation benefits needed to compete with conventional fixed or East-West (EW) PV arrays, due to complex and heavy structural requirements for maintaining optimal solar orientation.
Innovation Solution
A portable PV array design featuring foldable, rectangular modules connected by flexible connectors that restrict movement to a predetermined angle, allowing for easy assembly and disassembly, and enabling storage and transport in a compact form while maintaining optimal EW orientation without the need for on-site angle adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If mechanical or hydraulic mounting structures are used to track the sun's path, then energy generation is improved, but capital cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The PV array is divided into multiple independently foldable modules that can be deployed and configured separately. Each module contains PV cells arranged to face different directions (east, west, south), allowing the array to capture sunlight from multiple angles without requiring complex tracking mechanisms. This segmentation enables simplified structure while maintaining high energy generation.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting structure incorporates foldable modules with movable joints that allow the array to be dynamically reconfigured between storage and operational states. In operational mode, modules are folded to optimal angles for sunlight capture; in storage mode, they collapse flat for compact transport. This dynamic capability eliminates the need for complex active tracking systems while preserving energy generation efficiency.
2Ease of operation
If mechanical mounting structures with articulated joints are used for portability, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The array is segmented into modular units that can be independently folded and collapsed. Each module contains PV cells mounted on a foldable support structure with simple articulated joints. This segmentation allows the entire array to be compacted for transport and quickly deployed at installation sites without requiring complex assembly procedures or heavy machinery.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting structure uses flexible, thin-walled support elements that can be easily folded and collapsed. These thin-film supports maintain structural integrity when deployed but compress to minimal thickness when folded, enabling portability without adding significant weight or complexity. The flexible supports allow the rigid PV modules to be repositioned and reconfigured as needed.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design reduces structural complexity and cost, enhances portability, and allows for efficient installation and reinstallation, providing a lower-cost energy solution while maintaining high energy generation capabilities comparable to traditional tracking systems.
Implementation Method 1
Solar PV modules are well known as devices that convert light energy (electromagnetic radiation) directly into usable electric energy via a photoelectric effect
Data Source
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AI summary
A portable PV module array, the modules being connected along adjacent end edges and being foldable relative to each other about the connected end edges between a closed condition and an open condition, whereby: in the closed condition, the PV modules are stacked together in a generally parallel and close facing relationship with the edges of the PV modules in general alignment, and in the open condition, the PV modules are disposed at an angle to each other so that the PV module array defines triangular configuration, and foldable movement of the PV modules from the closed condition to the open condition being restricted against movement beyond the open condition by a flexible connector that connects with a connection point associated with each of the PV modules of the PV module array and that is tensioned in the open condition and that is slack in the closed condition.