Reinforced pile for solar foundations
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Solar tracking systems require extensive material for support structures, leading to high construction costs and reduced strength when material is minimized, necessitating the development of beam designs that use less material while maintaining necessary strength and stability.
Innovation Solution
A solar tracking system incorporating a beam assembly with selectively coupled reinforcement plates that can be embedded in the earth, featuring V-shaped or blunt profiles to enhance beam strength without increasing overall thickness, along with a bearing housing assembly for support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If the thickness of beam material is reduced to minimize material usage, then construction costs decrease, but beam strength is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by adding reinforcement plates only to specific portions of the beam where strength is needed, rather than uniformly increasing the entire beam's thickness. The reinforcement plates are selectively coupled to critical areas such as the web or flanges at locations subject to high stress, allowing the beam to maintain adequate strength while using less overall material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite construction by combining the base beam material with reinforcement plates made of different materials or configurations. The reinforcement plates can be made of high-strength materials and are strategically placed to compensate for reduced beam thickness, creating a composite structure that achieves the desired strength-to-weight ratio.
2Ease of manufacture
If the beam thickness is reduced to lower construction costs, then material costs decrease, but structural stability is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The reinforcement plates are selectively applied to specific portions of the beam where structural stability is most critical, such as areas subject to bending moments or shear forces. This localized reinforcement maintains structural stability while avoiding the need to increase the entire beam's thickness, thereby controlling construction costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The beam structure is segmented into reinforced and non-reinforced portions, allowing differential thickness or material properties in different sections. This segmentation enables the beam to achieve required stability at critical locations while using less material in less critical areas, reducing overall construction costs.
3Strength
If reinforcement plates are added to strengthen beam portions, then beam strength increases, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The reinforcement plates are designed to be selectively coupled or decoupled from the beam based on installation requirements and load conditions. This dynamic approach allows the reinforcement system to be adapted to different installation scenarios, simplifying the overall device by allowing optional rather than mandatory reinforcement in certain configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The reinforcement plates are pre-configured with coupling mechanisms that facilitate straightforward attachment to the beam during installation. The preliminary design of these coupling systems reduces on-site complexity by providing ready-to-install reinforcement solutions that require minimal additional components or complex assembly procedures.
Data Source
AI summary
A solar tracking system includes a beam assembly having a beam including a pair of spaced apart flanges and a web interposed between each of the pair of spaced apart flanges and a reinforcement plate selectively coupled to a portion of the beam, the reinforcement plate configured to selectively strengthen a portion of the beam, and a bearing housing assembly selectively couplable to a portion of the beam.