Coupled Solar Canopy Racking for Lower Wind Loads
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Solution Overview
Problem
Solar canopy technologies lack effective wind load reduction strategies due to traditional steel erection methods, leading to increased material requirements and construction costs.
Innovation Solution
The use of ground struts organized in a triangulated structure to couple adjacent solar canopies, reducing wind loads and enhancing structural integrity by distributing wind resistance across multiple canopies, with the option to encase attachment points in concrete for added stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional steel erection methods are used for solar canopy installation, then structural integrity is maintained, but material requirements and construction costs increase due to inability to effectively reduce wind loads
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges adjacent solar canopies into a unitized structure through coupling ground struts, creating a combined aerodynamic system that reduces wind loads on individual canopies while maintaining overall structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces ground struts that extend into the ground plane, adding a vertical dimension to the canopy support system. This creates triangulated structures that efficiently transfer wind loads to the ground, reducing the material requirements for the canopy structures themselves
2Reliability
If traditional steel erection methods are used for solar canopy installation, then individual canopy stability is ensured, but construction costs increase due to higher material requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple adjacent canopies into a unitized structure, where the coupling ground struts create shared stability mechanisms. This reduces the total material required for construction while maintaining or improving the reliability of each individual canopy through the coupled aerodynamic system
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling ground struts are installed to pre-establish the aerodynamic coupling between canopies before full operational loads are applied. This preliminary structuring allows for more efficient material usage throughout the construction process
3Strength
If solar canopies are constructed to resist higher maximum wind loads, then individual canopy strength is increased, but material usage and construction costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges adjacent canopies into a unitized structure that collectively resists wind loads. The coupling ground struts distribute aerodynamic forces across multiple canopies, allowing each individual canopy to be constructed with less material while the combined structure maintains high wind load resistance
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling ground struts act as intermediary elements that transfer and distribute wind loads between adjacent canopies. These struts mediate the aerodynamic forces, allowing the canopies to share the load burden and reducing the material requirements for each individual canopy structure
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatuses, systems, and methods for coupling adjacent solar canopies into a unitized structure to reduce wind loads on and increase the structural integrity of the solar canopies. In one embodiment, an array of two or more solar canopies may be divided into pairs of adjacent canopies, which are structurally coupled together.