Solar Cell Array Assembly via Single-Surface Interconnection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for assembling solar cell arrays require connections to both the front and back surfaces of solar cells, making high-volume assembly inefficient and prone to damage.
Innovation Solution
A technique where adjacent solar cells are interconnected solely from one surface, specifically the top surface, by etching openings through the semiconductor layer to expose the back metal layer, allowing interconnect tabs to bridge cells in series or parallel without accessing the back surface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional methods use interconnect tabs connected to both front and back surfaces of solar cells, then electrical connections between adjacent cells are achieved, but assembly complexity increases and productivity decreases due to requiring two sweeps and dual-sided access
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a conventional dual-sided connection approach (requiring access to both front and back surfaces) to a single-sided connection approach by etching openings through the semiconductor layer to expose the back metal layer on the front surface. This dimensional reconfiguration allows all interconnect tabs to be attached from one surface only, eliminating the need for second-sided access and enabling high-volume automated assembly through a single sweeping motion.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs the etching of openings through the semiconductor layer during the fabrication process, before the assembly process begins. This preliminary action exposes the back metal layer in advance, so that during assembly, interconnect tabs can be directly attached to exposed metal contacts on the front surface without requiring back surface access, thereby simplifying the assembly process and increasing productivity.
2Reliability
If conventional methods require connections to both surfaces of solar cells, then complete electrical interconnection is achieved, but handling and damage risk increase due to more manipulation steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reconfigures the connection geometry by etching openings through the semiconductor layer to expose the back metal layer on the front surface. This allows all electrical connections to be made from the front surface only, reducing the number of manipulation steps from two sweeps (front and back) to one sweep, thereby decreasing handling operations and reducing damage risk while maintaining complete electrical interconnection.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the back metal layer contact point from the back surface location and relocates it to the front surface by etching openings through the semiconductor layer. This extraction allows interconnect tabs to access the back metal layer contact from the front surface, eliminating the need to handle and connect the back surface, thus reducing manipulation steps and improving cell integrity.
3Productivity
If conventional assembly performs two sweeps across the array, then both front and back connections are formed, but manufacturing time increases and volume assembly efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs the etching of openings through the semiconductor layer during fabrication, before assembly. This preliminary preparation exposes all necessary contact points on the front surface, enabling a single-sweep assembly process that forms all connections in one pass, eliminating the time required for a second sweep and dramatically improving volume assembly efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent reconfigures the connection architecture to allow all interconnect tabs to be attached from the front surface by exposing the back metal layer through etched openings. This dimensional change eliminates the need for back surface access, reducing the assembly process from two sweeps (front and back) to one sweep, thereby halving the assembly time and doubling productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
An assembly technique for assembling solar cell arrays is provided. During the fabrication of a solar cell, openings through the semiconductor layer are etched through to a top surface of the backmetal layer. The solar cells include an exposed top surface of the backmetal layer. A plurality of solar cells are assembled into a solar cell array where adjacent cells are interconnected in an electrically serial or parallel fashion solely from the top surface of the solar cells.