NL2007591C2 - Method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module. - Google Patents

Method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module. Download PDF

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Publication number
NL2007591C2
NL2007591C2 NL2007591A NL2007591A NL2007591C2 NL 2007591 C2 NL2007591 C2 NL 2007591C2 NL 2007591 A NL2007591 A NL 2007591A NL 2007591 A NL2007591 A NL 2007591A NL 2007591 C2 NL2007591 C2 NL 2007591C2
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Netherlands
Prior art keywords
solar cell
orientation
straight line
gravity
center
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NL2007591A
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Dutch (nl)
Inventor
Bastiaan Henricus Maria Straaten
Rob Johan Marcel Hendrik Velde
Achard Van Enschut Johannes Franciscus Martinus D
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Solland Solar Energy Holding B V
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Application filed by Solland Solar Energy Holding B V filed Critical Solland Solar Energy Holding B V
Priority to NL2007591A priority Critical patent/NL2007591C2/en
Priority to PCT/NL2012/050721 priority patent/WO2013055224A2/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of NL2007591C2 publication Critical patent/NL2007591C2/en

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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/18—Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment of these devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L31/1876—Particular processes or apparatus for batch treatment of the devices
    • H01L31/188—Apparatus specially adapted for automatic interconnection of solar cells in a module
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/04—Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof adapted as photovoltaic [PV] conversion devices
    • H01L31/042—PV modules or arrays of single PV cells
    • H01L31/05—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells
    • H01L31/0504—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module
    • H01L31/0516—Electrical interconnection means between PV cells inside the PV module, e.g. series connection of PV cells specially adapted for series or parallel connection of solar cells in a module specially adapted for interconnection of back-contact solar cells
    • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
    • Y02E10/00—Energy generation through renewable energy sources
    • Y02E10/50—Photovoltaic [PV] energy

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
  • Sustainable Development (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Condensed Matter Physics & Semiconductors (AREA)
  • Electromagnetism (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Microelectronics & Electronic Packaging (AREA)
  • Power Engineering (AREA)
  • Sustainable Energy (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Photovoltaic Devices (AREA)

Description

Method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module
DESCRIPTION
5 The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module.
A photovoltaic module is a device comprising an array of solar cells that convert optical energy, such as solar radiation, into electrical energy. A photovoltaic module is essentially composed of a layered structure which layers are 10 discussed in for example NL-2.001.958. The photovoltaic module comprises or is built up from a conductive substrate also referred to as back contact foil, a rear-side perforated first encapsulant layer, (back-contact) solar cells, a top second encapsulant layer and a glass plate on top. After that solder paste is applied to each of the interconnection locations on the conductive substrate, these layers are placed 15 subsequently through the assembly process. The solar cells are then positioned onto the back contact foil such that the positions are matched.
In the known module production line, the solar cells are also handled to be assembled onto the back contact foil. In this process the alignment of the cell (and its already aligned contact points) with back contact foil and the solder paste 20 provided thereon, should be guaranteed, as otherwise the photovoltaic module to be produced will not provide the desired output.
As this process is a very delicate process due to its very precise tolerances it is known to use pick and place machines having cameras identifying fiducial marks provided on the solar cell and identifying lay-out markers on the back 25 contact foil. By means of a processor and the cameras of the known pick and place machine a placement unit thereof is controlled in real time for aligning and placing the solar cells on the back contact foil. A drawback of this known placement method is that it has a relatively long calculation time, resulting in a module production line having a relatively low capacity per time unit or that is very costly as many placement 30 units need to be used for reaching an acceptable capacity per time unit. Further, additional fabrication step are required for providing fiducial marks on the solar cells. In addition, the fiducial marks and the lay out makers on the solar cell and/ or back contact foil are sensitive to differentiations in colour, shape and size, texture and 2 reflectivity such that a camera may not recognize the fiducials and markers to be recognized for placement, resulting in a misaligned placement of a solar cell. Further, the software of the camera’s need to be updated every time a new type of solar cell or back contact foil is to be used in manufacturing a photovoltaic module.
5 It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module in a relatively fast and robust way.
This object is reached by the features mentioned in claim 1.
In a first aspect the method according to the present invention comprises at least the following steps: 10 - determining a centroid of a back contact foil and its orientation, which centroid and orientation of the back contact foil are used for calculating virtual segments for placing a solar cell in a calculated virtual segment on the back contact foil, wherein each virtual segment comprises a target centroid, - determining a centroid of at least one solar cell and its orientation, 15 - aligning the solar cell’s centroid with the target centroid and rotating the solar cell such that the solar cell orientation coincides with the orientation of the back contact foil, - placing the aligned and rotated solar cell on the back contact foil.
By means of the method according to the present invention no 20 preprinted fiducial marks are needed on the solar cell and/or on the back contact foil as the centroid and the orientation thereof can be calculated by means of the corners and/or contours of the solar cell and/or back contact foil. In the beginning of the production line, i.e. well before the pick and place station for placing the solar cells to the back contact foil, the centroid of a back contact foil and its orientation already 25 have been calculated by means of a vision device, such as a camera having a processor. The vision device is arranged at or near the start of the production line. By means of the calculated virtual segments each target position for each solar cell to be placed on the back contact foil is available to a processor in the pick and place machine upfront. In the pick and place station each solar cell is inspected by means 30 of a camera and for each solar cell its centroid and its orientation are determined. The processor controls a placement unit of the pick and place station. Without any real time vision, the solar cell is being moved to the target centroid position and rotated if necessary, such that the aligned and rotated solar cell can be positioned in 3 the virtual segment on the back contact foil. Rotation and movement of the solar cell can be done simultaneously or sequential. As only a quick inspection of the solar cell is needed in the pick and place machine by means of the camera a robust and fast method is provided for placing solar cells on the back contact foil in an accurate way.
5 In stead of a vision system it is also possible to mechanically determine the centroid of a back contact foil and/or the centroid of a solar cell and their orientation.
The common definition of centroid is a point whose coordinates are the averages of the corresponding coordinates of a given set of points.
10 In a second aspect, there is provided a method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module, wherein for determining the centroid of the back contact foil and its orientation and for determining the centroid of the solar cell an its orientation, an algorithm is used. The algorithm may determine four points defining a quadrilateral such as a rectangle or a square, representative for the back contact foil and/or for the 15 solar cell for calculating a point representative for the centroid of the back contact foil and/or the solar cell and for calculating the orientation of the back contact foil and/or the solar cell.
By using a centroid representative of the back contact foil and of the at least one solar cell instead of the actual centroid, the features on the back contact 20 foil and the at least one solar cell for determination of the virtual centroids can be recognized faster by means of a camera. In this way centroids can be faster determined such that the solar cells can be placed quicker such that the capacity per time unit of the production line increases.
In a third aspect the above indicated algorithm uses fiducial marks 25 printed on the back contact foil for calculating the centroid representative for the back contact foil and for calculating the orientation, which fiducial marks are positioned close to the perimeter of the back contact foil outside the surface in which the virtual segments are calculated. As these fiducial marks can be recognized in a quick manner by means of a camera, the calculation time for calculating the virtual centroid 30 and the orientation of the back contact foil are relatively short.
In a fourth aspect, after determination of the centroid of the back contact foil and its orientation, skirts of the back contact foil comprising the fiducial marks are cut away. By using this method no parts that are needed on the back 4 contact foil to be used in the photovoltaic module, are cut away. Therefore, the back contact foil available in the photovoltaic module does not comprise any fiducial marks. As the fiducial marks (shortly mentioned fiducials) are printed in an area not to be used, the fiducials can be made relatively large and very distinctive such that a 5 camera can recognize these fiducials easily and in a relatively fast manner.
In a fifth aspect the algorithm uses the individual solar cell contour shape to calculate the centroid and the orientation of the solar cell.
The determination of the cell reference point (centroid) by using the wafer contour has been made independently from the actual wafer orientation in the 10 production process and takes the complete wafer shape into account. The wafer shape is normally not a square with fixed lengths and 90° angles, but skewed due to tolerances of ±0.5 mm in edge lengths according to the wafer specification. Normally a wafer corner can not be used as reference point, because of the presence of chamfers at the cell corners of the solar cells, such that no distinct corner points are 15 available. Various known methods for determination of the actual centroid and the actual orientation of a solar cell can be used in the method according to the present invention. However, it is preferred to use methods to be discussed below for determination of a representative centroid and a representative orientation of a solar cell, as with these methods calculation times can be reduced drastically with a 20 reliable and a reproducible result.
In a sixth aspect the centroid of the solar cell is calculated by means of at least two substantially transversal to each other extending edges of the solar cell that are determined mechanically and/or visually by means of at least one camera, wherein by means of the algorithm the edges are fitted into a first and a 25 second virtual straight line edge, wherein parallel to these virtual straight line edges the algorithm calculates two virtual parallel lines at a distance of the virtual straight line edges, which distance corresponds for a first straight line edge with half an average length of an average solar cell and for a second straight line edge with half an average width of an average solar cell, wherein the crossing point of these virtual 30 parallel lines is considered to be representing the centroid of the solar cell.
By means of this method it is possible to calculate a centroid representative of the solar cell in a very fast and robust manner. Preferably, the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by the slope of one virtual 5 straight line edge. Although, the centroid representative for the solar cell may deviate a little from the actual centroid of the solar cell this is not a serious issue as long as during manufacturing of the solar cell and in particular the metallisation thereof this deviation is reproducible in a predictable manner, this representative centroid and the 5 orientation belonging thereto are used and the same representative centroid and orientation are used for placement on the back contact foil.
In a seventh aspect the centroid of the solar cell is calculated by means of all four edges of the solar cell that are determined visually by means of at least one camera, wherein by means of the algorithm the centroid of the solar cell is 10 considered to be represented by a point having the smallest distance to all four edges.
The calculation time for this method is still relatively short and this method will more accurately approximate the actual centroid of the solar cell. In practise this is approximated by the average of all edge coordinates. The accuracy 15 can be tuned by using a fine or a coarse sampling of the edge coordinates. Please note that with the four edges the main edges of the solar cell are meant and not the edged formed by chamfers at the corners of the solar cell. For determination of the orientation of the solar cell it is also possible to choose between a relatively fast method and a relatively accurate method. Please note that the comparative terms 20 relatively fast / relatively accurate are used to distinguish these methods only from each other, i.e. both methods discussed below are relatively fast compared to a method for determining the actual centroid.
In the relatively fast method the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a slope of one virtual straight line, which slope is 25 calculated by means of the algorithm, which uses two opposing edges of the solar cell through which two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual straight line edge having a slope, wherein the slope of the virtual straight line being the average slope of the two slopes of the virtual straight line edges. In addition, in the relatively accurate method the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a 30 first slope of a first virtual straight line and a second slope of a second virtual straight line, wherein each virtual straight line is calculated by means of the algorithm, which selects for the first virtual straight line a first pair of two opposing edges of the solar cell through which two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual straight line 6 edge having a slope, wherein the slope of the first virtual straight line being the average slope of the two slopes of the first pair of virtual straight line edges and for the second virtual straight line a second pair of two opposing edges of the solar cell are selected through which two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual 5 straight line edge having a slope, wherein the slope of the second virtual straight line being the average slope of the two slopes of the second pair of virtual straight line edges.
Depending on the specifications of solar cells to be used and the specification of the back contact foils to be used, more in particular the maximum 10 tolerances, one of the above methods can chosen, i.e. if the specification prescribes minimal tolerances the fastest method may be chosen and if the specification prescribes relatively large tolerances the most accurate method may be chosen.
In a further aspect of the present invention a solar cell production line for manufacturing a solar cell has multiple stations, wherein at least two 15 assembling stations for performing at least two different manufacturing steps of a solar cell use the same determined centroid of the solar cell and the determined orientation for aligning and applying these steps to the solar cell to be manufactured. By using only one reference point, i.e. the actual or the representative centroid, and the determined orientation in the main manufacturing steps of the solar cells and for 20 placement on the back contact foil, no inspection steps are needed before and after placement of the solar cell on the back contact foil. By means of this reference point and the determined orientation the overall tolerance build-up is minimal (and divided to the left and right and upper and lower edge) in this method during the different manufacturing steps as the alignment based on the centroid and the orientation is 25 the same for each manufacturing step of the solar cell and even for placement of the solar cell on the back contact foil for manufacturing the photovoltaic module.
In another aspect of the present invention a module production line for manufacturing a photovoltaic module has multiple assembling stations for assembling multiple layers of the photovoltaic module, wherein at least two 30 assembling stations use the determined centroid and the determined orientation of the back contact foil for applying and aligning said respective layers.
By using the same reference point, i.e. the target centroid and the orientation of the back contact foil, as a starting position for each step a possible 7 placement error do not build-up during the assembling process of the photovoltaic module. In this way at least one encapsulant layer, preferably the first and second encapsulant layers, is/are applied to the back contact foil by using the determined centroid and the determined orientation of the back contact foil. Further, a glass plate 5 can be placed by means of determining a glass plate’s centroid and its orientation, and aligning the glass plate’s centroid with the centroid of the back contact foil and rotating the glass plate such that the glass plate orientation coincides with the orientation of the back contact foil.
The invention relates further to a system for manufacturing a 10 photovoltaic module according to the method specified above and to the use of such a system. The system comprises at least a loading station in which the back contact foil is loaded into the production line and a pick and place station for placing the solar cells on the back contact foil. Preferably, the loading station is provided with at least one camera and a processor for determining the centroid of a back contact foil and 15 its orientation. This alignment data is communicated by a communication unit to another processor of the pick and place station, comprising another camera for determining the centroid of at least one solar cell and its orientation. The processor of the pick and place station controls a placement unit for placing the solar cells on the back contact foil according to the method of the present invention. In addition, it 20 is possible that if the loading station and the pick and place station are one station that only one camera is used for determining the centroid of a back contact foil and its orientation and for determining the centroid of at least one solar cell and its orientation. Preferably, the system also comprises a production line for manufacturing a solar cell, in which production line also at least one camera and 25 processor are available. In the solar cell production line the solar cell is manufactured of a substrate having through holes, on which substrate at least one front layer and at least one back layer is deposited, wherein the positions of the through holes have been aligned to the determined centroid of the solar cell and the determined orientation and the layers have been deposited by alignment to the determined 30 centroid of the solar cell and the determined orientation. In the photovoltaic module line of the system the same determined centroid and the same determined orientation of the solar cell are used for placement of the solar cell on the back contact foil.
8
It is understood that any combination between different embodiments and preferred features as described herein can be made and form part of the invention, whether such combination is explicitly mentioned or not.
The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to 5 some exemplary embodiments shown in the appended figures, in which: figure 1 shows a schematic top view of a part of a back contact foil with solar cells placed thereon, figure 2 shows a schematic top view of a back contact foil with solar cells placed thereon, and 10 figure 3 shows different steps / processes for manufacturing a photovoltaic module, figure 4 shows a flow diagram of the method according to the present invention, figure 5 shows a method for determining a centroid representative 15 for a solar cell.
Like parts are indicated by the same numerals in the various figures.
Figures 1 and 2 show top views if the back contact foil 1 with various solar cells 3 positioned thereon.
Various machines (not shown) in a cell production line create or 20 deposit patterns on the solar cells 3. These equipments are supplied by different manufacturers and located at different stages of the cell production process. In particular, these equipments are generating lasered patterns (like through-holes and isolation grooves) and printed patterns (like Ag and Al paste).
In a system (not shown) according to the present invention, having a 25 module 5 production line, the solar cells 3 are also handled to be assembled onto a back contact foil 1. In this process the alignment of the solar cell 3 with the solder paste (not shown) and back sheet foil 1 should be guaranteed as otherwise the photovoltaic module 5 to be produced will not provide the desired output.
The photovoltaic module 5 shown in figures 1 and 2 comprises a 30 placement area 9 defined by border 11 and a circumference skirt 13. This circumference skirt 13 comprises longitudinal parts 13a, 13b having distinctive fiducials markers 15 printed thereon. The solar cell 3 comprises a predetermined set of holes 8. The orientation of the solar cell 3 is indicated with arrow 10 in figures 1 9 and 2.
So, in order to align the individual patterns with the solar cell (and thus each other), and the solar cells 3 with the back sheet foil 1, all production equipment is designed and programmed to use the same reference at the single 5 solar cells 3 and at the back contact foil 1. In figure 3 eleven different steps / processes are shown for manufacturing a photovoltaic module. At least in the following processes the algorithm to be discussed in further detail below can be used: A Holes 8 in the wafer 10 B filing holes with conductive material for providing vias C Screen print front metallisation D Screen print back metallisation E CU-pattern Back Contact Foil + alignment markers F Soldermask Back Contact foil + alignment markers 15 G Stencil print solderpaste dots H First encapsulant layer (with holes) lay up (or placement) I Lay-up of solar cells 3 J Second encapsulant layer lay up (or placement) K Glass plate lay up (or placement) 20 L Lamination M In laminate Soldering
The most essential steps of the method according to the present invention for manufacturing a photovoltaic module 5, are at least the following steps, which steps are shown in figure 4: 25 I determining a centroid of a back contact foil and its orientation, which centroid and orientation of the back contact foil 1 are used for calculating virtual segments for placing a solar cell 3 in a calculated virtual segment on the back contact foil 1, wherein each virtual segment comprises a target centroid, II determining a centroid of at least one solar cell 3 and its orientation, 30 III aligning the solar cell’s centroid with the target centroid and rotating the solar cell 3 such that the solar cell orientation coincides with the orientation of the back contact foil 1, IV placing the aligned and rotated solar cell 3 on the back contact foil 1.
10
These steps are performed in process I shown in figure 3. For the back contact foil 1 shown in figures 1 and 2 a first camera (not shown) and first processor (not shown) of the system use an algorithm that determines four points defining a rectangle or a quadrangle representative for the back contact foil 1, i.e.
5 four spaced apart fiducials markers 15 for calculating a representative centroid and a representative orientation of the back contact foil 1. The algorithm uses in step I at least the outer fiducials 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d printed on the back contact foil 1 for calculating the representative centroid 21 of the back contact foil 1 and the orientation indicated with arrow 23 of the back contact foil 1, which fiducials 15a, 10 15b, 15c, 15d are positioned close to the perimeter, i.e. at the longitudinal skirts 13a, 13b of the back contact foil 1 outside the surface 9 in which the virtual segments (not shown) are calculated. In the embodiment shown in figures 1 and 2 the representative centroid 21 determined by means of the fiducials 15 has coincidentally the same coordinates as the crossing point of the diagonals 27, 29 and the 15 orientation of the back contact foil 1 determined by means of the fiducials 15 is parallel to the horizontal axis (not shown).
After determination, preferably after step K shown in figure 2 of the representative centroid of the back contact foil and the representative orientation, at least the longitudinal skirts 13a, 13b or the complete circumference skirt 13 located 20 outside rectangular border 11 of the back contact foil 1 comprising the fiducials 15 are cut away. As a result the back contact foil 1 available in the photovoltaic module 5 does not comprise any fiducials 15. As the fiducials 15 are printed in an area not to be used, the fiducials 15 can be made relatively large and very distinctive such that a camera can recognize these fiducials easily and in a relatively fast manner. Further, 25 the vision system does not need to be reprogrammed when the features of the back contact foil 1 such as lay-out or colour of the back contact foil 1 change.
In the pick and place station (not shown), i.e. before placing the solar cells 3 to the back contact foil 1 in step H shown in figure 3. The algorithm used by a second processor (not shown) positioned in the pick and place station 30 determines the representative centroid 7 of the solar cell 3 and its representative orientation.
The determination of the cell reference point (centroid) by using the solar cell 3 contour has been made independently from the actual solar cell 11 orientation in the production process and takes in a preferred embodiment the complete wafer shape into account. The solar cell 3 shape is not a square with fixed lengths and 90° angles, but skewed due to tolerances of ±0.5 mm in edge lengths according to the solar cell specification (in figures 1 and 2 shown exaggerated). A 5 solar cell corner could not be used as reference point, because of the presence of chamfers (not shown) at the cell corners of the solar cells, there are normally no distinct corner points available. Since the solar cell shape does not need to be a perfect square in a top view, but may also be a "random" quadrangle, the determination of the solar cell x-axis (orientation) is not evident. In preferred 10 embodiment an representative centroid 7 of the solar cell 3 is calculated by means of all four edges 41,42, 43, 44 of the solar cell 3 that are determined visually by means of at least one camera, wherein by means of the algorithm the centroid of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a point 7 having the smallest distance to all four edges 41, 42, 43, 44 (by least squares). In figures 1 and 2 the solar cells 3 are 15 schematically shown as having straight edges. In reality these edges 41, 42, 43, 44 are erratic.
A relatively accurate and relatively fast method to calculate an orientation representative for the solar cell 3 is shown in figure 5. The orientation of the solar cell 3 is considered to be represented by a first slope of a first virtual 20 straight line A and a second slope of a second virtual straight line B, wherein each virtual straight line A, B is calculated by means of the algorithm. This algorithm selects for the first virtual straight line A a first pair of two opposing edges 42, 44 of the solar cell through which edges 42, 44 two virtual straight line edges 42A, 44A are fitted, each virtual straight line 42A, 44A edge having a slope in relation to the 25 horizontal (not shown), wherein the slope of the first virtual straight line A being the average slope of the two slopes of the first pair of virtual straight line edges 42A, 44A. For the second virtual straight line B a second pair of two opposing edges 41, 43 of the solar cell 3 is selected through which two virtual straight line edges 41B, 43B are fitted, each virtual straight line edge 41B, 43B having a slope in relation to 30 the vertical, wherein the slope of the second virtual straight line B being the average slope of the two slopes of the second pair of virtual straight line edges 41B, 43B. The ovals 52, 54 represent regions of interest (ROI), where a camera start searching for the edges 43, 44. Beforehand the tolerances of a solar cell 3 are known and the 12 bandwidth of these tolerances is indicated with dotted lines 56, 57, 58, 59 for edges 43, 44. These bandwidths are used to define a region of interest.
In a preferred embodiment between virtual straight lines A, B an angle bisector is defined, by means of this angle bisector the solar cell 3 can be 5 rotated in such a way that its angle bisector coincides with an angle bisector representative for the orientation of the back contact foil 1.
However, it is also possible to use this angle bisector to rotate the solar cell 3 to an angle bisector of a Cartesian coordinate (X,Y) system such that one of the virtual straight lines X, Y of the Cartesian coordinate can be considered to be 10 representative of the orientation of the solar cell 3.
In fact, orientation 23 of the back contact foil 1 is determined by means a Cartesian coordinate (X’,Y’) system. If virtual straight line X of the solar cell 3 is representative for the orientation of the solar cell 3, then alignment of the solar cell 3 to the back contact foil 1 is performed by rotating the solar cell 3 in such a way 15 that virtual straight line X extends parallel to the orientation 23 of the virtual straight line X’ of the back contact foil 1.
It is offcourse possible to determine an orientation in another direction then orientation 23 of the back contact foil 1.
On the other hand in a faster method for determining the orientation 20 of the solar cell, it is also possible to determine virtual straight line A only and considering this virtual straight line A representative for the orientation of the solar cell 3.
As the through holes 8 and contact points are made in the solar cell 3 by using the above indicated centroid 7 and orientation defined by straight lines A, 25 B and this centroid 7 and orientation defined by straight lines A, B is used to rotate and place the solar cell 3 by means of a placement unit (not shown) such that the solar cell’s centroid is aligned with the target centroid and the solar cell orientation coincides with the orientation of the back contact foil a reliable alignment of the holes 8 of the solar cell 3 with the contacts of the back contact foil 1 is guaranteed.
30 As can be seen in figure 1 as a result of the method according to the present invention, through the holes 8 of different solar cells 3 a virtual horizontal line indicated by dotted line 32 and a vertical line indicated by dotted line 31 can be drawn.
13
In the system (not shown) according to the present invention In the beginning of the production line, i.e. well before the pick and place station for placing the solar cells 3 to the back contact foil 1 (step H in figure 3), the centroid 21 of a back contact foil 1 and its orientation 23 already have been calculated by means of 5 the first camera and the first processor. By means of the calculated virtual segments each target position and target orientation 23 for each solar cell 3 to be placed on the back contact foil 1 is available to the second processor in the pick and place machine by means of a communicating unit upfront. In the pick and place station each solar cell is inspected by means of a second camera and for each solar cell 3 its centroid 10 and its orientation are determined by means of the second processor such that the second processor is able to control a placement unit of the pick and place station for aligning, rotating and placing a solar cell 3 into the virtual segment on the back contact foil 1.
At each applicable production equipment (A-K) the reference point 15 and orientation of the individual solar cells can be determined by means of at least one camera. The calculation of the solar cell reference point (centroid) 7 and orientation will be based on the individual solar cell 3 contour shape, which should be determined visually with the camera as indicated above.
Although the method according to the present invention has been 20 described by means of determining representative centroids, it is also possible to apply the method according to the present invention by calculating and using another algorithm for determining a centroid.
It is also possible to use a faster method to determine a representative centroid and a representative orientation. In this method the centroid 25 of the solar cell is calculated by means of at least two substantially transversal to each other extending edges, e.g. 42, 43 of the solar cell 3 that are determined visually by means of at least one camera, wherein by means of the algorithm the edges are fitted into a first and second virtual straight line edges 42A, 43B, wherein parallel to these virtual straight line edges the algorithm calculates two virtual parallel 30 lines (not shown) at a distance of the virtual straight line edges, which distance corresponds for a first straight line edge with half an average length of an average solar cell and for a second straight line edge with half an average width of an average solar cell, wherein the crossing point (not shown) of these virtual parallel 14 lines is considered to be representing the centroid of the solar cell. The orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by the slope of one virtual straight line edge 42A to the horizontal or for virtual straight line edge 43B to the vertical.
5

Claims (20)

1. Werkwijze voor het vervaardigen van een foto-voltaïsche module, waarbij de werkwijze is voorzien van ten minste de volgende stappen: 5. het bepalen van een zwaartepunt van een achterste contactfolie (back contact foil) en de oriëntatie daarvan, welk zwaartepunt en de oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie worden gebruikt voor het berekenen van virtuele segmenten voor het plaatsen van een zonnecel in een berekend virtueel segment op de achterste contactfolie, waarbij elk virtueel segment is voorzien van een doel zwaartepunt, 10. het bepalen van een zwaartepunt van ten minste een zonnecel en de oriëntatie daarvan, - het uitlijnen van het zwaartepunt van de zonnecel met het doel zwaartepunt en het roteren van de zonnecel zodanig dat de zonnecel oriëntatie samenvalt met de oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie, 15. het plaatsen van de uitgelijnde en geroteerde zonnecel op de achterste contactfolie.A method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module, the method comprising at least the following steps: 5. determining a center of gravity of a rear contact foil (back contact foil) and its orientation, which center of gravity and the orientation of the rear contact foil are used for calculating virtual segments for placing a solar cell in a calculated virtual segment on the rear contact foil, wherein each virtual segment is provided with a target center of gravity, 10. determining a center of gravity of at least a solar cell and its orientation, - aligning the center of gravity of the solar cell with the target center of gravity and rotating the solar cell so that the solar cell orientation coincides with the orientation of the rear contact film, 15. placing the aligned and rotated solar cell on the rear contact foil. 2. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 1, waarbij een algoritme wordt gebruikt voor het bepalen van het zwaartepunt van de achterste contactfolie en de oriëntatie daarvan en voor het bepalen van het zwaartepunt van de zonnecel en de 20 oriëntatie daarvan.2. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein an algorithm is used for determining the center of gravity of the rear contact foil and its orientation and for determining the center of gravity of the solar cell and its orientation. 3. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 2, waarbij het algoritme vier punten definieert die een vierhoek definiëren die representatief is voor de achterste contactfolie en/of voor de zonnecel voor het berekenen van een punt dat representatief is voor het zwaartepunt van de achterste contactfolie en/of de 25 zonnecel en voor het berekenen van de oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie en/of de zonnecel.The method of claim 2, wherein the algorithm defines four points defining a quadrilateral representative of the rear contact foil and / or the solar cell for calculating a point representative of the center of gravity of the rear contact foil and / or the 25 solar cell and for calculating the orientation of the rear contact foil and / or the solar cell. 4. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 3, waarbij het algoritme uitlijnmerken gebruikt die zijn geprint op de achterste contactfolie voor het berekenen van het zwaartepunt dat representatief is voor de achterste contactfolie en voor het 30 berekenen van de oriëntatie, welke uitlijnmerken worden gepositioneerd dicht bij de perimeter van de achterste contactfolie buiten het oppervlak waarin de virtuele segmenten worden berekend.4. Method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the algorithm uses alignment marks printed on the rear contact foil for calculating the center of gravity representative of the rear contact foil and for calculating the orientation, which alignment marks are positioned close to the perimeter of the posterior contact film outside the surface in which the virtual segments are calculated. 5. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 4, waarbij na bepaling van het zwaartepunt dat representatief is voor de achterste folie en de oriëntatie daarvan, 2007591 randen van de achterste contactfolie die zijn voorzien van de uitlijnmerken worden weggesneden.The method of claim 4, wherein after determining the center of gravity representative of the rear film and its orientation, 2007591 edges of the rear contact film provided with the alignment marks are cut away. 6. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 2, waarbij het algoritme de individuele contourvorm van de zonnecel gebruikt om het zwaartepunt en de oriëntatie van de 5 zonnecel te berekenen.6. Method according to claim 2, wherein the algorithm uses the individual contour shape of the solar cell to calculate the center of gravity and the orientation of the solar cell. 7. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 6, waarbij het zwaartepunt van de zonnecel wordt berekend door middel van ten minste twee in hoofdzaak transversaal ten opzichte van elkaar zich uitstrekkende randen van de zonnecel die mechanisch en/of visueel met behulp van ten minste een camera worden bepaald, waarbij met 10 behulp van het algoritme de randen worden gefit in een eerste en een tweede virtuele rechte lijnrand, waarbij parallel aan deze virtuele rechte lijnranden het algoritme twee virtuele parallelle lijnen berekent op een afstand van de virtuele rechte lijnenranden, welke afstand correspondeert voor een eerste rechte lijnrand met de helft van een gemiddelde lengte van een gemiddelde zonnecel en voor een 15 tweede rechte lijnrand met de helft van een gemiddelde breedte van een gemiddelde zonnecel, waarbij het kruispunt van deze virtuele parallelle lijnen wordt beschouwd om het zwaartepunt van de zonnecel weer te geven.Method according to claim 6, wherein the center of gravity of the solar cell is calculated by means of at least two edges of the solar cell which extend substantially transversely to each other and which are determined mechanically and / or visually with the aid of at least one camera, wherein with the aid of the algorithm the edges are fitted into a first and a second virtual straight line edge, wherein parallel to these virtual straight line edges the algorithm calculates two virtual parallel lines at a distance from the virtual straight line edges, which distance corresponds for a first straight line edge with half an average length of an average solar cell and for a second straight line edge with half an average width of an average solar cell, where the intersection of these virtual parallel lines is considered to reflect the center of gravity of the solar cell to give. 8. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 6, waarbij de oriëntatie van de zonnecel wordt beschouwd om te worden weergegeven door de helling van een 20 virtuele rechtelijnrand.8. Method according to claim 6, wherein the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by the slope of a virtual straight-line edge. 9. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij het zwaartepunt van de zonnecel wordt berekend met behulp van alle vier de randen van de zonnecel die mechanisch en/of visueel worden bepaald met behulp van ten minste een camera, waarbij met behulp van het algoritme het zwaartepunt van de 25 zonnecel wordt beschouwd om te worden weergegeven door een punt dat de kleinste afstand heeft tot alle vier de randen.A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the center of gravity of the solar cell is calculated using all four edges of the solar cell that are determined mechanically and / or visually with the aid of at least one camera, the algorithm center of gravity of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a point that has the smallest distance to all four edges. 10. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 9, waarbij de oriëntatie van de zonnecel wordt beschouwd om te worden weergegeven door een helling van een virtuele rechte lijn, welke helling wordt berekend met behulp van het algoritme, dat 30 twee tegenover elkaar gelegen randen van de zonnecel gebruikt waardoor twee virtuele rechte lijnranden worden gefit, elke virtuele rechte lijnrand heeft een helling, waarbij de helling van de virtuele rechte lijn de gemiddelde helling van de twee hellingen van de virtuele rechte lijnranden is.10. Method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a slope of a virtual straight line, which slope is calculated using the algorithm that uses two opposite edges of the solar cell whereby two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual straight line edge has a slope, the slope of the virtual straight line being the average slope of the two slopes of the virtual straight line edges. 11. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 9, waarbij de oriëntatie van de zonnecel wordt beschouwd om te worden weergegeven door een eerste helling van een eerste virtuele recht lijn en een tweede helling van een tweede virtuele rechte lijn, waarbij elke virtuele rechte lijn wordt berekend met behulp van het algoritme, welke voor de eerste virtuele rechte lijn een eerste paar tegenover elkaar gelegen 5 randen van de zonnecel selecteert waardoor twee virtuele rechte lijnranden worden gefit, elke virtuele rechte lijnrand heeft een helling, waarbij de helling van de eerste virtuele rechte lijn de gemiddelde helling is van de twee hellingen van het eerste paar virtuele rechte lijnranden en voor de tweede virtuele rechte lijn wordt een tweede paar tegenover elkaar gelegen randen van de zonnecel geselecteerd 10 waardoor twee virtuele rechte lijnranden worden gefit, elke virtuele rechte lijnrand heeft een helling, waarbij de helling van de tweede virtuele rechte lijn de gemiddelde helling van de twee hellingen van het tweede paar virtuele rechte lijnranden is.The method of claim 9, wherein the orientation of the solar cell is considered to be represented by a first slope of a first virtual straight line and a second slope of a second virtual straight line, each virtual straight line being calculated using the algorithm, which selects for the first virtual straight line a first pair of opposite edges of the solar cell through which two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual straight line edge has a slope, the slope of the first virtual straight line being the average slope is of the two slopes of the first pair of virtual straight line edges and for the second virtual straight line a second pair of opposite edges of the solar cell is selected whereby two virtual straight line edges are fitted, each virtual straight line edge has a slope, the slope of the second virtual straight line the average slope of the two slopes of the second pair of virtual straight line edges. 12. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij een zonnecelproductielijn voor het vervaardigen van een zonnecel verschillende stations 15 heeft, waarbij ten minste twee assemblagestations voor het uitvoeren van ten minste twee verschillende vervaardigingsstappen van een zonnecel hetzelfde bepaalde zwaartepunt van de zonnecel en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de zonnecel gebruiken voor het uitvoeren van deze stappen voor de te vervaardigen zonnecel.12. Method as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein a solar cell production line for manufacturing a solar cell has different stations, wherein at least two assembly stations for carrying out at least two different manufacturing steps of a solar cell have the same determined center of gravity of the solar cell and the determined orientation of the solar cell to perform these steps for the solar cell to be manufactured. 13. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 12, waarbij de zonnecel wordt 20 vervaardigd van een substraat dat doorgaande holten heeft, op welk substraat ten minste een voorste en ten minste een achterste laag worden afgezet, waarbij tijdens het vervaardigen van de doorgaande holte, de posities van de doorgaande holte worden uitgelijnd met het bepaalde zwaartepunt van de zonnecel en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de zonnecel en de lagen worden afgezet door uitlijning met het 25 bepaalde zwaartepunt van de zonnecel en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de zonnecel.13. Method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the solar cell is manufactured from a substrate that has continuous cavities, on which substrate at least a front and at least a rear layer are deposited, wherein during the manufacture of the continuous cavity, the positions of the through-going cavity are aligned with the determined center of gravity of the solar cell and the determined orientation of the solar cell and the layers are deposited by alignment with the determined center of gravity of the solar cell and the determined orientation of the solar cell. 14. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies, waarbij een module productielijn voor het vervaardigen van een foto-voltaïsche module verschillende assemblagestations heeft voor het assembleren van verschillende lagen van de foto-voltaïsche module, waarbij ten minste twee assemblagesstations 30 het bepaalde zwaartepunt en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie gebruiken voor het aanbrengen en uitlijnen van de respectievelijke lagen.14. Method as claimed in any of the foregoing claims, wherein a module production line for manufacturing a photovoltaic module has different assembly stations for assembling different layers of the photovoltaic module, wherein at least two assembly stations 30 have the determined center of gravity and the determined center of gravity use orientation of the rear contact foil to apply and align the respective layers. 15. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 14, waarbij de eerste en tweede inkapsellagen (encapsulant layers) worden uitgelijnd met het bepaald zwaartepunt en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie voor het afzetten van de eerste en tweede inkapsellagen op de achterste contactfolie.The method of claim 14, wherein the first and second encapsulant layers are aligned with the determined center of gravity and the determined orientation of the rear contact film for depositing the first and second encapsulation layers on the rear contact film. 16. Werkwijze volgens conclusie 14 of 15, waarbij een glasplaat wordt geplaatst door middel van het bepalen van een zwaartepunt van de glasplaat en de oriëntatie daarvan en het uitlijnen van het zwaartepunt van de glasplaat met het 5 zwaartepunt van de achterste contactfolie en het roteren van de glasplaat zodanig dat de glasplaat oriëntatie samenvalt met de oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie.16. Method as claimed in claim 14 or 15, wherein a glass plate is placed by means of determining a center of gravity of the glass plate and its orientation and aligning the center of gravity of the glass plate with the center of gravity of the rear contact foil and rotating the glass plate such that the glass plate orientation coincides with the orientation of the rear contact film. 17. Werkwijze volgens een der voorgaande conclusies 14-16, waarbij voor het plaatsen van de zonnecel een soldeerprintpatroon wordt afgezet op de achterste contactfolie door uitlijning met het bepaalde zwaartepunt van de achterste 10 contactfolie en de bepaalde oriëntatie van de achterste contactfolie.17. Method as claimed in any of the foregoing claims 14-16, wherein for placing the solar cell a solder print pattern is deposited on the rear contact foil by alignment with the determined center of gravity of the rear contact foil and the determined orientation of the rear contact foil. 18. Systeem voor het vervaardigen van een foto-voltaïsche module volgens de werkwijze die gespecificeerd in een van de voorgaande conclusies.A system for manufacturing a photovoltaic module according to the method specified in any one of the preceding claims. 19. Gebruik van het systeem volgens conclusie 18.Use of the system according to claim 18. 20. Foto-voltaïsche module die is vervaardigd volgens de werkwijze die 15 is gespecificeerd in een van de voorgaande conclusies 1-17. 200759120. A photovoltaic module manufactured in accordance with the method specified in any one of the preceding claims 1-17. 2007591
NL2007591A 2011-10-13 2011-10-13 Method for manufacturing a photovoltaic module. NL2007591C2 (en)

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NL2001958C (en) * 2008-09-05 2010-03-15 Stichting Energie Method of monolithic photo-voltaic module assembly.
US20100081229A1 (en) * 2008-09-30 2010-04-01 Apple Inc. Method of assembling integrated circuit components
EP2244308A1 (en) * 2008-01-31 2010-10-27 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Method for manufacturing solar battery module

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EP2244308A1 (en) * 2008-01-31 2010-10-27 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Method for manufacturing solar battery module
NL2001958C (en) * 2008-09-05 2010-03-15 Stichting Energie Method of monolithic photo-voltaic module assembly.
US20100081229A1 (en) * 2008-09-30 2010-04-01 Apple Inc. Method of assembling integrated circuit components

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