AU2018223012A1 - Solar powered structure - Google Patents

Abstract

A system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings comprising: at least one base building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating; at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating; wherein, the base building is configured to house an energy storage and control system and whereby each secondary building is connectable to the energy storage and control system of the base building to provide energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

Description

A system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings comprising: at least one base building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating; at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating; wherein, the base building is configured to house an energy storage and control system and whereby each secondary building is connectable to the energy storage and control system of the base building to provide energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

SOLAR POWERED STRUCTURE

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority from Australian provisional patent application number 2017903492, filed 30 August 2017, the entire contents of which will be incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to solar powered construction for off-grid applications, and in particular, to a solar powered building structure for providing a self-contained power source for off-grid operation.

io BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Portable or demountable buildings are important buildings for managing a site or area in a controlled manner and providing facilities for workforce. Such buildings can be simply transported to a site, which may be a remote site, such as a mining site, or a construction site in a populated area, where they are assembled and is erected for use. When erected, the building may require connection to the electricity grid to operate electrical appliances and the like, or may be used with a diesel generator to power the site. Typically, such buildings will function as an office space for constructing basic office and administration functions, but may also provide a dedicated space for staff to eat and rest, as well as provide bathroom 20 and toilet facilities. Such accommodation can also serve as general storage, meeting or first aid facilities.

Whilst the assembly and shipment of such buildings to a site can require significant logistics, the connection of the assembled building to an electricity supply, whether that electricity supply is part of an existing grid or is separately generated, can add significant costs to the process. If the power grid is a considerable distance from the site, the connection costs may be too high to compete with diesel costs for operating a generator. Further to this, it may be difficult to assess how much power is required to operate the buildings and as a result of ensuring that the supply is always sufficient, the operators may err on the side of caution and provide excess power requirements for the needs, which is also a significant cost to the project. It can often take considerable time to connect power to the site which can result in considerable downtime and costs associated therewith. As every site is different, there are often space constraints and site accommodation may have to be relocated several times during a project which also increases costs considerably.

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

Thus, there is a need to provide a portable or demountable building option that employs a variety of optional satellite buildings that can be added to a base building to provide a modular power generation system that can be erected, installed and operated in a self-contained manner by largely unlicensed/unqualified workers.

The above references to and descriptions of prior proposals or products are not intended to be, and are not to be construed as, statements or admissions of common general knowledge in the art. In particular, the above prior art discussion does not relate to what is commonly or well known by the person skilled in the art, but io assists in the understanding of the inventive step of the present invention of which the identification of pertinent prior art proposals is but one part.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

The invention according to one or more aspects is as defined in the independent claims. Some optional and/or preferred features of the invention are defined in is the dependent claims.

Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings comprising:

a base building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

wherein, the base building is configured to house an energy storage 25 and control system and whereby each secondary building is connectable to the energy storage and control system of the base building to provide solar generated energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

Accordingly, in another aspect of the invention there is provided a system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings comprising:

a stand-alone energy storage and control system;

at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 wherein, the stand-alone energy storage and control system is provided separate to each of the secondary buildings and whereby each of the secondary buildings is connectable to the energy storage and control system to provide energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be better understood from the following non-limiting description of preferred embodiments, in which:

io Fig. 1 is a front view of a conventional demountable building structure of the prior art;

Fig. 2 is a front view of another conventional demountable building structure of the prior art;

Fig. 3 is a top view of a demountable building system in accordance with is an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a side view of a demountable building system of Fig. 3;

Figs. 5A and 5B show top and end views respectively of a building of the demountable building system of Fig. 3 prepared for transportation to an installation site;

Figs. 6A and 6B show top and end views respectively of another type of building of the demountable building system of Fig. 3 prepared for transportation to an installation site;

Figs. 7A and 7B show top and end views of a building of the demountable building system of Fig. 3 with solar panels arranged in accordance with one embodiment;

Figs. 8A and 8B show top and end views of a building of the demountable building system of Fig. 3 with solar panels arranged in accordance with another embodiment;

Figs. 9A and 9B show top and end views of a building of the demountable building system of Fig. 3 with solar panels arranged in accordance with yet another embodiment;

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

Fig. 10 is a side view of a demountable building system of in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 11 is a rear exposed view of a base building depicting the energy storage and distribution equipment;

Fig. 12 is a schematic view depicting how the combiner unit of the energy storage and distribution equipment functions to combine and store the energy from each of the solar panels of the system; and

Fig. 13 depicts connected buildings in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

io DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Preferred features of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with reference to the drawings are not to be construed as limiting on the scope of the invention.

is The present invention will be described below in relation to demountable or portable buildings for use as on-site offices, lunch rooms, lodgings, toilets, and/or bathrooms. However, it will be appreciated that the type and purpose of the buildings of the present invention can vary, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, and still fall within the spirit of the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 1 and 2, two types of conventional modular or demountable building structures are depicted. In Fig. 1, the building 10 is an office which may house staff operating basic computers at desks and may incorporate, printers, and other office equipment as is generally required. The building 10 may include offices and may house a number of staff during working hours, as required by the particular application. In Fig. 2, the building 15 may function as a lunchroom and may have a number of tables and other amenities for staff to prepare and consume their lunch and to take breaks in. Alternatively, the building 15 may function as a toilet or bathroom and may be plumber and otherwise fitted to perform such a function. Typically, a site may include a number of buildings 10 and 15 adapted to meet the needs of population they are to service.

Irrespective of the type of building 10 or 15 or the purpose of that building, most such buildings are delivered to the site in the form of a module and are assembled on site. The buildings 10, 15 may be partly assembled or fully assembled containers, and as part of the assembly process, the internal fit out is performed

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 and the buildings 10, 15 are connected to a power source, such as a mains power source, or a diesel generator. The buildings 10, 15 are then able to function in their desired manner and can be disassembled for removal if/when required.

As previously discussed, one problem with such buildings 10, 15 is that their power consumption is largely unknown and often the amount of power supplied to operate the buildings is excess to their needs, resulting in an oversupply of power, to be generated by such devices as diesel and diesel generators, which can significantly increase costs for the site. Also, the buildings 10, 15 may be located a significant distance from the electricity grid, requiring significant connection io costs and equipment to tap in to eth electricity supply.

To address this issue the present invention proposes to supply modular offices 20 and 28 which can be transported on-site and which are configured to generate their own power through solar cells/panels and which can work independently or accept power from other buildings. This is depicted in Figs. 3 and 4.

is In one embodiment of the present invention as depicted in Figs. 3 and 4, two separate office designs are provided for use with the present invention. The larger building 20 is referred to as a base building and is typically used as an on-site office or the like. The base building 20 can function as a standalone building or may be connected to one or more extra buildings 28 as shown.

In the embodiment as shown, the base building 20 is in the form of a converted container having a height of 2.59 m, a length of 6.06m and a width of 2.44m. The roof of the base building 20 contains twelve solar panels 21 arranged in two rows 22 of six panels each as shown. In the embodiment as shown, the panels 21 are 315w modules resulting in 3.78kW of power generation. With such a configuration of panels 21, it is considered that the base building 20 is capable of generating, on average, 14.17kW/day.

Similarly, in the embodiment as shown, the extra building(s) 28 are in the form of a converted container having a height of 2.59 m, a length of 3,05m and a width of 2.44m. As the extra building(s) 28 have a significantly shorter length, the roof of the extra building(s) 28 contains 6 solar panels 27 arranged in two rows 29 of three panels each as shown. In the embodiment as shown, the panels 27 are 315w modules resulting in 1.89kW of power generation. With such a configuration of panels 21, it is considered that the extra building 28 is capable of generating, on average, 7.08kW/day. It will be appreciated that the structure of the buildings may take any form and may include existing buildings retrofitted with the present invention.

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

Each of the buildings 20, 28 are transported to site in the configuration as depicted in Figs. 5A, 5B and 6A, 6B. Referring firstly to the base building 20 in Figs. 5A and 5B, the rows 22 of panels 21 are able to be rotated such that they are substantially flat for storage on the roof of the base building 20. As is shown, there may be some overlap between the panels to prevent the panels from projecting beyond the side wills of the base building. Similarly, as depicted in Figs. 6A and 6B, for the extra building 28, the rows 29 of panels 27 are also rotated to be positioned flat on the roof of the building 28.

In this arrangement, when the buildings 20, 28 are brought to the site, they can be io simply loaded to the desired location and the solar panels positioned depending on the orientation of the site. This is depicted in Figs. 7A, - 9B and will be described below in relation to the base building 20 only. It will be appreciated that the same principles will apply to the extra building(s) 28 when setting up the solar panels

27.

is The rows 22 of solar panels 21 will be orientated to take into consideration north winter sun shade limits. Fig. 7A and 7B depict a situation whereby the sun is positioned towards the left hand side (or back) of the base building 20. In this position the left hand side row 22 will be tilted at an angle substantially 30° to the horizontal and will be located such that approximately 50% of the panels 21 overhang the left hand side of the base building 20 as shown. The right hand side row 22 will be positioned substantially horizontally but will be moved away from et other row such that approximately 50% of the panels overhang the edge of the base building 20. In this position, the angled row 22 will not cast a shadow over the horizontally located row 22.

In Figs. 8A and 8B the situation where the sun is located at either end of the base building 20 is depicted. In this situation, both rows 22 of panels 21 are orientated on an angle of around 30° to the horizontal and are separated such that approximately 50% of the panels 21 extend beyond the edge of the roof of the base building. In this situation, the amount of sunlight incident on the panels 21 is maximised.

In Figs. 9A and 9B the situation where the sun is located towards the right hand side (or rear) of the base building 20 is depicted. In this situation, the right hand side row 22 of panels 21 is orientated on an angle of around 30° to the horizontal and is separated from the other row 22 which is retained in a horizontal position.

As is depicted, both rows 22 are separated such that approximately 20% of the panels project beyond the edge of the roof of the base building 20. In this situation,

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 the amount of sunlight incident on the panels 21 is maximised and no shadow is cast by the angled row ion the horizontal row.

With the base building 20 and extra buildings 28 set up in the manner as depicted above and with knowledge of the average power generation of each building, the base building 20 is able to be fitted out with components having load ratings that combine to be lower than the average generated power capacity of the base building 20. For example, if the base building is to be used as an office, the components such as a printer, computers, monitors, lighting, wifi and air conditioning are selected to ensure that their average daily loading is below that of io the base building. In this regard, the following selections can be made:

Air Conditioner: Expected usage 1180W Peak @4hrsper day at 5.5 days per week

- Max total expected load per day: 4.7kW

Printer: Expected average usage - 1200WPeak @lhr per day at 5.5 days per week

- Max total expected load per day: 1.2kW is WIFI: Expected Average usage 10W @24hr total per day at 5.5 days per week Max total expected load per day: 240W

Computer screens: 2 screens usage 250W each @ at 5.5 days per week - Max total expected load per day: 500W

Lighting: 6 downlights @ 9W each in use for 8hrs per day - Max total expected load per day: 432W

Computers - 2 standard laptops - Max total expected load per day: 450W

Max Total Expected load per day : 7.522kWh

It will be appreciated that by fitting out the base building 20 in the manner as stated above, the maximum expected power load is well below the daily predicted power generated to ensure that the base building 20 is self-sufficient and in need of no additional power source.

The manner in which an extra building 28 is set up can assist in adding to the capacity of the overall supply, as well as performing a predetermined function itself. In one embodiment, the extra building 28 may be set up as a dining room for staff and workers. To enable the extra building to perform this function it will be necessary to provide lighting, cooking/microwave, air conditioning and refrigeration. To achieve this, electrical appliances maybe selected as follows:

Microwave Oven: Average use 1.5 hrs per week Max total expected load per day: 250W

Lighting: 6 led downlights operating at 8hrs/day

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

Max total expected load per day: 432W

Air conditioning: 1180W peak @4hrs per day and 5.5 days/week

Max total expected load per day: 4.7kW

Fridge: Max total expected load per day: 515W

Max Total Expected load per day (extra Building) : 5.897kWh

It will be appreciated that in the above described embodiment, by installing a base building 20 as an office and an extra building 28 as a lunch/dining room the combined max total expected load per day is 13.149kW. The combined power generated by average for both buildings is 21,25kW/day, which is clearly sufficient io to meet the needs of both buildings.

To manage the power collection and distribution, the base building 20 houses the appropriate energy storage and distribution equipment 30, such as inverters and the like. As is shown in Figs. 3 and 4, this enables a simple and effective modular system for energy collection as each extra building 28 can be simply connected to is the control equipment 30 stored in the base building 20 by way of a simple connection means running from the base building 20 to each extra building(s) 28.

As more buildings 20, 28 are added to the system, the power production of the system increases providing more energy to meet the needs of the system with each extra building 28 connecting back to control equipment 30 of the base building 20 in a chain-like manner as shown.

In this regard, Fig. 11 depicts an embodiment of how the energy storage and power distribution equipment 30 may be configured in a base building 20. In this embodiment, the rear of the base building 20 may be partitioned-off and the equipment 30 may be separately accessed by way of an outer door or wall hingedly mounted at the rear of the building 20. A plurality of batteries 101 are stored in the base building 20 and each battery 101 may receive and store power from the solar panels located on the roof of the base building 20 and any other connected buildings. A combiner unit 102 is housed in the building 20 and each of the solar panels in the system will be connected to the combiner unit to receive and direct the power to the batteries 101 for storage.

The manner in which the combiner unit 102 is connected to the each of the solar panels is depicted in Fig. 12. In this embodiment the office or base building 20, the lunch room building and the toilet building each have three solar panels mounted thereon. Each of these nine solar panels are connected to the combiner

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 unit 21 such that as power is generated it can be stored in the batteries 101 of the base building 20. A controller 103 is provided to control the storage process as is depicted in Fig. 11.

Referring again to Fig. 11, the equipment 30 will further include a switchboard

105 for controlling and monitoring the state of the components and an inverter 106 for converting the stored energy from DC into AC for use by conventional electrical appliances. The base building 20 will have a pair of plugs 110 to enable connection to other buildings 28 in the manner as depicted in Fig. 13. Such a simple connection system enables the AC power to be distributed across multiple io buildings and enables new buildings to be incorporated into the system via the simple plugs 110. Each additional building 28 will also have a pair of plugs 110 formed therein to enable further electrical connections to be made and will employ a switch board for controlling and monitoring the electrical connections within that building 28.

is In an alternative embodiment as shown in Fig. 10, the energy control and distribution system 30 may exist as part of a mobile battery pack that is located in a trailer 32 for mobility. In this embodiment, each extra building 28 can be connected in a chain like manner to the control system 30 located in the trailer 32. In such an embodiment, conventional portable and demountable building modules may be converted into a self-sufficient powered building system of the present invention without the need to substantially refit the structures and by merely connecting the structures together with basic wire and socket systems. Such a retrofitting application enables the present invention to be simply and effectively installed into existing building structures without the need for substantial reconstruction work or for skilled electricians to handle the wiring and other connections to high voltage power supplies.

In either of the above embodiments, the system may be provided with one or more power generators, such as a petrol or diesel generator to be placed in a stand-by mode to generate power to add into the system in the event of an emergency or failure of the system to generate the power requirements, as may occur during prolonged periods of cloudy weather, shorter day light hours (winter months) or equipment failure. In such instances, the energy storage and distribution equipment housed in the base building or trailer, may detect the need for an additional power boost and initiate the generators for a predetermined period of time to supply energy until the system returns to self-sufficiency.

It will be appreciated that the modular building system of the present invention

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 provides a simple and effective means for generating an off-grid system which is self-sustainable in terms of power. Each individual building of the system is simply and effectively rated in terms of its power generating capacity and its power consumption rating such that simply connecting multiple buildings together in a shared manner enables the capacity of the system to be increased, together with the functionality of each of the buildings. Such a plug-in and modular system enables remote accommodation and portable offices to be constructed in a scalable manner that can simply and effectively cater for changes in the system requirements due to the ability to simply “plug” additional buildings into the io structure, without the need for licensed trades to attend the site and for power authorities authorisation to connect to the power grid. This is largely due to the fact that the system plug components are low voltage and do not require electricians to connect.

Throughout the specification and claims the word “comprise” and its derivatives is are intended to have an inclusive rather than exclusive meaning unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise. That is, the word “comprise” and its derivatives will be taken to indicate the inclusion of not only the listed components, steps or features that it directly references, but also other components, steps or features not specifically listed, unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise.

Orientational terms used in the specification and claims such as vertical, horizontal, top, bottom, upper and lower are to be interpreted as relational and are based on the premise that the component, item, article, apparatus, device or instrument will usually be considered in a particular orientation, typically with the building uppermost.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many modifications and variations may be made to the methods of the invention described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

2018223012 30 Aug 2018

The claims defining the invention are as follows:

Claims (14)

1. A system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings comprising:

at least one base building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

wherein, the base building is configured to house an energy storage and control system and whereby each secondary building is connectable to the energy storage and control system of the base building to provide energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined energy production rating is determined based on the ability of the base building or secondary building to produce energy from a solar source.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the solar source comprises one or more solar panels mounted on a roof of the base building and secondary building.

4. A system according to claim 3, wherein each of the base building and secondary buildings have at least one socket mounted thereto to facilitate electrical connection therebetween.

5. A system according to claim 4, wherein each of the base building and secondary buildings have 2 sockets for connection between two secondary buildings in a series connection.

6. A system according to claim 4 or claim 5, wherein the electrical connection facilitates transfer of solar energy generated by the solar panels present on the roof of the secondary buildings to the energy storage and control system of the base building.

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein the energy storage and control system of the base building comprises an inverter for converting the stored DC voltage into an AC voltage for supply to each of the base building and secondary buildings for consumption.

8. A system for providing an off-grid network of self-sustained buildings

2018223012 30 Aug 2018 comprising:

a stand-alone energy storage and control system;

at least one secondary building having a predetermined energy production rating and fitted out to provide a function with a predetermined energy consumption rating;

wherein, the stand-alone energy storage and control system is provided separate to each secondary building(s) and whereby each of the secondary building(s) is connectable to the energy storage and control system to provide energy to the energy storage and to consume energy from the energy storage in accordance with its predetermined consumption rating.

9. A system according to claim 8, wherein the predetermined energy production rating is determined based on the ability of the secondary building to produce energy from a solar source.

10. A system according to claim 8, wherein the solar source comprises one or more solar panels mounted on a roof of the secondary building.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein each of the secondary buildings have at least one socket mounted thereto to facilitate electrical connection therebetween.

12. A system according to claim 11, wherein each of the secondary buildings have 2 sockets for connection between two secondary buildings in a series connection.

13. A system according to claim 11 or claim 12, wherein the electrical connection facilitates transfer of solar energy generated by the solar panels present on the roof of the secondary buildings to the stand alone energy storage and control system.

14. A system according to claim 8, wherein the stand alone energy storage and control system of the base building comprises an inverter for converting the stored DC voltage into an AC voltage for supply to each of the base building and secondary buildings for consumption.

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