JP2009526391A - Electromagnetic radiation collection device - Google Patents

Abstract

  Radiation collection comprising an inlet end for receiving electromagnetic radiation, an outlet end, a conduit portion having at least one reflective wall between the inlet end and the outlet end, and a radiation collection element in the vicinity of the outlet end of the conduit portion An electromagnetic radiation collector that is tuned so that the element collects electromagnetic radiation.

Description

  The present invention relates generally to electromagnetic radiation collection.

  The collection and concentration of electromagnetic radiation is known. Radio waves are generally collected and concentrated using a parabolic antenna. Solar radiation is collected and concentrated using parabolic mirrors and lenses. The former device requires a relatively large height ratio to the collection area, while the latter device has the disadvantage of being expensive, heavy and fragile. In addition, in order for both of these devices to function correctly, it is necessary to track the radiation source.

  In order to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art, the present invention provides an electromagnetic radiation collecting apparatus that covers a wide range, has a low profile, does not require the tracking of a radiation source, is relatively lightweight, and can be manufactured at low cost. It is to provide.

  There is an urgent need to get energy from renewable energy resources. Solar energy is one such renewable energy source that is expected to be utilized. Conventional radiant energy collectors that generate energy in a practical manner are costly and lack the ability to generate temperatures that are high enough to be used in a variety of applications. In order to overcome these conventional drawbacks, the present invention provides a radiant energy concentrating device that can collect energy from a relatively wide range and concentrate it in a narrow range. This device can be manufactured at a relatively low cost, has a lightweight structure, has the ability to generate a high temperature, and in the case of conversion to electricity by a photovoltaic cell, a photovoltaic cell with a small area is sufficient, which reduces costs.

  The present invention is a device that can cover a wide collection range at a relatively low cost, does not necessarily require a material having a specific refractive index, and can have a lightweight structure.

  The present invention can be small and have a low profile as compared with a conventional centralized device. In addition, the concentration factor can be increased. The present invention is suitable for any application that requires collection and concentration of electromagnetic radiation, and is particularly useful for collection and concentration of solar radiation. In the case of solar radiation, the device according to the invention can be used in conjunction with a photovoltaic cell or by heating a liquid to use solar energy for a desired purpose. In the case of radio frequency radiation, the device can be used for radiation collection, focusing and frequency tuning.

  An example of a device according to the invention comprises a conduit part having an inlet end for receiving electromagnetic radiation, an outlet end, at least one reflecting wall between the inlet end and the outlet end, and an electromagnetic near the outlet end of the conduit part. An electromagnetic radiation collection device comprising: a radiation collection element adapted to collect radiation.

  Another example of the apparatus according to the present invention is a control mechanism that can be adjusted to track a moving radiation source, and includes a first sensor that monitors the state of surrounding radiation and an output of the radiation collection apparatus. And a second sensor to be monitored.

  The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, generally, identical, functionally equivalent, or structurally equivalent elements are designated with the same reference numerals.

  Here, an example of an embodiment according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  An example of a device according to the invention is an example having an assembly of conduit parts in which electromagnetic radiation is internally reflected. In one example of the invention, each conduit portion is configured such that at least some electromagnetic radiation entering from the wide end of the conduit portion is directed through the conduit portion and exits from the narrow end of the conduit portion. The wide end of each conduit portion is assembled to form a surface (defined herein as a collection surface). Electromagnetic radiation that pours into the collection surface enters the wide end of the conduit. The electromagnetic radiation is reflected off the wall in the conduit and is directed out of the narrow end of the conduit. This can be realized by ensuring that the incident angle with respect to the reflection surface of the electromagnetic radiation at each reflection point is 90 degrees or less. In order to ensure the electromagnetic radiation incident on the collecting surface from a wide range of angles, the shape of the conduit portion should be sufficiently long with respect to the width of the wide end portion. Thus, in some embodiments, the taper angle of the conduit wall is reduced to meet the reflection angle requirement for incidence of a wide range of electromagnetic radiation. The ratio of the width of the wide end to the length of the conduit is preferably between 2 and 1000, more preferably between 5 and 100, and most preferably between 10 and 50. FIG. 1 shows an example of a conduit section and a typical path 20 of electromagnetic radiation within the conduit section.

  The conduit portion has a wall that reflects electromagnetic radiation into the conduit portion and is made of a solid material capable of transmitting collecting and concentrating electromagnetic radiation. In another embodiment of the invention, the conduit portion is a cavity and the walls within the cavity are adapted to reflect electromagnetic radiation into the cavity.

  In one example embodiment of the present invention, the surface area of the narrow end of the conduit assembly is grouped smaller than the surface area of the wide end of the conduit assembly. In this example, electromagnetic radiation collected on the wide end is concentrated on the narrow end. FIG. 2 shows an example of this embodiment.

  In some embodiments of the invention, the conduit portion is one-dimensionally tapered and has a tapered slot shape (elongate groove shape). In other embodiments, the conduit portion is two-dimensionally tapered and has a rod shape (tapered elongated bar shape), the cross section of which can be any shape suitable for high density mounting. Examples of such cross-sectional shapes include circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, and other polygons.

  When the conduit part is a tapered rod shape, the conduit parts are alternately arranged in order to increase the mounting density of the wide end part of the conduit part and increase the assembly strength of the conduit part according to the shape or curvature of the rod. The conduit part is assembled together. In a particular embodiment according to the features of the invention, the rows of conduit sections are mounted with each row of conduit portions offset from the previous row, and each narrow end of the conduit portion is adjacent immediately before and immediately after that row. It is assembled so that it may be located between the narrow ends of the conduit portions of the row. By assembling the conduit portions in this manner, each narrow end of the conduit portion can be curved between adjacent front row conduit portions. As a result, the conduit portion can be curved while maintaining a high mounting density at the wide end portion of the conduit portion.

  It is desirable to maintain a high packing density at the wide end of the conduit at the collection surface so that the electromagnetic radiation incident on the collection surface does not rebound and enters the conduit as much as possible.

  In one example of an embodiment of the present invention, the cross-section of the conduit portion is circular and the wide end is assembled in a mounting arrangement as shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a top view of the conduit portion assembled by shifting the circular wide end rows from each other. A triangle is added in the figure to show the positional relationship between the centers of the circular ends. This arrangement can increase the packaging density and create a space that bends the conduit section as described above. With this arrangement, up to π / 2√3 (approximately 90%) of incident radiation can be collected. In particular embodiments according to features of the present invention, a conduit section having a square or rectangular cross section is used. FIG. 4 shows a top view of the arrangement. In this shaped conduit section, the wide end of the conduit section can be implemented so that incident radiation enters and is approximately 100% incident on the conduit section. Here, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the cross section of the conduit portion does not necessarily have to be rectangular throughout its length. The conduit portion may be, for example, a square or a rectangle on the collecting surface, and may move toward a circle toward the tip of the conduit portion.

  The device according to the invention is useful for applications where conventional electromagnetic radiation concentrators are used, especially for solar radiation and radio frequency radiation. Examples related to such applications, particularly the collection and concentration of solar radiation, include heating a tube or liquid refluxing a pipe, direct power generation using a photovoltaic cell, or hydrogen generation from water. Here, the present invention collects a wider range of light using the relatively inexpensive apparatus of the present invention and concentrates it on a relatively small area of an expensive photovoltaic cell, so that it can be used for power generation using photovoltaic cells. It is particularly useful. This enables power generation at a lower cost. The device also addresses the conventional drawbacks of using a centralized device with a photovoltaic cell. In addition to cost and weight, the conventional apparatus has a problem that the concentration factor is relatively low, generally less than 10, and the photovoltaic cell is overheated and the efficiency is deteriorated.

  For applications with radio frequency radiation, it is desirable to reduce the height of the collector and concentrator. In these applications, the device can be used to focus radio frequency radiation to a radio frequency receiver. Also, by carefully selecting the dimensions of the conduit portion, the apparatus can be used to tune the collected radio frequency radiation to a frequency that can be more easily received by the receiver. For example, the apparatus can be used to tune radio frequency radiation to a higher frequency that can be handled by a small and easy to implement receiver.

  The device can be made in any suitable manner. The conduit portion is a solid element that transmits light and is made of a material such as polymer or glass. The solid element is coated on the element wall with a reflective material or a refractive index material in which the incident angle of electromagnetic radiation reflected on the element wall exceeds the critical angle and in most cases total reflection occurs. This embodiment has the advantage of ease of manufacture, but tends to be heavy. In this embodiment, a large number of elements can be created and assembled as an assembly as described above.

  A specific embodiment is an example in which the conduit portion is a cavity formed of a monolithic block of metal or polymer material. This is lightweight, although it may be somewhat difficult to manufacture. The manufacturing method of the present embodiment is a method of forming an assembly of curved elements made of a malleable material such as copper or nickel, for example, a tapered element. The assembly is an independent element or row of elements formed in a comb shape with each tapered element being a comb tooth. Each comb forms a row or part of a row of elements, and the comb teeth of successive rows of the assembly are offset so as to be arranged as shown in FIG. 3 or FIG. The elements may be straight or already bent before assembling as an array. If the element is straight, a rod can be passed over the collection of narrow ends of the element as a convenient way to achieve the desired curvature. The assembled element can be secured to a frame or similar instrument and held as an assembly. The curved assembled element is used as the final monolithic mold, with the side walls and, if applicable, at least one of the top and bottom. The desired cavity assembly shape may be shaped in any suitable manner. The polymer may be cast by pouring the polymer into a mold, or may be molded by an injection molding technique. In this treatment, it is desirable to first apply an appropriate mold release agent to the mold in order to make it easy to peel the mold element from the cast shape. After the casting shape has solidified, the mold element is removed. To do this easily, first remove the casting shape from at least one of the mold wall, top and bottom, then unfasten the assembly of the element and place the element in the simplest and most practical way. Remove individually or in groups. Here, when pulling out the element from the cavity, in most cases it is necessary to straighten the element to some extent, but in the process of straightening, the element will not be bent or the shape of the cavity to be pulled out will not be distorted. Desirably, the material from which the tapered element is made is malleable. This process results in a cast shape of an assembly of curved light guide cavities that is densely mounted with all wide ends of the cavities opening on one side and all narrow ends opening on the other side.

  If the shape is cast from a metal or a metal that is not essentially reflective, such as a metal-filled polymer, at least one of the outer surface of the shape and the cavity wall surface can be covered with a reflective layer. In the case of a polymer material, it can be easily performed using an electroless metal deposition process such as electroless chrome plating or electroless nickel plating. Furthermore, for protection of the reflective coating, a transparent film may be coated on the reflective coating.

  Another embodiment of manufacturing an assembly of conduit sections that collect electromagnetic radiation is to use a series of mirrors that focus the light in a continuous spot or band. The optimum mirror shape for focusing in a strip shape is parabolic (parabolic) and perpendicular to the surface of the strip. When focusing in a dot shape, the mirror is optimally a parabolic dish. According to this embodiment, the conduit portion is formed in the space between adjacent mirrors, but the adjacent mirror does not form a tapered space and the radiation reflected from the back wall of the conduit portion. The tapered space is limited by the tapered shape of the beam. In addition, the outlet of the conduit portion according to this embodiment is a focal point or point of the rear mirror. For this reason, in this embodiment, since the radiation beam is tapered, the wall surface of the conduit portion does not need to be tapered. This is advantageous in terms of design flexibility and reducing the number of reflections of radiation to the exit of the conduit section. A series of bands, or points, that are the exit of the conduit section are located at the focal point or focal point of the mirror so that the electromagnetic radiation reflected by the mirror is substantially concentrated there. Further, in order to correspond to electromagnetic radiation incident on the mirror at different angles, the mirror can be rotated around the focal line or the focal point so that the focal point always coincides with the band or the point. The control mechanism rotates the mirror while monitoring the signal, which is the output of the electromagnetic radiation target or another sensor, so that the amount of electromagnetic radiation that strikes the target is maximized. A particularly preferred embodiment of the sensor arrangement is when the output of another sensor can be used as the output of the radiation target or a sensor correlated with the output of the radiation target. In this embodiment, another sensor is configured to respond to ambient conditions with a target sensor output that is responsive to the mirror convergence configuration. In an example where the target is composed of a photovoltaic cell that generates power by solar radiation, another photosensitive sensor is mounted away from the mirror to monitor ambient radiation incident on the panel. This sensor detects, for example, changes in radiation levels as clouds and other objects pass between the sun and the panel. On the other hand, the target sensor monitors the output of light hitting the target photocell. In the control mechanism, the surrounding sensor and the target sensor are monitored, and when the output of the two sensors changes in the same way as time passes, the control system determines that the change in the output is due to the surrounding environment. No action is taken. On the other hand, when the output of the target sensor changes differently from the peripheral sensor output, the control system appropriately rotates the mirror so that the target output is maximized.

  The mirror may have a back reflecting surface and reflect electromagnetic radiation to the focusing mirror.

  The parabolic louver assembly that can be rotated about the focal line is as described above. The focal line of each louver hits a light receiving portion provided with a light receiving element. The light receiving element can be shaped to open into the concentration chamber as disclosed in co-pending PCT / IB2005 / 003838, which is incorporated herein by reference. The light receiving element may also be adapted to directly convert incident radiation. In the light receiving element, for example, a photovoltaic cell may be disposed in the light receiving unit to convert radiation into electrical energy. Alternatively, the light receiving element may be adapted to collect heat energy to transfer heat to the liquid medium and use the heat energy in other applications. In the embodiment in which the photovoltaic cell is a light receiving element, it is desirable to cool the photovoltaic cell because of its operating efficiency. In the present invention, cooling is performed by providing a heat radiating portion between the photovoltaic cells. The portion between the photovoltaic cells is a portion that is shaded from the incident radiation by the parabolic louver, and for example, a heat dissipating paint such as a black paint can be applied to effectively dissipate heat. In another embodiment, a liquid layer can be placed in the space below the plate to which the photovoltaic cell is attached to make thermal contact with the backside of the photovoltaic cell. The liquid is permanently stored in the space and circulates to promote the transfer of the heat of the photovoltaic cell to the heat dissipation part. In yet another embodiment, the liquid is allowed to pass through the space under the photocell, and the heat of the plate on which the photocell is attached is dissipated to the outside. In order to obtain a desired output voltage, it is desirable that the photovoltaic cells are connected in series within a necessary range.

  An advantage of certain embodiments of the present invention is that there is a space between the rows of photovoltaic cells. This allows the rows of photovoltaic cells to be connected in a desired manner. For example, each row of photovoltaic cells at a particular focal line, or a portion of each row, can be connected in series. Conductive connection plates are disposed between each row of photovoltaic cells, and the connection plates extend to electrically connect the lower surfaces of each row of photovoltaic cells. Moreover, a thin plate for connection extends on the upper surface of each row of photovoltaic cells, and connects between each row of adjacent photovoltaic cells. Another method for forming an electrical connection with the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell will be described later. It is desirable that at least the lower connection plate is made of a material having high conductivity and heat conductivity, for example, copper or aluminum. The connection plate is a plate made of one material or a composite plate made of one or more materials. For example, the portion of the connecting plate that extends below the photovoltaic cells can be aluminum, and the connecting portion between each row of photovoltaic cells can be copper or other suitable material. It is desirable that the material of the connecting plate can be deposited. Due to the width of the connection plate determined by the spacing of the rows of photovoltaic cells, the connection plate is relatively thin with a relatively large surface area and cross-sectional area. The former performs efficient heat dissipation of heat generated by electromagnetic radiation hitting the photovoltaic cell, and the latter reduces loss due to electrical resistance. The connecting plate that extends to the top surface of the photovoltaic cell is of any suitable material and is generally narrowed to minimize the portion that covers the photovoltaic cell.

  When collecting thermal energy, a conduit containing the liquid to be heated is placed at the focal line of each parabolic louver. The conduit preferably receives energy by absorbing concentrated electromagnetic radiation on one side and is insulated on the other side to reduce heat loss. Multiple conduits, or one or more conduits, may extend to pass the focal line of two or more parabolic louvers. The conduit is made of a thermally conductive material such as copper. Since it is desirable to have a heat insulating portion between the conduits, it is not necessary to extend a copper plate or the like between the conduits as in the prior art. This reduces the cost and weight of the device. The heat insulating part is filled with air or a heat insulating material such as foam.

The reflecting surface of the louver preferably has a parabolic shape (parabolic shape). The parabolic surface is defined by the following equation. In these equations, the focus of the electromagnetic radiation reflected from the parabolic surface is defined as the x and y coordinate points (0, 0). In addition, the expressions x ₀ and y ₀ are x at the upper end of the parabolic surface when the parabolic surface is rotated so that electromagnetic radiation perpendicular to the x coordinate is focused on the focal point (0, 0). , And y coordinates. The surface is defined by the following equation.

  Due to imperfections in manufacturing, aging and temperature, the shape of the louver surface may not completely match the shape obtained by the above formula. The degree of conformity of the louver shape to the above equation determines the focal line width in the actual device. A louver having a reflecting surface in the length direction that reflects incident radiation within an allowable range and concentrates it on a focal line having a desired width can be produced by an arbitrary method. Acceptable radiation is determined by considering the overall cost of producing electricity or temperature energy in a particular area. This includes consideration of equipment production costs, lifetime, energy conversion efficiency, competitive technology capabilities, and the like. The desired width of the focal line is determined by a combination of cost balance, production feasibility, device life, and heat dissipation factors. These factors are combined to determine the optimum focal line width for a particular manufacturing method and price structure. For example, to reduce the cost of a photovoltaic cell, which is a high-priced part of the system, it is desirable to reduce the area of the photovoltaic cell part, but the cost required to produce a reflector with a fine focus at a certain point and efficiently operate the photovoltaic cell There is a point to compromise with the heat dissipation capability, which is the optimum width.

  The louver can be manufactured by bending a metal plate into a desired shape. The metal plate is essentially reflective or forms a suitable reflective surface by polishing or paint polishing. These metal plates are attached in the correct position by suitable attachments so that they can be rotated around their respective focal lines. Alternatively, the louver can be manufactured by molding a metal and polishing or painting the surface after molding. In this case, it is desirable to include a mounting portion in the louver. As a further alternative, the louver can be molded with plastic, preferably including an attachment, and then metal plated so that at least the parabolic front is reflected. Also, as an option, a transparent layer that protects the reflective surface can be further coated to prevent degradation due to the environment.

  FIG. 5 shows a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a partially assembled view of the device 100 showing various components. Reference numeral 110 is the front surface of the parabolic reflecting surface of the louver 105. At the pin 150, the louver is attached to the side block 120 (only one is shown) so that the focal line of the louver coincides with the target portion 140. The louver is attached to the tie rod 130 with the pin 160. The pin 150 and the pin 160 can be freely rotated at the attachment holes of the side block 120 and the tie rod 130 so that the louver rotates around the pin 150 when the tie rod 130 is moved in the upward and forward direction. It has become. The center of the pin 150 coincides with the focal line of the corresponding louver, and the louver rotates around the focal line. Thereby, the louver can be rotated so that the focal line always coincides with the target unit 140 with respect to incident light from all angles within a desired range.

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the present invention showing the reflection of incident radiation to the target portion. An arrow in FIG. 6 shows an example of a radiation path. Here, the louvers are arranged at intervals such that the radiation that cannot be captured by one louver is captured by the louvers before and after the louver and the collection efficiency is maximized.

Louvers designed a _{x 0 -37mm,} in parabolic reflecting surface obtained by equation 1 _{y 0} as 40 mm, the distance between the louvers pivot as 22 mm. The mounting clamp was manufactured by cutting aluminum into a shape calculated by a wire cutting machine. The mounting clamp is composed of two parts: a back clamp in which a parabolic concave portion is cut out on the front surface, and a front clamp in which a corresponding parabolic convex portion is formed on the back surface. A 0.2 mm-thick brass plate was nickel-plated and polished to give a reflective surface with high reflectivity, and was cut according to the required width of the louver. Two sets of mounting clamps are attached to both ends of the plated brass plate. The mounting clamp is mounted with a steel pin in a hole in the side block that coincides with the focal line of the louver. As shown in FIG. 5, the pin at the upper end of the attachment clamp is attached to the hole of the tie rod. In this manner, ten louvers having a length of 200 mm were assembled.

This is an example of production using a louver produced by an injection mold. Parabolic shape is determined from the equation 1 _{x 0} 35mm, a _{y 0} as 60 mm, and the spacing between the louvers 20 mm, the height of the louver bottom from the focal plane of the louver and 7.15Mm. Each dimension corresponds to a radiation incident angle of 20 to 115 degrees with respect to the x coordinate and is selected so that the louver bottom can rotate the louver without affecting the focus. The mounting clamp with integrated pin is designed to be integrally molded with the shape of the louver. The mold is made so that the parabolic front has a mirror finish. The louver was injection molded Bayblend® T45PG (Bayer Material Science), a mixture of ABS and polycarbonate, and then metallized to form a reflective coating.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, elongated rows of photovoltaic cells are arranged at the focal line so as to receive concentrated radiation and convert it into electricity. In order to collect the current generated in the photovoltaic cell, it is necessary to electrically connect the upper and lower surfaces of the photovoltaic cell. To obtain a specific output, it is necessary to connect multiple rows of photovoltaic cells in succession in order to generate a higher voltage or suppress current.

  In the present invention, the lower surface connection to the row of photovoltaic cells is performed by mounting the photovoltaic cells on a conductive plate. This plate can be made of any material with a sufficiently low electrical resistance. Examples of suitable materials include, but are not limited to, aluminum, copper, tin, tinned copper.

  When two or more rows of photovoltaic cells are connected in parallel, the connection plate on the bottom surface can be common to the photovoltaic cells of those rows, and the connection plates of the individual rows can be connected to other lines such as wiring. It is also possible to electrically connect by this method.

  When connecting rows of photovoltaic cells in series, a connection plate on the lower surface is attached to each row of photovoltaic cells. The connecting plate extends beyond the end of the row of photovoltaic cells so that it can be electrically connected to others and to function as a radiator that cools the photovoltaic cells during operation.

  In the present invention, the electrical connection to the upper surface of the row of photovoltaic cells is made with the conductive layer in contact with the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell. In one preferred embodiment, the connection portion on the upper surface is continuous with the length of the row of photovoltaic cells, and is on the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell, in a shaded portion during operation of the photovoltaic cell, along one end in the longitudinal direction of the connection portion. Overlap and are in electrical contact. In the embodiment in which the photovoltaic cells are connected in series, the other end in the length direction of the connecting portion overlaps and is in electrical contact with the connecting plate on the lower surface in the row of adjacent photovoltaic cells. In this embodiment, the connection part electrically bridges the upper surface of one row of photovoltaic cells and the lower surface of the row of adjacent photovoltaic cells.

  A suitable material for the top connection is any material that can form a layer and has a sufficiently low electrical resistance. Examples of such materials include, but are not limited to, metal, metal coated with a conductive adhesive, non-conductive adhesive applied, and a woven metal portion penetrating the non-conductive adhesive. There are metals, conductive inks, conductive independent adhesives, and solders. Examples of suitable metals include, but are not limited to, aluminum, copper, tin, tinned copper, and silver. Examples of suitable conductive adhesives include, but are not limited to, adhesives filled with silver or carbon, such as ARclad® 90038 (Adhesives Research Inc, Glen Rock, USA), silver doped epoxies. . An example of a suitable conductive tape using a conductive adhesive is 1181 conductive copper foil tape (3M). An example of a suitable conductive tape coated with a non-conductive adhesive is 1245 conductive copper foil tape (3M), in which an embossed copper foil penetrates the layer of non-conductive adhesive. . Examples of suitable conductive inks are carbon or silver filled inks. Here, the upper surface connection portion only needs to form a continuous electron conduction path with an acceptable low resistance from the photovoltaic cell to the adjacent lower surface connection plate. If the overall connection resistance between the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell and the lower surface connection plate of the adjacent photovoltaic cell is as low as desired, the connection path need not be continuous along the length of the row of photovoltaic cells. For example, the connection may be a continuous wire or a dot-like connection in which electrical connection is made by connecting gaps. However, a continuous connection in the length direction of a row of photovoltaic cells generally lowers the electrical resistance of the connection and usually facilitates the transfer of heat from the photovoltaic cells to cool the photovoltaic cells for more efficient operation, so desirable.

  A further advantage of the present invention is that the distance between the top portion of the photovoltaic cell exposed to concentrated sunlight and the connection that is the current collector is short. The width of the rows of photovoltaic cells exposed to concentrated sunlight is small, and in the best case corresponds to the focal line width of the louver parabolic mirror. A typical width is 5 mm or less, preferably 2 mm or less. Therefore, the current collected at the upper surface connection portion reaches the low resistance connection plate from the photovoltaic cell at a short distance. The photovoltaic cell is not shielded from sunlight by the upper surface connecting portion, and the resistance loss of the device can be suppressed.

  Optionally, after assembling the array of connections as described above, a transparent material may be applied over part or all of the array to protect the device from moisture ingress, corrosion, or mechanical damage. It can be covered with a layer (in a known manner). As a further option, the transparent protective layer need not cover the entire array and can be only a photovoltaic cell. The upper surface connection portion and the lower surface connection plate can be covered with a layer for protection from corrosion or for promoting heat dissipation, for example, a black paint or a thin polymer layer. In order to prevent moisture from entering the apparatus, it is preferable to seal between the transparent coating and the heat dissipation coating.

  7 and 8 are a top view and a cross-sectional view showing an example in which three rows of photovoltaic cells in one embodiment of the present invention are connected in series, respectively.

  When connecting rows of photovoltaic cells in parallel, the upper surface connection portion of the row of photovoltaic cells is connected to the upper surface connection portion of the row of adjacent photovoltaic cells. FIG. 9 shows an embodiment of a parallel connection method.

  7, 8, and 9, reference numeral 210 denotes a lower surface connection plate, 220 denotes a row of photovoltaic cells, and 230 denotes an upper surface connection portion. During operation, light concentrates on the portion indicated by 220. In FIG. 8, reference numeral 240 denotes a support base that is not conductive or at least electrically insulated from the lower surface connection plate 210 and the upper surface connection portion 230. In FIG. 9, 250 indicates a side connection end. The side connection end portion 250 connects the rows of the upper surface connection portions in parallel. In this configuration, the lower surface connection plate is a continuous plate and connects the lower surfaces of the rows of photovoltaic cells in parallel.

  To connect the array of photovoltaic cells of FIGS. 7 and 8 to an external circuit, one of the connections is connected to the bottom connection plate 210 at one end of the array of photovoltaic cells, and the other is connected to the top surface of the last row of the array of photovoltaic cells. Connected to the plate 260. As an optional option, the second connection may be connected directly to the top connection, in which case the plate 260 is not required. To connect the parallel arrangement of FIG. 9 to an external circuit, one of the connections is connected to one or more suitable locations in 210 and the other is suitable to one or both of the side connection ends 250. Connect to the position. The side connection end 250 is made of a material having a low electrical resistance. The upper surface connection portion 230 may be made of the same material, or may be made by soldering a copper wire or a tin-plated copper wire to each upper surface connection portion 230, for example.

  In the embodiment of Example 3, one end of an adjacent row of photovoltaic cells is connected with a conductive single wire or a ribbon-like one (hereinafter referred to as a ribbon). The single wire, or ribbon, has an appropriate cross-section and at least partially overlaps the conductive pad that connects to the top surface of the adjacent photovoltaic cell. A small piece of solder or conductive ink (hereinafter referred to as a bead) is provided between the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell and a single conductive wire or ribbon to form a conductive bridge. Optionally, solder or conductive ink beads may be added to form a conductive bridge between the conductive pad and the conductive single wire or ribbon. In the absence of this second addition, a sufficient electrical connection can be obtained by placing a conductive single wire or ribbon overlying the conductive pad. FIG. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of an example using a single wire having a substantially circular cross section, and FIG. 11 shows a cross-sectional view of an example using a ribbon having a substantially trapezoidal cross section, schematically showing this feature of the present invention. Shown in

  10 and 11, the lower surface of the photovoltaic cell 320 is attached in contact with the conductive pad 310 formed on the insulating substrate 340. The wire 330 (circular cross section in FIG. 10 and trapezoidal cross section in FIG. 11) is attached so as to be adjacent to one side of the photovoltaic cell 320 and to overlap a part of the second conductive pad 315. The conductive bridge member 350 extends the area of electrical connection between the wire 330 and the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell 320. An optional connection at the second conductive bridge member 360 can be formed as necessary to enhance the robustness of the connection between the wire 330 and the second conductive pad 315.

  This feature is not limited to a specific cross section of the wire, and any cross section capable of connecting the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell and the adjacent conductive pad is included in the scope of the present invention. Other examples of suitable cross sections include ellipses, triangles, squares, rectangles, and diamonds.

  A suitable material for making the wire can be a single wire or any material that has a suitably low cross-sectional electrical resistance in the ribbon wire. Examples of suitable materials are copper, aluminum, steel, stainless steel, brass and bronze.

  The beads forming the connection between the conductive wire or the ribbon and the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell are made of any material, and the beads are arranged in a predetermined region on the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell, and the gap between one end of the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell and one end of the adjacent wire It is provided by any method to fill in. For example, liquid solder beads can be provided. Alternatively, the solder is placed so as to overlap the upper surface of the photovoltaic cell in the length direction of the single wire or ribbon, and then the solder is heated and dissolved. In another example, a bead or layer of conductive ink is applied with a coating device such as a nozzle or printing screen, and the ink is dried or cured to eventually form a bridge.

  In another aspect of the invention, reflective sidewalls are provided as part of the solar concentration module to improve light capture when the incident radiation is not perpendicular to the louver's focal line. If the radiation strikes at a non-perpendicular angle with respect to the length of the parabolic mirror, the radiation is reflected at the same angle on the opposite side. In other words, when viewed from the front of the louver, the reflected radiation travels laterally and forward. Therefore, if nothing is done, a part of the reflected light does not hit the light receiving part on the focal line of the mirror, but passes through one end of the light receiving part. There is also a portion of the same size at the other end of the light receiving unit that cannot receive concentrated radiation. Therefore, in such a case, a part of the radiation hitting the louver is not concentrated on the light receiving unit.

  According to this aspect of the invention, such a situation can be avoided by adding a reflecting wall perpendicular to the focal plane of the parabolic mirror and the longitudinal axis of the parabolic mirror. When this is done, the radiation that disappears can be reflected and concentrated on a part of the light-receiving portion for the parabolic mirror.

  This feature of the present invention is schematically illustrated in FIG. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the solar panel 400 as viewed from the front. The figure shows reflective side walls 410 and 420 and a focal plane 430 of a parabolic mirror (not shown) that includes a light receiver. The radiation 440 is the radiation reflected from the leftmost part of the parabolic mirror. From this, incident radiation from the left is blocked by the side wall 410, and a shadow 460 is formed. The radiation 450 is the radiation reflected by the rightmost part of the parabolic mirror. A dotted line indicates a path of radiation when the side wall 420 is not present. As shown in the figure, the radiation 450 is reflected by a part 470 of the radiation receiving unit. Thereby, this radiation is taken in by the radiation receiving part. Further, if the side wall 420 is perpendicular to the focal plane 430 and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the parabolic mirror, the length of radiation reflected by the side wall 420 reaching the focal plane and the absolute angle with respect to the side wall 420 are: This is the same as when the radiation is concentrated on the focal plane beyond the edge of the light receiving unit (displayed with a dotted line). Therefore, the radiation 450 reflected by the side wall 420 concentrates on a part of the light receiving unit and is correctly captured. Thus, according to this feature of the present invention, if the radiation incident on the parabolic mirror is not perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the louver, a shadow 460 is created, but the same amount of additional The radiation is reflected by the side wall 420 to the light receiving unit 470, and the entire radiation loss is eliminated. This allows the panel to concentrate radiation efficiently over a wide range of angles without the need to rotate the panel to face a radiation source, such as the sun.

  The sidewall having an inner surface that reflects the concentrated radiation can be made of any suitable material. Examples include an aluminum abrasive sheet, an aluminum abrasive sheet covered with a transparent coating, nickel-plated steel, bright chrome-plated steel, nickel-plated brass, or bronze, bright chrome-plated brass, or bronze, and a reflective coating on the back And a transparent plastic with a protective layer or glass, and a plastic having a reflective surface formed by applying a reflective coating and an optional transparent protective film on the front surface, or other methods of manufacturing a flat reflective surface.

  FIG. 12 is schematic, and this feature of the present invention also functions in the same way for radiation from the right side of 400, with 470 serving as a shadow and 460 serving as a light receiving unit reflected from the side wall 410. To do.

  The present invention is not limited to the example embodiments described above. In addition, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention based on the disclosure of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a conduit section. FIG. 2 shows an example of a device having a plurality of conduit portions. FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the arrangement of conduit portions. FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of another arrangement of conduit portions. FIG. 5 shows a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 shows a side view of the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 9 shows a variation of the embodiment related to the embodiment shown in FIGS. FIG. 10 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 shows a variation of the embodiment related to the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 12 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (22)

An inlet end for receiving electromagnetic radiation, an outlet end, and a conduit portion comprising at least one reflective sidewall between the inlet end and the outlet end;
An electromagnetic radiation collection device comprising: a radiation collection element in the vicinity of the outlet end of the conduit portion and adapted to collect electromagnetic radiation.   The collection device according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of the conduit portions and the radiation collection elements.   The collecting device according to claim 2, wherein the inlet ends of the plurality of conduit portions are adjacent to each other.   3. The collecting device according to claim 2, wherein each of the conduit portions is formed by a first surface that reflects electromagnetic radiation and a second surface that faces the first surface.   The collection device according to claim 4, wherein the first surface of each of the conduit portions is parabolic, and a focal area of the first surface that is each parabolic is one of the plurality of radiation collection elements.   6. The collection device according to claim 5, wherein the radiation collection element is a photovoltaic cell.   6. A collection device according to claim 5, wherein the radiation collection element is a conduit containing a liquid that absorbs radiation.   6. A collection device according to claim 5, wherein the first surface is movable relative to the radiation collection element.   9. A collection device according to claim 8, wherein the first surface is rotatable about the corresponding radiation collection element.   The collection device according to claim 5, wherein the radiation collection element has a size such that a surface area of the radiation collection element is slightly larger than a surface area of the radiation reflected by the first surface.   The collection device according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of photovoltaic cells are electrically connected to each other.   The collection device according to claim 11, wherein upper surfaces of the first photovoltaic cells in the plurality of photovoltaic cells are electrically connected to lower surfaces of the second photovoltaic cells in the plurality of photovoltaic cells. A lower surface connecting portion electrically connected to the lower surface of the second photovoltaic cell;
The collection device according to claim 12, further comprising an upper surface connection portion that electrically connects the upper surface of the first photovoltaic cell and the lower surface connection portion.   The collection device according to claim 13, wherein the upper surface connection portion is a wire.   The collection device according to claim 14, further comprising first beads that electrically connect the upper surface connection portion and the upper surface of the first photovoltaic cell.   The collection device according to claim 15, further comprising a second bead that electrically connects the upper surface connection portion and the lower surface connection portion.   The collecting device according to claim 14, wherein a cross section of the wire is circular.   The collecting device according to claim 14, wherein a cross section of the wire is trapezoidal.   The collecting device according to claim 1, wherein the conduit portion has a slot shape, and a reflecting wall is provided at an end of each slot.   20. A collection device according to claim 19, wherein the surface of each reflective wall is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the slot.   21. The collection device according to claim 20, wherein each reflection wall is a plane, and the surface of each reflection wall is perpendicular to the surface of the radiation collection element. A radiation collection device control mechanism comprising a first sensor for monitoring a surrounding radiation state and a second sensor for monitoring an output of the radiation collection device, and capable of being adjusted to track a moving radiation source.