JPH0319432A - Antenna and system using the antenna for reception and power generation - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To save the electricity charge with solar energy without provision of an external power supply newly by providing a solar battery to a radio wave receiving face. CONSTITUTION:A microwave antenna 102 and a solar battery 103 are integrated to constitute an antenna/solar battery section 100. Only when a reception signal is inputted, a solar battery incorporated radio wave reception antenna is directed in a direction of a radio wave radiation body and in other cases, the antenna is directed in a direction from which is its maximum energy is obtained. Thus, the energy of the solar battery or of the built-in battery is used for the energy controlling to drive the antenna and the electricity charge is saved.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an antenna having a solar cell on its radio wave receiving surface and a reception and power generation system using the antenna. This relates to a receiving and power generation system in which a solar cell is provided on the surface of a receiving antenna.

[Background Art] In recent years, the energy crisis has become a problem worldwide, and solar cells that generate electricity using non-polluting and inexhaustible solar energy are attracting attention.

Among these solar cells, as an energy-saving and resource-saving type,
Thin film solar cells such as amorphous silicon are being actively researched and are being applied to consumer calculators, cameras, etc. Although these applied products are small-scale power systems, thin-film solar cells made of amorphous silicon and other materials are expected to be used in large power generation systems as well. However, in a large power generation system, in competition with existing electricity rates, unless the power generation cost of the solar cell system is sufficiently low, the power generation business will not be viable. In addition to solar cell modules that combine solar cell elements for generating photovoltaic power, solar power generation systems also include storage batteries for storing power for nighttime use, inverters for AC/DC conversion,
A controller is required when the load fluctuates. In addition, a jig (called a pedestal) is required to secure the solar cell module. Solar cell modules used outdoors are required to have specifications that can withstand wind and rain, and in terms of strength in particular, they need to be able to withstand wind speeds of 50 m/s or more. Currently, the cost of this fixing jig (frame) accounts for a large portion of the total cost of a solar power generation system.
Even if it were possible to achieve power generation costs comparable to diesel power generation by reducing the costs of solar cell modules, storage batteries, and inverter controls, the cost of the mount would still account for a large portion of the total cost. For this reason, efforts have been made to eliminate this frame and use the module itself on the roof of the building, or to make the roof tiles themselves from solar cells, but the problem is that the system has not yet achieved sufficient cost reductions. There is. On the other hand, recently, microwave communication using artificial satellites has flourished, and we are now in an era where information from all over the world can be captured and exchanged in real time.

Every home is now equipped with microwave reception equipment, which is mainly used for satellite TV. By the way, antennas for receiving microwaves have a problem in that they are difficult to receive in areas with a lot of rain because microwaves are easily absorbed by water. Furthermore, if there are water droplets or snow on the surface of the antenna, reception conditions will deteriorate and noise will enter the screen and audio, making it difficult to see and hear.

This disadvantage of being susceptible to rain can be solved by simply increasing the area of the antenna, but increasing the area increases the cost of the device and the installation cost. Also, snow, etc. will accumulate more easily, making the problem even worse. Therefore, in order to obtain sufficient performance with a certain size, it is necessary to insert a received signal amplifier such as a booster amplifier in the downstream stage of the converter to amplify the received signal.
A power source is also required for this purpose. Also, since the antenna itself is placed on the roof, if you want to be more aesthetically pleasing, you will have to combine the usage of several households and receive it with one antenna. In this case as well, since the signal line and power supply line become long, a booster amplifier is still required to amplify the signal.

Additionally, recently, microwave receiving equipment has come to be used for mobile purposes, and is often equipped with a battery as a backup power source. This may occur and is a problem. [Problem to be solved by the invention] As mentioned above, conventional solar cell power generation systems have had the problem that it is difficult to reduce the cost of the mount, and if possible, it is better to use an already existing mount such as a roof. It's a good idea. On the other hand, receiving systems such as microwaves require a power source for the received signal amplifier, etc. near the antenna, but installing a new power source for this requires long wiring or a compact device near the antenna. The disadvantages are that it may not be organized properly and that additional electricity costs may be required. Furthermore, particularly in mobile reception systems, there is a problem in that it is difficult to secure the power required for the reception system depending on the location of the movement.

[Object of the Invention] An object of the present invention is to reduce the cost of the mount by using a receiving antenna such as a 5 microwave as the mount of the solar cell power generation system described above. In addition, by supplying the power necessary for the receiving system with this solar cell power generation system, it is possible to compactly consolidate it near the antenna without installing a new external power source, and to save on electricity costs by using free solar energy. It is in. Furthermore, the aim is to make it possible to supply electricity to mobile reception systems as long as there is sunlight, even in moving locations where it is difficult to secure a power source. [Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides, as means for solving the above-mentioned problems,
An antenna characterized by having a solar cell on the radio wave receiving surface is provided, and when the radio wave receiving surface is not receiving radio waves, the antenna surface with the solar cell provided on the radio wave receiving surface is oriented in a direction that can absorb solar energy well, so that the radio wave reception is possible. To provide a reception and power generation system having an antenna driving means for sometimes directing received radio waves in a direction where they can be received well, and a selection means for selecting reception or non-reception. The device further includes a storage battery for storing electric power obtained by the solar battery and an amplifier for the received radio waves, and supplies power to the amplifier and antenna driving means from the storage battery or the solar battery. The present invention provides a characteristic antenna and a reception/power generation system using the antenna.

[Function] The antenna of the present invention is characterized in that a solar cell is provided on the radio wave receiving surface, and with this antenna, radio wave reception and power generation can be performed with one antenna.

Furthermore, the reception and power generation system of the present invention using the above antenna is a reception and power generation system that fully utilizes the performance of the above antenna. In the reception and power generation system of the present invention, a converter,
The booster amplifier amplifies the received signal, and the solar cell, solar cell control unit, and storage battery effectively capture and store solar energy, and supply power for receiving amplification and antenna drive control. According to the reception and power generation system of the present invention, the antenna and the solar cell are integrated, that is, the base of the antenna and the base of the solar cell are the same, and the booster amplifier and converter are integrated and placed nearby. This makes it possible to create an antenna that is compact, inexpensive, and resistant to noise, and a reception and power generation system that uses the antenna.
In addition, by pointing the solar cell-integrated radio wave receiving antenna toward the radio wave emitter only when a received signal is input, and at other times pointing it in the direction where the maximum energy from the sun can be obtained, solar energy can be This makes it possible to use the information effectively. By using solar cells or built-in storage batteries as energy to drive and control the antenna, it can also be used as a mobile system that does not require an external power source. In addition, since the antenna for receiving radio waves and the mount are integrated in the installation of solar cells, the cost can be reduced. [Example] An example of the present invention will be explained using figures. The present invention has a configuration as shown in the system diagram of FIG. In the figure, a microwave antenna 10
2 and the solar cell 103 are integrated to form an antenna/solar cell section 100. The received signal from the microwave antenna 102 is first converted by the converter 105 to a frequency with less loss. The output of this converter 105 is sent to a booster amplifier 106 in the case of satellite broadcasting. The converter 105 normally receives the reception frequency 11.
716}Iz~12. 01GHz to 1. 036G
Hz-1. 332 GHz, but in terms of low loss, it is sufficient as long as it is 2 G}Iz or less. A Schottky element or FET using GaAs is used as a conversion element inside the converter. As a driving power source, a voltage of approximately DC 15 V is normally required, and this voltage is supplied from the solar cell 103 via the solar cell control section 107 . The received signal is amplified by a booster amplifier 106 and sent through a distributor 114 to a tuner and a receiver/image receiver.
Sent to lllll~113. The driving power of the booster amplifier 10B is also provided by the solar battery 103.
Power is supplied via the solar cell control unit 107. The solar cell control section 107 is known as a conventional technology, and as shown in FIG. 205 and a voltage setting microprocessor 206. The solar generated power input from the terminal 207 is output to the terminals 209 to 211 at a stable voltage, and is stored as surplus power in the battery 109 connected to the Yuichi terminal 208. Electric power can be extracted and supplied to the converter 105 and booster amplifier 106. Additionally, the output of solar cells can also be used for purposes other than those mentioned above. In that case, for example, the solar cell control unit 107 shown in FIG. 2 is equipped with an inverter for AC/DC conversion depending on the application, and the output is used. Attitude controller 110 of power supply/drive unit 108 in FIG.
has the role of moving the attitude controller 110 in response to a signal from the tuner and receiver/receiver 111, that is, in the receiving state ON, to move and fix the orientation of the microwave antenna 102 in a preset desired direction. At that time, if the radio wave condition is poor due to weather, etc., the direction set in advance is poor, or if you are receiving while moving,
5 tuners and receiver/receiver 111 according to signal strength
It is possible to send a feedback signal and set the position to the optimum position. If it is not in the reception state, the signal sent from the tuner and reception/image reception tIAl1l,
That is, when the reception state is OFF, the sun tracking state is entered, and the information stored in the memory in the microprocessor 206 enables solar power generation by directing the antenna in the optimum direction. That is, here, the receiver/receiver 111 serves as a selection means for selecting reception or non-reception of radio waves. Next, the system of the present invention will be explained in more detail using the schematic diagrams of the system shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

In the figure, the power supply drive unit 301 includes a storage battery 109, a drive motor 412, four gears 407, 408, 409, and 410 connected to the drive motor, and a pulling jig 411. The drive motor 412 is rotated by the attitude control signal, and the rotation of the motor is transmitted to the rotary rod 302 by the combination of gears, or to the pulling jig 411, and the drive wire 406 in the rotary rod 302 is pulled. , the inclination and direction of the microwave antenna 304 can be changed. The microwave antenna 304 has a parabolic shape, and a solar cell 305 is placed on the inner surface of the parabola. The solar cell used for the antenna 304 is the antenna 304
Any material may be used as long as it can be integrated with the solar cell, and the material constituting the solar cell is selected from single crystal and non-single crystal (amorphous, polycrystalline, and microcrystalline) materials. The structure may be a PN junction type, a PIN junction type, or a Schottky type, and these can be stacked to form a tandem or triple structure. The above material may be deposited directly on the parabolic substrate, or it may be formed on another thin film-like substrate and then attached onto the parabolic substrate.
Further, when using a single crystal wafer, it is possible to bond it as is, but it is preferable to deposit it directly on the substrate.

The solar cell 305 is divided into a large number of subcells 307, and is structured to prevent the entire solar cell on the inner surface of the parabola from becoming inoperable due to a partial short circuit. The upper extraction electrode 308 is arranged on the subcell 307 so that the photovoltaic force can be effectively extracted. The electric power generated in each subcell is collected by a bus bar 309, collected into one lead wire around the parabola near the support rod 306, taken out, passed through the support rod 306, and led to the conversion control unit 303. It will be destroyed. The desired voltage and current can be selected depending on how the busbars are connected above. Further, wiring to the power supply/drive unit 301 is performed through the rotating rod 302,
Finally, the signal is sent to the tuner via wire 310. The larger the size of the parabolic base, the better in order to increase the signal gain, but it has drawbacks such as being vulnerable to strong winds. Even if it is relatively small, it can be amplified and compensated by a booster amplifier, so it is resistant to wind and provides optimal power generation. The parabolic base has a short axis of 45cm to 7cm.
5c praise would be appropriate. Possible materials for the parabolic base include stainless steel, aluminum, and iron.
In addition, the thickness of the base is 0.3 to 2 cm, taking into consideration the strength.
A suitable thickness is . In addition, the surface properties of the parabola are such that the unevenness is 1
It is desirable that it be less than mm. Parabolas are generally molded in one piece, but solar cells are formed in advance on a rectangular or tapered fan-shaped obturator, and then the solar cells are shaped as closely as possible to the parabolic shape.
It is also possible to glue them together with a slight overlap. In that case, the length of the fan-shaped arc should be as small as possible, but the preferred length is two sides or less. It is also possible to form a solar cell in advance on a conductive film, such as thin aluminum, and then attach it along the parabolic base.

In this case, the unevenness of the surface when gluing is 2Ilffi.
The following is desirable. An example of the method and apparatus for manufacturing the solar cell-integrated parabola of the present invention will be explained using FIG. In this apparatus, a PIN type solar cell can be created on a base by laminating amorphous semiconductor layers using a plasma CVD apparatus equipped with five vacuum chambers 501.

First, the parabolic substrate 511 that has been thoroughly cleaned is placed on the holder 51.
0 and put it in the load chamber 501-1, then 1
Vacuum to G”” Torr. ^r10 gas
After heating the substrate 511 with the heating plate 502-1, the gate valve 506 is opened, and the substrate feeding jig is placed in the deposition chamber 501-2, which has a vacuum level of 10 Torr in advance. Send using 507. Next, while heating the substrate, St.
A gas for film deposition is introduced through the gas inlet 509, and power is applied using the power source 505 while maintaining a constant pressure in the deposition chamber 501-2 to decompose the gas by discharge and deposit a film. Amorphous SL in chamber 501-2
Next, after forming an i-type layer of SL in chamber 501-3, the n-type layer is similarly introduced into chamber 501-4 through the gate valve 506 to form a p-type layer of S1.

Since the discharge electrodes of the three chambers 501-2 to 501-4 have the same shape as the parabolic substrate, discharge occurs uniformly and a uniform film can be deposited. Next, the present invention will be explained with examples. (Example!) First, a parabola short diameter 60c using SUS304 material
After 1000 people deposited silver on the substrate 501-2 using a vacuum evaporation device, the temperature of the substrate was kept at 300°C using the device shown in FIG.
4 gas and 50 SCCM of PH. gas looOpp
m/Hz base was introduced at a pressure of 0 and ITorr, and discharge decomposition was performed using a power of 2 W to form an n-type Si layer of about 200 layers. Next, SiH. L O
O SCCM is introduced and the pressure is 0. Under ITorr,
SiH< was discharge decomposed using a power of 5 W to form an i-type St layer of 5,000 people. Finally, Si is placed in chamber 501-4.
H+, 5 SCCM and B-Ha gas 1000ppm/H
z base, 50 SCCM flowing, pressure 0. IT
A power of 50 W was applied under the condition that the inflowing gas was decomposed by discharge, and a p-type St layer with a thickness of 50 nm was deposited. Next, under the same conditions, only the i-type layer was changed to a thickness of 3,500 layers, and n-type, i-type, and p-type Si layers were deposited, respectively, to create a tandem structure with nine consecutive layers.

Thereafter, 700 layers of ITO were deposited on the top at a substrate temperature of 180° C., and then subcells 307 were formed by etching in a pattern with an ITO etchant.

Next, after screen-printing Ag paste into the sapcell 307 using a pattern mask, it was heated at 200°C for 30 minutes.
The upper lead-out electrode 308 was formed by heat treatment. The size of the subcell 307 is 5 cm square, and its characteristics are that of a solar simulator AM1. 5 (100mW/cm”)
"C', a voltage of 111 V, and an efficiency of 9% were obtained. Twelve subcells 307 were connected in series by a busper 309, and then connected in parallel to form an antenna-integrated solar cell.

Next, as shown in Figures 1 and 3, when the aforementioned parabola is set, the total gain after the converter is 50d.
B, and we were able to receive clear images of satellite communication broadcasts. Also, by turning off the tuner, this antenna switched to sunlight tracking and became stable in 5 seconds. After that, it was verified that even after about two hours, the system was still generating electricity while maintaining the direction of the sunlight. (Example 2) Next, when we received satellite communication on a rainy day using the same antenna-integrated solar cell as in (Example 1), the gain was only reduced by 1 dB by activating the booster amplifier. I was able to receive it. When a booster amplifier is used near the tuner of a normal receiving system that does not have an integrated antenna and solar cell, the gain decreases by 5 dB, and better results were obtained in the embodiment of the present invention.

(Example 3) AM1. 5 (100aiW/cm”
) under sunlight, a maximum output voltage of 20V DC and a maximum output power of 36W were obtained, which was enough to power the tuner. Next, put this system main body in a car and drive at 20 km/h.
When measuring while moving and rotating at a speed of , the antenna perfectly tracked the direction of sunlight, and the same output voltage and power as above were obtained. [Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the receiving and power generation system of the present invention, by integrating the radio wave (for example, microwave) receiving antenna and the solar cell, it is possible to eliminate the need for a separate mount for the solar cell. Since it is possible to reduce the cost, it is possible to reduce the cost. Furthermore, by supplying power to the booster amplifier and converter of the receiving system from the solar cell or built-in storage battery, a compact receiving system that does not require a new external power source can be constructed. This means that you can save on electricity bills and have access to power wherever you go as long as you have sunlight. Furthermore, by making the entire system compact, it has the effect of reducing the attenuation of the gain of the received signal, making it possible to receive good reception with less noise. (
For example, by pointing the receiving antenna (for example, microwave) in the direction of the radio wave emitter, and at other times pointing it in the direction where the maximum energy from the sun can be obtained, solar energy can be used effectively.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a system diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a diagram showing details of the solar cell control section shown in Figure 1. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the antenna driving method in the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a part of the apparatus for making the antenna/solar cell part of the present invention. System body, power supply/drive unit, rotating rod, conversion control unit, microwave antenna, solar cell, support rod, subcell, upper extraction electrode, busbar wiring, drive wire ~410 gear, pulling jig, drive motor spring, vacuum chamber Heating plate/anode electrode, bellows, cathode electrode, power supply, gate valve, substrate feeding jig, inlet, gas inlet, substrate holder substrate

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) An antenna characterized by having a solar cell on its radio wave receiving surface. (2) an antenna driving means for orienting the antenna surface, on which the solar cell is provided on the radio wave receiving surface, in a direction that can absorb solar energy well when not receiving radio waves, and in a direction that can receive the received radio waves when receiving radio waves; A reception and power generation system having a selection means for selecting reception or non-reception. (3) A storage battery for storing electric power obtained by the solar cell, and an amplifier for the received radio waves, and power is supplied to the amplifier and the antenna driving means from the storage battery or the solar cell. The reception and power generation system according to claim 2.