WO2020051932A1 - Dust detection device, solar cell system containing same and evaluation method using same - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided are a dust detection device (10, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3, 10-4, 20, 20-1, 20-2, 20-3, 30, 35, 40) arranged in an environmental space (1000) to evaluate a dust falling degree, a solar cell system (2000) containing same and an evaluation method using same. The dust detection device (10, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3, 10-4, 20, 20-1, 20-2, 20-3, 30, 35, 40) comprises: a housing (100) with a plurality of wall bodies (110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 160) and an opening (105, 105 '), the wall bodies (110, 120, 130, 140, 150, 160) jointly define and enclose an enclosure space (25) and the opening (105, 105') connects the enclosure space (25) with the environment space (1000); a transparent plate (200, 200') corresponding to the opening (105, 105') and arranged on the housing (100); and a light source (300) and a first optical sensor (400, 400') arranged in the enclosed space (25), the light source (300) and the first optical sensor (400, 400') are located on opposite sides of the transparent plate (200, 200') and spaced at least one distance from a plane of the transparent plate (200, 200'). When the light source (300) emits sensing light (510, 510', 510"), the first optical sensor (400, 400') is configured to receive and measure scattered sensing light (560) or reflected sensing light (520) formed when the sensing light (510, 510', 510") reaches the transparent plate (200, 200'), and the amount of dust falling on an object (15) disposed in the environment space (1000) is in positive correlation with the magnitude of the scattered sensing light (560) or the reflected sensing light (520).

Description

Dust detection device, solar cell system including the same, and evaluation method using the same Technical field

The present invention relates to a dust detection device and an evaluation method using the same. Specifically, the present invention relates to a dust detection device having a light source and a light sensor, a solar cell system including the same, and an evaluation method using the same.

Background technique

Based on factors such as environmental assessment or instrument operation and maintenance, there is sometimes a need to detect the degree of dust fall in specific situations or environments. For example, when a solar cell panel is used outdoors, the surface of the solar cell panel will reduce the amount of light that can enter the solar cell panel with the accumulation of dust. Therefore, if the accumulation of falling dust on the solar panel increases, the power of the solar panel to convert solar energy into electrical energy also decreases accordingly. As mentioned above, in order to maintain the power generation of the solar panel and avoid excessive costs in cleaning and maintenance, how to evaluate the degree of dust falling on the power loss of the solar panel and the timing of cleaning the solar panel need to be considered.

Invention Disclosure

An embodiment of the present invention provides a dust detection device installed in an environmental space for evaluating the degree of falling dust. The dust detection device includes a housing having a plurality of walls and an opening, wherein the walls collectively define an enclosed space, and the opening communicates the enclosed space with the environmental space; and is provided in the housing corresponding to the opening. A light-transmitting board on the top; a light source disposed in the enclosed space; and a first light sensor disposed in the enclosed space. The light source and the first light sensor are located on opposite sides of the light-transmitting plate, and are separated from the plane on which the light-transmitting plate is disposed by at least a distance. When the light source emits the sensed light, the first light sensor is configured to receive and measure the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light scattered or reflected by the sensed light and transmitted to the light transmitting plate, and is disposed on the object in the environmental space. The amount of falling dust is positively related to the size of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, a method for evaluating a cleaning timing of a solar cell panel is provided. The method includes setting the dust detection device as described above in an environmental space where the solar cell panel is located, so that the light-transmitting panel is not shielded; and setting so that the light source does not emit sensing light when the environmental space is in the first illumination range. , And when the environmental space is the second illumination range, the sensing light is emitted according to the default time or the default frequency, wherein the illumination in the first illumination range is greater than the illumination in the second illumination range; and the sensing light is transmitted to the transmission through the detection by the first light sensor. The magnitude of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light scattered or reflected by the light panel; the dust fall amount and the power generation power of the solar cell panel are evaluated based on the size of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light; and the dust fall amount based on the solar panel And power generation, and evaluate the timing of cleaning operations on solar panels.

According to still another embodiment of the present invention, a solar cell system having a mechanism for evaluating the degree of dust fall is provided. The solar cell system includes: a solar cell module including at least one solar cell panel that receives solar energy to generate electricity; and the aforementioned dust detection device.

The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments, but is not intended to limit the present invention.

Brief description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a dust detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the A-A 'line segment in Fig. 1.

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are schematic diagrams of a method for detecting and evaluating the degree of falling dust by using a dust detection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4A to 4D are schematic diagrams of a dust detection device according to various modified embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a dust detection device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a method for detecting and evaluating the degree of falling dust by using a dust detection device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

7A to 7C are schematic diagrams of a dust detection device according to various modified embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are operation schematic diagrams of a dust detection device in a first illumination range and a second illumination range, respectively, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9A and 9B are schematic diagrams of operations of a dust detection device in a first illumination range and a second illumination range, respectively, according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a solar cell system with a dust fall degree evaluation mechanism according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of a first light sensor applicable to a solar cell system according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a method for evaluating a degree of dust fall and a timing for cleaning a solar cell panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Among them, the reference sign

10, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3, 10-4, 20, 20-1, 20-2, 20-3, 30, 35, 40: dust detection devices

15: Object

25: Enclosed space

45: Light surface

50: Solar Panel

55: Framework

80: Method

100: Shell

105, 105 ’: opening

110: upper wall

120: lower wall body

130, 140, 150, 160: side wall body

200, 200 ’: light transmission plate

300: light source

310: Light emitting surface

320: substrate

400, 400 ’: the first light sensor

410, 430: light receiving surface

420: Matrix

510, 510 ’, 510”: sensing light

520: Sensing reflected light

530: Emitted light

540, 540A, 540B: ambient incident light

550: ambient reflected light

560: Sensing scattered light

600: second light sensor

610: Light receiving surface

620: Matrix

700: shield

1000: environmental space

1050, 1050 ’: dust

2000: Solar cell system

ds, d1, d2: distance

L1: first illumination range

L2: second illumination range

S10: Setup steps

S20: Setting steps

S30: Measurement procedure

S40: Falling dust evaluation procedure

S50: Action evaluation steps

The best way to implement the invention

The technical solution of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments to further understand the purpose, the solution and the effect of the present invention, but not as a limitation of the protection scope of the appended claims.

The invention will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.

In the drawings, the thicknesses of layers, films, panels, regions, etc. are exaggerated for clarity. Throughout the description, the same reference numerals denote the same components. It should be understood that when a component such as a layer, film, region, or substrate is referred to as being "on" or "connected to" another component, it may be directly on or connected to the other component, or Intermediate components can also exist. In contrast, when a component is referred to as being "directly on" or "directly connected to" another component, there are no intervening components present. As used herein, "connected" may refer to a physical and / or electrical connection. Furthermore, "electrically connected" or "coupled" may mean that there are other components between the two components.

As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. It should also be understood that when used in this specification, the terms "including" and / or "including" designate the stated features, regions, wholes, steps, operations, presence of components and / or components, but do not exclude one or more The presence or addition of other features, whole regions, steps, operations, components, parts, and / or combinations thereof.

In addition, relative terms such as "lower" or "bottom" and "upper" or "top" may be used herein to describe the relationship of one component to another, as shown. It should be understood that relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in addition to the orientation shown in the figures. For example, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, components described as being on the "lower" side of other components will be oriented on the "upper" side of the other components. Thus, the exemplary term "down" may include orientations of "down" and "up", depending on the particular orientation of the drawings. Similarly, if the device in one of the figures is turned over, components described as "below" or "beneath" other components would then be oriented "above" the other components. Thus, the exemplary terms "below" or "below" may include orientations above and below.

As used herein, "about," "approximately," or "substantially" includes the stated value and an average value within an acceptable deviation range of a particular value determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, taking into account the measurements and A specific number of measurement-related errors (ie, limitations of the measurement system). For example, "about" can mean within one or more standard deviations of the stated value, or within ± 30%, ± 20%, ± 10%, ± 5%. Furthermore, the terms "about", "approximate", or "substantially" used herein may be based on optical properties, etching properties, or other properties to select a more acceptable range of deviations or standard deviations, instead of applying one standard deviation to all nature.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted to have meanings consistent with their meanings in the context of the related art and the present invention, and will not be interpreted as idealized or excessive Formal meaning unless explicitly defined as such in this article.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a dust detection device 10 provided in an environmental space 1000 for evaluating the degree of falling dust may include a housing 100, a light transmitting plate 200, a light source 300, and a first light sensor 400. .

The environmental space 1000 can be any environment that has a need to detect the degree of falling dust, such as an outdoor environment with solar panels, a clean room that needs to be kept clean, a potentially dangerous area for volcanic eruption that requires volcanic ash, and the degree of dust damage Construction site, or other environments that need to detect the degree of dust fall. As a result, the dust detection device 10 can be placed in a preset environment space 1000 for detecting and evaluating the degree of dust falling in the environment space 1000. According to some embodiments of the present invention, the object 15 may be disposed in the environmental space 1000, and the dust detection device 10 may be used to evaluate the degree of falling dust on the object 15. For example, the object 15 may be, but is not limited to, equipment, materials, or articles that need to be kept dust-free or below a predetermined level of falling dust, such as solar power generation equipment, wafers, or art exhibits. Specifically, the object 15 may be a solar panel, and the power generated by the solar panel is negatively related to the amount of dust falling. That is, since the accumulated dust will reduce the solar energy incident on the solar cell panel and reduce the power generation power, the power generation power of the solar cell panel has a negative correlation with the amount of dust fall, and needs to be maintained below a predetermined level of dust fall to maintain the predetermined power generation. In conclusion, according to some embodiments of the present invention, the required degree of cleaning action for dust removal of solar cell panels can be evaluated based on the amount of dust falling measured by the dust detection device 10. For example, the possible cost of the cleaning action and the expected power generation efficiency can be weighed, and then based on the amount of dust falling, whether the cleaning action needs to be performed or a better cycle of the cleaning action can be determined.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the housing 100 of the dust detection device 10 provided in the environmental space 1000 for evaluating the degree of falling dust may be made of a material having no light transmittance and a material having near zero light transmittance. Made of light transmissive material and coated or sandwiched with opaque material, or made of other suitable methods and / or materials, and the housing 100 may include a plurality of walls 110 to 160 and openings 105 . For example, the housing 100 may be a rectangular parallelepiped housing with an opening 105, and has an upper wall body 110 at the top, a lower wall body 120 opposite to the upper wall body 110 and at the bottom, and an upper wall body 110 and a lower wall body. A set of opposite and facing side walls 130 and 140 between the wall bodies 120 and another set of facing and facing side walls 150 and 160 between the upper wall body 110 and the lower wall body 120. However, this is merely an example, and according to different embodiments of the present invention, the housing 100 may have various shapes and is not limited to a tetrahedron, which may be a polyhedron of various shapes. In conclusion, the walls 110 to 160 collectively define an enclosed space 25. The opening 105 is cut into the housing 100 to communicate with the enclosed space 25 inside and the external environment space 1000, and a light transmitting plate 200 having a certain or predetermined light transmittance is provided in the housing 100 corresponding to the opening 105. Therefore, preferably, the light from the inside of the enclosed space 25 or the outside of the environmental space 1000 can only enter or exit through the light transmitting plate 200.

The light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10 may be disposed in the enclosed space 25 defined by the walls 110 to 160 described above, and the same as the plane (for example, As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the plane on which the upper wall body 110 is located is separated by at least a distance. For example, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 may be located on opposite sides of the light transmitting plate 200 in the enclosed space 25. In other words, the light transmitting plate 200 may be located between the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400. For example, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 may be disposed on the lower wall 120 in the enclosed space 25, and the vertical projection range of the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 on the plane where the upper wall 110 is located may be relatively located The two sides of the light-transmitting plate 200 disposed on the upper wall body 110 may overlap or not overlap the light-transmitting plate 200.

For example, referring to FIG. 2, the light source 300 may include a base body 320 and at least one light emitting surface 310 capable of emitting light, and the at least one light emitting surface 310 may face the light transmitting plate 200 so that light emitted from the light emitting surface 310 may be transmitted to light transmission. Board 200. On the other hand, the first light sensor 400 may include a base 420 and at least one light receiving surface 410 capable of receiving light, and the at least one light receiving surface 410 may face the light transmitting plate 200 so that light scattered or reflected from the light transmitting plate 200 Or the light incident through the transparent plate 200 may be received by the light receiving surface 410.

Further, the light source 300 disposed on the lower wall body 120 and the plane on which the light transmitting plate 200 is disposed may be separated by at least a distance ds. That is, the light source 300 may be substantially perpendicular to a plane on which the surface of the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed by at least a distance ds. In particular, at least a portion of the light emitting surface 310 of the light source 300 and the plane of the surface on which the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed may be substantially perpendicular to the plane on which the surface of the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed by at least a distance ds. This distance ds can be further adjusted and matched with factors such as the opening area of the light transmitting plate 200 and the light source divergence angle of the light source 300 to improve measurement accuracy and / or sensitivity. Similarly, the first light sensor 400 disposed on the lower wall body 120 and the plane on which the light transmitting plate 200 is disposed may be separated by at least a distance d1. That is, the first light sensor 400 may be substantially perpendicular to a plane on which the surface of the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed by at least a distance d1. In particular, at least a portion of the light receiving surface 410 of the first light sensor 400 and the plane of the surface on which the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed may be substantially perpendicular to the plane on which the surface of the light-transmitting plate 200 is disposed by at least a distance d1. This distance d1 can be further adjusted so as not to block the transmitted or reflected scattered light from the transparent plate 200 and be close enough to the transmitted plate 200 to receive the transmitted or reflected scattered light from the transparent plate 200. Thereby, the light emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the light-transmitting plate 200, and the light reflected and scattered or transmitted from the light-transmitting plate 200 can be incident on the first light sensor 400.

Here, the light source 300 may be a directional light source having a directional light transmitting plate 200 as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, or may be a spherical light source that emits light in a wide direction, or other suitable light sources. In addition, the light source 300 may be various types of light sources, such as a fluorescent lamp, a light emitting diode (LED), a laser, or other suitable types. Correspondingly, the first light sensor 400 may be any light sensor that can receive and measure the size (ie, intensity) of light emitted by the specific light source 300 described above.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the light source 300 emits a sensing light 510, the first light sensor 400 can receive and measure a sensing scattered light 560 scattered by the sensing light 510 to the transparent plate 200, and The amount of falling dust of the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000 or the amount of falling dust of the dust 1050 ′ disposed on an object 15 in the environmental space 1000 is positively related to the size of the sensing scattered light 560.

As mentioned above, the method for measuring and evaluating the degree of dust fall by the dust detection device 10 by sensing the scattered light 560 will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B.

Referring to FIG. 3A, when the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000 has not fallen on the light-transmitting plate 200, the sensing light 510 emitted from the light source 300 of the dust detection device 10 toward the light-transmitting plate 200 can greatly penetrate the light-transmitting plate. 200 is directly emitted or scattered into the environmental space 1000 in the form of outgoing light 530. At this time, only a few or even no sensing light 510 is scattered by the light transmitting plate 200 and is incident on the first light sensor 400 in the form of the sensing scattered light 560. Therefore, when the amount of falling dust is low or about zero, the first light sensor 400 can receive and measure the intensity of the sensed scattered light 560 is small or close to zero.

In contrast, referring to FIG. 3B, when the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000 falls on the light-transmitting plate 200 and accumulates on the light-transmitting plate 200, the sensing light emitted from the light source 300 of the dust detection device 10 toward the light-transmitting plate 200 510 will reduce the intensity of the outgoing light 530 that penetrates into the ambient space 1000 due to the accumulated dust 1050, and will increase the sensed scattered light 560 that the sensing light 510 is blocked by and scattered by the accumulated dust 1050 on the transparent plate 200 560 Strength of. At this time, the increased scattered sensing light 560 may be incident on the first light sensor 400. Therefore, when there is a certain amount of falling dust on the light-transmitting plate 200, the first light sensor 400 can receive and measure that the intensity of the sensed scattered light 560 increases, and the amount or degree of the accumulated dust 1050 is the same as the size of the sensed scattered light 560 Positive correlation. In other words, the higher the degree of dust accumulation 1050, the higher the size (ie, intensity) of the sensed scattered light 560.

Following the above, the degree of accumulation of dust 1050 stacked on the light transmitting plate 200 of the dust detection device 10 can be estimated by the size of the sensed scattered light 560 measured by the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10. Therefore, referring to FIG. 1 at the same time, it is possible to correspondingly estimate the dustfall situation (such as the amount of dustfall or the amount of dustfall) of the dust 1050 ′ on a specific object 15 in the environmental space 1000, or to estimate this correspondingly according to the time period The dust falling condition of the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000 (for example, the amount of falling dust, the frequency of falling dust, or the timing of falling dust).

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spectral range of the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 may be determined according to the type of the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000. For example, based on the spectral wavelength of the sensing light 510 and the particle size of the dust, the sensing light 510 may directly penetrate the dust 1050 and not be easily scattered. Therefore, in order to improve the accuracy and / or sensitivity of the measurement, the spectral range of the sensing light 510 can be determined according to the type of the dust 1050 in the environmental space 1000, so that the sensing light 510 can be preset to the dust 1050 to be measured. The scattering. For example, the dust source may be, for example, oil pollution, sea salt, volcanic ash, black sand, flour, wood dust powder, soil, etc. According to an embodiment of the present invention, it may be based on the largest dust source in the environmental space 1000 and the most likely dust source Or it is expected to detect the type of dust source to determine or adjust the spectral range of the sensing light 510 to be used, thereby improving the accuracy and / or sensitivity of measuring the degree of falling dust.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, if the light source 300 is a light emitting diode, a spectral range of the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 may be, for example, between about 300 nm and about 1100 nm. When the spectral range of the light emitted by the light source 300 falls within this range, many commercially available photoelectric measuring instruments can be used as the first light sensor 400. In addition, if the object 15 for measuring the degree of dust fall is a solar panel, the spectral range of the sensing light 510 also corresponds to the spectral range of the solar energy that can be mainly used by the solar panel.

Around. For example, the size of the sensed scattered light 560 may more closely reflect the degree of dust fall of the dust 1050 and 1050 'which may reduce the power generation power of the solar panel. That is, it can more closely reflect the degree of dust fall of a specific size or type of dust 1050 and 1050 'that would prevent the incident of light (approximately ultraviolet light to near-infrared light) that is mainly available to the solar panel. In contrast, those dusts that are not likely to cause the sensing light 510 to scatter as the sensing scattered light 560 may not have a great impact on the solar cell panel's solar light receiving efficiency and power generation efficiency. However, the above-mentioned spectral range is only an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

Next, a dust detection device according to various modified embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 4A to 4D. Among them, the same or similar details as those with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3B may be omitted or simply explained, and the differences from the dust detection device 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3B will be mainly explained here.

Referring to FIG. 4A, according to a modified embodiment of the present invention, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10-1 are both suspended from the upper wall body 110 instead of the lower wall body 120, and are also located on the light transmitting plate. The opposite sides of 200 are separated from the light-transmitting plate 200 by at least one distance, so that the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the light-transmitting plate 200. Therefore, the sensing light 510 can pass through the light transmitting plate 200 to be emitted as the emitted light 530 or be scattered by the light transmitting plate 200 itself or falling dust accumulation, and the sensing light 560 is incident on the first light sensor 400.

Next, referring to FIG. 4B, according to another modified embodiment of the present invention, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10-2 may not be disposed on the same wall body and on different wall bodies facing each other. For example, the light source 300 may be disposed on the upper wall body 110, and the first light sensor 400 may be disposed on the lower wall body 120. At this time, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 can still be located on opposite sides of the light transmitting plate 200 and both are at least a distance from the light transmitting plate 200 so that the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the light transmitting plate. 200 on. Therefore, the sensing light 510 can pass through the light transmitting plate 200 to be emitted as the emitted light 530 or be scattered by the light transmitting plate 200 itself or falling dust accumulation, and the sensing light 560 is incident on the first light sensor 400.

Further, referring to FIG. 4C, according to still another modified embodiment of the present invention, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10-3 may not be disposed on the same wall body and disposed on adjacent different wall bodies. For example, the light source 300 may be disposed on the upper wall body 110, and the first light sensor 400 may be disposed on the side wall body 140. At this time, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 can still be located on opposite sides of the light transmitting plate 200 and both are at least a distance from the light transmitting plate 200 so that the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the light transmitting plate. 200 on. Therefore, the sensing light 510 can pass through the light-transmitting plate 200 to be emitted as the emitted light 530 or be reflected by the light-transmitting plate 200 itself or falling dust deposits to be incident on the first light sensor 400 as the reflected light 520. Here, for example, the sensed reflected light 520 may be light that is reflected in a specific direction relative to the light-transmitting plate 200, and may be light received by the first light sensor 400 that is not disposed directly below the light-transmitting plate 200.

In addition, referring to FIG. 4D, according to another modified embodiment of the present invention, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 of the dust detection device 10-4 may be individually disposed on the side walls 130 and 140 facing each other. At this time, the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 can still be located on opposite sides of the light transmitting plate 200 and both are at least a distance from the light transmitting plate 200 so that the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the light transmitting plate. 200 on. Therefore, the sensing light 510 can pass through the light-transmitting plate 200 to be emitted as the emitted light 530 or be reflected by the light-transmitting plate 200 itself or falling dust deposits to be incident on the first light sensor 400 as the reflected light 520.

Referring to FIG. 4A to FIG. 4D, operations similar to the emission sensing light 510 and the measurement sensing scattered light 560 or the sensing reflected light 520 described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3B may be implemented in various configurations. It is possible to detect and evaluate the degree of dust fall in the environmental space 1000. A person of ordinary skill in the art should be able to perform similar detection and evaluation actions with reference to the principles of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments shown here.

Hereinafter, referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, a dust detection device according to another embodiment of the present invention and a corresponding operation for detecting and evaluating the degree of falling dust will be described.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a second light sensor 600 and a first light sensor 400 may be further disposed at different positions in the enclosed space 25 to measure the magnitude of the sensed light directly emitted from the light source 300. For example, the second light sensor 600 and the light transmitting plate 200 may be disposed on the first wall body among the wall bodies 110 to 160, and the first light sensor 400 and the light source 300 may be disposed on the wall bodies 110 to 160. The second wall is different from the first wall. For example, referring to FIG. 5, similar to the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the dust detection device 20 may include a light source 300 and a first light sensor 400 disposed on the lower wall 120, and may further include a second light The sensor 600 is disposed on the upper wall body 110.

The light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 may be disposed on both sides with respect to the light transmitting plate 200, and the second light sensor 600 and the first light sensor 400 may be disposed at different positions, so that the light emitted from the light source 300 is scattered from the light source 300. The sensing scattered light 560 of the transparent plate 200 can be incident on the first light sensor 400 but not incident on the second light sensor 600. For example, the second light sensor 600 may include, for example, a base 620 and at least one light-receiving surface 610. The light-receiving surface 610 faces the light source 300 and does not face the transparent plate 200. That is, referring to FIG. 6, the second light sensor 600 is located on a possible path of the sensing light 510 ′ of the light source 300, but is not located on a possible path of the sensing scattered light 560 of the light source 300. According to this configuration, the second light sensor 600 can receive the sensing light 510 'directly emitted by the light source 300 to measure the sensing light 510', but will not receive the sensing scattered light 560.

In addition, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in order to accurately measure the size of the sensing light 510 ′, it is not easily affected by possible incident light entering the enclosed space 25 through the transparent plate 200. Second, The light sensor 600 may be disposed at a position, and the position may be at least a distance from the light transmitting plate 200 when the position is projected on a plane provided by the light transmitting plate 200 (for example, FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are planes where the upper wall body 110 is located). d2. In particular, the light receiving surface 610 of the second light sensor 600 may be separated from the light transmitting plate 200 by at least a distance d2 when projected on a plane provided by the light transmitting plate 200. That is, the vertical projection range of the second light sensor 600 (especially the light receiving surface 610) on the plane where the light transmitting plate 200 is located or the plane where the light transmitting plate 200 is located may not overlap the light transmitting plate 200, so that the light transmitting plate 200 is transmitted The scattered or incident light is difficult to be incident on the second photosensor 600. Therefore, the size of the sensing light 510 'received and measured by the second light sensor 600 will be more accurate.

In order to simultaneously emit the sensing light 510 and 510 'to the light transmission plate 200 and the second light sensor 600, according to some embodiments of the present invention, the light source 300 is preferably a spherical light source and has a curved or spherical light emitting surface 310. . In succession, the first light sensor 400 may have at least one light receiving surface 410 to receive indirect scattered sensing scattered light 560, and the second light sensor 600 may have at least one light receiving surface 610 facing and facing the light emitting surface 310 to receive and The directly emitted sensing light 510 'is measured. In addition, when the light source 300 is a spherical light source, as shown in FIG. 5, in order to reduce the first light sensor 400 from receiving directly emitted sensing light 510, the first light sensor 400 may preferably be located on the same wall as the light source 300. And in order to reduce the indirect scattered sensing scattered light 560, the second light sensor 600 may be located on the same wall as the transparent plate 200. Therefore, the first light sensor 400 and the second light sensor 600 may be respectively located on different wall bodies. However, the above is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

Continuing, referring to FIG. 6, when the light source 300 of the dust detection device 20 configured as shown in FIG. 5 emits a sensing light 510, the sensing light 510 may be similar to the light incident on the light-transmitting plate 200 and described above. The light-transmitting plate 200 scatters, and then the reflected sensing scattered light 560 can be incident on the first light sensor 400 to be received and measured. At the same time, the sensing light 510 'emitted by the same light source 300 in different directions can also be directly incident on the second light sensor 600 and received and measured by the second light sensor 600. Here, since the sensing light 510 and the sensing light 510 'are emitted from the same light source 300, the sensing light 510 and the sensing light 510' can be substantially regarded as the same outgoing light, the outgoing light having the same intensity, or The intensity of the emitted light is proportional or positive.

According to some embodiments of the present invention, the second light sensor 600 configured as described above can be used to calibrate the effect of the change in light emission of the light source 300 itself. For example, if the light source 300 is unstable when it emits light and the intensity fluctuates, or the light source 300 has a reduced light intensity due to factors such as attenuation or degradation, the sensing light 510 measured by the second light sensor 600 may be used. The size is calibrated based on the estimated degree of fallout based on the sensed scattered light 560. That is, the falling dust condition in the environmental space 1000 or the falling dust condition on the object located in the environmental space 1000 can be regarded as a positive correlation with the ratio of the sensed scattered light 560 to the sensed light 510 '.

Hereinafter, various modified embodiments of the dust detection device including the second light sensor 600 will be shown.

Referring to FIG. 7A, according to a modified embodiment of the present invention, a difference between the dust detection device 20-1 and the above-mentioned dust detection device 20 is that the second light sensor 600 may be located on a different plane from the light transmitting plate 200. In detail, although the second light sensor 600 may be disposed on the upper wall body 110 similarly to the light transmitting plate 200, the second light sensor 600 may be suspended on the upper wall body 110 in a suspended manner, so that the second light sensor 600 The light receiving surface 610 is closer to the light source 300. Therefore, the intensity of the sensing light 510 'emitted by the light source 300 can be measured more directly, and the deviation or attenuation that the sensing light 510' may cause during the transmission process is reduced. In this configuration, since the vertical projection range of the second light sensor 600 and the light source 300 on the plane where the upper wall 110 of the transparent plate 200 is located is not located on the opposite sides of the transparent plate 200, the light is scattered by the transparent plate 200 The sensed scattered light 560 does not enter the second light sensor 600.

7B, according to another modified embodiment of the present invention, the difference between the dust detection device 20-2 and the above-mentioned dust detection device 20 is that the second light sensor 600 and the first light sensor 400 may be located on the wall bodies 110. To the same wall 120 to 160, and the dust detection device 20-2 may further include a shielding member 700. For example, the light source 300 of the dust detection device 20-2 may be suspended on the upper wall body 110, and may emit sensing light 510 'to be incident on the second light sensor 600 disposed on the lower wall body 120, and the light source 300 A shielding member 700 may be provided between the first light sensor 400 and the first light sensor 400 also disposed on the lower wall 120. Therefore, the first light sensor 400 may not receive the directly-sensing sensing light 510 ″, and since the vertical projection ranges of the light source 300 on the plane where the upper wall body 110 on which the light transmission plate 200 is disposed are respectively opposite to the light transmission plate 200 Both sides can receive the sensing scattered light 560 scattered by the light-transmitting plate 200. That is, the shielding member 700 can shield the directly-sensing sensing light 510 "from entering the path of the first light sensor 400 without blocking the sensing. The path where the scattered light 560 enters the first photosensor 400.

Further, referring to FIG. 7C, according to yet another modified embodiment of the present invention, the difference between the dust detection device 20-3 and the above-mentioned dust detection device 20 is that a shielding member 700 is added. Specifically, the light transmitting plate 200, the light source 300, the first light sensor 400, and the second light sensor 600 of the dust detection device 20-3 may be respectively located on different wall bodies. For example, the light transmitting plate 200 may be located on the upper wall body 110, the light source 300 may be located on the side wall body 130, the first light sensor 400 may be located on the side wall body 140, and the second light sensor 600 may be located on the lower wall body. 120 on. A shield 700 may be further provided between the light source 300 and the first light sensor 400 to shield the path of the directly-sensing sensing light 510 ″ from entering the first light sensor 400. In this configuration, the light source 300 The emitted sensing light 510 'can be directly incident on the second light sensor 600, and the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 can be incident on the first light sensor by being reflected indirectly by the light transmitting plate 200. 400, and neither the first light sensor 400 nor the second light sensor 600 receives light other than the predetermined light.

Next, a dust detection device 30 according to still another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B. Here, the dust detection device 30 may have a configuration similar to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and may optionally be provided with a second light sensor 600 for calibration as shown in FIG. 5. However, this embodiment is different from the embodiment described above in that the first light sensor 400 can be used to measure the ambient incident light 540 in the environmental space 1000 in addition to receiving and measuring the sensing scattered light 560.

In detail, referring to FIG. 8A, when the ambient space 1000 where the dust detection device 30 is located is in a first illuminance range L1, the light source 300 may be set to not emit the sensing light 510, and the first light sensor 400 may receive and detect The ambient space 1000 is incident on the ambient incident light 540 of the enclosed space 25 through the light-transmitting plate 200 to obtain an illumination data of the ambient space 1000. That is, when natural light or ambient light in the environmental space 1000 is incident on the light transmitting plate 200, it may be reflected back to the environment by the light transmitting plate 200 as ambient reflected light 550, and may also penetrate the light transmitting plate 200 as environmental incident. The light 540 is received and measured by the first light sensor 400. Therefore, when the light source 300 does not emit light, the dust detection device 30 can be used to monitor the illuminance in the environmental space 1000 where the dust detection device 30 is located.

Next, referring to FIG. 8B, when the ambient space 1000 is in the second illuminance range L2, there may be no or less ambient incident light 540. At this time, the light source 300 may be set to emit the sensing light 510 according to a default time or a default frequency, and cause the first light sensor 400 to receive and measure the sensing scattered light 560, thereby measuring and evaluating the degree of dust fall.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the illumination in the first illumination range L1 may be greater than the illumination in the second illumination range L2. For example, the first illuminance range L1 can reflect the situation that there is daylight in the daytime, the second illuminance range L2 can reflect the situation that there is no sunlight at night, and the light source 300 can be based on the late night time (for example: AM 01:00, AM 02:00 , AM, 03:00, etc.) or the default frequency every two hours at night to emit the sensing light 510. In other words, when the dust detection device 30 is in the first illuminance range L1 (for example: daytime), it can be used as a sunlight measurement system, and when the dust detection device 30 is in the second illuminance range L2 (for example, night), it can be Dust detection system. In addition, the sensing light 510 emitted by the light source 300 may be continuously emitted in order to fully grasp the dust fall state, or may be intermittently and briefly emitted (for example, only for one or two seconds) in order to save energy or reduce equipment consumption. However, the above are all examples, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

In addition, when the first illuminance range L1 (for example, daytime) is also used as the sunlight measurement system, the dust detection device according to some embodiments of the present invention may be a double-sided type sunlight meter. For example, compared with the dust detection device 30 described above with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B, the dust detection device 35 according to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B may further open an opening 105 on the lower wall 120. ', And a light transmitting plate 200' is provided corresponding to the opening 105 '. In addition, the first light sensor 400 may further have, for example, a light receiving surface 430 facing the light transmitting plate 200 '. Thus, referring to FIG. 9A, when the first illuminance range L1 (for example, daytime) is used as a daylight measurement system, the dust detection device 35 can receive bidirectionally incident ambient incident light 540A and 540B as a double-sided type sunlight meter; and In the second illuminance range L2 (for example, at night), referring to FIG. 9B, the dust detection device 35 is similar to FIG. 8B and is a dust detection system that receives and measures the scattered light 560 to measure and evaluate the degree of falling dust. It should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that such double-sided structures should be applicable to the embodiments described above without conflict, and will not be repeated here.

The dust detection device according to the embodiments described above with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9B can be used to measure and evaluate possible dust falling conditions in an environmental space or any object such as a solar panel. For example, according to still another embodiment of the present invention, referring to FIG. 10, a solar cell system 2000 having a dust fall degree evaluation mechanism may include a solar cell module 500 and a dust detection device 40 according to any embodiment of the present invention. For example, the solar cell module 500 may include at least one solar panel 50 that receives solar energy to generate electricity. The solar cell panel 50 may have, for example, a light incident surface 45 to receive solar energy, and thereby convert solar energy into electrical energy. Then, the dust detection device 40 may be disposed in the same environmental space as the solar cell module 500. Alternatively, the dust detection device 40 may be integrated or disposed on the solar cell module 500. For example, at least one of the walls of the housing 100 of the dust detection device 40 may be at least a part of the solar cell module 500. For example, at least one of the walls of the housing 100 of the dust detection device 40 may be at least a part of the frame 55 of the solar cell module 500. Therefore, the dust detection device 40 can be used to detect dust that may fall on the light incident surface 45 of the solar cell panel 50 through the operations described in the above embodiments, and thereby grasp the amount of dust falling on the light incident surface 45 and the power generation efficiency. And evaluate or decide accordingly whether a cleaning action to clean the light incident surface 45 is required.

When the dust detection device 40 is used to measure the amount of falling dust on an object in the same environmental space, and the object is a solar panel 50, referring to FIG. 11, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the first light of the dust detection device 40 is The sensor 400 ′ may be a polyhedron having a plurality of light receiving surfaces 410. For example, the first light sensor 400 'of the dust detection device 40 with the solar cell module 2000 may have a plurality of light receiving surfaces 410 to receive light incident from different angles. Therefore, when the environment similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8A or FIG. 9A is in the first illuminance range L1 (for example, daytime), the first light sensor 400 ′ can detect the ambient incident light 540 received at different angles. To measure the angle of sunlight that may have a higher amount of light. Thereby, the solar cell module 2000 can adjust the orientation angle of the light incident surface 45 of the solar cell panel 50 correspondingly to receive a larger amount of sunlight to convert solar energy into electrical energy. That is, the direction of the light incident surface 45 of the solar cell panel 50 can be adjusted according to the amount of light incident on the plurality of light receiving surfaces 410 at different angles, so as to obtain better power generation efficiency.

When the dust detection device 40 includes the first light sensor 400 ′ having a plurality of light receiving surfaces 410, when the sensing scattered light 560 is detected in the second illuminance range L2, the sensing received by all the light receiving surfaces 410 can be performed. The total amount of scattered light 560 is used as a standard to measure and evaluate the amount of dust falling. In other words, when the dust detection device 40 is in the first illumination range L1 (for example: daytime), it can be used as a sunlight measurement system, and when the dust detection device 40 is in the second illumination range L2 (for example, night), it can be Dust detection system. However, this is only an example, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

According to the case where the dust detection device 40 is applied to the solar cell module 2000, for example, a method for evaluating the cleaning timing of the solar cell panel will be described below with reference to FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

Referring to FIG. 12, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a method 80 for evaluating the cleaning timing of a solar cell panel includes: setting a dust detection device according to any one of the embodiments of the present invention in an environmental space where the solar cell panel is located, and Prevent the light-transmitting plate in the dust detection device from being shielded (setting step S10); set so that the light source of the dust detection device does not emit sensing light when the environmental space is the first illuminance range, and is the second illuminance in the environmental space In the range, the sensing light is emitted according to a default time or a default frequency (setting step S20), wherein the illuminance in the first illuminance range is greater than the illuminance in the second illuminance range; according to the above setting step S20, the second illuminance range is set in the environmental space. When the light source emits the sensed light, the first light sensor detects the size of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light scattered or reflected by the light transmitted to the transparent plate (measurement step S30); based on the sensed scattered light or Sensing the size of the reflected light to evaluate the amount of dust falling on the solar panel and the power generation power (falling dust evaluation step S40); and based on the amount of dust falling on the solar panel and the power generation power, evaluate the impact on the sun Panels cleaning execution timing of actuation (actuating evaluation step S50).

According to the above, the solar energy can be better evaluated and determined based on the impact of the amount of dust falling on the power generation of the solar panel, and other factors (such as the possible cost or time of cleaning, or the tolerance of the solar panel, etc.). Whether the battery board needs to be cleaned. However, the solar cell module 2000 using the dust detection device and the method 80 for evaluating the cleaning timing of the solar cell panel described herein are only exemplary, and according to different embodiments of the present invention, the dust detection device can be used in conjunction with Various environmental spaces or equipment that need to monitor the amount of dust falling. A person of ordinary skill in the art can evaluate the needs or timing of any possible measures based on the content of the disclosure and the amount of dust fall, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments specifically shown here.

Of course, the present invention may have various other embodiments. Without departing from the spirit and essence of the present invention, those skilled in the art can make various corresponding changes and modifications according to the present invention, but these corresponding Changes and modifications should fall within the protection scope of the claims attached to the present invention.

Industrial applicability

According to the embodiment of the present invention, a dust detection device, a solar cell system including the same, and an evaluation method using the same can estimate a specific environmental space based on the magnitude of the detected scattered light or the reflected light. The situation of falling dust. Therefore, it is possible to grasp the situation of dust fall on the environment space and the objects located in the environment space, and it can be judged whether any response action, such as a cleaning action, has to be performed based on the dust fall situation. In conclusion, when the dust detection device, the solar cell system including the same, and the evaluation method using the dust detection device according to the embodiments of the present invention are applied to related equipment that needs to maintain a dust-free or low-dust amount, the equipment can be upgraded. Use efficiency or service life, and can take appropriate action on the equipment based on falling dust to reduce maintenance and maintenance costs.

Claims (15)

1. A dust detection device for assessing the degree of falling dust is characterized in that it is arranged in an environmental space and includes:

   A shell with a plurality of walls and an opening, wherein the walls collectively define an enclosed space, and the opening communicates the enclosed space with the environmental space;

   A light-transmitting plate is arranged on the casing corresponding to the opening;

   A light source disposed in the enclosed space; and

   A first light sensor is disposed in the enclosed space, wherein:

   The light source and the first light sensor are located on opposite sides of the light-transmitting plate, and are at least a distance from a plane on which the light-transmitting plate is disposed; and

   When the light source emits a sensed light, the first light sensor is configured to receive and measure a sensed scattered light or a sensed reflected light scattered or reflected by the sensed light to the light transmitting plate, and is disposed at The amount of dust falling on an object in the environmental space is positively related to the size of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light.
2. The dust detection device according to claim 1, wherein the object is a solar cell panel, and the power generated by the solar cell panel has a negative correlation with the amount of dust falling.
3. The dust detection device according to claim 2, wherein the required degree of a cleaning operation of the solar cell panel is evaluated based on the amount of dust falling measured by the dust detection device.
4. The dust detection device according to claim 1, further comprising a second light sensor and the first light sensor disposed at different positions in the enclosed space, and the second light sensor has at least one light receiving Face towards the light source, where:

   The second light sensor is configured to receive and measure the sensing light, and the amount of dust falling on the object is positively related to the ratio of the sensing scattered light or the sensing reflected light to the sensing light.
5. The dust detection device according to claim 4, wherein the second light sensor is spaced from the light transmitting plate when projected on a plane provided by the light transmitting plate.
6. The dust detection device according to claim 4, wherein the second light sensor and the first light sensor are located on the same wall body of the wall bodies, and the dust detection device further comprises a shielding member arranged to shield The sensing light is incident on the first light sensor.
7. The dust detection device according to claim 4, wherein the second light sensor and the light transmitting plate are disposed on a first wall body of the wall bodies, and the first light sensor and the light source are disposed A second wall body is different from the first wall body in the wall bodies.
8. The dust detection device according to claim 1, wherein the light source is a light emitting diode.
9. The dust detection device according to claim 8, wherein a spectral range of the sensing light emitted by the light emitting diode is determined according to a type of dust in the environmental space.
10. The dust detection device according to claim 1, wherein:

    When the ambient space is in a first illuminance range, the light source is set not to emit the sensing light, and the first light sensor receives and detects an ambient incident of the ambient space entering the enclosed space through the light transmitting plate Light to obtain an illumination data of the environmental space;

    When the environmental space is in a second illumination range, the light source is set to emit the sensing light according to a default time or a default frequency, and

    The illumination in the first illumination range is greater than the illumination in the second illumination range.
11. The dust detection device according to claim 10, wherein the object is a solar cell panel, the first light sensor is a polyhedron having a plurality of light receiving surfaces, and the plurality of light receiving surfaces receive from different angles Incident light, and,

    When the ambient space is in the first illuminance range, the direction of a light incident surface of the solar cell panel is adjusted to the amount of light incident on the light receiving surfaces at different angles.
12. A method for evaluating the cleaning timing of a solar cell panel, which comprises:

    Setting the dust detection device according to claim 1 in the environmental space where the solar cell panel is located, so that the light transmitting panel is not shielded;

    Set so that the light source does not emit the sensing light when the environmental space is a first illuminance range, and emits the sensing light according to a default time or a default frequency when the environmental space is a second illuminance range, The illuminance in the first illuminance range is greater than the illuminance in the second illuminance range;

    Detecting, by the first light sensor, the size of the sensing scattered light or the sensing reflected light scattered or reflected by the sensing light incident on the transparent plate;

    Evaluate the amount of dust falling and the power generation of the solar cell panel according to the size of the sensed scattered light or the sensed reflected light;

    Based on the amount of dust falling from the solar cell panel and the power generation power, the timing of performing a cleaning operation on the solar cell panel is evaluated.
13. A solar cell system with a mechanism for evaluating the degree of dust fall, comprising:

    A solar cell module including at least one solar panel receiving solar energy to generate electricity; and

    The dust detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 11.
14. The solar cell system according to claim 13, wherein at least one of the walls of the dust detection device is at least a part of the solar cell module.
15. The solar cell system according to claim 14, wherein at least one of the walls of the dust detection device is at least a part of a frame of the solar cell module.

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