Systems and apparatuses for carport with integrated precipitation and cable management

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10428547-B2
Application number	US-201815936021-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 26, 2018
Priority date	Dec 1, 2017
Publication date	Oct 1, 2019
Grant date	Oct 1, 2019

Abstract

A carport includes a casting, wherein first brace and a second brace on a first side of the casting and a third brace and a fourth brace on a second side of the casting support a canopy. The first brace and the third brace are configured for electrical cable management. Electrical cables disposed within the first brace extend from the canopy through the first side of the casting. Electrical cables disposed within the third brace extend from the canopy through the second side of the casting. The second brace and the fourth brace are configured for precipitation management, wherein a gutter system integrated into the canopy directs precipitation to the second brace and the fourth brace, and the second brace and the fourth brace direct the precipitation from the canopy toward the casting.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A carport, comprising:
a casting;
a first brace and a second brace on a first side of the casting configured to support a canopy; and
a third brace and a fourth brace on a second side of the casting configured to support the canopy,
wherein one or more of the first brace and the third brace are configured to manage electrical cables, electrical cables disposed within the first brace extending from the canopy through the first side of the casting, and electrical cables disposed within the third brace extending from the canopy through the second side of the casting, and
one or more of the second brace and the fourth brace are configured to manage precipitation, a gutter system integrated into the canopy directing precipitation to the second brace and the fourth brace, the second brace and the fourth brace directing the precipitation from the canopy toward the casting.

2. The carport of claim 1 , wherein the electrical cables are configured to provide alternate current to a charging station integrated in the carport, the charging station being an electric vehicle charging station.

3. The carport of claim 1 , wherein a first portion of the canopy is tilted to a first predetermined angle.

4. The carport of claim 3 , wherein lengths of the first brace and the second brace correspond to the first predetermined angle.

5. The carport of claim 1 , wherein a second portion of the canopy is tilted to a second predetermined angle.

6. The carport of claim 5 , wherein lengths of the third brace and the fourth brace correspond to the second predetermined angle.

7. The carport of claim 1 , wherein a first portion of the canopy is tilted at a first predetermined tilt angle and includes a first predetermined number of rows of photovoltaic modules and a second portion of the canopy is tilted at a second predetermined tilt angle and includes a second predetermined number of rows of photovoltaic modules.

8. The carport of claim 1 , wherein the canopy includes a plurality of purlins, each purlin being configured to support a row photovoltaic modules, a crossbeam being positioned perpendicular to each purlin and disposed between the first, second, third, and fourth brace and the plurality of purlins.

9. The carport of claim 8 , wherein the electrical cables for each row of photovoltaic modules are run through the purlins to the crossbeam, and the electrical cables are run through the crossbeam to an inverter, the electrical cables running from the inverter to the first brace through the cross beam.

10. The carport of claim 8 , wherein the purlins are configured to include integrated LED lighting.

11. The carport of claim 1 , wherein the canopy includes a first portion supported by the first and second brace and a second portion supported by the third and fourth brace, the first and second portion of the canopy not being directly connected.

12. The carport of claim 1 , wherein the canopy is tilted at a predetermined tilt angle.

13. A support structure, comprising:
a casting;
a first brace and a second brace on a first side of the casting; and
a third brace and a fourth brace on a second side of the casting,
wherein one or more of the first brace and the third brace are configured to manage electrical cables, electrical cables disposed within the first brace extending through the first side of the casting, and electrical cables disposed within the third brace extend through the second side of the casting, and
one or more of the second brace and the fourth brace are configured to manage precipitation, precipitation flowing through the second brace and the fourth brace directing precipitation toward the casting.

14. The support structure of claim 13 , wherein the electrical cables are configured to provide alternate current to a charging station integrated in a column, the charging station being an electric vehicle charging station.

15. The support structure of claim 13 , wherein the first brace, the second brace, the third brace, and the fourth brace are each manufactured to a predetermined length to support a canopy, the canopy including one or more cross beams, a plurality of purlins, and a plurality of photovoltaic modules.

16. The support structure of claim 13 , wherein lengths of the first brace and the second brace correspond to a first predetermined tilt angle of a first portion of a canopy of a solar power generation assembly.

17. The support structure of claim 16 , wherein lengths the third brace and the fourth brace a second predetermined tilt angle of a second portion of a canopy of the solar power generation assembly.

18. The support structure of claim 13 , wherein the casting is configured to support an asymmetric dual-tilt carport, the asymmetric dual-tilt carport having an asymmetric canopy where a first portion of the canopy is longer than a second portion of the canopy, a symmetric dual-tilt carport, the symmetric dual-tilt carport having a symmetric canopy where a first portion of the canopy is the same length as a second portion of the canopy, and a single-tilt carport.

19. A dual-tilt carport, comprising:
a casting;
a first brace and a second brace on a first side of the casting configured to support a first portion of a canopy; and
a third brace and a fourth brace on a second side of the casting configured to support a second portion of the canopy, wherein the first portion of the canopy is longer than the second portion of the canopy,
wherein one or more of the first brace and the third brace are configured to manage electrical cables, electrical cables disposed within the first brace extending from one or more of the first portion of the canopy and the second portion of the canopy through the first side of the casting, and electrical cables disposed within the third brace extending from one or more of the first portion of the canopy and the second portion of the canopy through the second side of the casting, and
one or more of the second brace and the fourth brace are configured to manage precipitation, a gutter system integrated into the first and second portion of the canopy directing precipitation to the second brace and the fourth brace, the second brace and the fourth brace directing the precipitation from the first and second portion of the canopy toward the casting.

20. The dual-tilt carport of claim 19 , wherein the first portion of the canopy is tilted at a first predetermined tilt angle and second portion of the canopy is tilted at a second predetermined tilt angle.

Assignees

• Sunpower Corp

Inventors

• Mckibben Nicholas J
• Kapla John
• Bapat Sushrut G
• Schulte Elizabeth
• Rossi Gary A
• Mansell Jeremy
• Wolf Andrew R

Classifications

• E04H6/025 Primary

  in the form of an overhead canopy, e.g. carports · CPC title

• H02S20/10

  Supporting structures directly fixed to the ground (H02S20/30 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H02S20/23

  specially adapted for roof structures · CPC title

• E04H6/42 Primary

  Devices or arrangements peculiar to garages, not covered elsewhere, e.g. securing devices, safety devices {, monitoring and operating schemes; centering devices} · CPC title

• E04H15/34

  Supporting means, e.g. frames · CPC title