Low profile power conversion system for rooftop photovoltaic power systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9887627-B2
Application number	US-201113698737-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 27, 2011
Priority date	Jun 1, 2010
Publication date	Feb 6, 2018
Grant date	Feb 6, 2018

Abstract

The disclosed embodiments and principles provide a way to integrate high-efficiency, low-profile power electronics with localized maximum power point tracking (MPPT) into a rooftop shingle-based photovoltaic power system. DC-DC power converters having a height, or profile, as low as ¼ inch for a 200 W power output, are able to be included in a building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) roof shingle. The DC-DC power converters increase the relatively low voltage produced by two rows of series-connected photovoltaic shingles, each including photovoltaic cells, to a high voltage used by a DC-AC inverter. For example, DC-DC power converter increases the voltage produced by two rows of series-connected photovoltaic shingles from several tens of volts to approximately 400 volts. Thus, the DC-DC power converters provide a large voltage step-up using a low profile and with very high efficiency.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A photovoltaic power generation system comprising:
a first set of photovoltaic shingles connected in series and configured to generate a first DC voltage at its output, each photovoltaic shingle including one or more photovoltaic cells;
a first DC-DC converter coupled to the output of the first set of photovoltaic shingles, the first DC-DC converter configured to receive the first DC voltage and generate a first output DC voltage;
a second set of photovoltaic shingles connected in series and configured to generate a second DC voltage at its output, each photovoltaic shingle including one or more photovoltaic cells;
a second DC-DC converter coupled to the output of the second set of photovoltaic shingles, the second DC-DC converter configured to receive the second DC voltage and generate a second output DC voltage;
wherein the outputs of the first DC-DC converter and the second DC-DC converter are coupled in parallel to a DC bus,
wherein the first DC-DC converter is integrated into a roof shingle and comprises a planar matrix transformer comprising a plurality of low profile planar magnetic cores connected in a series-parallel arrangement, and
wherein a thickness of the first DC-DC converter is no greater than ⅜ inch.

2. A DC-DC converter coupled to an output of a first set of photovoltaic shingles that are connected in series, the DC-DC converter comprising:
a converter configured to receive a first DC voltage from the output of the first set of photovoltaic shingles and generate an intermediate DC voltage;
a dc transformer configured to receive the intermediate DC voltage from the converter output a second DC voltage, the dc transformer including:
a transformer including a primary winding and a secondary winding;
switching circuitry coupled between the output of the converter and the primary winding of the transformer, the switching circuitry configured to convert the intermediate DC voltage to a first AC voltage at the primary winding of the transformer; and
circuitry coupled between the secondary winding and a DC bus and configured to convert a second AC voltage across the secondary winding to the second DC voltage at the bus,

wherein the transformer comprises a planar matrix transformer comprising multiple low profile planar magnetic cores connected in a series-parallel arrangement and wherein a thickness of the DC-DC converter is no greater than ⅜ inch and the DC-DC converter is integrated into a roof shingle.

3. A photovoltaic power generation system comprising:
a first set of photovoltaic shingles connected in series and configured to generate a first DC voltage at its output, each photovoltaic shingle including one or more photovoltaic cells;
a first DC-DC converter coupled to the output of the first set of photovoltaic shingles, the first DC-DC converter configured to receive the first DC voltage and generate a first output DC voltage;
a second set of photovoltaic shingles connected in series and configured to generate a second DC voltage at its output, each photovoltaic shingle including one or more photovoltaic cells;
a second DC-DC converter coupled to the output of the second set of photovoltaic shingles, the second DC-DC converter configured to receive the second DC voltage and generate a second output DC voltage;
wherein the outputs of the first DC-DC converter and the second DC-DC converter are coupled in series to a DC bus,
wherein the first DC-DC converter is integrated into a roof shingle and comprises a planar matrix transformer comprising a plurality of low profile planar magnetic cores connected in a series-parallel arrangement; and
wherein a thickness of the first DC-DC converter is no greater than ⅜ inch.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein a profile of the roof shingle is no greater than ⅜ inch.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the roof shingle further comprises one or more embedded photovoltaic cells.

6. The system of claim 3 , wherein a profile of the roof shingle is no greater than ⅜ inch.

7. The system of claim 3 , wherein the roof shingle further comprises one or more embedded photovoltaic cells.

Assignees

• Erickson Jr Robert Warren
• Pisklak Stephen
• Plum Timothy
• Univ Colorado Regents
• Dow Global Technologies Llc

Inventors

• Erickson Jr Robert Warren
• Pisklak Stephen
• Plum Timothy

Classifications

• H02M3/1582 Primary

  Buck-boost converters (H02M3/1584 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H02M7/003

  Constructional details, e.g. physical layout, assembly, wiring or busbar connections · CPC title

• H02J1/102

  being switching converters (H02J1/108, H02J1/12 take precedence) · CPC title

• H02S20/25

  Roof tile elements · CPC title

• H02J2101/24

  Photovoltaics · CPC title