A radiant energy concentrating or collimating system comprising an enclosure that shields its contents from environmental effects while allowing radiant energy to transmit through its top window; a plurality of energy concentrating or collimating assemblies, each on its own pivot mechanism and each
A radiant energy concentrating or collimating system comprising an enclosure that shields its contents from environmental effects while allowing radiant energy to transmit through its top window; a plurality of energy concentrating or collimating assemblies, each on its own pivot mechanism and each comprising a plurality of optics, a support structure and an energy conversion device that is mounted on a heat dissipating structure; a drive mechanism controlled by a microprocessor to rotate the said energy concentrating or collimating assemblies on two orthogonal axes in unison so the assemblies are oriented towards desired direction at any given time.
대표청구항▼
What is claimed is: 1. A high-efficiency solar energy skylight, comprising: a roof-mounted window having a glass portion and a frame, the window, the glass portion and the frame forming an enclosure that is disposed in a fixed position relative to a roof of a structure in which the roof-mounted win
What is claimed is: 1. A high-efficiency solar energy skylight, comprising: a roof-mounted window having a glass portion and a frame, the window, the glass portion and the frame forming an enclosure that is disposed in a fixed position relative to a roof of a structure in which the roof-mounted window is located; a plurality of concentrator assemblies disposed in an array within the enclosure, each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies comprising: a photovoltaic chip; an optics for concentrating a solar energy onto the photovoltaic chip; a base for supporting the optics and the photovoltaic chip, the base including a base plate for positioning the photovoltaic chip in the path of the concentrated solar energy from the optics; a bottom joint pivotally attached to a lower portion of the concentrator assembly; and an upper joint pivotally attached to an upper portion of the concentrator assembly; a two-axis tracking mechanism disposed within the enclosure, the tracking mechanism including a lead frame connected to the upper joint of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies and an axle connected to the bottom joint of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies, the tracking mechanism movable in a first direction and a second direction to provide an x-axis of rotation and a y-axis of rotation for each concentrator assembly among the array, the tracking mechanism functions to provide a concerted movement of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in the array, the concerted movement of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in the array configured to maximize the solar energy collected by moving the optics of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in a range of up to 180° in the x-axis of rotation and at least 47° in the y-axis of rotation; and a heat extraction system to collect and convert an unused solar energy from heat into a useful energy, wherein the heat extraction system comprises a heat exchanger, a heat extraction line operably attached to the heat exchanger and a base plate of one of the concentrator assemblies, and a coolant in fluid communication with the base plate and the heat exchanger to transport heat from the base plate to the heat exchanger through the heat extraction line as the useful energy; wherein the solar energy skylight is sized and configured to allow part of incident light entering the skylight to be used for energy production and part of the incident light entering the skylight for illumination of an interior portion of the structure. 2. The skylight of claim 1, wherein each solar concentrator assembly among the array comprises a maximum focal length between the optics and the photovoltaic chip is about 0.86 w−hc, where w is the width of the optics, and hc is the distance between the photovoltaic chip and the bottom joint. 3. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the tracking mechanism operates on time-based tracking and an optical sensor for calibration and recalibration of the time-based tracking. 4. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the tracking mechanism operates on time-based tracking and an optical sensor for calibration of the time-based tracking, wherein the tracking system is controlled remotely from a controller box, and the optical sensor functions as a backup tracking control upon a failure of the time-based tracking mechanism and/or remote control. 5. The skylight of claim 1, further comprising a support structure for tilting the skylight in position relative to the roof. 6. The skylight of claim 1, wherein a gap, g, exists between the concentrator assembly optics of adjacent concentrator assemblies in the array to minimize a shadow effect in the array during the tracking and maximize energy converted by the skylight; and wherein the maximum focal length between the optics and the photovoltaic chip is 0.86 w−hc+g. 7. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the concentrator assemblies are aligned in a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns within the enclosure. 8. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the enclosure protects the plurality of concentrator assemblies and the tracking mechanism during use because the concentrator assemblies and tracking mechanism are disposed within the enclosure. 9. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the height of the enclosure is less than 0.3 meters. 10. The skylight of claim 1, wherein the interior of the enclosure has a preselected color that adds a desired color to the system when carried back through the transparent top cover in the form of diffused light. 11. A skylight for a radiant energy conversion system, the skylight comprising: an enclosure mounted in a fixed position relative to a structure, the enclosure including a top window that allows incident light to pass through; a plurality of concentrator assemblies disposed within the enclosure, the plurality of concentrator assemblies disposed in an array, each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies rotatable in a first direction and in a second generally orthogonal direction within the enclosure, each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies comprising: optics for concentrating solar energy; a photovoltaic chip; an upper pivot connector connected to an upper portion of the concentrator assembly; and a lower pivot connector connected to a lower portion of the concentrator assembly; and a tracking mechanism disposed within the enclosure for moving each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in the first direction and in the second direction, the tracking mechanism comprising: a lead frame connected to the upper pivot connector of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies to rotate the concentrator assemblies in the first direction; and an axle connected to the lower pivot connector of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies to rotate the concentrator assemblies in the second direction; wherein the skylight is sized and configured to allow part of the incident light to be used for energy production and part of the incident light to be used for illumination of an interior portion of the structure. 12. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the upper pivot connector of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies comprises a side joint and a side pivot disposed along a side of the concentrator assembly. 13. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the lower pivot connector of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies comprises a bottom joint and a bottom pivot connected to a lower portion of the concentrator assembly. 14. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein when the tracking mechanism moves in a y-direction, each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies rotates about an x-axis. 15. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein when the tracking mechanism moves in an x-direction, each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies rotate about the lower pivot connector. 16. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the tracking mechanism moves each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in unison. 17. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein a gap is disposed between adjacent concentrator assemblies of the plurality of concentrator assemblies to allow each concentrator assembly to rotate in the first direction and in the second direction; and wherein the gap between adjacent concentrator assemblies of the plurality of concentrator assemblies is sized and configured to maximize energy production. 18. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the enclosure encapsulates the concentrator assemblies and the tracking mechanism to shield the contents from the environment. 19. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the enclosure is mounted in a fixed position relative to a skylight in a roof of the structure and the enclosure does not move relative to the roof. 20. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the enclosure forms at least a portion of a skylight in a roof of the structure and the enclosure does not move relative to the roof. 21. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein a portion of the light passing through the top window of the enclosure passes through the concentrator assemblies and provides light to the interior portion of the structure. 22. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein a portion of the light passing through the top window of the enclosure passes through the concentrator assemblies and provides indirect light to the interior portion of the structure. 23. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the tracking mechanism simultaneously moves each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies in the array. 24. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the optics of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies comprises a primary concentrator and a primary reflector. 25. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the upper pivot connector comprises a pivot point disposed at least proximate a top center location of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies and a pivot arm connected to each pivot point. 26. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the enclosure is sealed and a filter allows an internal pressure to balance with an external pressure while filtering out particulates and moisture. 27. The skylight as in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of rods connecting the lead frame and the tracking mechanism. 28. The skylight as in claim 11, further comprising a support connected to the axle, the support allowing rotational movement of the axle. 29. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein a size of the gap between adjacent concentrator assemblies of the plurality of concentrator assemblies is minimized in the first direction and in the second direction to maximize power output of the radiant energy conversion system. 30. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the tracking mechanism provides integrated movement of the concentrator assemblies in the first direction and in the second direction. 31. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the size of the gap between adjacent concentrator assemblies of the plurality of concentrator assemblies is sized and configured to maximize the light entering the optics of each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies. 32. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein each concentrator assembly of the plurality of concentrator assemblies are disposed in a generally planar array. 33. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the radiant energy conversion system simultaneously forms a skylight for the structure and generates energy. 34. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the plurality of concentrator assemblies are sealed within the enclosure. 35. The skylight as in claim 11, wherein the gap between adjacent concentrator assemblies in the array is sized and configured to maximize capturing of light entering the enclosure.
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