Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a new and
improved construction of a solar radiation collector for
generating useful heat in a fluid medium, in particular a
liquid.
Generally speaking, the solar radiation
collector -- also referred to in the art as a solar collec-
tor -- of the present invention is of the type comprising a
substantially horizontal infeed or inflow line for the liquid
which cooperates with an outfeed or outflow line for the
heated liquid, the outfeed line being located essentially
parallel to the infeed line and at a higher elevation rela-
tive thereto. A heating device serves to heat the incoming
liquid and incorporates mutually spaced, radiation absorbing
tubes or pipes which interconnect the infeed and outfeed
lines or conduits. The tubes each have a lengthwise exten-
ding axis which coincides with the focusing axis of an
associated mirror or reflector which may be in the form of
a substantially parabolic cylindrical mirror. All of these
mirrors or reflectors are rotatably driven about their
focusing axis, so as to be able to focus at any time the
incident solar radiation upon the associated tube and to
thus convey the heated liquid in the form of a convection
flow into the outfeed line. The heating device is mounted
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as a unit within a hollow compartment which is closed at
all sides. The hollow compartment has a front wall struc-
tured as a window for the extensively uninterrupted through-
passage of the solar radiation, and its longitudinal and
transverse walls as well as its rear closure wall are
formed of thermally insulating material.
Equipment of this type is generally known,
for instance from a combination of the French patent appli-
cation 2,269,038, the German patent publication 231,294 and
United States patent 2,907,318. Yet, manufacture of such
equipment is however not optimally economical, since such
equipment construction does not fully exploit the possibi-
lity of optimally utilizing plastics and/or foam plastics.
In particular, the liquid lines or conduits and the therm-
ally insulating walls, are designed and installed indepen-
dently of one another.
SUL~MARY OF THE INVENTION
Hence, with the foregoing in mind, it is
a primary object of the present invention to provide an
improved solar radiation collector which is not associated
with the aforementioned drawbacks and limitations of the
prior art proposals.
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Another and more specific object of the
present invention aims at the provision of improved pre-
requisites for the fabrication and employment of such
equipment, particularly by virtue of the fact that the
liquid lines or conduits coact with the insulation walls
in a manner so as to ensure in an economical fashion the
requisite strength and rigidity of the equipment.
A further significant object of the present
invention aims at providing a new and improved construc-
tion of solar collector which is relatively simple indesign, extremely reliable in operation, economical to
manufacture, and requires a minimum of maintenance and
servicing.
Now in order to implement these and still
further objects of the invention, which will become more
readily apparent as the description proceeds, the solar
radiation collector of the present development is mani-
fested by the features that the infeed and outfeed lines
or conduits are embedded as supporting reinforcements or
reinforcement means in the longitudinal walls of the hol-
low compartment. These ]ongitudinal walls in conjunction
with the transverse walls which interconnect such longi-
tudinal walls form a self-supporting frame structure or
construction for the front side window and the rear side
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closure wall of the hollow compartment containing the
heating device.
It is preferable to blacken at least part
of the inner surface of the wallsof the hollow compartment,
so as to increase the internal temperature of the hollow
compartment due to absorption of the scattered radiation,
and to thereby provide good prerequisites for improving the
efficiency of the equipment.
According to a further embodiment of the
invention the rear closure wall of the hollow compartment
can consist of at least partially light pervious material,
so that during the day there is afforded a certain illumi-
nation of a room or area covered by the inventive solar
radiation collectors.
A particularly advantageous construction
of the inventive solar radiation collectors is realised
if there is employed as the thermally insulating material
for the walls of the hollow compartment so-called light
construction materials, typically for instance conventional
foam plastics, since such materials possess only a low
inherent strength and rigidity and thus can be reinforced
in a beneficial and sensible manner by the liquid lines or
conduits.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be better understood
and objects other than those set forth above will become
apparent when consideration is given to the following
detailed description thereof. Such description makes
reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view
of a basically conventional heating device with associated
liquid infeed and outfeed lines as well as heating tubes
and the therewith coacting mirrors or reflectors for
heating the liquid flowing through the tubes;
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view through
one of the longitudinal walls of the hollow compartment
which is reinforced by the outfeed line or conduit,
further showing the adjoining front and rear wall parts,
and in longitudinal section one of the tubes or pipes and
the associated mirror or reflector, and further illustra-
ting in a simplified manner the rotatable drive means for
such mirror;
Figure 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional
view through one of the tubes, the corresponding parts of
the front and the rear walls and an end view of an
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associated mirror, and also partially in section the drive
mechanism or drive means for such mirror.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Describing now the drawings, in Figure 1
there is schematically shown in perspective view the basi-
cally known main components of a solar radiation collector
employing a heating device 1. This solar collector will
be seen to comprise at a lower level a substantially hori-
zontal water infeed or inflow line or conduit 11 and
essentially parallel thereto at a higher level an outfeed
or outflow line or conduit 12 for the heated water.
Extending transversely with respect to the infeed line 11
and the outfeed line 12 are mutally spaced, radiation
absorbing tubes or pipes 13 which are located in a plane.
The lengthwise axes of these tubes 13 coincide with the
related focusing axis of an associated mirror or reflector
14 which advantageously is of substantially parabolic
cylindrical configuration. These mirrors 14, as is known
in this field of technology, can be rotated or moved so
as to follow the momentary position of the sun, so that
in the presence of sunlight each tube 13 is impinged by
the focused sunlight which falls upon the associated mirror
or reflector surface 14a. As a result, the liquid flowing
through the tubes or pipes 13 is heated and is conveyed as
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an ascending convection flow into the outfeed line 12.
Now in Figure 2 there is shown in side
sectional view a solar radiation collector as constructed
in accordance with the teachings of the present invention
and depicts one of the tubes 13 with its associated mirror
or reflector 14 mounted in a closed, for instance quadratic-
shaped hollow compartment 2. There is also shown in cross-
section the outfeed or outflow line 12 which is mounted in
the depicted longitudinal wall 23. At the other oppositely
situated longitudinal wall which is not visible in the
showing of Figure 2, there is mounted the infeed line 11.
Equally, it is to be appreciated that a plurality of such
mirrors 14 and associated tubes 13, like in the arrangement
of Figure 1, are installed in spaced relationship along the
length of the hollow compartment 2. At the side of the
hollow compartment 2 which faces towards the sun, there is
provided as the front wall a glass window 21 which, if
desired, also can be a double-glass window to improve the
insulation, and the rear wall 22 of such hollow compartment
2 consists of a thermally insulating rigid foam plate or
the like the inner surface of which is blackened,as gener-
ally indicated in Figure 2 by reference character 22a.
As also will be explained more fully hereinafter, the rear
wall 22 also could be formed of transparent or light pervious
material.
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Serving as the support structure for the
front side window 21 and the rear side closure wall 22 is
a self-supporting frame construction composed of the two
longitudinal or lengthwise extending walls 23 and two
transverse or end walls 24 which interconnect the longi-
tudinal walls 23. The longitudinal walls 23 and the
transverse walls 24 can be formed of, for instance, any
suitable heat insulating rigid foam material. Advantage-
ously, and as previously mentioned, the infeed line 11 and
the outfeed line 12 are embedded as supporting reinforce-
ments in the longitudinal walls 23. This has been shown
in Figure 2 for the outfeed line 12 of the visible longi-
tudinal wall 23, but as also explained previously at the
oppositely situated non-visible longitudinal wall 23 there
is embedded the infeed line or conduit 11, as generally
indicated also in Figure 3.
Continuing, Figure 2 further illustrates
an exemplary form of drive means for the mirrors or reflec-
tors 14 and there will be seen that at each tube or pipe
13 there is rotatably mounted a sprocket wheel or gear 31
by means of a hub support or bearing 32. Between this
hub or hub support 32 and an end wall 140 of the related
mirror 14, there is provided a suitable drive connection
33, so that by means of the sprocket gear 31 of each
related mirror 14 and which sprocket gears are operatively
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connected by a driving sprocket chain 310 (Figure 3) with
a not particularly illustrated but conventional positioning
or adjustment motor or other suitable drive motor, it is
possible to selectively adjust the position of each mirror
14 in accordance with the position of the migrating sun.
Now in Figure 3 there is shown in cross-
sectional view one of the tubes 13 with its associated mirror
or reflector 14, and the end wall 140 thereof is shown in
front view. Equally shown in front view is its associated
sprocket gear or wheel 31 and the drive chain 310 as well
as the associated hub 32. There is also indicated the
manner in which during the course of a day the depicted
mirror 14 is rocked out of the phantom line morning posi-
tion M through the full line noonday position into the
evening position A, and further, the manner in which the
rays S of the sun are focused by the mirror 14 onto the
related or coacting tube 13.
As previously mentioned the rear wall 22
also can be formed Gf any suitable transparent material,
in order to illuminate by means of the scattered light
during the day a room or area located below the solar
collector. As the light pervious and thermally insulating
material there can be employed practically all light per-
vious plastics, typically for instance acrylic glass or
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also so-called clear polyvinylchloride.
The depicted solar radiation collectors can
be constructed as easy to handle, portable roof elements
for buildings or other structures and having a total
height which is less than about 25-30 centimeters. It is
only necessary to periodically clean the outer surface of
the front window 21.
By appropriately selecting the degree of
blackening of the inner walls of the hollow compartment
2 and by determining the proportion of scattered light, it
is possible to extensively determine optimum efficiency
for a given condition.
