IP Library › Granted Patent US 8,186,100
Granted Patent B2
US 8,186,100 · App. 12/505,523 · Granted May 29, 2012

Photovoltaic greenhouse structure

Assignee: Lite-On Green Technologies, Inc.
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,186,100
App. No.
12/505,523
Granted
May 29, 2012
Kind
B2
Abstract

A photovoltaic greenhouse includes a house structure having upstanding walls and a roof thereover to enclose a greenhouse space therein, and at least one thin-film solar cell module mounted on the roof for converting solar energy within a pre-selected light band of sunlight into electricity, wherein light not absorbed by the thin-film solar cell module passes through and enters the greenhouse space, which can be utilized by plants or crops for photosynthesis. The thin-film solar cell module has high transmittance of light in the wavelength intervals, for example, 400-450 nm and 640-700 nm, required by the cultured plants or crops inside the greenhouse space for photosynthesis.

Claims (15)

1. A photovoltaic greenhouse comprising:

a main greenhouse frame structure comprising a plurality of upstanding walls and a roof supported by said upstanding walls;

at least one thin-film solar cell module mounted on said roof for converting solar energy by selectively absorbing a pre-selected light band of sunlight into electricity, wherein said solar energy which is selectively absorbed by said at least one thin-film solar cell module comprises a light band of sunlight to facilitate photosynthesis by a given plant; and

at least one transparent panel disposed on said roof for supplementing light, for uniform distribution of light and sufficient distribution of light;

wherein said thin-film solar cell module is disposed between said transparent panels.

2. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 1 , wherein said thin-film solar cell module is selected from a group consisting of an amorphous silicon thin-film solar cell module, a microcrystalline silicon thin-film solar cell module and a nano-crystalline silicon thin-film solar cell module.

3. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 1 , wherein said pre-selected light band of sunlight is between 450-640 nm.

4. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 1 , wherein said upstanding walls are made of a material selected from a group consisting of a transparent material and an opaque material.

5. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 1 , further comprising:

a filter disposed under said thin-film solar cell module to make said thin-film solar cell module be light-band selective.

6. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 5 , wherein said filter filters UV light only allows a suitable light band for photosynthesis to passes through.

7. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 6 , wherein said thin-film solar cell module is parallel with a power grid equipped with an inverter and with a converter by at least one suitable step.

8. The photovoltaic greenhouse of claim 1 , further comprising:

a snow detector, for detecting an accumulated snow on the on the thin-film solar cell or the roof; and

a de-snow mechanism, for cleaning snow on the thin-film solar cell or the roof and activated by the snow detector.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jul 19, 2009
From: CHUANG, MEI-CHEN; CHUNG, CHENG
To: LITE-ON GREEN TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
Reel/Frame 022974/0834 →
Priority Claims (1)
TW 98108827 A · Mar 18, 2009 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20100236164A1 · Sep 23, 2010