INCREASING THE ANGULAR RANGE OF LIGHT COLLECTION IN SOLAR COLLECTORS/CONCENTRATORS
First Claim
1. A light collecting device comprising:
- a light guide having top and bottom surfaces, said light guide guiding light therein by multiple total internal reflections at said top and bottom surfaces;
a plurality of diffractive features disposed to receive light at a first angle with respect to the normal to the top surface of said light guide; and
a plurality of prismatic features disposed rearward of the plurality of diffractive features,wherein said diffractive features are configured to redirect said light at a second angle towards the plurality of prismatic features,wherein said second angle is more normal than the first angle, andwherein said plurality of prismatic features are configured to turn the light redirected by the diffractive features such that said light is guided in the light guide by total internal reflection from said top and bottom surfaces of the light guide.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In various embodiments described herein, a device comprises an angle turning layer disposed over a light guiding layer that is optically coupled to a photocell. A plurality of surface features is formed on one of the surfaces of the light guiding layer. The surface features can comprise facets that are angled with respect to each other. The angle turning layer can comprise diffractive features that are volume features or surface-relief features. Light incident on the angle turning layer at a first angle is turned towards the light guiding layer at a second angle and subsequently redirected at a third angle by the surface features of the light guiding layer and guided through the light guide by multiple total internal reflections. The guided light is directed towards a photocell.
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Citations
69 Claims
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1. A light collecting device comprising:
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a light guide having top and bottom surfaces, said light guide guiding light therein by multiple total internal reflections at said top and bottom surfaces; a plurality of diffractive features disposed to receive light at a first angle with respect to the normal to the top surface of said light guide; and a plurality of prismatic features disposed rearward of the plurality of diffractive features, wherein said diffractive features are configured to redirect said light at a second angle towards the plurality of prismatic features, wherein said second angle is more normal than the first angle, and wherein said plurality of prismatic features are configured to turn the light redirected by the diffractive features such that said light is guided in the light guide by total internal reflection from said top and bottom surfaces of the light guide. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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61. A light collecting device comprising:
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a means for guiding light, said light guiding means having top and bottom surfaces, said light guiding means configured to guide light therein by multiple total internal reflections at said top and bottom surfaces; a plurality of means for diffracting light, said light diffracting means disposed to receive light at a first angle with respect to the normal to the top surface of said light guiding means; and a plurality of means for turning light, said light turning means disposed rearward of the plurality of diffracting means, wherein said plurality of diffracting means are configured to redirect said light at a second angle towards the plurality of light turning means, wherein said second angle is more normal than the first angle, and wherein said plurality of light turning means are configured to turn the light redirected by the diffracting means such that said light is guided in the light guiding means by total internal reflection from said top and bottom surfaces of the light guiding means. - View Dependent Claims (62)
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63. A method of manufacturing a light collecting device, the method comprising:
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providing a light guide having top and bottom surfaces, said light guide configured to guide light therein by multiple total internal reflections at said top and bottom surfaces; providing a plurality of diffractive features, said plurality of diffractive features configured to receive light at a first angle with respect to the normal to the top surface of the light guide; and providing a plurality of prismatic features, said plurality of prismatic features disposed rearward of the plurality of diffractive features, wherein said plurality of diffractive features are configured to redirect said light at a second angle towards the plurality of prismatic features, wherein said second angle is more normal than the first angle, and wherein said plurality of prismatic features are configured to turn the light redirected by the diffractive features such that said light is guided in the light guide by total internal reflection from said top and bottom surfaces of the light guide. - View Dependent Claims (64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69)
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Specification