Systems and Methods for Remote or Local Shut-off of a Photovoltaic System

• US 20200136391A1
• Filed: 12/27/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tigo Energy, Inc
• Original Assignee: Tigo Energy, Inc
• Inventors: Makhota, Maxym, Eizips, Daniel, Kikinis, Dan
• Granted Patent: US 11,081,889 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 9/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0736 in functional embedded systems, i.e. in a data processing system designed as a combination of hardware and software dedicated to performing a certain function testing or monitoring of automated control systems G05B23/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0757 by exceeding a time limit, i.e. time-out, e.g. watchdogs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/0793 Remedial or corrective actions recovery from an exception in an instruction pipeline G06F9/3861; by retry G06F11/1402; for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/02021 for solar cells electrical connection means, e.g. junction boxes, specially adapted for structural association with photovoltaic modules H02S40/34
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/38 Arrangements for parallely feeding a single network by two or more generators, converters or transformers
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 7/44 by static converters
• CPC Class Codes: H02S 40/30 Electrical components
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 Photovoltaic [PV] energy
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/56 Power conversion systems, e.g. maximum power point trackers

Abstract

Systems and methods for shut-down of a photovoltaic system. In one embodiment, a method implemented in a computer system includes: communicating, via a central controller, with a plurality of local management units (LMUs), each of the LMUs coupled to control a respective solar module; receiving, via the central controller, a shut-down signal from a user device (e.g., a hand-held device, a computer, or a wireless switch unit); and in response to receiving the shut-down signal, shutting down operation of the respective solar module for each of the LMUs.

Claims

1. A solar module, comprising:

a photovoltaic panel having an output;

a local management unit connected to the photovoltaic panel to receive the output as input, the local management unit having;

a communication module to receive communications from a remote unit;

a controller;

a first circuit path to provide power from the output of the photovoltaic panel to the controller in absence of time out in the communications; and

a second circuit path to provide power from the output of the photovoltaic panel to the controller in response to an instance of time out in the communication;

wherein in response to the instance of time out in the communication, the controller causes the local management unit to shut down outputting power from the photovoltaic panel.

2. The solar module of claim 1, wherein the communication includes heartbeat signals from a central controller.

3. The solar module of claim 2, wherein the communication module is configured to receive the heartbeat signals via a wireless communication channel.

4. The solar module of claim 2, wherein the communication module is configured to receive the heartbeat signals via wiring connected to output terminals of the local management unit.

5. The solar module of claim 4, wherein the local management unit includes a power converter configured to convert the input to an output on the output terminals of the local management unit.