SOLAR CELL (SLIVER) SUB-MODULE FORMATION

• Main Authors: EVERETT, VERNIE, ALLAN, BLAKERS, ANDREW, WILLIAM
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 28.12.2011
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CONVEYING; CUTTING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; DETAILS COMMON TO MACHINES FOR PERFORATING, PUNCHING,CUTTING-OUT, STAMPING-OUT OR SEVERING; ELECTRIC SOLID STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; HAND CUTTING TOOLS; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS,CABLES; INFORMATION STORAGE; INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORDCARRIER AND TRANSDUCER; MACHINE TOOLS; METAL-WORKING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PACKING; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICS; PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS; SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; SEVERING; SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS; SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; STORING; TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING ORTIPPING; TRANSPORTING; WELDING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM

A solar cell sub-module (100) for a photovoltaic device, including a plurality of elongate solar cells (slivers) (101) mounted in a structure that maintains the elongate solar cells in a longitudinally parallel and generally coplanar configuration, the structure providing one or more conductive pathways (201) electrically interconnecting the elongate solar cells (101). Also claimed are inventions related to releasing elongate substrate from a wafer frame; providing a plurality of mutually spaced elongate storage bins with a particular spacing; dispensing elongate solar cells into an alignment jig and attaching the cells to a substrate; engaging a length of electrical interconnect with a n engagement tool having spaced engagement sections and applying a cutting tool; forming an electrical connection in a photovoltaic module with a conductor defining an indirect path between locations to compensate for thermal expansion; maintaining the solar cell orientation of sliver solar cells when releasing them from a wafer frame; engaging only opposing faces of elongate substrates, interconnected by a wafer frame, when releasing them; storing elongate substrate in a stacked configuration with a translation mechanism.