OFF-AXIS CASSEGRAIN SOLAR COLLECTOR

摘要

The disclosure generally relates to concentrating daylight collectors and in particular to concentrating daylight collectors useful for interior lighting of a building. The concentrating daylight collectors generally include a cassegrain-type concentrator section that provides for a full-tracking solar collector with one moving part and with a high efficiency of coupling of collected solar irradiation to a stationary duct. In some cases, the disclosed concentrating daylight collectors can be used more conventionally, such as for directing sunlight onto a photo-voltaic cell for generation of electrical power, or an absorbing surface for extraction of thermal energy.

主权项

1. A solar collector, comprising:
a parabolic reflector having a vertex, a parabolic focal point, and a first axis therebetween; and a hyperbolic reflector having a first focal point coincident with the parabolic focal point, a second focal point, and a second axis including the first and second focal points;wherein the first axis can be aligned at an elevation angle and an azimuth angle without movement of the second axis, such that solar radiation incident upon the parabolic reflector and reflecting from the hyperbolic reflector, propagates within an output collimation angle of the second axis.