| Patent application number | Description | Published |
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| 20100221375 | Extrusion/Dispensing Systems And Methods - A device for extruding/dispensing materials on a substrate includes a housing with at least two channels formed to facilitate flow. The housing includes entrance ports for each of the channels for receiving different materials. The housing further includes an exit port for co-extruding the materials on the substrate to generate a relatively fine feature with a relatively high aspect ratio. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100221434 | Micro-Extrusion System With Airjet Assisted Bead Deflection - A gas jet source is used in conjunction with a micro-extrusion printhead assembly in a micro-extrusion system to bias extruded material onto a target substrate. The micro-extrusion system includes a material feed system for pushing/drawing materials out of extrusion nozzles defined in the printhead assembly as the printhead assembly is moved over the substrate. The gas jet source is positioned near the nozzle outlets, and directs a gas jet against the extruded material as it exits the extrusion nozzles such that the extruded material is reliably directed (biased) toward the target substrate. In some embodiments the gas jet causes slumping (flattening) of the extruded material against the substrate, producing low aspect ratio lines that may be merged to form a connected structure. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100221435 | Micro-Extrusion System With Airjet Assisted Bead Deflection - A air jet source is used in conjunction with a micro-extrusion printhead assembly in a micro-extrusion system to bias extruded material onto a target substrate. The printhead assembly utilizes paste valves or other feed system to push/draw an extrusion material through dispensing orifices defined on an extrusion needle, nozzle or stacked plate printhead as the printhead assembly is moved over the substrate. The air jet source is positioned near the dispensing outlets, and directs a gas jet against the extruded material such that the extruded material is reliably biased against the target substrate. Multiple dispensing orifices are defined in a paste dispensing needle to improve starts and stops, as well as improving overall ink distribution. Two independently activated air sources and multiple air jet outlets are utilized to improve control over the quality of bus bars formed by the extruded material. | 09-02-2010 |
| 20100252104 | Solar Cell With High Aspect Ratio Gridlines Supported Between Co-Extruded Support Structures - A solar cell structure formed by extruding/dispensing materials on a substrate such that centrally disposed conductive high aspect ratio line structures (gridlines) are formed on the substrate surface with localized support structures coincidentally disposed on opposing side surfaces of the gridlines such that the gridlines are surrounded or otherwise supported by the localized support structures. In one embodiment the localized support structures are transparent, remain on the substrate after the co-extrusion process, and are covered by a layer of material. In another embodiment, the localized support structures are sacrificial support structures that are removed as part of the solar cell structure manufacturing process. In both cases the co-extrusion process is performed such that both the central gridline and the localized support structures are in direct contact with the surface of the substrate. | 10-07-2010 |
| 20100252105 | Cell Structure With High Aspect Ratio Gridlines - A cell structure (e.g., a battery or solar cell) is formed by extruding/dispensing materials on a substrate such that centrally disposed conductive high aspect ratio line structures (gridlines) are formed on the substrate surface such that each gridline has an aspect ratio greater than 2:1. Each gridline is formed with localized support structures coincidentally disposed on opposing side surfaces of the gridlines such that the gridlines are surrounded or otherwise supported by the localized support structures. The localized support structures are sacrificial in the sense that they are removed as part of the solar cell structure manufacturing process (e.g., after subsequent processing hardens the gridline material). In one embodiment each gridline has a width in the range of 100 nanometers to 100 microns. The co-extrusion process is performed such that both the central gridline and the localized support structures are in direct contact with the surface of the substrate. | 10-07-2010 |
| 20100319761 | Solar Cell With Structured Gridline Endpoints Vertices - An H-pattern solar cell structure includes at least one busbar disposed in a first direction on an upper surface of a semiconductor substrate, and parallel gridlines formed on the semiconductor substrate such that each gridline extends over and contacts each busbar, wherein each gridline includes a central gridline portion and at least one endpoint structure disposed on at least one end thereof, the endpoint structure having a nominal width that is at least 1.5 times the width of the central gridline portion. The gridlines are co-extruded with a sacrificial material such that a base portion of each gridline forms a flattened structure with sacrificial material formed thereon. The endpoint structures are formed such that Each central gridline portion forms a raised vertex portion extending upward from the upper surface of each busbar. | 12-23-2010 |
| 20110023961 | Melt Planarization Of Solar Cell Bus Bars - Solar cells include bus bars and high aspect-ratio gridlines that are printed on a substrate, and localized melting is induced to slump or flatten the gridline “vertex” portions that are disposed on the bus bars, while maintaining the high aspect-ratio of gridlines portions disposed on the substrate between the bus bars. The localized melting process is induced using one of several disclosed methods, such as rheological melting in which the two printed inks produce a compound that is relatively liquid. Localized melting is also induced using a deliquescing material (e.g., a flux or a solvent film) that is applied to the bus bar or gridline material. Also, eutectic melting is induced using a processing temperature that is between a melting point of the combined gridline/bus bar inks and the individual melting points of the inks alone. Laser-based melting and the use of copolymers is also disclosed. | 02-03-2011 |
| 20110031211 | Metal Trace Fabrication For Optical Element - A system may include an optical element including a surface defining a recess, conductive material disposed within the recess, and a solder mask disposed over a portion of the conductive material. The solder mask may define an aperture through which light from the optical element may pass. Some aspects provide creation of an optical element including a surface defining a recess, deposition of conductive material on the surface such that a portion of the deposited conductive material is disposed within the recess, and substantial planarization of the surface to expose the portion of the conductive material disposed within the recess. | 02-10-2011 |
| 20110061718 | Passively Cooled Solar Concentrating Photovoltaic Device - A Cassegrain-type concentrating solar collector cell includes primary and secondary mirrors disposed on opposing convex and concave surfaces of a light-transparent (e.g., glass) optical element. Light enters an aperture surface surrounding the secondary mirror, and is reflected by the primary mirror toward the secondary mirror, which re-reflects the light onto a photovoltaic cell. The photovoltaic cell is mounted on a central portion of heat spreader that extends over the primary mirror. The heat spreader transmits waste heat from the photovoltaic cell in a manner that evenly distributes the heat over the optical element, thereby maximizing the radiation of heat from the aperture surface into space. The heat spreader includes a thick copper layer formed on a flexible substrate (e.g., polyimide film) that is patterned with radial arms that facilitate mounting onto the convex surface of the optical element. | 03-17-2011 |
| 20110062622 | Extruded Structure With Equilibrium Shape - An extrusion head is disposed over a substrate, and material is extruded through an oblique (e.g., semi-circular or tapered) outlet orifice of the extrusion head to form an associated extruded structure having an equilibrium shape that resists settling after being deposited on the substrate. The extrusion head includes fluidic channels having a flat surface formed by a flat first (e.g., metal) sheet, and an oblique (e.g., substantially semi-cylindrical) surface formed by elongated oblique trenches that are etched or otherwise formed in a second sheet. The fluidic channel communicates with the outlet orifice, which has a flat edge formed by the first sheet, and an oblique edge formed by an end of the oblique trench. The material is extruded through the outlet orifice such that its flat lower surface contacts the substrate, and its oblique upper surface faces away from the substrate. Two materials are co-extruded to form high aspect-ratio gridlines. | 03-17-2011 |
| 20110111076 | Solar Cell Fabrication Using Extruded Dopant-Bearing Materials - Wafer-based solar cells are efficiently produced by extruding a dopant bearing material (dopant ink) onto one or more predetermined surface areas of a semiconductor wafer, and then thermally treating the wafer to cause diffusion of dopant from the dopant ink into the wafer to form corresponding doped regions. A multi-plenum extrusion head is used to simultaneously extrude interdigitated dopant ink structures having two different dopant types (e.g., n-type dopant ink and p-type dopant ink) in a self-registered arrangement on the wafer surface. The extrusion head is fabricated by laminating multiple sheets of micro-machined silicon that define one or more ink flow passages. A non-doping or lightly doped ink is co-extruded with heavy doped ink to serve as a spacer or barrier, and optionally forms a cap that entirely covers the heavy doped ink. A hybrid thermal treatment utilizes a gaseous dopant to simultaneously dope exposed portions of the wafer. | 05-12-2011 |
| 20110290296 | FLEXIBLE TILED PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULE - A flexible photovoltaic module has a flexible substrate having integrated electrically conductive portions, an array of functional tiles on the substrate, wherein the functional tiles include solar cell tiles, the functional tiles being separated by a spacing which determines the bending radius of the module, the tiles at least partially in electrical contact with the electrically conductive portions, the solar tiles electrically connected in one of either electrical series or parallel configuration to produce an electrical power output. A method of manufacturing flexible, photovoltaic modules, includes manufacturing at least one functional material, forming the functional material into functional tiles, mounting the functional tiles onto a flexible substrate into an array of functional tiles with spacing between the tiles, the spacing selected to provide flexibility, and forming circuitry on the flexible substrate to electrically connect the functional tiles to one of either input/output circuitry or other tiles. | 12-01-2011 |
| 20120132255 | Solar Energy Harvesting Device Using Stimuli-Responsive Material - A solar energy harvesting system including a sunlight concentrating member (e.g., a lens array) for focusing direct sunlight at predetermined focal points inside a waveguide containing a stimuli-responsive material (SRM) that is evenly distributed throughout the waveguide material such that the SRM assumes a relatively high transparency state away from the focused sunlight, and small light-scattering portions of the SRM change to a relatively opaque (light scattering) state only in focal zone regions adjacent to the concentrated sunlight. The outer waveguide surfaces are locally parallel (e.g., planar) and formed such that sunlight scattered by the light-scattering SRM portions is transmitted by total internal reflection through the remaining transparent waveguide material, and outcoupled to one or more solar energy receivers (e.g., PV cells) that are disposed outside the waveguide (e.g., along the peripheral edge). | 05-31-2012 |
| 20120153211 | INTERDIGITATED ELECTRODE DEVICE - An electrode structure has a layer of at least two interdigitated materials, a first material being an electrically conductive material and a second material being an ionically conductive material, the materials residing co-planarly on a membrane in fluid form, at least one of the interdigitated materials forming a feature having an aspect ratio greater than one. A method of forming an electrode structure includes merging flows of an electrically conductive material and a second material in a first direction into a first combined flow, dividing the first combined flow in a second direction to produce at least two separate flows, each separate flow including flows of the electrically conductive material and the second material, merging the two separate flows into a second combined flow, repeating the merging and dividing flow as desired to produce a final combined flow, and depositing the final combined flow as an interdigitated structure in fluid form onto a substrate such that at least one of the materials forms a feature in the structure having an aspect ratio greater than one. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120156364 | INTERDIGITATED FINGER COEXTRUSION - A co-extrusion device has at least one first inlet port to receive a first material, at least one second inlet port to receive a second material, a first combining channel arranged to receive the first material and the second material and combine the first and second materials into a first combined flow flowing in a first direction. a splitter channel arranged to receive the first combined flow and to split the first combined flow into at least two split flows in a second direction at least partially orthogonal to the first direction, wherein each split flow consists of the first and second materials, and a second combining channel arranged to receive the split flows and combine the split flows into a second combined flow in the first direction, and at least one exit orifice arranged to allow the materials to exit the device as a single flow. A method for depositing a structure comprising interdigitated materials includes merging flows of at least two materials in a first direction into a first combined flow, dividing the first combined flow in a second direction to produce at least two separate flows, wherein the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction, and merging the two separate flows into a second combined flow. | 06-21-2012 |
| 20120193023 | OBLIQUE ANGLE MICROMACHINING OF FLUIDIC STRUCTURES - An extrusion device has a stack of at least two layers, the stack including an outlet, an inlet for a first material, and a feed channel for the first material arranged to fluidically connect to the inlet for the first material, the feed channel having a sloped end. A method of manufacturing an extrusion device includes forming an outlet, an inlet for a first material and a feed channel for the first material having a sloped end in a stack of layers, aligning the stack of layers to fluidically connect the feed channel for the first material with the inlet for the first material and to fluidically connect the inlet for the first material with the outlet, and bonding the layers together. | 08-02-2012 |
| 20120305405 | Metal Trace Fabrication For Optical Element - A system may include an optical element including a surface defining a recess, conductive material disposed within the recess, and a solder mask disposed over a portion of the conductive material. The solder mask may define an aperture through which light from the optical element may pass. Some aspects provide creation of an optical element including a surface defining a recess, deposition of conductive material on the surface such that a portion of the deposited conductive material is disposed within the recess, and substantial planarization of the surface to expose the portion of the conductive material disposed within the recess. | 12-06-2012 |
| 20120310444 | Installing Terranean-Based Systems - A mobile system includes a vehicle operable to traverse a terranean surface; one or more installers mounted to the vehicle, each installer configured to move in at least two degrees of freedom relative to the terranean surface and install one or more system components; a power module coupled to the one or more installers, the power module configured to provide operating power to the one or more installers; and a computer module. The computer module includes a memory and one or more processors operable to execute a component installation module. The component installation module is operable to direct the vehicle to a plurality of locations on the terranean surface; and direct an operation of the one or more installers to install at least one system component at one of the plurality of locations. | 12-06-2012 |
| 20130003205 | HELIOSTAT MIRROR WITH SUPPORTING RIB STRUCTURE - A mirror module including one or more rib elements made of the same materials as a rear plate and/or front plate. The rib elements are placed between the rear glass plate and the front glass plate to afford rigidity to the mirror module. Since the rib elements are made of the same materials as the rear plate and/or front plate, the rib elements have the same or similar coefficients of thermal expansion as the rear plate or the front plate. Consequently, when the mirror module is subject to temperature fluctuation, the rib elements exert less stress on the glass plates compared to structure elements made of the materials different from the rear or front glass plate. The rib elements may also be integrated with the rear plate to simplify the process for manufacturing the mirror module. | 01-03-2013 |
| 20130019447 | TUBE CONNECTOR WITH SLIP RINGS - The subject matter of this specification can be embodied in, among other things, a method that includes a T-shaped tubular connection that includes a first member with a first fluid passageway disposed in a first direction, a shoulder boss disposed on the first member, and a tubular member disposed on the boss. A second fluid passageway is disposed through the tubular member and through the boss in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and is fluidly connected to the first fluid passageway of the first member. The connection also includes a second member having a third passageway with a cylindrical bore located at a proximal end of the third passageway, the cylindrical bore being adapted to be received on the outer cylindrical surface of the first tubular member, and at least two ring seals adapted to be received in the at least two ring seal grooves. | 01-24-2013 |
