PORTABLE SOLAR INC — Department of Energy SBIR Phase I: C56-15f

Description

Residential solar photovoltaic systems are either rooftop (~98%) or ground-mount (~2%) and are almost always installed by solar installation companies. Current installation methods create end-user pricing disparities in which 2-3 kilowatt systems can cost 20% to 45% more on a dollar/watt basis than 7-8 kilowatt systems. This price premium falls disproportionately on low and moderate income households. The structural inability of solar companies to provide attractively priced solar for “small jobs” has inhibited photovoltaic penetration in underserved communities.Proposed solution creates a third installation method: a photovoltaic awning attached to the wall studs of manufactured homes, which accounts for ~10% of all new homes in the US (105,000 units in 2021) and 14% of the housing stock in rural and tribal America. Attachment can be done without solar installation companies either at the manufactured home plant or the home site. Prior art searches and discussions with builders representing 85% of industry volume reveal this third method to be unexplored.Phase I will investigate combinations of materials and methods by which the awning can be made lighter and more aesthetic and incorporate a cantilevered mechanism to prevent shading on the solar panels from roof eaves. Non-technical objectives are customer discovery plus an investigation of workforce development opportunities in rural and tribal communities for the assembly and installation of the photovoltaic systems. Phase I prototypes will be piloted and potentially commercialized during Phase II. Four committed pilot sites secured.Commercial & Other Applications: Research aims to address energy burden experienced by rural communities (3X national avg. among DAC). Technology can be extended to single-story site-built homes. FEMA is the largest single purchaser of manufactured homes and is investigating the awning as part of a PV plus battery storage self-generation capability for future homes.