The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 08, 1980
Filed:
Nov. 01, 1978
Eugene G Vaerewyck, Murrysville, PA (US);
Robert C Miller, Penn Hills, PA (US);
Arthur E Anderson, Murrysville, PA (US);
Westinghouse Electric Corp., Pittsburgh, PA (US);
Abstract
Apparatus for positioning a mirror to reflect solar radiation from the sun onto a remote receiver. Two wide angle, preferably cylindrical lenses are positioned through the mirror, parallel to the reflective face of the mirror, with their optical axes at ninety degrees respectively corresponding to elevation and azimuth. Multi-element photosensors are rigidly affixed behind the mirror so that images of the sun and the receiver can be focused on the sensors. The sensors extend a length equivalent to the field of view through the respective lens encompassing the sun and receiver during the daily and seasonal apparent path of the sun. A selected element of each photosensor is positioned along a line representing the normal to the mirror surface through its corresponding lens. Electrical circuitry and drive apparatus utilize the signals from the photosensors representative of the images of the sun and receiver, and the distance of each image from the selected element, to position the mirror to reflect solar radiation onto the receiver. The mirror is properly oriented where the images are equidistant from the selected element representing the normal. The image of the receiver can be formed by radiation reflected from the receiver back toward the mirror or by additional apparatus such as a steady or pulsed light source.