An Outdoor Demonstrator of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics Applying Wireless Power Transfer

In building-integrated photovoltaics, solar panels function as structural elements of the building. However, electrical cables from the solar cells to the inside of the building penetrate the thermal envelope and can create thermal bridges and moisture issues. A possible solution might be applying wireless power transfer. In this work, an outdoor demonstrator of building-integrated photovoltaics that uses wireless power to transfer the energy is presented. It consists of a stand-alone housing, mimicking a facade configuration with vertical solar modules. By means of converters and vertical coils inside the structure, inductive coupling is applied to realize the energy transport. A setup has been constructed to log real-time field measurements and to study the influence of different insulation media on the performance.