Bowed flex panels
I am trying to make a very lightweight solar setup to take into the desert. Flexible panels seem to be the lightest (approx 5 lb per 100W) but the structure to support them rapidly adds up in mass.
I got some of the Renergy RNG-100DB-H 100W flexible panels.
Inspired by the bowed solar array described in patent US5833176 (patents.google.com/patent/US5833176A/en) which expired in 2016, I decided to see if the Renogy panels could be made self supporting by bowing them.
Flexed array patent Grid startup Grid startup
Unfortunately if you get more than two in a row, the torque that they put on each other makes them begin to bow at a right angle to how I want them to bow.
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