Patents Assigned to Western Gas and Electric Company
  • Patent number: 8916811
    Abstract: An integrated electronics housing contains both system electronics and power generation circuits for a two-axis tracker assembly having a CPV solar array. The housing contains at least a communication bus, motion control circuits, and inverter circuits, and acts as the local system control point for that tracker mechanism. The inverter circuits generate three-phase AC voltage that is supplied to a grid interface transformer. Each inverter receives a bipolar DC voltage supplied from its own set of CPV cells. The motion control circuits move the CPV cells of the tracker mechanism to angular coordinates resulting from a solar tracking algorithm. The communication bus connects to the motion control circuits and the inverter circuits to facilitate communications of information, including parameters of power being generated by the inverter circuits, between the motion control circuits and the AC inverter circuits to fine tune the AC power generated out of the tracker mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Western Gas and Electric Company
    Inventors: Wayne Miller, Hossein Kazemi, Brian Hinman
  • Patent number: 8644995
    Abstract: Various methods and apparatus are described for a photovoltaic system. In an embodiment, a method for performing auto-configuration of a concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) array installed in a solar site having multiple CPV arrays. The central backend management system sends auto-configuration files over the Internet to each of the two-axis tracking mechanisms installed at the solar site based upon the GPS coordinates of each of the two-axis tracking mechanisms and that two-axis tracking mechanism's relative position in the layout of the two-axis tracking mechanisms located at the solar site.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2014
    Assignee: Western Gas and Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Hinman, Roeland Vandevelde
  • Patent number: 8618456
    Abstract: Various methods and apparatus are described for a photovoltaic system. In an embodiment, pluralities of three-phase Alternating Current (AC) inverter circuits electrically connect into a common three phase AC output. Each of those inverters receives a bipolar DC voltage supplied from its own set of Concentrated PhotoVoltaic (CPV) modules.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2013
    Assignee: Western Gas and Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Hinman, Hossein Kazemi, Wayne Miller
  • Patent number: 8564916
    Abstract: Various methods and apparatus are described for a photovoltaic system. In an embodiment, a hybrid grounding circuit as well as a ground fault monitoring circuit are in the inverter circuitry with its switching devices that generate three-phase Alternating Current (AC) voltage. The three-phase AC voltage is supplied to a utility power grid interface transformer, where a primary-side common node of the Utility Power grid interface transformer is connected to Earth ground. Each inverter has 1) its own set of isolation contacts to connect as well as isolate this particular inverter from the utility grid interface transformer, and 2) control components in the ground fault monitoring circuit for controlling operation of the isolation contacts based off a presence of the ground fault detected by the ground fault monitor circuit for that inverter. The inverter circuit receives a DC voltage supplied from its own set of ungrounded Concentrated PhotoVoltaic modules.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Western Gas and Electric Company
    Inventors: Hossein Kazemi, Viggo Selchau-Hansen, Brian Hinman