Vidurglass Photovoltaic Safety Glazing in Pergolas, Canopies or other Urban Furniture Applications

Photovoltaic (PV) technology is playing an increasingly important role regarding the integration of renewable energy into urban spaces. With tailor-made VIDURSOLAR BIPV-glass modules, construction elements with modern and innovative design offering economical payback, can be applied. Their multi-functionality can be a key-aspect for its major use for applications in urban spaces, especially urban furniture. These PV-elements generate green electrical energy, offer shading and physical protection and additionally, represent an aesthetically unique and ecological image.

VIDURGLASS has been engaged in several projects where PV was integrated in traditional urban applications and urban furniture like carports, bus-shelters, interactive or intelligent public signs and indicators, etc. Especially with the current tendency of creating smart-city concepts, intelligent and autonomous power-supplies are more and more important. But last but not least, urban furniture and equipment that is exposed to the public, also need always an an attractive visual design, that offers to the owner the possibility of differentiation.

With the application of VIDURSOLAR BIPV-panels the benefits are numerous as on the one hand they offer green electricity generation but on the other they match also with high-end architectural design options and offer the same safety standards of traditional safety glazing elements. So, on-site green electricity generation can go hand-in-hand with aesthetics and ecological marketing, substituting traditional construction elements. Especially in the field of safety, the post-breakage resistance of Vidursolar BIPV-panels is excellent due to lamination with PVB, which is very important for overhead glazing units, as for example in pergolas, bus-shelters, carports, etc. Additionally, VIDURSOLAR PV-glass modules count with an official certificate according to the norms IEC EN 61215 y IEC EN 61730 for a family of products.

Carpots

 The Vidurglass Director’s parking is equipped with a carport of attractive design featuring VIDURSOLAR BIPV-glass modules and a row of screen-printed glasses that permits sunlight transmission so that the brand “VIDURSOLAR” is projected to the ground. Vidurglass can offer several options for glass processing for this type of effcts, like screen-printing, use of translucent coloured PVB (see example of pergolas below, etc.). The Vidurglass PV-carport is designed for 6 cars with a total PV-power of 5 kWp and a transparency of the BIPV-glass modules of 27%. All cablings and junction boxes are hidden inside the support profiles.

Public Pergolas

Pergolas that offer shading of public spaces are another interesting application in order to integrate PV. The last project of a PV-pergola executed with VIDURSOLAR BIPV-glass modules has been the Can Rigal public Park area in Barcelona. The special architectural design of the pergolas created the need of an adequate design of the PV-elements to be mounted as roof. Aditionally the glazing units had tio fulfill the high safety standards for overhead applications. So, the architects decided to work with VIDURSOLAR BIPV glass-modules in order to meet the objective to realilse a unique and modern urban area integrating renewable energies. As a special feature, 4 different colours were used, implemented with translucent PVB foils inside the BIPV-units. The cabling and junction boxes are hidden inside the support structure.

Bus-shelters

Bus shelters are a typical applications with a certain need of electrical energy. Electrical power supply in a lot of cases is less costly if provided locally by a PV-system than connecting the bus-shelter to the grid. So, the new design possibilities of BIPV-glass modules offers the integration of an autonomous power supply in an aesthetic way, in line with modern concepts for urban design. VIDURSOLAR PV-units have been used in several projects and prototypes until now, with different cesign requirements. The most important feature, a part from the flexibility of design, has been always the safety aspects offered by PVB as interlayer.



Intelligent public indicators

Last but not least, intelligent indicators and traffic signals are also a perfect product for the integration of PV. In the past, conventional PV-technology has been used quite a lot for traffic signals on highways or interurban roads as the relatively small power needs are more efficiently covered by autonomous PV-systems than grid-connection. But for the integration of PV in modern cities and the coherent design if its urban areas, VIDURSOLAR BIPV-glass modules are an optimum solution as not only PV-electricity can be generated autonomously, but the PV-cells can also be integrated directly in the appliances. As an example, some prototype units for an intelligent indicator on Barcelona’s beaches has been equipped with VIDURSOLAR BIPV-solutions.

Vidurglass is currently developping a series of predefined products like carports, modular pergolas and public lighting for integration in urban spaces that will offer new solutions for efficient and aesthetic integration of renewable energies in daily life.

Vidurglass, as Europe's leadingcompany in glazing solutions, can add value to your projects with high-tech glasses. For more information contact us at www.vidurglass.es or by e-mail: vidurglass@vidurglass.es