Roof mounting support for photovoltaic modules on uneven roofs

Abstract

A mounting support for mounting at least one photovoltaic module having a glass pane on a top side of an, in particular, uneven roof panel includes an elongated strip which can be rolled up and/or unrolled in a roll-up/unroll direction. At least two attachment means for the photovoltaic module are disposed on the strip with a modular dimension. The bottom side of the support is provided in the region of the attachment means with a protruding padding to compensate for uneven roof areas. The top side of the attachment means is provided with a supporting location or surface for edges of the photovoltaic module. The mounting support can be packaged as a roll and attached in a simple and effective manner on uneven and rough roof shingles.

1 . A mounting support for mounting at least one photovoltaic module having a glass pane on a top side of a roof panel, comprising:
 an elongated strip constructed to be rolled up or unrolled, or both, in a roll-up/unroll direction,   at least two attachment means disposed on the strip a having a modular dimension for attachment of the at least one photovoltaic module,   a supporting location for an edge of the photovoltaic module disposed on a top side of the attachment means, and   a padding protruding from a bottom side of the support disposed in a region of the attachment means to compensate for uneven areas of the roof panel.   
     
     
         2 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the strip forms a longitudinal rail which has a width greater than a width of the at least two attachment means, with the longitudinal rail connecting with one another two respective attachment means with a spacing defined by the modular dimension. 
     
     
         3 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein a plurality of attachment means is attached on the strip, with the strip having a length exceeding one meter, and wherein the spacing between the attachment means as defined by the modular dimension is between 60 cm and 125 cm. 
     
     
         4 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , comprising two mutually parallel strips having at least four attachment means forming a rectangle. 
     
     
         5 . The mounting support of  claim 4 , further comprising transverse rails, which connect corresponding opposing attachment means with one another. 
     
     
         6 . The mounting support of  claim 5 , comprising more than two strips producing a grid, wherein the at least four attachment means are disposed at nodes of the rectangles which are arranged in a checkerboard pattern. 
     
     
         7 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the strip and the at least two attachment means form an integral injection-molded part. 
     
     
         8 . The mounting support of  claim 5 , wherein the strip, the at least four attachment means and the transverse rails form an integral injection-molded part. 
     
     
         9 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the padding is made of a material selected from the group consisting of an elastic material, a hydrophobic material, and a sealing compound. 
     
     
         10 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the padding has a structure exerting a spring force, or comprises a chamber that is open at the bottom side of the support and filled with a material capable of flowing under pressure, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein a top side of the attachment means has two supporting locations or supporting surfaces which are separated from each other by a separation wall operating as a stop. 
     
     
         12 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the at least two attachment means comprise a material region of reduced thickness or a bore for lead-through of a screw. 
     
     
         13 . The mounting support of  claim 12 , wherein the material region of reduced thickness or the bore is located in a central region of the attachment means. 
     
     
         14 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , wherein the at least two attachment means comprise a blind hole located in a central region, wherein the blind hole or a sleeve inserted in blind hole has an interior thread, further comprising a material region of reduced thickness or bores arranged mirror-symmetrically next to the blind hole in spaced-apart relationship. 
     
     
         15 . The mounting support of  claim 4 , wherein the attachment means, when viewed from the top, form a rectangle having edges with a length ranging between 5 cm and 12 cm. 
     
     
         16 . The mounting support of  claim 1 , further comprising in addition to the attachment means a clamping part which, after installation, exerts on the photovoltaic module a force directed towards the supporting location. 
     
     
         17 . The mounting support of  claim 5 , wherein at least one of the strip, the attachment means or the transverse rail has an integrated electric cable or is provided with clips for routing an electric cable. 
     
     
         18 . A method for mounting a photovoltaic system having a plurality of photovoltaic modules on an uneven roof panel applied on a wooden structure with a mounting support which includes an elongated strip constructed to be rolled up or unrolled, or both, in a roll-up/unroll direction, at least two attachment means disposed on the strip a having a modular dimension for attachment of the at least one photovoltaic module, a supporting location or a supporting surface for an edge of the photovoltaic module disposed on a top side of the attachment means, and a padding protruding from a bottom side of the mounting support disposed in a region of the attachment means to compensate for uneven areas of the roof panel, comprising the steps of:
 attaching a first part of the attachment means with screws to the wooden structure,   placing an edge of a first photovoltaic module on the supporting surfaces of the first part of the attachment means,   placing a second part of the attachment means on the roof panel such that the edge of the first photovoltaic module is arranged on the supporting location or a supporting surface of the second part of the attachment means, and   attaching the second part of the attachment means with screws to the wooden structure,   wherein the padding seals damage to the roof panel caused by the screw-attachment to the wooden structure.   
     
     
         19 . A method for mounting a photovoltaic system having a plurality of photovoltaic modules on an uneven roof panel applied on a wooden structure with a mounting support which includes at least one elongated strip constructed to be rolled up or unrolled, or both, in a roll-up/unroll direction, at least two attachment means disposed on the at least one strip a having a modular dimension for attachment of the at least one photovoltaic module, a supporting location or a supporting surface for an edge of the photovoltaic module disposed on a top side of the attachment means, and a padding protruding from a bottom side of the mounting support disposed in a region of the attachment means to compensate for uneven areas of the roof panel, comprising the steps of:
 attaching a first part of the attachment means with screws to the wooden structure,   placing a second part of the attachment means on the roof panel in such a manner that the at least one strip is under tension,   attaching the second part of the attachment means with screws to the wooden structure, and   placing and clamping the photovoltaic modules on the supporting location or supporting surface of the attachment means,   wherein the padding seals damage to the roof panel caused by the screw-attachment to the wooden structure.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein a clamping part associated with the attachment means and constructed for clamping and affixing the photovoltaic modules is mounted on the wooden structure at the same time the attachment means are attached with screws. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein are plurality of strips are arranged in form of a rectangular grid forming a checkerboard pattern, further comprising cutting the rectangular grid to a size corresponding to an existing roof shape and roof size before installation. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein are plurality of strips are arranged in form of a rectangular grid forming a checkerboard pattern, further comprising cutting the rectangular grid to a size corresponding to an existing roof shape and roof size before installation.