California firm innovates new solar thermal technology with IoT Heliostat

Solar thermal technology is another solar-related energy resource. LightManufacturing, a California-based solar firm, unveiled at the Solar Power International (SPI) 2015 exhibition the new solar thermal application to replace fossil fuels by concentrated solar heat.

Karl von Kries, founder of LightManufacturing, said,"We've learned how to mold water tanks and boats using solar thermal energy at a fraction of the cost." The company has molded thousands of commercial-grade plastic parts for private clients at the company's research facility.

 

The firm's Solar Rotational Molding or SRM™ process recently received US Patent protection. The company is targeting several industrial processes for conversion to real-time solar heat. In addition to patents and process know-how, the firm developed a unique line of sun-tracking heliostats. A two-year effort yielded a simple, industrial-grade heliostat that's efficient to deploy in small arrays.

"The new H1 is remarkably easy to use," says von Kries, "and it's the first 'Internet of Things' or IoT heliostat." According to the firm, the H1 is the first heliostat that connects to the Internet for simple cloud-based configuration and aiming. No software is required to use the H1, just a web browser on a computer or smartphone. For greater heat intensity, customers can order the Vacuum Mirror option, a patent pending field-adjustable mirror, which according to the firm can focus most of the reflected energy onto a circle.

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