Hi everyone,
I am in the research and design phase of my solar project. My plan is to design and fabricate a grid tied 2 axis tracking array mount to accommodate 16-18 panels to start off with. I can weld and have access to a CNC machine. I can definitely do a lot of the fabrication work myself in regards to the mount itself and I think I want to go with a dual axis slew/worm gear setup. I live in Canada at 47.5 degrees latitude where we can get high winds and snow. I need help determining the wind and snow loading in order to properly size the slew gears.
Are there any structural or mechanical engineers here that could give me a recommendation on max axial and radial load ratings and other relevant minimum specs I should consider. I would need to spec in order to be safe in all weather conditions but not go way overboard unnecessarily in order to keep costs as low as possible? The attached image is the specs of a slew gear I am looking at, Its SE7 model dual axis slew gear, is it overkill or am I in the ballpark? Its very reason for just over $500 for the slew gear. I can make this mount for under $2000 and probably around $1000 for the cement pad no problem. My only issue would be to properly size the slew gear to handle the load.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
I am in the research and design phase of my solar project. My plan is to design and fabricate a grid tied 2 axis tracking array mount to accommodate 16-18 panels to start off with. I can weld and have access to a CNC machine. I can definitely do a lot of the fabrication work myself in regards to the mount itself and I think I want to go with a dual axis slew/worm gear setup. I live in Canada at 47.5 degrees latitude where we can get high winds and snow. I need help determining the wind and snow loading in order to properly size the slew gears.
Are there any structural or mechanical engineers here that could give me a recommendation on max axial and radial load ratings and other relevant minimum specs I should consider. I would need to spec in order to be safe in all weather conditions but not go way overboard unnecessarily in order to keep costs as low as possible? The attached image is the specs of a slew gear I am looking at, Its SE7 model dual axis slew gear, is it overkill or am I in the ballpark? Its very reason for just over $500 for the slew gear. I can make this mount for under $2000 and probably around $1000 for the cement pad no problem. My only issue would be to properly size the slew gear to handle the load.
Thanks for any help you can provide.
Comment