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EP-4661285-B1 - DEVICE FOR ATTACHING PHOTOVOLTAIC PANELS TO A RIBBED SHEET AND BUILDING PROVIDED WITH SUCH SHEETS

EP4661285B1EP 4661285 B1EP4661285 B1EP 4661285B1EP-4661285-B1

Inventors

  • CHERVET, Thomas
  • FAISANDIER, Julien

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20250416

Claims (9)

  1. A device (1, 30) for fastening photovoltaic panels onto a metal sheet having at least one rib (2), said metal sheet being fastened onto a building, said device (1, 30) comprising at least the ribbed metal sheet fastened by screwing onto the building by a staple capping the apex of the rib, a main body (3, 20, 28) open at the ends and at the top part, the base (5) of the main body (3, 20, 28) having a shape complementary to the apex (10) of the rib (2) of the metal sheet, characterized in that the base (5) of the main body (3) has at least one opening (11) defining a passage between the base (5) of the main body (3, 20, 28) and the apex (10) of the rib (2) when the device (1, 30) is in position on the ribbed metal sheet, and in that the width (L11) of the opening (11) arranged in the base (5) of the main body (3, 20, 28) is greater than the width (L12) of the fastening staple (12) of the apex (10) of the rib (2) of the metal sheet.
  2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the opening in the base (5) is formed by at least one through orifice (11).
  3. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the opening in the base (5) is formed by at least one cut-out arranged on at least one end of the base (5).
  4. The device according to one of the previous claims, characterized in that the opening (11) is equipped with a removable cover masking the opening.
  5. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the width (L5) of the base (5) is greater than the width (L10) of the apex (10) of the rib (2) of the metal sheet.
  6. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one end part (17) of the external wall (15) of the main body (3) is resting on a lateral wall (16) of the rib (2).
  7. The device according to claim 6, characterized in that the at least one portion (18) of the end part (17) is resting on one portion (19) of an inter-rib zone.
  8. The device according to one of the previous claims, characterized in that the base (5) has at least one fastening screw (14) on the apex (10), the screw (14) being accessible through the open part (4) of the main body (3).
  9. A building equipped with at least one ribbed metal sheet having at least one fastening device (1) for photovoltaic panels conforming to any one of the previous claims.

Description

The invention relates to a device for fixing photovoltaic panels on a corrugated sheet as well as to a building equipped with such sheets. Here, the term "building" refers to any construction, regardless of the building material used, its shape, size, and/or use. This includes industrial, commercial, or agricultural buildings; public buildings, such as administrative, healthcare, educational, or other types of buildings; and private buildings, such as single-family homes or apartment buildings. Here, the term "corrugated sheet metal" refers to any rectangular or square plate, regardless of its constituent material (e.g., metal or other), featuring a regular or random alternation of positive and negative ridges across its entire surface. The positive ridges, or "ribs," can have various cross-sections, such as trapezoidal, rectangular, square, or rounded. The term "rib" will be used predominantly hereafter. The negative ridges are flat areas or grooves with a flat or rounded bottom. These negative ridges may or may not be identical to the positive ridges and may or may not be mirrored. In all cases, these sheets are used to cover at least part of a building, roof, or facade, whose orientation and characteristics allow for the installation of photovoltaic panels. Photovoltaic panels are attached to corrugated metal sheets once the sheets are in place on the building, as these sheets form part of the roof structure. The attachment must allow for the installation and removal of the photovoltaic panels without affecting the stability of the metal sheets on the building or compromising the roof or facade's watertightness. FR-A-3 004 242 describes a system for attaching photovoltaic panels to the ribs of a sheet metal panel. The system includes a bracket with wings that conform to the shape of the ribs. A screw secures the bracket to the rib by passing through a hole in the top of the rib. The upper face of the bracket has two sides. Parallel brackets clamp onto a panel mounting rail. The rails are secured with bolts inserted into holes in the sides. A hole in the bottom of the bracket is used to attach the bracket to the rib. This type of attachment must be done outside the areas where the sheet metal is fixed to the roof, therefore requiring prior planning. We know by FR-A-2 962 194 Photovoltaic panels are fixed by means of a rail placed on the top of each rib, along its entire length. At least the ends of each rail include a bracket with a shape complementary to that of the rib and fixed to the ends of the ribs. WO-A-2012/096 344 discloses a photovoltaic panel support fixed directly to the top of certain ribs in the sheet metal. The face of the support bearing on the rib has a shape complementary to the top of the latter. DE-A-2020-090-04269 describes a photovoltaic panel support with a shape complementary to that of the rib and capping it. The base of the support rests on the top of the rib and includes two guide tabs between which a rail for holding a photovoltaic panel is placed while remaining free to move in translation for optimal positioning. The various known solutions ensure effective retention on the rib, thanks to the complementary shapes of the supports and the sheet metal ribs. However, installing the supports on the rib crests requires careful planning to prevent the support from resting on the screws that fasten the sheet metal to the building, as these screws are placed, more or less regularly, on the rib crests. Furthermore, the photovoltaic panel support is generally attached to the sides of both the support and the rib. Such a fastening method is not ergonomically optimal for the operator. The invention aims to provide a solution for simply fixing a photovoltaic panel onto the ribs of a corrugated sheet without the need for a layout plan, while optimizing the ergonomics of installing this solution and respecting manufacturing costs. To this end, the invention relates to a device for fixing photovoltaic panels onto a sheet metal plate having at least one rib, said sheet metal being fixed to a building, said device comprising at least one ribbed sheet metal plate fixed by screwing onto the building by a bracket covering the top of a rib, a main body open at the ends and in the upper part, the bottom of the main body being of complementary shape to the top of the rib of the sheet, characterized in that the bottom of the main body is provided with at least one opening defining a passage between the bottom of the main body and the top of the rib when the device is in position on the ribbed sheet and in that the width of the opening made in the bottom of the main body is greater than the width of a bracket for fixing the top of the rib of the sheet. Thanks to the invention, the device can be positioned anywhere on the top of a rib, as the opening allows the screws for attaching the sheet metal to the building to pass through. There is no longer any need to plan the layout, which saves time when in