Modular roofing system

Abstract

A modular roofing system includes a lower set of co-adjacent rectangular panels locked together by an upper set of co-adjacent hexagonal tiles made from a light-weight rigid urethane foam material coated with a durable outer layer of non-foam polyurethane plastic. The tiles can carry photovoltaic cells that interconnect at opposite ends to adjacent tiles. The cells can be replaced on the existing installed tiles using an aligned locking structure for aligning electrical contacts and sealing the cells. Length adjustable modular gutter tiles terminate an array of tiles along a lower roof edge.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A roofing system which comprises:
 a first set of laterally abuttable, uniformly shaped and dimensioned lower support panels;   a second set of laterally matable, uniformly shaped and dimensioned roofing tiles;   wherein an abutted pair of said panels forms a mutual ridge extending upwardly along their abutting edges; and,   wherein a mated pair of said tiles has a common, co-linear bottom channel shaped and dimensioned to intimately nest onto said mutual ridge.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , which further comprises:
 said abutted pair of panels having co-planar upper support surfaces astride said ridge; and,   said mated pair of tiles having co-planar lower surfaces astride said channel; and,   wherein said lower surfaces are bearingly supported by said upper surfaces.   
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , which further comprises:
 said mutual ridge being formed by uniformly shaped and dimensioned prominences extending upwardly along said abutting edge.   
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein said abutted pair of panels planarly slidingly abut along a pair of substantially planar contact surfaces oriented substantially orthogonally to said upper support surfaces. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 4 , wherein said panels abut in absence of a tongue-in-groove interface. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , which further comprises:
 said first set of panels being uniformly shaped and dimensioned; and,   said second set of tiles being uniformly shaped and dimensioned.   
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 6 , wherein said mated pair of tiles mate along tongue-in-groove interface. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein said tiles modularly combine to form a contiguous planar array. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein a first of said tiles interlock with a second adjacent one of said tiles along a first side wall and wherein said first of said tiles interlocks with a third adjacent one of said tiles along a second side wall, and wherein said first and second side walls are non-parallel. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein each of said panels are substantially rectangularly shaped and each of said tiles are substantially hexagonally shaped. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , which further comprises:
 a second abutted pair of panels;   wherein said first abutted pair of panels abut latitudinally;   wherein said second abutted pair of panels abut latitudinally; and   wherein said first abutted pair of panels interlocks longitudinally with said second abutted pair of panels.   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein each of said tiles comprises a core consisting of a rigid polyurethane foam material and an upper protective coating layer of a non-foam polyurethane material contacting said core; and wherein said rigid polyurethane foam material has a density of no greater than 240 kilograms per cubic meter. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein said tile comprises a photoelectric module releasably secured to said tile within a recess formed into a substantially planar upper surface of said tile; wherein said module has a substantially planar upper surface which is substantially co-planar with said tile upper surface when the module is secured within said recess. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein said tile comprises:
 a first pair of electrical contacts located within said recess and said module comprises a second pair of electrical contacts shaped, dimensioned and located to electrically interconnect with said first pair when said module is secured to said tile; and,   a pair of electrical contact wells formed into said first side wall; and,   a pair of dual ended electrical contact pins shaped and dimensioned to intimately and conductively engage said wells and a second pair of wells located on said second one of said tiles.   
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , which further comprises:
 a locking mechanism for securing said module within said recess, where said locking mechanism comprises:
 alignment tabs extending from a peripheral boundary located to engage commensurately shaped and dimensioned alignment slots formed on a periphery of said recess; and, 
 a sloped track having an endstop located to restrict angular movement of at least one of said tabs. 
   
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein said first side wall has a groove which transitions to a second side having a tongue proximate to a vertex; and wherein said groove preferentially extends beyond said vertex of said side to eliminate said tongue; and, wherein said groove extends along three contiguous sides of said tile and said tongue extends along three contiguous side walls of said tile. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 11 , which further comprises:
 a gutter tile having an upper surface co-planar with a top surface of said tile array;   an aperture passing through said upper surface in communication with a gutter; and,   wherein said gutter comprises:
 a plurality of unformly shaped and dimensioned U-shaped stacked gutter ribs. 
   
     
     
         18 . A roofing system comprises:
 a substantially continuous planar array of uniformly shaped and dimensioned co-adjacent lower panels;   a substantially continuous planar array of uniformly shaped and dimensioned co-adjacent upper tiles; and,   said lower panels being locked to one another by said tiles.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein each of said panels comprises opposite substantially parallel edges, wherein each of said edges has a raised prominences; and, wherein each of said tiles comprises an undersurface shaped to have a medial channel shaped and dimensioned to intimately engage a laterally adjacent pair of said prominences; and, wherein said panels are substantially rectangular and said tiles are substantially hexagonal. 
     
     
         20 . A roofing assembly comprises:
 a plurality of tiles, each having a front edge, a back edge, and left and right lateral side edges, lying contiguously to one another in partially superimposing latitudinal rows;   means for forming a right lateral edge of each tile to a left lateral edge of an adjacent tile;   each of a group of said tiles comprising;
 a photoelectric cell; 
 first and second electrical interconnects to said cell; 
 a laterally extending groove supporting said first interconnect; and, 
 a laterally extending tongue supporting said second interconnect. 
   
     
     
         21 . I claim the design of  FIGS. 18-56 .