Technology

Germany's Solar Bridge History: Patent to Kennedybrücke

Germany's solar bridge story has two distinct parts. In 1996, engineer Manfred Bock filed German patent DE19650024A1 for a solar-powered bridge structure — lat…

Swipe to explore ›
AiTimeline Home
PATENT FILED

Manfred Bock Files a Solar Bridge Patent

German engineer Manfred Bock filed patent DE19650024A1, "Solar power bridge construction," proposing photovoltaic cells and solar-thermal collectors integrated into a br…

AiTimeline Home
PATENT PUBLISHED

DE19650024A1 Published — Later Withdrawn

The application was published by Germany's Patent and Trade Mark Office. Its legal status today is withdrawn — it was never pursued to grant, and no bridge matching this…

AiTimeline Home
POLICY

Germany's Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) Takes Effect

The EEG guaranteed grid connection and a fixed feed-in tariff for renewable generators for up to 20 years, turning German solar into a bankable mainstream investment ove…

AiTimeline Home
PROJECT PROPOSED, THEN REJE…

Bonn Reviews and Rejects a Kennedybrücke Solar Proposal

Bonn's administration reviewed a city-funded solar proposal for the Kennedybrücke, then under renovation, and rejected it in March 2009 citing insufficient economic viab…

AiTimeline Home
PRIVATE FUNDING

SolarWorld AG Agrees to Self-Fund the Array

After a sharp fall in global solar-module prices, Bonn-based manufacturer SolarWorld AG agreed to finance, install and operate the array itself, rather than wait for cit…

AiTimeline Home
BUILT INSTALLATION

The Kennedybrücke Solar Array Is Installed

392 SolarWorld photovoltaic modules, rated 90.16 kilowatts peak, were mounted across the bridge's full southern face — Germany's best-documented real solar bridge.

AiTimeline Home
OPERATIONAL

The Array Remains Grid-Connected Today

The system remains operational, generating output described as equivalent to roughly 20 households, feeding Bonn's public grid, with feed-in revenue donated to rotating…

AiTimeline Home
EUROPE

Blackfriars Bridge, London — Not a German Project

London's Blackfriars Bridge carries 4,400 panels across 6,000 square metres, supplying up to half of Blackfriars station's electricity — about ten times Kennedybrücke's…

AiTimeline Home

Want the full timeline?

Read the complete story, FAQs and key facts.

AiTimeline Home