Formal aspects of product development of photovoltaics: recommendations for manufacturers.

Even though a variety of building dedicated photovoltaic products appeared on the market lately, still there is a resistance in architects to integrate PV modules into their everyday practice. The results of an international survey on barriers and needs for building integration of solar systems conducted by the IEA Task41 shows that architects are still not satisfied with the aesthetics of the actual product offer. A set of formal characteristics have been used as a framework to discuss the needs of architects in a series of group discussions with Norwegian architects and in a paper-based questionnaire conducted in Norway. Based on the analysis of the results a set of recommendations were identified for the product development of crystalline and thin film modules. Innovative products and projects collected by the members of the IEA Task41 were used as demonstrational cases. The paper presents the results of the research methods and a detailed set of recommendations for manufacturers for further product development of photovoltaics.