| OTT Home | Phys Sci & Eng
Life Sciences | Extended Range Solar-Powered Electric Vehicle 
Description The present invention provides for the extension of an electric vehicle’s range by optimizing the capture of solar energy, using an array of automatically adjusting high efficiency photovoltaic (PV) cells mounted on the vehicle. The power captured by the PV array is further optimized by utilizing an electronic, maximum power-tracking charge controller for the vehicle batteries. The enhanced capture of sunlight also allows the user to provide power to electric tools or appliances or to deliver power to a utility power grid. Using electric golf carts as a potential application for this invention, these carts can capture sunlight to charge the onboard batteries. When the batteries are partially or fully charged and the cart is not being driven, any additional energy produced by the PV array can be used to supply power to an external electrical device such as an electric lawn, gardening machine or a power grid. It can also be used to supply energy to an emergency load in case of natural disasters such as hurricanes. If power is not supplied to an external device, the range of the cart can be extended by approximately the equivalent of one or two rounds of golf per day, depending on the weather condition and location. This will in turn reduce the amount of energy needed from the utility company, leading to an environmentally sensitive vehicle that has the potential to capture five times the energy of existing electrical carts while decreasing costs and acting as a portable power generator. Background of Invention Electric carts are vehicles whose small size, low noise, and relatively low power consumption has long made them the vehicle of choice on many academic and business campuses as well as most golf courses throughout the world. There have been attempts to power such vehicles with solar energy, but to date these have been limited to relatively low-power, fixed PV arrays designed for a self-limited battery charging current. In general, the amount of power that can be generated by a PV array is a function of several variables: the intensity of the sunlight, the angle between the array and rays of sunlight, the surface area of the array and the conversion efficiency of the array. The present invention is a novel approach for maximizing the amount of power that can be generated by sunlight based on the optimization of these variables. The optimization methods used in this invention result in up to five times as much energy captured from the sun when compared to previous designs. Potential Applications With the increasing cost of fuel and electricity, this technology can be applied to vehicles such as golf carts or larger electric cars that will be environmentally friendly and allow for cost savings. The vehicles can be used for work, recreation or commuting. The picture on the left below illustrates a working prototype of this technology applied to an electric golf cart. The picture on the right displays the prototype’s LCD display and ignition.
(c) Florida Atlantic University All rights reserved.
Updated August 9, 2008 |
| Inventors
Roger Messenger, Ph.D.
Professor
Electrical Engineering Max Saelzer
Graduate Student
Electrical Engineering
IP Status
U.S. Patent Application
11/005,606, filed 12/6/2004 Contact Information
Office of Technology Transfer
777 Glades Road, ADM 218
Boca Raton, FL 33431-0991 Kurt R. Moore
Assistant V.P. & Director
Ph: 561-297-1165
Fax: 561-297-2141
kmoore34@fau.edu Michelle Webb
Assistant Director
Ph: 561-297-0673
Fax: 561-297-2141
mwebb18@fau.edu Case Number
2004-02
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