The invention relates generally to electric powered vehicles, and more particularly to a vehicle powering system that uses both alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) electric power.
The problems associated with gasoline-powered vehicles are very well known. Environmental concerns, geo-political tensions, and economic crises can all be linked to the use of gasoline to power the world's vehicles. Accordingly, efforts are being made to design and develop vehicles that require either less gasoline (e.g., hybrid vehicles) or no gasoline (e.g., fuel cell vehicles, electric vehicles, etc.). While many of these vehicles show promise, none has emerged as a “clear choice” replacement for traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. The reasons for this are varied and include excessive cost, unproven technologies, vehicles that are underpowered for their intended purpose or the environment in which they will be used, lack of infrastructure to handle “re-fueling” of vehicles utilizing new technologies, etc.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system for powering a vehicle that does not use gasoline.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an electric power system for a vehicle utilizing well known and safe technologies.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide an electric power system for a vehicle that utilizes motion of the vehicle in the powering process.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious hereinafter in the specification and drawings.
In accordance with the present invention, a system for powering a vehicle includes a DC motor adapted to be coupled to a vehicle axle when the vehicle is to be driven in reverse or forward at a speed less than a threshold. A battery is provided to power the DC motor when coupled thereto. The system further includes an AC motor adapted to be coupled to a vehicle axle when it is to be driven forward at a speed exceeding the threshold, and at least one motion-powered AC generator adapted to be driven by motion of the vehicle. The AC generator generates an AC current for powering the AC motor when the AC generator is coupled thereto. An operator-controlled rheostat is used to control the speed of either the AC or DC motor. A provided switching system links the DC motor, battery, AC motor, AC generator and rheostat. Specifically, the switching system uncouples the AC generator from the AC motor and couples the battery to the DC motor through the rheostat when the vehicle is driven in reverse or forward at a speed less than the threshold. In this configuration, the vehicle is powered by the DC motor. The switching system also serves to uncouple the battery from the DC motor and couple the AC generator to the AC motor through the rheostat when the vehicle is driven forward at a speed exceeding the threshold. In this configuration, the vehicle is powered by the AC motor.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reference to the following description of the preferred embodiments and to the drawings, wherein corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings and wherein:
Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to the sole FIGURE, a system for powering a vehicle using DC and AC electrical power is shown and is referenced generally by numeral 10. While system 10 could be adapted for use in a variety of types of vehicles, it is well-suited for land-based vehicles such as passenger automobiles. Accordingly, the present invention will be explained for its use in vehicles that have axles coupled to the vehicle's wheels. Typically, the present invention will be employed on vehicles having at least two axles and four wheels. However, it is to be understood that the present invention could be used with vehicles having fewer or more axles/wheels without departing from the scope of the present invention. For clarity of illustration, the present invention is shown driving a single axle. However, it is further to be understood that the present invention could be used to drive multiple axles without departing from the scope of the present invention. In addition, system 10 will typically include a variety of conventional electrical components (e.g., resistors, capacitors, etc.) that have been omitted for clarity of illustration. Such conventional electrical components and the use thereof are well understood in the art.
In general, system 10 uses either DC power or AC power to bring about mechanical motion (e.g., rotation) of a vehicle axle 100 having wheels 104 coupled to the outboard ends thereof. More specifically, at slow vehicle speeds, DC power is used while AC power is used for faster vehicle speeds. The transition between slow and fast vehicle speeds is governed in the illustrated example by a user-controlled switcher 12 (maintained on the vehicle) having a number of user-selected settings such as park (“P”), reverse (“R”), neutral (“N”), forward at slow speeds (“1”), and forward at faster speeds (“2”). Additional or alternate settings could also be employed without departing from the scope of the present invention. Switcher 12 is used to configure system 10 for one of AC or DC power for the vehicle operating in one of a reverse mode, a forward mode at a slow speed, and a forward mode at a higher speed. Accordingly, switcher 12 can be made to appear like a standard vehicle gearshift in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. Note that the park “P” and neutral “N” settings of switcher 12 define open switch (or relay) positions illustrated in
Since a vehicle typically starts from a stopped position when accelerating in reverse or just starting to move forward, both the reverse mode and forward mode at a slow speed are well-suited to utilize DC power.
Specifically, system 10 includes a battery 14 and a reversible DC motor 16 to supply DC powered energy directly to axle 100. For example, DC motor 16 can include a slip clutch (not shown) for direct coupling of the motor's rotational components to axle 100. In this example, the motor's slip clutch would be configured to engage axle 100 when DC motor 16 receives power and disengage from axle 100 when DC motor 16 does not receive power.
Control of the DC power to thereby control the speed of the vehicle is achieved by routing the DC power from battery 14 to DC motor 16 through the vehicle's accelerator 18 which is essentially a user-controlled rheostat. The DC power is routed from battery 14 through accelerator 18 to DC motor 16 via a series of switches 20, 22 and 24 that are coupled to switcher 12 (e.g., via a hardwired connection not shown in the figures in order to maintain illustration clarity). That is, the position of each of switches 20, 22 and 24 is set based on the setting of switcher 12. For example, when the vehicle's switcher 12 is placed in the park (“P”) or neutral (“N”) settings, switch 24 is opened so that accelerator 18 is uncoupled from both DC motor 16 and an AC motor 42 (which is similarly “slip clutch” coupled to axle 100). In the reverse setting, switches 20, 22 and 24 are set to the “RL” position and battery 14 is coupled to DC motor 16 through accelerator 18 such that DC motor 16 causes axle 100 to rotate such that reverse motion is imparted to the vehicle. When switcher 12 is placed in the forward setting at a slow speed, switches 20, 22 and 24 are set to the “FL” position and the current polarity is changed (relative to the reverse setting) such that axle 100 now imparts forward motion to the vehicle. In either case, the speed of the vehicle is adjusted by the user via accelerator 18.
At a desired threshold speed, system 10 is switched over to AC power. The threshold speed essentially defines the highest speed for DC power and the lowest speed for AC power. The particular threshold speed is a design choice that is not a limitation of the present invention. Switching to AC power can be accomplished manually (e.g., by the user changing the setting of switcher 12) or it could be governed by an automatic switching controller (not shown) when there is sufficient AC power being generated for use by the present invention as will be explained further below. Accordingly, the threshold speed can be defined in terms of actual vehicle speed and/or an AC current/voltage/power level needed to operate AC motor 42. For safety reasons, it may be desirable to prevent the vehicle from being driven too fast in reverse.
For this reason, switching from DC power to AC power could be limited to forward settings of switcher 12 as is the case with the illustrated example of the present invention.
When switcher 12 is switched to the forward setting at a higher speed or “2”, switches 20 and 22 are set to the “FH” position which uncouples battery 14 from DC motor 16. As a result of losing power, DC motor 16 is uncoupled from axle 100 so that axle 100 is no longer powered thereby. At the same time, switches 24 and 30 are set so that a motion-powered AC generator 40 is coupled to AC motor 42 which, in turn, is coupled to axle 100. That is, similar to DC motor 16, AC motor 42 is “slip clutch” coupled to axle 100 so that its rotational components directly engage axle 100 when receiving electrical power. The AC power generated by AC generator 40 is supplied to AC motor 42/axle 100 in a user-controlled amount by (rheostat) accelerator 18.
In general, the term “motion-powered AC generator” as used herein refers to any device or system that can utilize one or more facets of vehicle motion to turn or rotate the electricity-generating mechanism (i.e., rotor within a stator) of an AC generator such that AC voltage/power is generated. As would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, AC generator 40 would typically include one or more transformers (not shown) to convert the generated AC voltage/power to levels required by various onboard systems.
Such transformers are well understood in the art. AC generator 40 could also incorporate a conventional AC (current, voltage or power) sensor/monitor 40S to indicate when AC generator 40 is producing AC current/voltage/power (hereinafter referred to simply as “AC”) at a level that can sustain operation of AC motor 42. The sensing of sufficient AC can be used to provide a driver with a visual and/or audible indication that the vehicle can be operated using AC power. Additionally or alternatively, the sensing of sufficient AC can be used to automatically switch vehicle operation to AC power (e.g., automatically control switcher 12 to change from the FL to the FH position).
Motion-powered AC generator 40 can be configured and constructed in a variety of ways to take advantage of vehicle motion in order to generate AC. For example, AC generator 40 could be configured to use the rolling motion of the vehicle as shown in
As described above and referring again to
The embodiment illustrated in
In the
For example, one propeller 44 could be mounted to face the front of the vehicle (e.g., behind the vehicle's front grille) while a second propeller 44 could be mounted to face the side or rear of the vehicle. Each propeller 44 could be fixed in its orientation or can be movable in orientation to achieve optimum performance without departing from the scope of the present invention. Such orientation control of propellers is well-known in the art. The rotating shaft of each propeller 44 causes the rotor (not shown) of a corresponding alternator 46 to turn and generate AC voltage/power. That is, each propeller/alternator combination essentially defines an AC generator. A controller 48 sums the AC voltage/power from alternators 46.
The use of multiple propellers 44 also provides for differing “cut in” (i.e., start-up) wind speeds. That is, one propeller 44 could be configured for a low “cut in” wind speed while a second propeller 44 could be configured for a higher “cut in” wind speed.
The advantages of the present invention are numerous. The all-electric vehicle power system does not require any gasoline or other fossil fuel. The system should be suitable for many basic passenger vehicle applications, especially highway driving where vehicle motion remains fairly constant for relatively long periods or in locales where wind is a prevalent atmospheric condition. Use of apparent and ambient wind utilizes a free and readily available energy source. Environmentally, the system will reduce both air and noise pollution. Complex gear and drive train mechanisms are virtually eliminated as the axle(s) are directly driven by the rotating components of either the DC or AC motors.
Although the invention has been described relative to specific embodiments thereof, there are numerous variations and modifications that will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the above teachings. For example, if high levels of electric current will pass through the system, the system's “switches” could include high-current-handling relays to handle the actual current flow. The system can be adapted to a variety of motor and generator configurations without departing from the scope of the present invention. The various elements of the system can be positioned for optimum efficiency depending on the vehicle type, application, and the environment in which it will be used. For example, each of the DC and AC motors and AC generator could be coupled to a separate axle. The AC generator could be mechanically or electronically “subtracted” from the system when the vehicle is operating on DC power to minimize drag on the system operating at low speeds.
As mentioned above in the description of
In addition to the above-described variations, the particular “low speed-to-high speed threshold” could be changed to suit user preferences, driving applications, environments, or habits. The setting of this threshold could be factory set, user-controlled, government-controlled, or even automatically adjusted. For example, each of the above-described embodiments of the present invention could also include a wireless receiver 60 coupled to switcher 12. In this way, a wireless signal could be used to adjust the threshold speed when a vehicle entered a particular geographic region, a region defined by a specific kind of driving (e.g., flat terrain, hilly terrain, highway driving, etc.), or when wind conditions in a region warrant such adjustment. The wireless signal could be generated at various fixed stations (e.g., existing cellular phone towers) distributed throughout the country. In the absence of a wireless signal, switcher 12 can default to factory settings.
It is therefore to be understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described.
This is a continuation-in-part of co-pending application Ser. No. 11/700,506, filed Jan. 31, 2007. Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §120, the benefit of priority from co-pending application Ser. No. 11/700,506 is hereby claimed for this application.
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11700506 | Jan 2007 | US |
Child | 12381723 | US |