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Noncontact Power Transmission for Roadway-powered Vehicles: an insider look from Professor Srdjan Lukic

Submitted by: Ryan Lockwood on Oct 01, 2009 at 7:19 pm Tagged with: Advanced Research, Automotive, converter efficiency, Cu-Icar, Electric Vehicle, Emerging Technology, Engineer, free event, inductive power transfer, IPT system, lecture, power transfer, SAE International, Seminar Source: CU-ICAR

In recent years, environmental and energy security concerns have led to the renewed push for the introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) into the marketplace. As a result a number of major car manufacturers such as Nissan plan to offer EVs to the public. However, there is a concern that electric vehicles provide limited mobility due to the relatively low energy density of batteries compared to gasoline. Despite much research and incremental progress, it is highly unlikely that a quantum leap in battery performance will be achieved. In addition, slow battery recharge is seen as another major barrier to EV acceptance.

Instead of focusing on battery performance, a novel approach has been gaining traction: powering vehicles from a power track embedded in the road itself while the vehicles are on the move. The method that shows the greatest promise for roadway to vehicle power transfer is inductive power transfer (IPT). IPT is a power transfer system based on magnetic coupling - a concept utilized in transformers and electric machines. IPT is not a new or unproven concept: it is used in numerous industrial applications where mechanical contact between the source and the load is not possible or should be avoided.

This talk will cover the basic principles of operation of the IPT system with emphasis on technical issues that need to be addressed and proposed solutions. A system level analysis of the power transfer requirements to extend the range of an electric vehicle to meet a target range will be presented. Finally, a novel power electronic topology and control method to achieve higher converter efficiency, minimize component stresses, and ensure system stability will be presented.

Srdjan Lukic received the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, in 2004 and 2007, respectively. Currently he is an assistant professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at North Carolina State University. His research interests include renewable energy systems, energy storage systems, automotive power electronics, and electric motor drives. From 2002 to 2004, he was with Firefly Energy Inc., where he was responsible for optimizing certain aspects of carbon/graphite foam-based lead acid batteries for novel automotive applications.
The lecture will take place on October 8th at 12:00 PM in the Carroll A. Campbell Jr. Graduate Engineering Center Auditorium.