Design and Development of Solar Assisted Bicycle

As we all know the fuel prices especially the petrol is rising steadily day by day. Again the pollution due to vehicles in metro cities & urban areas is increasing continuously. To overcome these problems, an effort is being made to search some other alternative sources of energy for the vehicles. Again, it is also not affordable to purchase vehicles (mopeds, scooters or motorcycles) for all the class of society. Keeping this in mind, a search for some way to cater these economically poor people as well as to provide a solution for the environmental pollution was in progress. The solar assisted bicycle developed is driven by DC motor fitted in front or rear axle housing & operated by solar energy. The solar panels mounted on the carriage will charge the battery & which in turn drive the hub motor. When the bicycle is idle, the solar panel will charge the battery. This arrangement will replace the petrol engine, the gear box & the fuel tank in case of a two wheeler or a chain sprocket, chain & gear shifting arrangement of a conventional bicycle being used by most common man. [9] As a part of dissertation work, the solar assisted bicycle is fitted with a dc hub motor on front axle of a bicycle with power rating of 250W and with a travelling speed of around 25-30 kmph. It is provided with a pair of lead acid batteries of 35 Ah each, a photovoltaic solar panel with capacity of 20 watt, a voltage regulator of 24v 10 Amp, accelerator and motor controller of 24v 25Amp. There is also a provision for charging of the battery with 220-240V, AC wall outlet supply, in case of poor solar supply due to cloudy weather. [4] Index Terms Solar Assisted Bicycle (SAB), Hub Motor, SolarPanel, Motor Controller, Voltage Regulator.