Power conservation for electrically assisted rickshaw-vans with pv support, torque sensor paddle and the solar battery charging station - a complete off- grid solution : commissioning of the systems

Abstract

Rickshaw-vans are the most common and popular form of transportation in cities as well as rural areas of Bangladesh. As much as one appreciates a ride, there is no ignoring the inevitable measure of work that is placed in by the rickshaw pullers. A significant number of people of the country are directly or indirectly dependent upon this rickshaw-van pulling profession. This paper will illustrate an eco friendly tri-wheeler solar van with both throttle system and torque sensor paddle used alternatively which will control the power flow from the battery bank to the motor. It describes a research to modernize the pollution free rickshaw-van, aiming to improve the lifestyle and income of the rickshaw-pullers and reduce stress on their health. The electrically assisted rickshaw-van consists of torque sensor paddle in order to reduce the over-use of batterybank. The intelligent control system assists the human power with motor and saves energy by reducing the over-use of motor. PV panel is installed on the rooftop of the van to share load power and a solar battery charging station is implemented to make the whole system completely independent of national grid. The thesis describes the data obtained from field test to determine its performance, feasibility and user friendliness. The solar battery charging station is designed and its performance analysis is included as well. The hybrid “green” rickshaw-van was developed to save energy, use sufficient solar energy and make it a complete off grid solution to assess the decrease in load from our overloaded national grid.