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Electric vehicle update – Sharp’s Power Conditioner uses electric vehicle batteries as home batteries

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February 23, 2011
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    February 23, 2011

    sharp_power

    By Bob Difley

    CrunchGear published a report on February 22nd that the Japanese Tech giant Sharp, has developed a power conditioner (controller) that makes it possible to use batteries in electric cars as storage batteries for the home.

    Sharp says the Intelligent Power Conditioner is one the critical elements in their Eco House concept, which consists of solar energy, utility power, and storage batteries as the energy sources.

    In experiments, Sharp was able to squeeze 8kW of power out of an EV traction battery pack used in a Mitsubishi i MiEV – enough to “power electrical appliances in an average household.”

    sharp_eco-620x378Sharp claims that it took 30 minutes to recharge the batteries, with the 4kWh of energy necessary coming from the charge controller in the Intelligent Power Conditioner.

    The current question is, with the chaos in some of the world’s major oil producing countries and oil’s surge to over $100/barrel, whether money is going to start pouring into not only electric vehicle technology but in bringing electric vehicles and related infrastructure to market faster.

    With gas prices soaring and supplies in question, the government may add more incentives to electric vehicle companies to push us faster along the track to reduce our imported oil consumption, as least to the point where we can supply most of the oil we need from domestic, rather than international–especially OPEC–sources. Will we start to see electric vehicle chargers appearing in campgrounds, national parks, and other tourist hot spots? How about campgrounds installing Sharp Power Conditioners where campers can connect their electric dinghys and feed their excess electrical energy back into the campground power system and in return receive payment for the energy downloaded as campground discounts?

    Check out my website for more RVing tips and destinations and my ebooks, BOONDOCKING: Finding the Perfect Campsite on America’s Public Lands, Snowbird Guide to Boondocking in the Southwestern Deserts, and 111 Ways to Get the Biggest Bang out of your RV Lifestyle Dollar.

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    3. Power Conditioner Know It All

      Wouldn’t this be the perfect set-up? How much?

      0
      September 21, 2011
    4. gary sheldon

      Why not use nuclear to produce electricty?? Because of gumMINT prohibitions that is why ! I like solar and wind for individual offgrid applictions but can you imagine the eyesore of millions of acres of inefficient solar and wind technology. God only knows how many birds alone are killed by windmills. There are some near our home but I say I don’t want them in my back yard any more than the “esteemed” Ted ( the socio-com) Kennedy did. Ask Gore about coal technology. That is where his father made their millions. Better than his cap and trade ponzi nonsense that is for sure. Maybe solar panels would create lots of shade for desert reptiles but how many would it take to power an MRI machine for example. The idea is ludicris.

      0
      February 27, 2011
    5. G Shea

      CNG is the answer. Where I work our entire bus fleet has used it for over a decade, and we have a fleet of smaller cars using it. Our CNG taurus uses it at 70 MPG and the CNG costs around 1.00 per gallon, burns clean, and there is plenty of it in the USA. Why haven’t we used it more? Ask your “green” leaders. I am sure it would add to Global bull or something…
      G Shea

      0
      February 26, 2011
    6. Dan Rambow

      So let me take this concept one step farther.

      You develop a battery pack and motors to provide motive power for the RV.

      Then when parked, using solar, wind, (and yes shore power if available and needed), you charge the system and run the house power off the same battery pack.

      Yes, on longer trips you will have to recharge a few times in transit, but as a fulltimer only traveling a couple of hundred miles between 1 month stays, it would be great.

      Sounds like a great system, out in the future.

      0
      February 24, 2011
    7. Chris C

      I meant to say: ” I don”t understand why they show a battery at the car charging station”.

      BTW, electric utilities can’t wait for the E-cars to come on line. Most owners will be charging at night because of the cheap “time of use” cost for electricity. The coal plants are running but not generating their potential power.

      Electric vehicles are perfect for California, but for cold or very hot, humid climates they need enough energy for heat or air conditioning. And yes, cold will severely affect the battery capacity and life.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    8. Chris C

      This is back to the future; looking at the diagram in “Crunch Gear”, the modern home has been converted to DC! So, you can forget about inverters.
      I understand why they show an auxiliary battery at the car charging station–I thought the on-board car batteries fed the home. Looks hopelessly complex. Perfect for the electronic RV gadget guys.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    9. Frank

      Electric cars are really “coal powered” since well over 50% of our electrical energy is derived from coal burning power plants. Electrical energy is not efficient as much loss takes place in transmission. Nothing will take the place of oil in our life times. Electric cars are a joke, especially for those of us in the northern climes where the temperature dips below zero on occasion. We have plenty of energy in the US. We just need to develop it.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    10. Francis

      No one is fighting, but some of us should probably avoid double posting.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    11. Jane

      Now, now children….let’s not fight….

      0
      February 23, 2011
    12. Jane

      Now, now children….let’s not fight…

      0
      February 23, 2011
    13. Francis

      I’m with you, Linda. a) No one held me down and made me read this – I did so because I’m interested in maintaining my travels if possible through whatever energy future awaits and b) the issue of RVers (like me) who have no plans to abandon the sticks and bricks makes this eminently pertinent. As someone who also gives a hoot about what future generations may have to deal with as regards energy sources, this appealed to me on that level as well. If someone (Larry, for instance) isn’t interested then fine, don’t read the **** article! The accusation that this is somehow inappropriate for RVers is spurious IMHO.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    14. Bruce

      Someone is confused about this controller. (Maybe me) I thought it was to convert power from the golf cart batteries for use in the house. But remember that you have to use house current to charge them. With the various inefficiencies in charging and inverting it will cost more than it will return. If there were no inefficiencies, you would only break even. Plus you have to buy the device.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    15. Linda

      As some RVer’s have hybrid cars, it seems this article would interest them. We are retired and hope to keep RVing with our Class A. With the price of diesel fuel, we’re always interested in how we might save money in other aspects of our life. We’re even considering property where we might have a wind turbine and solar to offset our utilities. So this article was of interest to us RVers. Thanks.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    16. LARRY

      I thought this was a blog about rv’s. If i want to here about electric cars and battery powered houses I will look up there website. If you want to stray from the intent of the blog I need to find another blog that pertains to RV interest.

      0
      February 23, 2011
    17. Howard Olsen

      This is kind what I was thinking in my recent big idea (link to my web page explains details), that the hybrid car equipped with a robust inverter could easily supply emergency power to the RV or home. If you agree, vote by “adding your support”. Thank you very much. I hope Toyota is listening.

      0
      February 23, 2011

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