Design And Fabrication Of A Four Wheeled Hybrid (Solar-Electric Powered) Mobility Scooter

ABSTRACT

This work is on a four-wheeled solar electric powered mobility scooter for handicapped and aged for indoor and outdoor use. Moreover, it has been specifically designed for a particular patient who is disabled by lower limbs. Therefore we have made it customized that is according to the patient body dimensions, needs or requirements. In this project, the electric scooter circuits were designed and made simple to operate. Other than that, the maintenance of the designed electric scooter in this project is low because the components used are connected to one set of batteries. Proper circuit diagrams and connections were made using various electronic components to solve the issue of operating two controllers through a single throttle and reversing of the motor. This machine can be recharged from any external source of electricity, and the electricity is stored in   a rechargeable battery, which provides power to one or more electric motors to attain movement. Electric motorcycles, as differentiated from scooters, do not have a step-through frame. The electricity generated from an external source helps in acceleration of the motorcycle. The speed of this cycle is limited and the electricity is generated using a solar panel. The generated electricity is stored using a battery and the locomotion and movement of the vehicle is hence propelled using a motor. The cycle need not be continuously fed with solar energy in order to gain the capacity to run. It gets its energy from the batteries where the energy is stored.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE

TITLE PAGE

APPROVAL PAGE

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

• PROBLEM STATEMENT
• AIM/OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT
• SCOPE OF THE PROJECT
• APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT
• PROJECT ORGANISATION

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

• REVIEW OF THE STUDY
• TYPES OF SCOOTER
• HISTORITICAL BACKGROUND OF PHOTOVOTAIC CELL
• THEORETICAL REVIEW OF SOLAR CELL
• REVIEW OF SOLAR CELL EFFICIENCY
• REVIEW OF SOLAR CELL MATERIALS
• REVIEW OF RELATED STUDIES

CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

• SYSTEM BLOCK DIAGRAM
• COMPONENTS OF TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
• MOTOR SELECTION
• BATTERY SELECTION
• SOLAR CELLS
• ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS
• STEERING SYSTEM

CHAPTER FOUR

• RESULT AND DISCUSSION
• COST DETAILS
• ADVANTAGES
• DISADVANTAGES

CHAPTER FIVE

• CONCLUSION
• FUTURE SCOPE
• RECOMMENDATION

REFERENCES

CHAPTER ONE

1.0                                    INTRODUCTION

1.1                      BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Disabled people and the elderly need to face their daily life just like normal people. But, they need to be assisted by others to move back and forth. But, it is not always possible for people to assist them all the time. By having a mobility scooter, they can move everywhere by themselves. Although nowadays there are many assistive mobility that exist for disabled people such as manual wheelchair but they may be reluctant to use because it makes them different from normal person. So, a trendy look like scooter can increase their confidence to mingle like a normal person.

Assistive and small sit-down motor scooters provide important advantages to people with mobility problem throughout the world. Scooters are a subclass of motorcycles and are very popular as urban and rural means of transportation. There are several types of scooters that we will find zooming up and down the highways and city streets.

A scooter is also useful for person without the stamina or arm flexibility necessary to use a manual wheelchair. Swiveling the seat of an electric scooter is generally easier than moving the foot supports on most conventional wheelchairs. A mobility scooter is very helpful for persons with systemic or whole-body disabling conditions.

The aim of the project is to design a scooter with renewable solar energy. Solar Bike aims to be a small research and development business that develops renewable technology and helps everyone start riding electric bicycles around rather than using their cars. We firmly believe that using solar powered bicycles is one of the best methods of reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and minimizing environmental damage caused by carbon dioxide emissions.

A solar panel is a flat rectangular shaped device, typically somewhere between the size of a radiator and the size of a door, made up of many individual photovoltaic energy collectors called solar cells covered with a sheet of glass on its surface. The cells, each of which is about the size of a palm of an adult, are usually octagonal in shape and colored bluish black. Similar to the cells in a battery, the cells inside a solar panel are designed to generate electricity; but where a battery’s cells make electricity from chemicals, a solar panel’s cells produce power by capturing sunlight instead. They are sometimes called photovoltaic cells because they use sunlight (“photo” comes from the Greek word for light) to make electricity (the word “voltaic” is a reference to electricity pioneer Alessandro Volta).

In this project we are going to use solar panel and DC hub motor. The voltage generated by the solar panel is stored in battery (48V/20AH) through charging circuit. From the battery, power will be supplied to the DC hub motor (48V/200W) through accelerator followed by gate switch. The purpose of gate switch is when break is applied then automatically it opens the connection between motor and accelerometer.

The wheel hub motor is an electric motor that is incorporated into the hub of a wheel and drives it directly. Hub motor electromagnetic fields are supplied to the stationary windings of the motor. The outer part of the motor in turn follows, those fields, turning the wheel attached.

1.2                                 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Nowadays, small scooter becomes popular especially during recreation time, relaxing and for human exercise after they had faced their office job. There is a lot of scooter type around us like have seated or stand while riding the scooter. Most of that is operation by motor electric or just using our leg to move scooter like playing skate board.

Conventionally, these types of vehicles are hard to use with the help of just mechanical energy. The energy we get from human effort. But when energy is converted using solar energy and a battery, it becomes more easy and helpful in the propulsion of the motorcycle. The motorcycle, not using an engine, becomes an effective way of road transport as it causes no pollution. It is eco-friendly and it definitely reduces human effort.

1.3                    AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

Scooters are built to make a disabled or aged person to be self- dependent. The main aim of the project is to design a scooter with renewable solar energy.

The objectives are:

1. To design and fabricate a four wheel hybrid scooter powered by both solar and electric energy.
2. To carry out cost and economic analysis of a hybrid scooter.

• To supports disabled and elder people at the lowest cost possible.

1. To reduce the use of non-renewable energy sources
2. To control the pollution

1.4                                 SCOPE OF THE PROJECT

The concept of design and fabrication of hybrid vehicle was mainly intended for disabled people and the elderly. It is a vehicle which is solar powered by solar and electrical energy. This vehicle is an electric vehicle powered by solar energy obtained from solar panels on the surface of the vehicle. Solar vehicles are not practical day-to-day transportation devices at present, but are used as primary demonstration vehicle and for engineering exercises. The battery is the energy storage device which can store charge from single-phase 230 V wall socket or through the solar panel. A BLDC motor is the prime mover, and it drives the vehicle with the support of two wheels. This vehicle has the capability to carry weights up to limits of 150 kg and can travel at speeds of 40 km/h. It is designed as user-friendly which is free from pollution, and it is different from conventional vehicles.

1.5                          APPLICATION OF THE PROJECT

This machine was purposely made for the disabled and aged. However, it can be used for transportation on airports, colleges and at places of tourist’s interests.  It can also be used at the places where is the risk of contamination due to emission.

1.6                                     PROJECT ORGANISATION

The work is organized as follows: chapter one discuses the introductory part of the work,   chapter two presents the literature review of the study,  chapter three describes the methods applied, chapter four discusses the results of the work, chapter five summarizes the research outcomes and the recommendations.