Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, Davis, 2007. / Text document in PDF format. Title from PDF title page (viewed on August 28, 2009). "Received by ITS-Davis: December 2007"--Publication detail webpage. Includes bibliographical references (p. 314-323).

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Electric vehicles (EVs) face a major issue before becoming the norm of society, that is, their lack of range when it comes to long trips. Fast charging stations are a good step forward to help make it simpler for EVs, but it is still not as convenient when compared to vehicles with an internal combustion engine (ICE). Plenty of infrastructure changes have been proposed in the literature attempting to tackle this issue, but they typically tend to be either an expensive solution or a difficult practical implementation. This dissertation presents two solutions to help increase the range of EVs: a novel wireless charging method and a multi-motor architecture for EVs. The first proposed solution involves the ability for EVs to charge while en route from another vehicle, which will be referred to from here on as vehicle-to-vehicle recharging (VVR). The aim of this system is to bring an innovative way for EVs to charge their battery without getting off route on a highway. The electric vehicle can request such a service from a designated charger vehicle on demand and receive electric power wirelessly while en route. The vehicles that provide energy (charger vehicles) through wireless power transfer (WPT) only need to be semi-autonomous in order to ``engage'' or ``disengage'' during a trip. Also, a novel method for wireless power transfer will be presented, where the emitter (TX) or receiver (RX) pads can change angles to improve the efficiency of power transmission. This type of WPT system would be suitable for the VVR system presented in this dissertation, along with other applications. The second solution presented here will be an architecture for EVs with three or more different electric motors to help prolong the state of charge (SOC) of the battery. The key here is to use motors with different high efficiency regions. The proposed control algorithm optimizes the use of the motors on-board to keep them running in their most efficient regions. With this architecture, the powertrain would see a combined efficiency map that incorporates the best operating points of the motors. Therefore, the proposed architecture will allow the EV to operate with a higher range for a given battery capacity. The state-of-the-art is divided into four subsections relevant to the proposed solutions and where most of the innovations to reduce the burden of charging EVs can be found: (1) infrastructure changes, (2) device level innovations, (3) autonomous vehicles, and (4) electric vehicle architectures. The infrastructure changes highlight some of the proposed systems that aim to help EVs become a convenient solution to the public. Device level innovations covers some of the literature on technology that addresses EVs in terms of WPT. The autonomous vehicle subsection covers the importance of such technology in terms of safety and reliability, that could be implemented on the VVR system. Finally, the EV architectures covers the current typologies used in EVs. Furthermore, modeling, analysis, and simulation is presented to validate the feasibility of the proposed VVR system, the WPT system, and the multi-motor architecture for EVs.

published_or_final_version / Electrical and Electronic Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Electrical and Electronic Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Also available in print.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 100 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 69-72).

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2001. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 88 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 84-85).

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2001. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xvi, 112 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-87).

As the awareness of energy security and global warming is increasing, alternative technologies are being developed such as electric vehicles. In addition, the integration of a more sustainable energy system with renewable resources put a lot of pressure on the electricity system in terms of regulation power. This thesis has investigated and developed proposals of business models with electric vehicles, which by their construction can raise value for both customers and electricity companies. The development of the business models have been done using a model, which was based on the complexity of the frequency control market, the charging of vehicles and the behavior of the drivers. The proposed models address two types of customer segments; business and private customers. In addition, applying a perspective that includes active and non-active customers has segmented these further. Based on the assumptions in the thesis, the most promising area of interest is the non-active business customer, in this case, a car pool. This proposal was based on the simulation results together with an analysis of advantages and disadvantages with active and non-active customers. This proposal assumed that customers preferred to be non-active in order to maintain flexibility and freedom, which could be studied further by customer surveys.