GB2389249A

GB2389249A - Electricity generating abstract

Info

Publication number: GB2389249A
Application number: GB0212415A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Mark Colin Porter; Timothy Grant Porter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-05-29
Filing date: 2002-05-29
Publication date: 2003-12-03
Also published as: GB0212415D0

Abstract

The Electricity Generating Device 10 may be constructed from a trough 40 that would be made from a suitable material such as plastic or metal and would contain the generating devices 20 (in this instance shown as cylindrical Piezo Electric Cells). The trough would be located in a road surface 70 in a prepared channel 60 and may be secured by means of bolts through holes 42. Water that managed to seep into the trough, would be carried away by drainage holes 44 into a gully 62 in the bottom of the channel 60. The Generating Devices would be supported within a protective housing 30 made from a suitable material, (in this instance Rubber has been selected ) this prevents direct contact with the object that is applying the deflecting/compressing force, be it a motor vehicle or pedestrian.

Description

"ELECTRICITY GENERATING APPARATUS"

This invention relates to electricity generating apparatus. More particularly it relates to apparatus for generating electricity from moving vehicles.

Motor vehicles generally operate with low efficiency. Energy is dissipated from such vehicles as heat and sound during operation. Energy that is dissipated as heat or sound is not converted to kinetic energy of the vehicle and may therefore be considered as waste.

It is an object of this invention to provide apparatus for generating electricity from motor vehicles.

According to an aspect of this invention there is provided electricity generating 15 apparatus for mounting in or on a road surface, the apparatus including a depressibie part that is Repressible by a vehicle whee! passing over the apparatus, depression of the Repressible part being used to directly or indirectly generate electrical energy.

20 Preferably, the depressible part is operable to engage electricity generating means of the apparatus so as to generate electricity when so depressed.

l l This apparatus may be advantageous in harnessing at least some of the energy that would otherwise be dissipated as tyre noise and/or heat. Although operation of the apparatus by a vehicle passing thereover may impede progress of the vehicle and result in a reduction in efficiency thereof, these effects are 5 likely to be minimal such that the apparatus would still be advantageous in generating electricity for use in, for example, road lighting in remote areas, at the cost of a small reduction in vehicle efficiency.

The electricity generating means may include at least one piezo-electric cell.

The electricity generating means may include a generator that is mechanically, pneumatically and/or hydraulically coupled to the Repressible part.

The electricity generating means may include a series of piezo-electric cells, 15 mounted below the road surface and at least partially in the Repressible part.

The electricity generating apparatus may include at least one electricity generating unit, the or each unit including a respective piezo-electric cell, mounting below the road surface in a respective Repressible pad. For each unit, 20 the respective Repressible part may be substantially cylindrical.

1 ( Preferably the electricity generating apparatus includes a series of such electricity generating units.

S The or each Repressible part preferably extends at least up to the road surface.

The Repressible part or pans may extend beyond the road surface. The top of the Repressible part or pans may be domed such that edges of the top are flush with the road surface and an apex of the dome extends beyond the road surface. The or each Repressible part is preferably formed from a compressible 10 material. The compressible material may include rubber. Preferably, this is recycled rubber. More preferably, this is rubber recycled from vehicle lyres.

The series may be accommodated in troughs mounted laterally or longitudinally in the road surface with respect to the road. Preferably, each trough is arranged 15 to collect water from the road surface and to channel it away therefrom.

The apparatus is preferably arranged for supplying electricity to an electricity distribution grid. The apparatus may be arranged for powering electrical equipment that is remote from mains electricity.

The electricity generating apparatus may also be arranged for mounting in or

on a pavement such that the Repressible part is Repressible by the feet of pedestrians treading on the apparatus.

Specific electricity generating apparatus in which the invention is embodied is 5 now described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a sectional view of the apparatus the section taken at line 1-I of [figure 2; and 10 Figure 2 is plan view of the apparatus.

The electricity generating apparatus 10 includes a series of piezoelectric cells, only one 20 of which is shown in Figure 1. The piezoelectric cells 20 are mounted in a rubber housing 30, such that the rubber housing 30 encloses each 15 piezo-electric cell 20. The rubber housing 30 is formed from rubber that has been re-cycled from vehicle lyres. The piezo-electric cells 20 and the rubber housing 30 are located in a trough 40 of the apparatus 10. The trough 40 is substantially u- shaped in cross-section and is fonned of a durable material such as steel or reinforced plastic. The arrangement of piezo-electric cells 20 and the 20 rubber housing 30 in the trough 40 is such that the piezo-e]ectric cells 20 are positioned along a centre line of the trough 40 in a series. This can be seen

from Figure 2, wherein the piezo-electric cells 20 are shown as hidden detail.

With reference to Figure 1, the rubber housing 30 substantially fills the space in the trough 40 that is not taken up by the piezo-electric cells 20. A top 5 surface of the rubber housing 30 is domed such that the rubber housing 30 is flush with the respective top of each side of the trough 40, but such that the rubber housing 30 projects to an apex that is above those sides.

The trough 40 includes a series of fixing holes 42 in the bottom thereof, 10 adjacent to the sides of the trough 40. The trough 40 also includes a series of drainage holes 44 mnning along the centre of the bottom of the trough 40.

The apparatus 10 includes a respective series of securing pegs SO that project from each side of the trough 40 into the rubber housing 30. The pegs 50 15 provide location of the rubber housing 30, and hence of the piezo-electric cells 20 located therein, reiailve to the trough 40.

The apparatus 10 is positioned in a channel 60 that is cut or otherwise formed in a road surface 70. The channel 60 is a substantially U-section channel 20 running in a lateral direction with respect to the road. It is preferred that the apparatus 10 extends laterally, as this ensures that wheels of passing vehicles

( ride over the apparatus.

The channel 60 includes a drainage channel 62 in the bottom thereof.

5 The apparatus 10 is fixed in place with respect to the road surface 70 by driving bolts (not shown), or some such other fixing means, through the fixing holes 42 in the bottom of the trough 40, into the road surface 70.

Electrical output wires (not shown) of the piezo-electric cells 20 of the ]0 apparatus 10 are fed to the side of the road surface 70. In this embodiment, it is envisaged that the apparatus to is for supplying electricity for supplementing that of an electricity distribution grid system. It is therefore envisaged that the output wires be connected to suitable conditioning and/or transforming apparatus for connection to such a grid.

In operation, the wheels of a vehicle (not shown) travelling along the road surface 70 ride over the rubber housing 30 and exert a downward force thereon. This causes the rubber housing 30 to be depressed in the region underneath the wheels, the rubber housing thereby acting as the aforementioned 20 "depressible part". Depression of the rubber housing 30 results in the or each piezo-e]ectric cell 20 adjacent thereto being compressed so as to generate

! electricity. The electricity generated by each piezo-electric cell 20 is fed through the output wires that run to the side of the road surface 70 for feeding into the grid system.

5 Water (not shown) that seeps through or around the apparatus 10 is collected in the drainage channel 62 provided in the bottom of the channel 60 in the road surface 70. The drainage channel 62 is arranged to channel water that is collected therein away from the road surface 70. This results in drainage of the road surface 70 in the region of the apparatus 10.

In an alternative embodiment. the apparatus 10 could be positioned in the road surface 70 so as to extend in a longitudinal direction with respect to the road and such that the apparatus 10 is in a position likely to coincide with the lateral position of wheels of a vehicle travelling along the road surface 70.

Claims

1. The Electricity Generating Apparatus/Apparatuses shall be made in such a way as to allow it to be positioned in such a way that the action of the wheels of vehicular traffic passing over it would cause compression andJor deflection of energy generating; devices located within the Electricity Generating ApparatuslApparatuses, these devices contained within the Electricity Generating ApparatuslApparatuses could be Hydraulic, Pneumatic, Piezo Electric, or any other such type of energy conversion/L:enerating device as yet not conceived, the energy harvested from the action of the aforementioned vehicle passing over the Electricity Generating ApparatuslApparatuses and the devices contained within shall be converted from it's primary state into a useable form via the use of suitable conversion equipment located within the Energy Generating Apparatus/Apparatuses or elsewhere.

2. The Electricity Generating ApparatuslApparatuses as claimed in Claim 1 shall be constructed to allow their positioning within the road surface presenting a minimal profile so as to prevent the impedance of the traffic flowing over them, unless the impedance of flow is desirable, in such an instance the Electricity Generating ApparatuslApparatuses could be used wholly or as part of a Hump/Sleeping Policeman so serving two purposes.

3. The Electricity Generating Apparatus/Apparatuses as claimed in Claim 1 and Claim 2 shall also be able to be manufactured in a portable form that will allow its transportation and use at sites where the action of vehicles,'or pedestrian traffic passing over the Electricity Generating Apparatus/Apparatuses would produce useable energy from that action

4. The Electricity Generating ApparatusIApparatuses as mentioned in Claim 3 shall also be able to be permanently or temporarily positioned within or on a pathway where the action of pedestrian traffic walking over the Electricity Generating Apparatus Apparatuses will cause the Electricity Generating Apparatus/Apparatuses to produce useable energy.

5.The Electricity Generating Apparatus as claimed in any proceeding claim is made from materials suitable for the purpose of constructing the Electricity Generating Device these may be metal, rubber plastic ceramic crystalline or other types of materials that suit the purpose of construction.

6. The Electricity Generating Apparatus as herein described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing