RENEWABLE UNINTERRUPTED POWER SUPPLY FOR CRITICAL NODE INFRASTRUCTURE SUPPORT
First Claim
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1. A system for providing uninterrupted power to elements of infrastructure, comprising:
- a shelter including a wall connected to a roof, and an enclosure defined in part by a portion of the wall, the enclosure defining an interior volume that is not visible to occupants of the shelter;
one or more photovoltaic modules disposed on the roof of the shelter, which generate current when exposed to light;
one or more electrical storage batteries disposed in the interior volume of the enclosure, the one or more batteries being electrically connected to the photovoltaic modules such that the photovoltaic modules supply current to the battery when the photovoltaic modules are illuminated;
an element of infrastructure connected to a power network, the element of infrastructure also being selectably electrically connected to said battery via a switch;
a sensor in electrical communication with said element of infrastructure and adapted to detect interruption of a flow of power between said element of infrastructure and said power network;
a CNIS controller in electrical communication with said switch and said sensor, the controller adapted to supply power from said one or more storage batteries to said element of infrastructure when the sensor detects interruption of a flow of power between said element of infrastructure and said power network.
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Abstract
A platform to supply renewable backup power to critical node infrastructure is disclosed. The platform conceals solar photovoltaic modules and storage batteries in plain sight by hiding such components in commonly encountered urban furniture, such as bus shelters. In particular, a bus shelter ad box is used to conceal or cloak certain components of the system.
35 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A system for providing uninterrupted power to elements of infrastructure, comprising:
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a shelter including a wall connected to a roof, and an enclosure defined in part by a portion of the wall, the enclosure defining an interior volume that is not visible to occupants of the shelter; one or more photovoltaic modules disposed on the roof of the shelter, which generate current when exposed to light; one or more electrical storage batteries disposed in the interior volume of the enclosure, the one or more batteries being electrically connected to the photovoltaic modules such that the photovoltaic modules supply current to the battery when the photovoltaic modules are illuminated; an element of infrastructure connected to a power network, the element of infrastructure also being selectably electrically connected to said battery via a switch; a sensor in electrical communication with said element of infrastructure and adapted to detect interruption of a flow of power between said element of infrastructure and said power network; a CNIS controller in electrical communication with said switch and said sensor, the controller adapted to supply power from said one or more storage batteries to said element of infrastructure when the sensor detects interruption of a flow of power between said element of infrastructure and said power network. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method of providing backup power for critical infrastructure nodes, the method comprising:
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providing photovoltaic modules on a commonly encountered structure, such that the photovoltaic cells are not visible from street level; providing one or more storage batteries connected to said photovoltaic modules, and a CNIS controller adapted to selectably electrically connect the one or more storage batteries to an associated infrastructure node in the event of a loss of grid power, the CNIS controller and the one or more storage batteries arranged in the commonly encountered structure such that they are not visible from street level. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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21. A system for providing uninterrupted power to grid-connected elements of infrastructure, comprising:
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a shelter including a wall connected to a roof, and an enclosure defined in part by a portion of the wall, the enclosure defining an interior volume that is not visible to occupants of the shelter; one or more photovoltaic modules disposed on the roof of the shelter, which generate current when exposed to light; one or more electrical storage batteries disposed in the interior volume of the enclosure, and a smart power manager including a controller adapted to interrupt a connection between an element of infrastructure and an external power network, and establish an electrical connection between the photovoltaic modules and an element of infrastructure during periods of high illumination on the photovoltaic modules. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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Specification