Solar powered thermoelectric cooling apparatus
First Claim
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1. Apparatus for cooling an electric battery exposed to heating due to incident solar irradiation, comprising:
- a solar cell for generating direct current electric power responsive to said solar irradiation, the amount of electric power generated by said solar cell corresponding to the intensity of said incident solar irradiation;
a thermoelectric module electrically coupled to receive said direct current electric power from said solar cell, said module being thermally coupled to said electric battery to directly extract heat therefrom in dependence upon the amount of electric power generated by said solar cell in a self regulating manner such that the amount of heat extracted corresponds with the intensity of said incident radiation.
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Abstract
A thermoelectric module powered by a solar cell is used to cool a battery which serves as a backup power supply in a time-of-use power meter. Solar irradiation incident on the power meter containing the battery, of sufficient intensity to result in heating of the battery, concurrently causes the solar cell to generate an electric current. If the battery temperature rises above a predetermined level, the thermoelectric module cools the battery in dependence on the power generated by the solar cell.
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Citations
9 Claims
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1. Apparatus for cooling an electric battery exposed to heating due to incident solar irradiation, comprising:
- a solar cell for generating direct current electric power responsive to said solar irradiation, the amount of electric power generated by said solar cell corresponding to the intensity of said incident solar irradiation;
a thermoelectric module electrically coupled to receive said direct current electric power from said solar cell, said module being thermally coupled to said electric battery to directly extract heat therefrom in dependence upon the amount of electric power generated by said solar cell in a self regulating manner such that the amount of heat extracted corresponds with the intensity of said incident radiation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
- a solar cell for generating direct current electric power responsive to said solar irradiation, the amount of electric power generated by said solar cell corresponding to the intensity of said incident solar irradiation;
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6. A time-of-use power meter comprising:
- means for measuring the amount of electric power drawn from a utility power line;
clock and data recording circuitry coupled to said measuring means for recording electrical energy usage and time-of-use information, said recording circuitry being connected for energization from said utility power line;
a backup power supply for said clock and data recording circuitry, said backup power supply being subject to heating due to incident solar irradiation of a magnitude capable of adversely affecting the operation of said power supply;
a solar cell responsive to said solar irradiation for generating electric power; and
a thermoelectric module electrically coupled to said solar cell, said module being thermally coupled to said backup power supply for extracting heat therefrom in dependence upon the power output of said solar cell. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
- means for measuring the amount of electric power drawn from a utility power line;
Specification