Journal of Communication and Computer 10 (2013) 178-185

Power System Design for an Electric Car

Louiza Sellami, Mathew McIntyre, Linda Yin, Christian Soncini and Amanda Lowery
Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, US Naval Academy, Annapolis 21402, MD USA

Received: August 21, 2012 / Accepted: August 22, 2012 / Published: February 28, 2013.

Abstract: For many years now electrical engineering students at the US Naval Academy have been involved in renewal energy types
of projects, including electric boats and cars, and have participated in various competitions across the US. Of particular interest to the
authors is the electric car, since it involves various aspects of electrical engineering. As part of their senior capstone project, and
under the authors guidance and supervision, four students designed, built, and tested the power generation and distribution system,
the motor control system for an electric car. This was accomplished by converting an originally gas-powered car into a
battery-powered car, whereby solar panels are used to recharge the batteries. Towards this end, a mix of off the shelf parts and
components, and homebuilt circuits were used. The design considerations include selecting an appropriate control system, choosing
suitable batteries, utilizing solar panels to recharge the batteries, designing the lighting system for the vehicle, and implementing
several key safety features, including an emergency shut-off switch.

Key words: Electric cars, batteries, solar panels, DC-DC conversion, DC motor control.

1. Introduction


As early as the 1830s, engineers and inventors have
experimented with utilizing electric motors and
battery systems as a means of powering vehicles [1-2].
These vehicles are known to have very low acoustic
noise as well as zero emissions. Though they have
existed for a very long time and competed favorably
with the highly inefficient combustion engine vehicles,
the latter gained the upper hand because of the
limitations of the batteries. These included inadequate
capacity, long charging time, high replacement cost,
reduced passenger and cargo space, as well as a short
driving range [3].
With the ever increasing cost of gasoline, the use of
modern day road vehicles is constantly becoming an
economic burden. With most gasoline powered
vehicles, every mile driven is about 36 cents;
comparatively the cost of an electric car is under 10
cents per mile [3]. Nearly 85% of people in the United

Corresponding author: Louiza Sellami, associate professor,
research fields: circuits and systems, signal processing,
biomedical engineering, power. E-mail: sellami@usna.edu.
States own and operate motor vehicles. This number is
projected to increase, along with the number of
owners in other large countries. Because of this
increase the world faces many growing economic and
environmental problems. In the US alone, 18 million
barrels of oil are consumed daily by driving cars,
which emit 2.7 billion tons of carbon dioxide each
year [1]. With dwindling supplies of fossil fuels and
increasing environmental backlash from greenhouse
gasses, the world needs to find an alternative to the
conventional motor vehicle.
In recent years there has been a resurgence of
battery and solar powered electric vehicles which was
brought about by the issues mentioned above, and the
ensuing government regulations in terms of limiting
carbon emissions. With this resurgence came great
advancements in the research and development of
deep cycle batteries, battery chargers, MOSFET motor
controllers, DC-DC converters and sensors [4-5]. In
turn, this led to the inclusion of concepts and designs
from the green energy field in university curricula,
including the US Naval Academy.
This paper presents the design method and
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179
considerations for building a battery-powered budget
car, whereby the batteries are recharged by solar
panels, as well as the test results. Examples of design
constraints include: The charging time for the batteries
was limited to an acceptable ratio of charge versus
discharge. The amount of money spent on the project
had to be within the prescribed budget of under
$5,000. The car must be able to attain a reasonable
mileage and speed. Finally, the design must consider
the safety of the user during the operation and
charging of the car. Other design considerations
include selecting an appropriate control system,
choosing a suitable battery, utilizing solar cells to
recharge the batteries, designing the lighting system of
the vehicle, and implementing several safety features,
including an emergency shut-off switch.
2. Considerations and Requirements
As part of the design, first the requirements (listed
below) for the car had to be defined. Some of these
requirements were dictated by the US Naval Academy,
others by the budget constraints:
(1) An ideal distance of 40 m per charge;
(2) Under a budget of $5,000
(3) Ability to power the lights of the car using the
power system;
(4) The max sustainable weight of the chassis is
400lbs;
(5) The control system must have an acceleration of
5 mph/s and a speed limit of 25 m/h;
(6) The solar cell charge time for 80% of the battery
capacity of 8 h;
(7) The wall outlet charge time for 80% of the
battery capacity of 3 h;
(8) An emergency shut off switch for safety.
3. Design Overview
An overview of the chassis structure is shown in
Fig. 1. The motor used in the vehicle is the D&D
ES-3336-48 VDC series wound single shaft, which is
placed in the rear end of the chassis, as shown in
Fig.2.The motor is powered by ten 12V lead acid
batteries, which are placed above the motor.
The batteries are connected to the other components
of the chassis such as the speedometer, the
temperature gauge, the controllers, and the lights. In
order to charge the batteries, two solar panels are
attached to the batteries at a separate station. The
system that is used to control the vehicle is the All
Trax programmable DC motor controller, which is
shown in Fig. 3. The controller, powered by the
batteries, has inputs for the accelerator pedal and the
batteries and an output to the motor. Its function is to
vary the motor power depending on how hard the


Fig. 1 Overall view of the budget volt car.


Fig. 2 Rear of the chassis showing the motor.

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180

Fig. 3 All Trax programmable DC motor controller.

acceleration pedal is pressed, which is attached to a
potentiometer.
A block diagram for the whole system is shown in
Fig. 4. The corresponding circuit schematic,
illustrating the primary and secondary power loops, is
shown in Fig. 5. The major components of the vehicle
are the motor, the charging unit, the batteries, the solar
cells and the controller, which are encased in the
chassis structure.
The lead acid battery was chosen as the most
suitable battery for the vehicle for its light weight and
affordable cost. It is also the safest option. Other
design alternatives were nickel metal hydride and
lithium ion batteries; however, both types presented
problems for the safety of the car and were not within
the budget. Lithium-Iron batteries were also not
chosen because there is a greater chance they will
become overcharged and start a fire.
3.1 Chassis
The original chassis of the car was used. All of the
components are mounted on the chassis whose
specifications are shown in Table 1.
3.2 Motor
As with any car, propulsion requires a prime mover,
which in this case is the DC motor. The latter converts
the electrical energy provided by the batteries into
mechanical torque. The Motor D&D ES-33 36-48
VDC series wound 7/8 single shaft, shown in Fig. 6,
is used. It is 6.7 in diameter and 11.53 long, and
weighs approximately 57l bs. It can output from 5 Hp
at 36 V to 7.2 Hp at 48 V and can handle a current of
135-140 A. However, for the design it was found that


Fig. 4 Block diagram for the budget volt, illustrating the
major systems, and the inputs and outputs for those
systems.


Fig. 5 Circuit schematic of the power system, distribution,
and instrumentation.
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181
Table 1 Chassis specifications.
Part Dimensions
Front suspension Dual 12.8 ''shocks
Rear suspension Dual 15.4'' shocks
Front brakes Hydraulic disc
Rear brakes Hydraulic disc
Front tires 21 7-10
Rear tires 22 10-10
Capacities / dimensions
Weight capacity (lbs) 400
Net weight (lbs) 639
Gross weight (lbs) 739
Size Full size
Overall length 89.4
Overall width 57.9''
Overall height 59.5''
Carton dimension (LWH/in) 90.9'' 45.7 31.1
Seat height 17.7''
Wheelbase 65.7''
Ground clearance 5.9''
Fuel capacity (gal) 1.26
Safety / control
Engine kill switch Yes
Speed limiter Yes
Foot brake Yes
Horn Yes
Headlights Yes
Tail lights Yes
Turn signal indicators Yes


Fig. 6 D&D ES-33 36-48VDC motor.

there was no need to go higher than 24 V as
preliminary experimental results determined that at 16
V the car moved at the target speed.

3.3 DC Motor Controller
A DC motor controller in an electric car can be
compared to a carburetor or fuel injection system in a
gas powered car. It is a device that controls the output
power of the motor by controlling the input power
drawn from the batteries. By stepping up the amount
of voltage and current available to the motor it
controls the speed of the motor and how quickly the
motor can attain this power [6].
The All Trax programmable DC motor controller
used is a durable, high tech DC motor controller. It
has the advantages of being waterproof,
corrosion-proof, vibration proof, and is fully
programmable. Performance characteristics that can
be programmed include: max output current, throttle
response profile, acceleration rate, plug-brake current,
under/over voltage cutback, high pedal disable, and
throttle input type. The 4855 model whose specs are
shown in Table 2 was selected.
3.4 Contactor
Because a large amount of power is used by the
electric motor and the accessories there is a need for
a safe and reliable way of turning on the electrical
system without either leaving the system running or
reconnecting the batteries to the system. Unsafe
conditions can occur as a result of a high
current which can cause damage to the system,
hence the use of a contactor in the design. The latter
is an electromagnetic relay that, when a voltage of
12 V is applied across the solenoid end, causes a
large metal plate to shift up and create an
instantaneous connection between the batteries and
the rest of the electrical system. This acts as a dead
mans switch as it stops the car by interrupting
energy flow if anything goes wrong. The
white Rogers 586 shown in Fig. 7 was selected,
which is capable of carrying up to 200 Aa
current that is below the current at which the car
operates.

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182
Table 2 AXE controller specifications.
AXE model 4855 Specs
Battery voltage 24-48 V
Current limit:
2 Minute rating 650 A
5 Minute rating 400 A
60 Minute rating 250 A
Voltage drop @ 100 A < 0.08 V


Fig. 7 White Rodgers 586 on budget volt.

3.5 Solar Panels and Solar Controller
Solar panels and solar controller serve as the
charging station for the car. The two available models
are the MSX120 and the SX80V. Each solar panel
model specifications are shown in Table 3. The
Solarex SX-80 photovoltaic module is constructed of
36 polycrystalline silicon solar cells. The cells can be
utilized in configurations directly with DC loads or in
an inverter-equipped system for AC loads [7]. The
overall dimensions of the rain-tight structure are
19.75 in by 57.31 in. Each solar cell is rated at a
maximum power output of 80 watts. The voltage at
maximum power is 16.8 V and the current is rated at
4.75 A. The guaranteed minimum power output is
75 W. The short circuit current is rated at 5.17 A and
the open circuit voltage is rated at 21.0 V. The solar
cells are utilized in configuration with the DC load of
the 24 V battery array, which is used to power the
motor and the auxiliary electrical systems in the car.
The solar controllers used in this project are the
SunSaver SS-20L-12V and the SS-20L-24V whose
specifications are listed in Table 4. The solar
Table 3 Solar panel specifications.
Model MSX120 SX80V
Pmax 125.8 80
V (V) 17 16.8
I (I) 7.41 4.75
Voc 21..4 21
Isc 8.39 5.17

Table 4 Solar controller specifications.
Model SS-20L-12V SS-20L-24V
Solar rating 20 A 20 A
Load rating 20 A 20 A
System voltage 12 V 24 V

controller utilizes switching pulse width modulation to
charge batteries.
3.6 Batteries
Batteries are portable sources of electrical energy
which the DC motor converts to mechanical. There
are many new types of batteries that are suitable for
electric vehicle application. These include lead acid,
various types of nickel-based (iron, cadmium, and
metal hydride), lithium-based (polymer and iron), as
well as sodium-based (sulfur and metal chloride) [8-9].
However, at the present time deep cycle lead acid
batteries are still the most commonly used. They have
the advantage of being fully recyclable and their cost
is significantly lower. As a result, the use of a
standard 12 V lead acid battery was the best option.
In order to design the power system, it is important
to find the power needs of each of the components.
Obviously, the motor uses the majority of the power,
but the peripherals such as lights are also important to
take into consideration. Comparing current capacity,
weight and cost, a pack of 10 lead acid batteries
(model: CSB-GP-12260 shown in Fig. 7) each with a
weight of 18.6 lbs and a current capacity of 26 Ah.
They are connected in five branches with two batteries
in series per branch in order to provide 24 V each.
This was done to reduce the amount of current draw
from each battery, since the capacity is only 26 Ah. A
is a total current of 18A is drawn, and the car runs for
an hour and a half before it needs to be recharged.
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183
3.7 DC-DC Power Conversion and Instrumentation
A DC-DC converter is necessary in order to power
the lights and the other car accessories, since the latter
operate at 12 V whereas the battery pack provides 24
V. The Pyle PSWNV720 shown in Fig. 8 was chosen
due to its ability to sustain a 360 W output, which low
enough so that it does not reduce traction power or
range of the car. It has a converse efficiency of 87%,
and has several safety built-in features.
To fully implement a working set of turn signals
and hazard lights that blink, the use of the LM555
timer is essential. Two identical timers were designed
and calibrated to have an output time of 0.808 second
and a shut off time of 0.503 second. This was done by
using a 2 K and a 3.3 K resistor and a 220 F
capacitor as seen in Fig. 9. The first timer powers the
left front and back turn signals or the right front and
back turn signals, depending on how the switch is
pressed. The second timer powers a relay that turns on
and off, which then powers all four lights based on
direct input from the DC-DC converter. This was done
to overcome the output current limitations of the
LM555 chip, which was not sufficient to power all
four lights at the same time.
To keep track of the cars electrical system, a
battery meter is added that to monitor the capacity of
the battery pack. The battery manager 3 by BSDesigns,
which is shown in Fig. 10 was selected. It determines
the remaining battery capacity by way of a DC shunt
through which the load current flows. The meter
measures the voltage drop across the shunt and
performs a comparison in order to determine the
current being used by the car, and displays it in
Amp-hours.
3.8 Safety Considerations
There are numerous safety devices that are
integrated into the power system of the car in order to
prevent accidents. Aside from the contactor and dead
mans switch, fuses are placed in series within each
battery branch and connecting the lights on the car.

Fig. 7 Battery pack on the rear of the budget volt.


Fig. 8 DC-DC converter mounted on the chassis.


Fig. 9 555 timer circuit used for turn signals.

Also, the additional battery and passenger weight
and the effects on the brakes, axles and front
suspension are considered. Battery placement so as
not to change the center of gravity of the car, and the
safety brackets to hold the batteries in place are
another safety key design that is carefully planned.
4. Testing and Design Specs Verification
There were many different stages during the testing
process. During the initial stage the motor was
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184


Fig. 10 Battery manager 3 (top), shunt (bottom).


Fig. 11 No load and full load test results.

physically removed from the car and powered by four
batteries connected in series to determine its
maximum speed. A secondary test was done with a
dynamometer. This is what is called the light load
test, which resulted in an average current draw of 40
A (Fig. 11). Based on the results of these preliminary
tests, the decision to use a 24 V battery pack was
made.
Once the car was fully loaded with driver and
batteries there was a much larger power draw than
was expected originally. There was only an
introduction of about 300 lbs but the current draw was
around 120 A which is much higher compared to the
increase from no load to light load. With 120 A there
is a draw of 24 A from each battery pack which is
about twice as much as expected. The road results
were verified using a standard Garmin forerunner 410
which was used to calculate the speed of the car, in
mph, and the distance that the car travelled, in miles.
5. Conclusions
In this paper a mechanism for converting an
originally gas-powered car to a battery-powered,
whereby solar panels are used to recharge the batteries
was presented. Specifically the design method and
considerations were defined and explained, and the
selection of the various components was discussed.
Also discussed are the test results and the safety
features.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to acknowledge receipt of funding
from NAVSEA and IWS for the project and this
publication.
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Power System Design for an Electric Car

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