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Contents
1.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 2
1.1 Project Overview ............................................................................................ 2
1.2 Objective ........................................................................................................ 3
1.3 Problem Application ...................................................................................... 3
2.0 Project Progress and Result ............................................................................... 4
2.1 System Diagram ............................................................................................. 4
2.3 System Operation ........................................................................................... 8
2.4 Schematic Diagram ...................................................................................... 10
2.5 Simulation Test Result ................................................................................. 11
2.6 The Problem Encountered and the Solution ................................................. 12
3.0 Project Plan ..................................................................................................... 13
4.0 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 14
5.0 References ........................................................................................................ 15


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1.0 Introduction

Solar power is one of the recognized alternative energy sources around the world
that are massively practised especially in the modern countries. Solar energy plays an
important role towards achieving long lasting, sustainable, environment friendly
renewable energy resources to fulfil the energy supply for our daily needs. Non-
renewable sources such as fossil fuels bring negative effects as their combustion
products produce pollution, acid rain and global warming. Conversion to clean
energy sources such as solar energy would enable the world to improve the quality of
life of humans and the environment.
1.1 Project Overview

This project is called USB Solar Power Charger which uses solar energy as
its main energy supply for its system. In this system, the solar panel absorbs UV light
energy from the sun and the consumer will be given an option to use the electrical
energy direct from the solar or the battery supply. Battery supply will be taking the
role as the alternative energy supply of solar for the consumers usage especially at
night. In the battery system, consumers are able to know the level of battery whether
it is eligible for usage or it needs recharging before it can be used again.
The product consist of few important parts which contributes to the desired
output voltage and current during the operation, such as the solar panels, solar
charger controller/regulator, the 3.7V lithium-polymer battery & circuit charger and
the USB charger controller. The input is estimated to produce about 7.6W maximum
which equals to 12V & 633mA or 6V & 1267mA .The DC to DC booster circuit will
regulate the energy received from the solar panel to distribute accordingly to the
direct charging USB interface and the Lithium Polymer battery system. The circuit
also integrated with switch for consumer to select the charging source between the
solar panel and the battery system manually. The packaging for portable solar
charger would be in a bag for portability and easier operation on the move.
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1.2 Objective

The main objective of this project is to provide more efficient and reliable solar
charger compared to commercial products that are available in the market. Other
objectives are to reduce the usage and cost of using the non-renewable power sources
to power electronic devices.

1.3 Problem Application

The main problem that inspires student to precede this project is the lack of
efficiency in commercial portable solar power backup. Another problem is the vital
components needed to build solar application product are sold in high prices and hard
to be found in Malaysia. Even in the commercial market the solar oriented end-
products are not warmly welcomed since they do not receive recognition in our
society as an effective alternative for power generation. Due to the problems,
students are inspired to build their own solar application product. As a consumer,
Malaysians should be convinced by the bright future of this project as Malaysia
consequently moving towards green technology in order to preserve environment.


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2.0 Project Progress and Result

Below describes the USB Solar Power Chargers operation characteristic which
includes the system diagram, block diagram of each parts, the system operation
flowchart and the simulation test results.
2.1 System Diagram

Figure 2.1A shows the system diagram
Explanation
Solar panel absorbs light energy to produce estimated value of 12VDC and 7.6 W
maximum for overall supply distribution in the system. Then next process involved is
the Solar Charger Controller circuit which helps to stabilize and provide desired
value of voltage & current from solar panels. Then the consumer will choose either
direct solar source or battery supply. If battery supply, the consumer will use the
Lithium-Polymer 3.7V Charger Circuit to provide energy supply. It stores supply
when solar panel functions during sunny day and gives supply to consumer when
needed or during the absence of supply from solar panel at night. The system also
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included the Lithium-Polymer Battery Level Indicator circuit to the battery which
tells the consumer when the battery is full or low in level. The USB Charger
Controller Circuit provides safe and stable supply rated by USB interface standards
for the consumers needs. The output in USB interface is estimated to produce
approximately 4.5V-5V voltage which is the standard rating.
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2.2 Block Diagram
Solar Panel 12V, 7.6W

DC to DC Boost Converter
Photons from sunlight
strike the solar cell.
Energy from photons
allows electrons to pass
down through middle
layer of panel which is a
semiconductor material.
Electrons travel back to
source along circuit to
balance charges which
creates an approximate
output of 12V, 7.6W.
Receive an input voltage
between 7-12V from the
solar panel.
Converts the input
voltage to the set
voltage of 12V using the
LM2577 voltage
regulator IC.
Produce a stable output
voltage of 12V
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Lithium-Polymer Battery Charger


USB Charger and Interface Circuit


Receive an input voltage
between 7-12V
Voltage is converted
between 3.9V to 4.8V by
the LM317T
Converted voltage is sent
to the Zener diode of 4V.
Voltage higher than 4V
will pass through zener
to the ground.
Output voltage under 4V
is sent to the 3.7V
Lithium-Polymer battery.
Receive voltage input
from 7 to 12 V
Voltage converted from
5.05V to 5.08V via
LM7805 IC with an
output current of 0.63A
to 0.88A.
Output voltage and
current is sent to the USB
interface for usage.
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2.3 System Operation






















START
SOLAR
PANEL

DEVICE ON
USB
PORT/PHONE
END
BATTERY
SUPPLY
BATTERY
STATUS
LOW
HIGH
DIRECT
SOLAR
SOURCE
SWITCH
NO
YES

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Explanation
The device is initially on where it will be continuously operating when under the
presence of sunlight. The solar panel will absorb light energy from the sun and the
consumer will choose either direct solar source or battery supply by switch. The
system is included battery indicator at battery supply to show the consumer about the
battery level. If high, procedure continues to next process, if low the consumer will
need disable the battery by switch until it is recharged by the solar to be used again.
Therefore, electronic devices such as phone and tablet are able to be charged either
by direct solar source or battery supply.
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2.4 Schematic Diagram

The figure 2.4A shows the schematic diagram of Lithium Polymer battery charger
circuit

The figure 2.4B shows the schematic diagram of USB charging & interface circuit



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2.5 Simulation Test Result

Lithium-Polymer Battery Charging Circuit

At

= 6V,

min = 3.69V
At

= 12V

max = 4.42V
Figure 2.5A shows the test result

USB Charger & Interface Circuit

At

= 7V,

= 5.0633V

min = 0.633A
At

= 12V,

= 5.089V

= 0.887A
Figure 2.5B shows the test result

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2.6 The Problem Encountered and the Solution

There several problems that were encountered during the process of this project. The
first problem would be finding the suitable and reliable circuits for the system.
Although there are many circuits related to this project can be found through the
internet and reference books nowadays, mostly the circuits obtained are not
completely reliable such that they dont have complete data analysis and have
problem to run although only in simulation. The second problem would be the issue
of understanding the simulation software operation for circuit analysis. The
simulation software such as PROTEUS is still rare to be used by students as they do
not familiar with this software. For example, the pin numbers and fabrication data of
some component is not available and worst where some vital components needed are
not available in PROTEUSs library. Next problem encountered is the Lithium
Polymer battery charging circuit cant be simulated through the software circuit
simulation which includes the PROTEUS and MultiSim. The last major problem
would be the component supply issue where the major parts of components in our
system are hardly can be purchased in Malaysia.
However, we managed to overcome most of these problems by referring to our
lecturers and colleagues and we are taught on how to understand better and operate
the circuit simulation properly. The circuits that were obtained and built for this
project are mostly derived from the electronic magazine and website that are related
to DIY projects, wind , solar and electronic projects. Lastly, by referring to many
lecturers advice and colleagues, we substituted the battery with the voltmeter to
measure the voltage output in the Lithium Polymer Battery Circuit after knowing the
concept of battery charging theorically.




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3.0 Project Plan

For the next semester, the project will be continued to the next stage which involves
improvising, component assembling, circuit building and product form refining.
In improvising, the project will be improved by reconstructing the existing circuits
with better component substitutes to ensure better and stable system. The project also
will be improved by plan and arrangements to consider additional functions into the
system such as the solar output intensity meter and the temperature sensor circuit.
In the component assembling process, the components will be imported from foreign
countries mainly from China, Taiwan and Singapore. This is because the vital
components such as the 6V solar panel, LM317T, LM7805, LM1577/ LM2577
needed for this project are hard to find and they will cost higher in Malaysia due to
low demand supply. The components are mainly ordered from suppliers in the
through well known online marketplace such as AliExpress.com, Ebay.com, RS-
component.com, Element14.my and others.
In circuit building process, the circuits used in the system will be built from scratch
though PCB designing and fabrication. The circuits that will be built from our
planned project would be the Lithium -Polymer Battery charging circuit and the USB
charger and interface circuit.
Lastly, the product form refining is the design plan for the hardware and components
in the end product stage. The planned form for this system is a small foldable bag
which prioritises portability, important function and features of the system.


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4.0 Conclusion

In general, the final year project 1 is the platform for student to perform preparation
for the next process in order to complete the project. By the end of this project, it is
noticeable that students need to apply theories learned in electrical engineering
practically during the process of this project. At the end of this project, circuit
simulation of 2 major parts in the system are able to be produced to show the
performance which includes the analysis of the output current and voltage of the
system. Hence, it is strongly believed that the USB solar power charger would be
more efficient and reliable solar charger compared to commercial products that are
available in the market and this project will be successfully initiated with no major
problems in the next semester.

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5.0 References

Books;
Final Year Project 1 Handbook(Guidelines and Logbook) June-October 2013; Pulau
Pinang,University Teknologi Mara,Pulau Pinang,Fakulti Kejuruteraan Elektrik.
Sadiku A. (2009), Fundamentals of Electric Circuits (Fourth Edition). McGraw-Hill.
United States.
Balfour J. (2013), Introduction to Photovoltaics. McGraw-Hill. United States.

Internet;
1. Japan: The world's new star in solar power,
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2013/06/11/japan-the-worlds-new-star-in-solar-power.
Retrieved on 11.06.2013.

2. Welcome to Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), UKM,
http://www.ukm.my/SERI. Retrieved on 11.06.2013


3. USB (Universal Serial Bus),
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus#Power. Retrieved on
04.07.2013