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US 2024/0196747 A9Published application
Thermoelectric generator array
AssigneeZEVX Inc.
InventorsRichard L. Lewis, Damon Kuhn, Charles Maury, Sean Loehr, James Maury
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Abstract
A method and system for employing thermoelectric generators for capturing otherwise lost thermal energy associated with operation of an electric vehicle.
Claims18
A system for thermoelectric generation in a vehicle, comprising,
- at least one thermoelectric generating element associated with a vehicle body with one side thermally conductively exposed to the ambient air having an ambient temperature,
- a flow structure to supply the other side of said thermoelectric generating element with an air flow of differing temperature, so as to dynamically maintain a thermal gradient across said element.
A system for thermoelectric generation in a vehicle, comprising,
- at least one thermoelectric generating element associated with a vehicle body with one side thermally conductively exposed to a relatively warmer exterior ambient air having an ambient temperature,
- a flow structure to supply the other side of said thermoelectric generating element with a relatively cooler air flow, so as to dynamically maintain a thermal gradient across said element.
A system for thermoelectric generation in a vehicle, comprising,
- at least one thermoelectric generating element array associated with a vehicle body with a hot side associated with a vehicle body panel and thermally conductively exposed to the ambient air having an ambient temperature,
- at least one thermoelectric generating element array associated with said body panel with a cold side associated with said vehicle body panel, a flow structure associated separately with each to supply the other side of said thermoelectric generating element array with an air flow of differing temperature, so as to dynamically maintain a thermal gradient across said element,
- and a control means to switch between said arrays depending on the changing ambient temperatures to which said vehicle body panel is exposed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.