The 205W PV array adds nearly 1,000 miles of range each year and helps prevent battery discharge events that are responsible for four out of every ten roadside emergency breakdowns.
The solar modules for the solar array were supplied by Chinese manufacturer Longi, which is a major partner in the project.
The solar roof was developed in collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems.
There is still much to debate over the benefits of moving a vehicle via solar, but the market has been getting creative and is evolving quickly.
Swedish start-up Clean Motion is seeking to commercialize an electric delivery van that is also powered by IBC solar modules placed on its roof. The vehicle is claimed to have a 400 km range, of which up to 130 km are provided by the PV array.
Solar Team Eindhoven has developed an experimental mobile house that is powered exclusively by vehicle-integrated PV and is claimed to achieve a range of 730km, on a sunny day and at a, moderate speed of up to 85kph. The vehicle is equipped with a foldable PV system that can be unfolded and produce more power when the vehicle is not in motion.
WattEV will build 1 MW solar-powered chargers to deliver 320 miles (515 km) of range to Class 8, 80,000-pound trucks in 30 minutes.
Called SolFlex, the frameless panel is based on 22%-efficient solar cells and is designed for high, one-sided heat load. The standard product measures 100x100x2.9cm, weighs in at 3.4kg, and has a power output of 170 W.
A German consortium is building a light commercial truck prototype powered by 10 PV modules featuring Meyer Burger’s heterojunction cells. Initial estimates suggest that the panels could cover more than 25% of a vehicle’s total annual driving distance, and researcher Robby Peibst told pv magazine that the vehicle-integrated photovoltaic market could hit 5 GW by 2030.
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