Specifications

90
Thirdly is how all of these systems interact with each other at the battery to supply
power to the load. At the battery there are a few systems working simultaneously. The
previously aforementioned power systems are dumping their outputs to charge the
battery via their respective charge controller but MSP 430 electronics are also
collecting data and sending it to an LCD display where the user can view it. Such things
collected are power usage power generated and power still available in the battery.
After the energy is stored in the battery it needs to be taken out and used in a form that
the load can utilize. In order to do this the 12 volt DC input from the battery is sent to a
pure sine-wave inverter where the 12 volt DC input can be converted to a usable 120
volt AC output. From here the power from the inverter is sent to power the MSP 430
electronics as well as GFI outlets exposed to the outside of the enclosure where a user
can plug into and utilize the power generated from the two wind and solar sources and
stored into the battery.
8.5 Conclusion
The project as a whole has given the researching engineers hands on experience in
design and construction specifications required to construct renewable power systems.
It was one of the underlying goals of the project in order to learn about the ins and outs
of alternative energy and power generation. Many different fields of electrical and
computer engineering were involved in this project and allowed the senior design team
to have ample exposure to all of them. Some of those fields were things such as circuit
design, DC power inversion, PV arrays, turbine generators, and energy conversions.
During the research portion of the project the senior design group had to learn and
study about many new types of technology and equipment that they may not have had
very much experience with before. However with the accumulated knowledge that they
had gained from their tenure as an engineering students they were able to analyze and
understand the data and concepts that were placed before them. With their new
understanding of the concepts that were required for a project as this they were able to
take that research and apply it to a feasible application in order to design the project
within the starting specifications.
In the design stage of the project actual application and construction is what the senior
design group had to learn and embrace when they undertook this portion of the project.
In the classroom students typically focus on abstract concepts and simple right or wrong
questions. However when it comes to design there is no right or wrong answers. Any
engineer can sit down and tell you this is what you need and rattle of specifications and
numbers to solve a problem, but when it actually comes down to finding parts and
equipment to take those numbers and turn them into application it takes an entirely
different way of thinking.
One of the last but not least sections that the senior design team needed to learn about
was how to test the designs that they just came up with. The testing section proved to
be an interesting and unexpected challenge. After designs were drafted and parts