PV Gap

Herman Said:

how do the solar panels and batteries work together in a solar vehicle?

We Answered:

Without the batteries, it wouldn't work. As soon as you drove into some shade, the motor would stop and you would be stuck. The battery stores energy so you can keep moving when your do drive into shade, until you reach a sunny area again, and the battery can be recharged.

.

Kathy Said:

Can you charge a bank of batteries with solar panels in a room with artificial sunlight?

We Answered:

its possible

but somewhere in the cycle, energy will be lost via heat, so there wouldn't be any net worth in it

Juan Said:

How to create a robot with batteries charged by solar panels?

We Answered:

This depends largely on how much current your solar panel puts out. If it's 50 mA or less, just connect it straight to the batteries. Even 100 mA is probably ok. Try to determine the panel's output by setting it in the sun with the batteries connected, and measuring with a DVM. There may be a rating on a label, but for small panels, those ratings are notoriously inflated.

Once the batteries are fully charged, the extra energy will just go into heat, shortening the batteries' life, but so what?

It's good that you've chosen NiCd batteries, rather than NiMH, as NiCd will trickle charge reasonably.

A regulator will only be an advantage if the panel is large.

Clifton Said:

how to power a 400 watt heater with solar panels and batteries?

We Answered:

well, you need to produce 3200 watt-hours per day with your solar panels

how many you need depends on the type of panel and size and how much sun you get (the energy of the rays depends on your latitude and the time of year)

the amount of batteries you need again depends on your requirements and your insolation

if you only need to heat when the sun is shining then you don't need any batteries at all

if you want to heat for 8 hours after the sun has quit shining then you obviously need batteries to hold 3200 watt-hrs of electricity

to actually size a 3200+ watt-hr solar system you need a lot more information