Electric Cars- Theory of Their Working
Unlike conventional cars, electric cars make use of electrical energy instead of an internal combustion engine. They utilize electric motors and motor controllers in order to drive the wheels on the road. But, are you not interested in knowing how do they actually work? Definitely, you are! Let’s find out how does an electric car work.
There are many differences between a gasoline car and an electric car. Under the hood, the main differences are:
- In an electric car, the gasoline engine is replaced by an electric motor.
- The electric motor gets its power from a controller.
- The controller gets its power from rechargeable batteries.
Now, let’s get into details. An electric car is equipped with a DC controller under the hood, which is connected to the DC motor. When you press the accelerator, the controller takes the electric current produced by the rechargeable batteries and it transfers about ninety-five percent of the electricity to the electric motor. But, when you keep the accelerator free, the controller is not in a mode of providing electricity to the motor. The working of the controller depends on the amount of pressure provided on the pedal by the driver. Depending on the amount of pressure, the controller translates that pressure into electricity.
Besides, the accelerator pedal or transmission in an electric car also differs from that of gasoline cars. In the former, the pedal is attached to two potentiometers, which provide signal to the controller and inform how much power is to be delivered. An electric device uses potentiometers (variable resistors) to control volume, tone and various other functions. When you press the pedal, a cable from the pedal attached to the potentiometers transfers signals to the controller. An electric car has two potentiometers and the controller operates when the signals received from both potentiometers are equal. Otherwise, it will not respond to any of the signal and eventually will not operate.
Then, there are heavy cables that connect the rechargeable batteries with the controller. The connected cables have large on/off switch in the middle. When you press the pedal the switch automatically turns on and generates electricity. And when you take off your foot from the pedal, the switch turns off.
