A Study on the Effects of Urban Shadow Impingement on Solar Powered Transportation Systems
Abstract
This paper deals with the impinging effects of urban environmental shadows on solar powered transportation systems in order to inform future engineers and city planners on how to construct such infrastructure to take into account the intrusion of shadows onto power generation systems. To study this phenomena, an ongoing solar powered automated transit system project was used as a case study, with a planned route being created within a real time interactive 3D modeling system. Qualitative analysis was performed on portions of the route covering university, residential, and athletic areas, focusing on highrises, the contrast between single and double storing housing, and an athletic field respectively, all while analyzing the geometry of the shadows at different times of the day. Results were drawn from the study, and improvements were postulated.
Keywords
Solar power, Transportation, Shadows, Automation, Urban