CyboEnergy, a the developer of a solar power off-grid mini-inverter, said its product has the merits of both central inverters and microinverters. The inverter design includes multiple input channels, each of which has its own control and MPPT, solving partial shading problems, maximizing power production, reducing costs and making rooftop solar safer to install and operate.
CyboEnergy CEO, Dr. George Cheng said, “The technology in this latest patent addresses the urgent need for building more cost-effective and user-friendly microgrids, especially in rural parts of the world where billions of people live without electricity. In these areas, batteries are usually not available; therefore, traditional power inverters that require batteries to operate are not useful. Our off-grid CyboInverters can take DC power from solar directly, with or without batteries, so microgrids built on our IP are flexible for all parts of this large market.”
As shown in the following drawing, an off-grid CyboInverter has 4 input channels, where Channel 1 and 2 can connect to 2 solar panels and Channel 3 and 4 can connect to a 36V battery set. Its AC output can power lights, fans, TV, PC, battery chargers, and refrigerators. The CyboCharger takes power from the same off-grid AC circuit as a load and charges the battery during the day. When there is sufficient sunlight, CyboInverter will pull power from the solar panels and leave the batteries idle, extending battery life.
The company has been awarded a U.S. patent 8,994,218 entitled “Smart and Scalable Off-Grid Mini-Inverters.” This award follows the CyboEnergy 2014 U.S. patent 8,786,133, entitled “Smart and Scalable Power Inverters.”
The technology in CyboEnergy’s issued patents has been implemented in the company’s on-grid and off-grid family of CyboInverters, now being shipped to customers around the world including the U.S., Canada, Caribbean and Africa. The products include the following patented benefits: (1) multiple input channel design offering seamless integration of renewable energy sources, including solar, wind, fuel-cell, and hydro, with batteries where battery energy storage is desired and affordable; (2) ability to operate and provide renewable power without drawing from the integrated battery storage until it is needed, thereby preserving battery life; (3) single or multi-pack “Master-Slave” design enabling flexibility for small off-grid applications and larger microgrid; and (4) ability to operate completely without any batteries. A battery-less microgrid is shown below where an off-grid CyboInverter H model can be used for electric water heating and solar cooking.
