Patent · US Expired

Dual fueled thermoelectric generator

US4651019A · kind A · utility

21Cited by
9References
36Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateNov 16, 1984
Grant dateMar 17, 1987
Priority date
Expiry dateNov 16, 2004

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH10N10/00
  • WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A dual fueled thermoelectric generator wherein two different sources of energy are provided. The first source of energy is electrical energy which is tapped from an overhead transmission ground wire and converted into thermal energy by electric resistance heaters. The thermal energy produced is applied to a thermopile which converts it into DC electric energy. The second source is a fossil fuel which is converted into thermal energy when a burner is actuated. The thermal energy produced thereby is applied to a thermopile. The burner is actuated in response to either a loss of input voltage from the transmission ground wire or loss of output power from the thermopile. The fossil fuel is preferably propane and the output of the thermopile may be supplied to distributed loads, such as distributed fiber optic repeaters.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.