About the Team
Matthew Hunnewell is currently a senior at the University of Central Florida and will be graduating in May of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in Power and Renewables. Currently Matthew works as a database administrator and systems associate engineer at Mitsubishi Power Systems Americas and will continue working in plant engineering post-graduation.
Cody Thompson is currently a senior at the University of Central Florida and will be graduating in May of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in Power and Renewables. Currently Cody works for Siemens Energy and plans to continue doing so as a Field Technology Service Engineer.
Jorge Aguilar is currently a senior at the University of Central Florida and will be graduating in May of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in Power and Renewables. Currently, Jorge works at IKEA in logistics and has been recruited to work for the federal government after graduation as an electrical engineer.
Juan Isaza is currently a senior at the University of Central Florida and will be graduating in May of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in RF and Microwave technology, with plans to join Northrop post-graduation as an embedded software engineer.
The Battery-Powered Solar Induction Grill
The primary goal of this project was to create a standalone cooking apparatus capable of operating without wall power, utilizing a battery system and solar panel charging to enable the user to have full grid-independence on an electric cooking appliance. The best way to achieve this was to rely on an induction heating system, offering higher efficiency and lower power consumption than its conventionally heated counterparts, all while providing a safer cooking environment for the user. The example shown below relies on a 25.6V LiFePo battery pack, a 2000W inverter, a 100W monocrystalline solar panel with included solar controller, and an MSP430FR6869 providing the driver signal, displaying power levels, and receiving feedback to control safety cutoffs.
The Grill Assembly
The design of the system revolves around loading the lower bay of an existing charcoal grill chassis with an induction cooking system. The PCBs were mounted on a plexiglass foundation placed at the bottom of the chamber, stacked and held to the base via a series of steel risers, underneath the main pancake coil that sits just underneath the top grill rack. The battery pack and inverter are located in the lower tray between the grill legs, and the solar controller and MCU control interface are mounted to a balsa wood panel attached to the front of the grill body. The PV panel stands adjacent to the grill on an independent stand, and the grounding rod is placed off to the side as well and is buried approximately 3ft in the ground to provide a safe earth connection for the inverter.