South Korean car giants Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors are planning to introduce ‘solar roof’ charging technology on selected vehicles. The electricity-generating solar panels will be incorporated into the roof or the hood of vehicles, and will support internal combustion, hybrid and battery electric vehicles with additional electrical power.
Hyundai Motor Group says it developing three types of solar roof charging systems. The first-generation system is for hybrid vehicles, while the second-generation technology brings a semi-transparent solar roof system to ICE vehicles. The third generation of the technology will see the introduction of a lightweight solar roof for battery electric vehicles.
In a press release, Jeong-Gil Park, Executive Vice President of the Engineering and Design Division of Hyundai Motor Group said: “In the future, we expect to see many different types of electricity-generating technologies integrated into our vehicles. The solar roof is the first of these technologies, and will mean that automobiles no longer passively consume energy, but will begin to produce it actively.”
The group says it will introduce the first generation of this technology into its vehicles after 2019 to help it meet global regulations targets.
