The electrical system on Odyssey is powered by 560 Lithium-Ion batteries charged by an array of 576 solar cells.

Solar Cells

The 576 solar cells used in Odyssey are Solar World monocrystalline silicon cells, each 17.4% efficient.The OSU Solar Vehicle Team keeps costs down and ensures each solar array is precisely what is needed by their in-house solar cell lamination process. The cells come larger than desired, so they are sliced in half before being soldered and laminated to create the arrays to power the car. When combined the 576 solar cells will generate 1.4kW of power.

Motor

By using an in-hub motor the energy loss due to chain driven systems is eliminated.

Electronics

The electronic control system on Odyssey monitors and controls the power from the solar arrays, the energy stored in the batteries and the expenditure of the main drive motor - it is also designed to allow the cruise algorithms of the vehicle to be optimized in both a tactical and strategic sense. In addition it performs a wide variety of housekeeping tasks ranging from running the blinkers and strobes to telemetry collection and communication with the escort vehicles.

By combining student-built maximum point power trackers, in-house laminated solar arrays, and an in-hub motor the OSU Solar Vehicle team is able to optimize energy acquisition and usage.