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Honda's demo test house features CIGS solar panels
Honda's demo test house features CIGS solar panels
Japanese firm Honda Motor Co. has unveiled a house it has built in the city of Saitama, Japan, for the demonstration testing of the Honda Smart Home System (HSHS).
The house features HSHS, which comprehensively controls in-house energy supply and demand, and helps manage both the generation and consumption of energy for the home such as heat and electricity, while utilising mobility products. HSHS is also designed to enable users to secure their own supply of energy and mobility in a time of disaster.
The HSHS installed in this demonstration test house consists of CIGS thin-film solar cell panels, a home battery unit (rechargeable battery), household gas-engine cogeneration unit and hot-water supply system, and the Smart e Mix Manager.
The Smart e Mix Manager, the core of the HSHS, is a comprehensive energy management device which applies optimal control to electricity supplied from the commercial grid and generated by each energy device that composes the system. The Smart e Mix Manager reduces CO2 emissions from the home and, at the same time, provides a backup supply of electricity so that the house can be self-sufficient in the event of a power outage or disaster.
Striving to realise "the joy and freedom of mobility" and "a sustainable society where people can enjoy life," Honda will conduct demonstration testing of the HSHS that is linked with electromotive mobility products such as electric vehicles, and the Internavi system. Through this demonstration testing, Honda will aim to reduce CO2 by 50% from the year 2000 and verify the future direction of personal mobility. What's more, Honda will verify the backup function for household energy supply, which will provide a sense of security and comfort to the customers.
As a part of its effort to further reduce CO2 emissions in people's everyday lives including mobility, on May 23, 2011, Honda signed an agreement to participate in the E-KIZUNA Project run by the city of Saitama. To conduct demonstration testing with the HSHS-equipped house as a part of the E-KIZUNA Project, Honda built two houses (each for single-family use) in the vicinity of Saitama University (located in the city of Saitama). A third house is scheduled to be built in the same location, where all three houses will be linked for smart community demonstration testing. These tests are scheduled to continue until 2018.
The houses will all feature CIGS thin-film solar cell panels. Honda aims to verify the superiority of power generation efficiency of an all-new CIGS thin-film solar cell module which is currently being developed.
