Tux Mobility shares its approach to photovoltaic integration for electric vehicles • EVreporter

The electric vehicle (EV) movement is no longer a distant possibility—it’s here, shaping the future of mobility across the globe. In India, where urbanization and sustainability challenges intersect, EV adoption is rapidly accelerating. Yet, for this revolution to succeed, one question remains critical: Do EVs provide a scalable alternative to fossil-fueled vehicles? The answer lies not in incremental improvements but in rigorous innovation.

Vehicle-integrated photovoltaics (VIPV) represents a game-changing solution, transforming vehicles into self-sustaining power generators, believes Laurens Janssen, Co-founder at TUX Mobility B.V. In this article, he explains why photovoltaic integration for vehicles hasn’t reached scale yet and how the complex yet solvable challenges concerning PV integration can be addressed.

The unique challenges of photovoltaics on vehicles

Photovoltaic technology, long celebrated for its role in powering homes, factories, and even utility-scale grids, doesn’t translate easily to vehicles. The design constraints of vehicles demand entirely new approaches to photovoltaic (PV) engineering. VIPV technology addresses the following barriers to VIPV adoption in India head-on.

1. Limited surface area: Unlike expansive rooftops, vehicles have restricted space for photovoltaic cells. This means every square centimeter must generate maximum energy. Traditional photovoltaic panels, optimized for stationary applications, lack the power density required for meaningful energy gains in vehicles.

VIPV technology addresses this by generating more energy per square centimeter than traditional PV modules on vehicles. This ensures that even small vehicles can harness solar energy meaningfully, while larger vehicles like buses and trucks can maximize their solar potential.

2. Dynamic and partial shading conditions: Unlike stationary solar installations that enjoy consistent solar exposure, vehicles face dynamic and partial shading conditions as they traverse urban landscapes or tree-lined rural roads. These shading conditions can dramatically reduce energy output if the system isn’t equipped to adapt instantaneously. Even a momentary shadow from a passing vehicle or a building can significantly reduce solar power.

Hence, solar modules for vehicles need to be extremely shade tolerant, both for dynamic and partial shading conditions. On the one hand, the VIPV module needs to remain generating high amounts of electrical energy, even when partially shaded by trees, traffic lights or buildings. On the other hand, fast and adaptive Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT) is critical for addressing shading variability rapidly. Ultra-fast MPPT systems are a necessity in VIPV modules, ensuring that energy generation remains optimal despite rapidly changing lighting conditions. This innovation is especially relevant in densely populated Indian cities like Mumbai or Delhi, where urban environments often pose rapidly changing shading challenges.

3. Weight and center of gravity: Safety and performance are paramount in vehicle design. Traditional photovoltaic panels use glass for durability, but this adds significant weight, raising the vehicle’s center of gravity and compromising safety and handling of the vehicle. For lightweight vehicles, such as India’s ubiquitous auto-rickshaws or L5 electric three-wheelers, this is particularly problematic.

Advanced lightweight materials in VIPV modules are needed to eliminate the need for glass while maintaining durability. These materials ensure safety and performance without compromising the vehicle’s design or center of gravity. This is especially important for India’s high-density roads and narrow urban streets.

4. Durability and longevity: Vehicles in India encounter extreme conditions—searing heat in Rajasthan, torrential monsoons in Kerala, and dusty roads across the hinterlands. At the same time vehicles are exposed to rough road conditions, causing vibrations on the VIPV system. While glass offers excellent protection for such factors in stationary systems, it is unsuitable for moving vehicles. Developing alternatives that ensure both robustness and longevity is a significant engineering challenge.

VIPV modules need to be engineered for robustness, designed to withstand vibrations, debris, and extreme weather. The use of automotive-grade materials ensures longevity and reduces maintenance costs, making the technology suitable for India’s varied climate zones. Instead of heavy and dangerous glass, lightweight and durable alternatives need to be considered. This not only lowers the vehicle’s center of gravity, improving stability and performance, but also provides superior protection against road hazards and extreme weather.

5. Sustainability: As EVs are positioned as a sustainable solution, their components must align with the same ethos. Also solar modules need to align with the same sustainability goals. However, non-recyclable materials, like EVA or POE, or the inclusion of toxic substances like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are still present in most solar modules, undermining the environmental benefits they aim to deliver.

VIPV technology, therefore, needs to be recyclable and PFAS-free, aligning with India’s sustainability initiatives. By adopting environmentally friendly materials and processes, VIPV solutions need to embrace the long-term goals of reducing waste and fostering a circular economy.

6. Cost considerations: While the cost of traditional solar panels has dropped dramatically in recent years, the cost of Vehicle-Integrated Photovoltaics (VIPV) solutions tends to be higher due to the more complex design requirements. VIPV modules face stricter performance demands, making them more expensive to produce than traditional stationary solar panels.

While the production of VIPV modules often comes with higher costs, there are ways to design cost-effective solutions, without making concessions on the unique VIPV requirements. By optimizing the production process and leveraging cutting-edge materials, a VIPV module can be both high-performance and cost-efficient. This is key to ensuring that solar-powered EVs remain economically viable for a broad range of applications, from passenger vehicles to commercial fleets.

The tradeoff between available surface area for PV and energy consumption

While VIPV technology is applicable to all EVs, its meaningful impact on vehicle range scales dramatically with the available surface area for PV cells versus the amount of energy the vehicle consumes. That is why VIPV works especially well for Small Commercial Vehicles and Small Passenger Vehicles (e.g. like the traditional L3 rickshaw).

Range extension is one way of assessing the effectiveness of VIPV. More importantly, OEMs and fleet owners should be concerned with the reduction in the Total Costs of Ownership of their fleets. By being less dependent on grid energy, energy costs of the vehicle get slashed. Also, more range implies that a driver can cover more distance and thus generate a higher income.

This reduction in Total Cost of Ownership holds for any vehicle, not only Small Passenger or Commercial Vehicles but also buses, trucks, passenger cars, etc. Trucks equipped with VIPV can minimize energy costs and increase operational efficiency by harvesting photovoltaic energy during long hauls. Buses, which serve as the backbone of public transportation in India, can benefit from VIPV to reduce downtime for charging, making them more economically viable. While VIPV can also support passenger cars, its transformative potential is most evident in vehicles with substantial surface areas, where the economics of scale work in its favor.

India’s moment: why the time is now

India is at a crossroads. As the government pushes for accelerated EV adoption and grid independence becomes a critical focus, the time has never been more urgent to explore innovative solutions. VIPV offers a unique opportunity to align with India’s twin goals of sustainability and energy security.

TUX has already demonstrated the feasibility of this vision. From winning prestigious accolades such as the Micelio Awards and DHL Innovation Awards to collaborating with global automotive leaders, it has proven that VIPV is not just a concept but a commercially viable technology.

With pilots across India, spanning extreme climates from arid deserts to humid coastal regions, we have validated our systems under real-world conditions. These milestones are proof of the viability of VIPV in India.

Driving India’s solar mobility revolution

The journey toward a sustainable future requires bold decisions and visionary partnerships. VIPV isn’t just a technological leap; it’s a reimagining of mobility itself. India’s industry leaders and investors have a chance to be part of a revolution that will reshape transportation and energy use for generations.

We invite you to join us on this transformative journey. Together, we can make solar mobility not just a possibility but a reality for India and beyond.

About Tux Mobility

At TUX, we took a bold step in creating an L5 category vehicle specifically designed to maximize VIPV output. This isn’t a retrofitted EV—it’s a vehicle built from scratch with photovoltaic propulsion at its core. Every curve, material and design decision serves to enhance energy generation and efficiency. TUX’s VIPV technology is scalable, adaptable, and versatile. It can be integrated into passenger cars, commercial vehicles, buses, and even e-trucks. TUX plans to set up India’s first dedicated and universal VIPV production line, developing VIPV solutions for all vehicle types in India.

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