Patent ID: 11946672
Assignee: BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Field: Thermal processes and apparatus (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC F  H | IPC F  H

Claim 4:
5. A method comprising:
delivering a fluid to a body of a heat exchanger;
transferring heat from the fluid to the body;
transferring heat from the body to a first end of a thermoelectric generator (TEG);
delivering a first electric power to a first thermoelectric cooler (TEC) having a first end and a second end, the second end of the first TEC being thermally coupled to a first thermally conductive member, and the first end of the first TEC being thermally coupled to a second thermally conductive member, thereby causing the first end of the first TEC to increase in temperature to deliver heat to the second thermally conductive member, and the second end of the first TEC to decrease in temperature to extract heat from the first thermally conductive member;
delivering a second electric power to a second thermoelectric cooler (TEC) having a first end and a second end, the second end of the second TEC being thermally coupled to a third thermally conductive member, and the first end of the second TEC being thermally coupled to the second thermally conductive member, thereby causing the first end of the second TEC to increase in temperature to deliver heat to the second thermally conductive member and the second end of the second TEC to decrease in temperature to extract heat from the third thermally conductive member;
transferring heat from a second end of the TEG to the first thermally conductive member;
creating a temperature gradient across semiconductors of the TEG, thereby causing the TEG to generate a second electric power; and
measuring a temperature of the heat exchanger at a location adjacent to at least one of the first and second ends of the TEG, and adjusting at least one of a voltage and a current of the first electric power delivered to the first TEC based on the measured temperature.