In an unprecedented development, an Indian law student of O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) has received both the Indian and the US Patent for a technology he invented entitled ‘Method and System for Managing the Usage of a Plurality of Battery Units to Power an Electric Vehicle’.

The technology aims to make the usage of electric vehicles more practical, flexible and economical in India and other developing countries.

The student, Devansh Manoj Jalan, is currently pursuing his law degree at the Jindal Global Law School. He worked on developing this technology for a while and in July 2019, filed for a provisional patent with the Indian Patent Office. After fine-tuning of the technology, he applied for patents in the Indian Patent Office and in the United States Patent and Trademark Office. After due process and hearings, he received the US Patent in September 2020 and the Indian Patent in October 2020. The PCT application also reserves for him, the right to patent this technology in 153 other countries.

Professor (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar, Founding Vice Chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University lauded Devansh’s feat and said, “At JGU, we always nurture our students to evolve into leaders with a vision for the future of our world. Typically, such achievements relating to patents are witnessed in institutions that offer STEM disciplines. However, the institutional ecosystem at JGU has enabled non-STEM students like Devansh to think out of the box and pursue innovation and entrepreneurship opportunities that transcend disciplinary boundaries. It reinforces the importance of the multi-disciplinary education and nurturing of leadership talent that JGU offers, which has created transformative opportunities for its students and enabled them to create impact. This is a rather unique and extraordinary achievement and I am very proud of Devansh. It indeed gives me great pride to see our student develop a solution that has the potential to make rapid strides in the area of electric vehicles and contribute to the future of a more sustainable and environment-friendly world we aspire to live in.”

Hitherto known charging techniques in vehicles utilize battery swapping and plug-in charging methods to overcome issues involved with depletion in charge levels of a single battery source for power. However, these techniques have not been efficiently exploited for use in electric vehicles, owing to the size and charge capacity of battery units required by the electric vehicles (EV) for a reasonable driving range or mileage. Besides these, there are several other charging related issues including long charging time needed presently for plug-in charging methods. There exists a need for a method and system for managing, optimising, and charging battery units in electric vehicles in an efficient, convenient and economical manner, so that the electric vehicles are powered for long distances without experiencing a total power drain, and for efficiently charging the batteries, thus reducing the cost losses incurred.

The new technology combines the advantages of both series and parallel formations. The technology selects a pre-determined number of battery units (initial set) to be discharged from the plurality of battery units. Once one or more battery units in the initial set fall below a certain charge percentage, the technology facilitates a seamless handover of the power source from the initial set to a new initial set based on pre-determined criteria. The handover is conducted in a manner to keep the energy flow to load continuously. A regenerative braking system selects battery units to be charged based on certain criteria. Multiple smaller and lighter battery units may be used in electric cars (and other electric vehicles) while giving the user customisable range (not available in electric cars and not practical with a parallel formation), flexible charging options (swap, plug-in or charge from a standard charger at home) and a substantially increased range gain per charge. Using multiple smaller batteries also substantially reduces the capital cost, something that makes up the main chunk of an EV’s cost. This technology may also be used in smart grid systems.

The world is facing unprecedented environmental degradation and climate change due to the continued use of fossil fuels, emission of greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Devansh’s patent makes the use of electric vehicles simpler and sustainable with improved efficiency and cost implications.

Devansh Manoj Jalan said, “While in the last leg of my five-year journey and taking stock of the time spent here, I am grateful that at JGU, the education I received not only has given me a strong foundation for my future, but also taught me to cogitate. Coming here from a schooling system which was more a process of learning by rote, having to churn one’s mind and think beyond the confines of one’s horizon was a stimulating change at JGU. Although my invention is technology based, it is the legal education, and more so the tutelage and worldliness at JGU, which has taught me to challenge the intellect and seek solutions. It would be appropriate to mention here that even my fledgling legal knowledge was of great help in the patenting process. I am grateful to our Vice-Chancellor, all my teachers over the years, and everyone at JGU for providing an invigorating and enlightening journey here which I will cherish for a lifetime.”

Professor Dabiru Sridhar Patnaik, Registrar of O.P. Jindal Global University said, “It is a source of great pride and joy for us at JGU Mr. Devansh Manoj Jalan’s innovation has been recognised in the United States of America and India. We encourage our students to work across multiple disciplines and develop critical thinking. Devansh’s project is an outstanding paradigm of our approach to new learning.” 

During his internship in the Office of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 2018, Devansh Manoj Jalan worked on a project to promote and integrate electric vehicles in Mumbai and Maharashtra. He applied his observations and experiences of electric vehicles and researched the technology in Germany, Israel and USA to understand the functioning of electric vehicles and their limitations.