Dr. Udaya Madawala of The University of Auckland

Perceived as one of the most promising means of future transport, Electric vehicles (EVs) are currently gaining wider acceptance.  One of the indispensable components of an EV is the power interface that connects the EV to the power grid, facilitating either the charging or discharging process of the EV’s battery.  Hence, grid integration of EVs has become one of the main focuses of current research. EVs can be charged by either wired or wireless means, and the latter, based primarily on wireless power transfer (WPT) technology, is becoming increasingly popular being convenient, safe, and ideal for both stationary and dynamic (while moving) EV charging.  This seminar presents the trends and latest advances in grid integration of EVs, highlighting the challenges and future directions. The seminar focuses particularly on bi-directional Wireless Power Transfer (BD-WPT) systems that were developed for V2G applications.

Biography:

Udaya K. Madawala graduated with a B.Sc. (Electrical Engineering) (Hons) degree from The University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka in 1987, and received his PhD (Power Electronics) from The University of Auckland, New Zealand in 1993 as a Commonwealth Doctoral Scholar.  At the completion of his PhD, he was employed by Fisher & Paykel Ltd, New Zealand, as a Research and Development Engineer to develop new technologies for motor drives.  In 1997 he joined the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The University of Auckland and, at present as a Full Professor, he focuses on a number of power electronics projects related to wireless grid integration of EVs for V2G applications and renewable energy. 

Udaya is a Fellow of the IEEE and a Distinguished Lecturer of the IEEE Power Electronic Society (PELS), and has over 30 years of both industry and research experience in the fields of power electronics and energy. He has served both the IEEE Power Electronics and Industrial Electronics Societies in numerous roles, relating to editorial, conference, technical committee and chapter activities. Currently, Udaya is an Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, and a member of both the Administrative Committee and Membership Development Committee of the IEEE Power Electronics Society.  He was the General Chair of the 2^nd IEEE Southern Power Electronics Conference (SPEC)- 2016, held in New Zealand, and is also the Chair of SPEC Steering Committee. Udaya, who has over 300 IEEE and IET journal and conference publications, holds a number of patents related to wireless power transfer (WPT) and power converters, and is a consultant to industry.

Email:

Address:Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering , The University of Auckland , Auckland , New Zealand