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Thursday, 4 September 2008
Designer Holly Gates has developed a simple, yet ingenious e-paper reader that balances power draw and power generation so well that it doesn’t even have a charging socket. Think of it as a high-tech version of the ubiquitous solar-powered calculator that just works whenever it’s needed. Friday, 8 August 2008
After a bit of delay, the free-energy producing SunTable is finally here. The elegantly designed table is made of stainless steel and teak with a usable table-top made up of photovoltaic cells. It comes equipped with built-in batteries and an inverter so you can plug in via regular power sockets. The table is made by Sudia Design Labs and improves upon the recent Tech Chair by comfortably seating up to six people. It takes 4 hours of direct sunlight to fully charge the batteries so positioning it in a sunny spot would be best for heavy use. The table is weather resistant and requires little maintenance making it suitable for use as patio/garden furniture. The SunTable can be used to power numerous gadgets or even lighting for a night-time get-together. It can be hosed down to clean up spilt drinks and includes LED indicators to let you know how much juice you’ve got left in the batteries. At $2200 it’s not cheap, but then, quality outdoor furniture typically isn’t. Thursday, 10 July 2008
Beach or pool-side lounging is about to become a lot more high-tech with this concept from the folks over at retailer, PC World. The tech chair will appeal to geeks and non-geeks alike with its ability to power gadgets, shade your face automatically and entertain with speakers and WiFi access. It has a dock for gaming consoles and another for laptops which slides along the length of the chair for easy access. An MP3 dock allows you to play music either through the built-in speakers or through the headphone port so as not to annoy your fellow loungers. The fabric of the chair incorporates solar panels which power the whole operation and reservations for the chair can be made via text message. My favourite feature has to be the automatic sunshade which follows the sun to keep your face shielded. I would imagine that aspect might not appeal to people trying to achieve an even, all-over tan, but narcissistic cares are shallow, right?
Friday, 4 July 2008
Sharp will be showcasing its new 26-inch solar powered LCD TV at the G8 (Hokkaido Toyako) summit which begins Monday. The set is designed for the third world where access to electricity is scarce but could also be used in the first world to cut energy use. The 26-inch set is stylish and very modern with a thickness of just 20mm. It has a 10000:1 contrast ratio and consumes 30% less power than its low-power rivals, enabling it to be powered solely by an accompanying 26-inch solar panel. Though designed for people earning less than $2 a day, it doesn’t seem like the cost of such a high-tech unit would be within their reach. Even if supplied through a charity organization, the price would need to be very low to supply the estimated 1.6 billion people below the poverty line. Anyway, it’s an interesting development and quite an achievement that may prove popular in developed countries also. Source: Thursday, 19 June 2008
The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is constructing a futuristic, zero-emission, residential house to showcase their advances in state-of-the-art environmental and energy technology. The house is being built to coincide with the G8 (Hokkaido Toyako) summit when it will be open to the media. It is a pre-fabricated, single-storey structure featuring a 14.5kW photovoltaic power generation system, energy-saving appliances, energy-efficient lighting as well as a household fuel cell. The zero emission house will have a total floor area of 200m2 and an exterior that reflects traditional Japanese beauty. I wonder if they’re using any of those Nanosolar thin-film cells or solar curtains? Source: Thursday, 19 June 2008
Nanosolar only started manufacturing its thin-film solar panels in December, but is now pumping out cells at a rate of 100-feet-per-minute at a cost of less than $1 per watt. The video below shows the machine responsible for the speed increase in action. The company claims it is the industry’s first 1 GW annual capacity production tool. The machine uses proprietary nanoparticle ink which does away which the need for costly high-vacuum chambers. Nanosolar says that “in principle” the technique could achieve speeds of up to 2,000 feet-per-minute, but upgrading would not be cheap. The current machine costs $1.65 million. I want to see the machine that produced those solar curtains we saw last month.
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