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For today’s troops in the field, Army life is all about being hitech. From night vision goggles to keeping contact with command via radio, to even GPS navigation equipment, video cameras sending live feeds and even a portable PDA that soldiers use in the field, today’s soldier uses a ton of gadgetry in the field that is eating up power in day to day operation. Batteries are heavy and with that kind of gadgetry, you’d need to carry a lot of them, or rely on equipment for recharging that would not necessarily have access to an electrical source. To that end, the Australian government is investing millions to develop an ultra light solar panel that soldiers can use to charge their tech.
Not in the ozone layer, but in your pocket. It retails for a whopping $7,500, which could get you a decent second hand family sized sedan that is still running just fine. Well, if you feel that your pockets need a little lightening up while aiming to get some exercise in the process, the Pi electric bike sounds like a pretty good idea. The Pi comes with an aluminum monocoque frame that is constructed from a single piece of made-up metal that shares a similar thickness all over. In terms of electronics, the batteries are of the nickel metal hydride variety and not lithium ion which we have all come to know and love in our fair share of gadgets and gizmos these days. As for the motor, it is a 36-volt brushless DC model that cranks out around 1 horsepower, or 750 watts. Needless to say the final output depends on just how much human power you put in, but I seriously doubt you’ll reach double digits in terms of horses since you’re, well, only human.
Steve Arms originally started off his career by designing sensors that could be arthroscopically implanted in order to measure the amount of strain on a patient’s knee ligaments, but he has since moved on to bring his knowledge, expertise, and know-how to his own company, MicroStrain Incorporation. Currently, he and his team are working on a wireless sensing technology that could be used in the future to assess the current condition of bridges. His team’s expertise would definitely come in handy considering the Minneapolis bridge collapse that happened just a couple of weeks ago, taking away nine lives in the process. Steve Arms’ invention is a wireless, solar-powered sensor system that offers the ability to collect data on strain, seismic activity, and vibrations on bridges. Since it harnesses power from the sun itself, there is no need to replace batteries inside the sensors which are normally placed in hard-to-reach places.
We know that solar power is often used by geeks, but how many of them have actually experienced the touch of a world class designer? Zegna has taken this task to create the Zegna Sport Solar Jacket by collaborating with Interactive Wear from Germany. This unique jacket features power cells that have been fitted into the neoprene collar, where electricity stored is transferred to your preferred device (MP3 player, cellphone) via conducting textile cables. It takes approximately 8 hours of sunlight to charge up the entire li-ion battery. Word has it that the Zegna Sport Solar Jacket will be part of its 2008 summer collection - you can be sure it will cause a big hole in your pocket to pick one up.
