As photovoltaic cells become cheaper to produce and purchase, new gadgets are emerging that are helping to make life a little easier for us in our increasingly electronic filled world. Using devices powered by solar energy not only help improve the environment by utilizing a clean and abundant source of energy, they also create household savings by reducing the amount of electricity that would otherwise be drawn from traditional power grids. From solar powered cookware to solar powered swimwear, here are seven amazing solar powered innovations.
7. Solar Furniture
MIT Professor Sheila Kennedy and her team have created a type of solar lounge chair they’re calling SOFT Rockers. These dynamic relaxing stations are meant to double as both artistic urban instillations, and a convenient way to charge almost any portable electronic device. The SOFT Rocker also leverages your own body weight when you sit down to create an interactive, real-time, energy-harvesting feedback loop that lets you see how much energy is gathered depending on the rocker’s orientation to the sun. But, the most outstanding feature of this solar lounger is only apparent once the sun goes down. At night, a series of cool blue LEDs lining the edges of the rocker illuminate to make the occupant look like they’re riding in some sort of vehicle from TRON.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/artsatmit/10858306765 Via Flickr