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Solar-powered Handbag
karvind writes "BBC reports that a student, Rosanna Kilfedder, from Brunel University has designed solar-powered handbag to make finding keys and other items at the bottom of a bag easier. The handbag, dubbed Sun Trap, uses a solar cell attached to the outside of the bag to trap energy from sunlight. The energy is stored in an internal battery which lights up the lining. The lining is made from an electroluminescent material and is lit up by the bag's zip which acts as a switch. The bag goes dark when the zip is closed or after 15 seconds if it is accidentally left open. A secondary use of the portable battery is as an emergency charger for mobile phones and other wireless devices."
in the windows of cars parked in the sun, powering anti-theft alarms
...
The Mercedes E series offers a solar panel sunroof, which operates the car A/C on a sunny day. Personally, I think that's a far better application of solar power
Its obvious, and its been done. But its gets you maybe and extra half mile a day at peek performance while costing and extra few thousand, just not worth it for the cost ratio. Plugin hybrids make much more sense, and you can attach those to better quality larger solar collectors if you wish
Yes, actually we, female slashdotters, do exist. I think the idea of a portable solar light is good. Consider the purse simply a wild-hair experiment. Sort of like microwaving lobsters. (And no, I am not guilty of that either.)
Target offers, now, a lady's handbag with a battery powered bright white LED that lights up when the magnetic clasp is opened. Maybe it is not as "sexy" as the bag in the article but it is simpler, cheaper, more practicle and more environmentally friendly (no solar cells and special linings). It is also more practicle in the sense that it will last just long enough until the owner drops it in favor of the latest fashion.
Women read /. too ;)
Although, I will admit, I do not carry handbags. A shoulder bag, to carry spare hdds, chocolate, and the like - at most. But usually nothing.
I work at Brunel, and designs from the students in our Design Department hit the BBC webpages every year around this time. And each year, we get a flood of email to our 'webmaster' email address, cursing the design for not curing cancer or ending poverty.
You have to realise, these designs are developed as an exercise in the skills taught by the course. Some of them are interesting, but they're not finished products. You might as well criticise engineering students for wasting their time building balsa bridges and devices to allow an egg to be dropped off a roof without breaking.
Yeesh!
Environmentalism is the new Victorianism. Everyone ties on a green corset and pretends we're virtuous.
no it doesn't. it operates a VENT FAN on a hot sunny day. no solar panel that size, let alone the semi-transparent ones that make the "solar sunroof panels" can generate the 100+ watts of energy that it takes to run the AC in a car. let alone the fact that the AC compressor in that car is belt driven by the engine.
If that tiny solar panel can run the AC in the car then they need to stop making cars and start making/selling home power systems.
a small vent fan != the AC.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Yes and No. it fails on the hybrids because they are high voltage power packs. it works very well on my RV because I have a 12 volt power system and I get a high amp charge from the 4 18 volt panels on the roof of the RV. I can fully charge my bank of deep discharge batterys in 2 days. in nromal use and parked in full sun with them tilted to the south I can not bring my batteries below 3/4 charge. and that is including using the 600watt microwave in the evening to pop some popcorn and watch tv when its downpouring outside.
you can not put the square footage of solar panels on a hybrid that I have on my RV. Also upconverting the voltage for the 200+ volt battery packs loses energy efficiency fast.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.