Solar-charging backpacks set for hike to market
Mascotte's messenger bag prototype
(Credit: Mascotte)G24 Innovations has shipped its first flexible solar panels, which are destined for the outside of backpacks and other bags, the company said Wednesday.
The U.K. company's dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) are thin-film photovoltaics that can be manufactured in flexible rolls relatively cheaply. It is a material the U.S. Air Force has been looking into for use in its unmanned aerial vehicles for longer endurance.
G24's DSSC cells, which are designed to create electricity from indoor light as well as outdoor sunlight, will be put into commercial use by the manufacturer Mascotte Industrial Associates.
Solar backpack, duffel
(Credit: G24 Innovations)The Hong Kong-based company is integrating the DSSC panels into a line of backpacks, duffel bags, e-book covers, camera bags, and messenger bags that can then be tapped to recharge items like cell phones or cameras.
Mascotte plans to display its solar bags at this week's Hong Kong Electronics Fair, and the products could be available to consumers as soon as December, according to the company. Mascotte has already filled its Web site with photos of potential products.
While Mascotte won't be the first to offer solar recharging in a backpack and while it hasn't released its price list yet, the company's use of DSSC cells may make it the first to offer a bag at a reasonable price to the masses. In 2006, Tumi offered a limited edition PowerPack, which cost almost $700. In mid-2007, the Mana Solar Claw offered a $230 solar backpack cover.
In a software-driven world, it's easy to forget about the nuts and bolts. Whether it's cars, robots, personal gadgetry or industrial machines, Candace Lombardi examines the moving parts that keep our world rotating. A journalist who divides her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, Lombardi has written about technology for the sites of The New York Times, CNET, USA Today, MSN, ZDNet, Silicon.com, and GameSpot. E-mail her at candacelombardi@gmail.com. She is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET. 





I only wish they would provide minimum and maximum current output specifications (i.e., low and high light conditions) for whatever constant voltage they produce. People don't seem to realize how little energy you get from solar panels, and this would be useful in knowing how long it would take to charge your device.
Wouldn't a better idea be a Vietnamese-style hat with a panel that you could rotate to aim at the sun? Might look silly, but it would work better. Construction workers could just attach a panel with rotating mount to attach to a hard-hat, and the space between the hat and head could hold the phone while charging.
This gadget shouldn't be considered green, as it would be very unlikely to pay back the electricity used to make it, simply because it would be rarely used. Buy a hand-crank charger and a share in a solar farm where the panels are optimally aimed at the sun and used every day all day.
The solar panel needs to be easily attachable to any backpack, small or large, not just on a specific pack (as shown in the article) that might be uncomfortable for a specific person.
- by chizzit October 15, 2009 5:22 AM PDT
- When they come up with one that can charge my laptop even while I am using it then I will take an interest.
- Like this Reply to this comment
-
(7 Comments)