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Solar power in your pocket, just in case!!!!

Technology is a passion of mine, I know, for those of you that have read my articles for the last 1, 2 or 3 years you probably think yeah, technology is your passion check! One of the things that I am curious about is how people use technology. One of the areas that people are beginning to embrace technology more and more is the area of alternative or renewable energy. That got me thinking about the concept of personal energy. When you are in your car or your house, you normally have a power source (Car or House) that you can consume. But sometimes you are away from home, and you need a boost for your devices. More power means more talking!

Based on that concept, I wanted to talk about the many portable batteries that are available. In particular, I wanted to talk about the devices that come with, or include a solar or wind turbine that you can hold. The reality of portable renewable power is that you can use the included battery to charge your phone, and in sitting by a window, you can recharge that battery with the solar panel. Wind power doesn’t work inside at an airport, but you can use the wind turbine outside.  But the handheld mini-solar batteries are useful indoors or outdoors. They do not receive a charge from overhead lights, but they do, if you see any part of the sky, charge indoors.

The first thing we have to manage is talking. If you don’t use your phone often to talk, you don’t need to carry a battery (until you do). If you go away from where you live, and hike, using the GPS of your phone, at that point you should consider taking a battery with you. I have a small solar-powered battery that I carry in my bag, just in case.

Power Consumption sources for smartphones

  1. Content connecting and releasing cellular networks (IE when you are driving on the highway for more than 100 miles)
  2. Having WiFi on, but not at home, no network connection.
  3. We were talking on the smartphone.
  4. GPS on and directions being given
  5. Taking pictures!

Thanks for reading – have a wonderful day!

  • Question of

    do you have a spare battery for your smart phone?

    • Yes
    • No
  • Question of

    Do you use the GPS on your phone?

    • Yes
  • Question of

    do you take pictures with your phone?

    • Yes
    • No

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What do you think?

16 Points

Written by DocAndersen

One fan, One team and a long time dream Go Cubs!!!!!!!!!!!!!

31 Comments

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  1. I connected an inverter, (12volt to 220volt) connected to an old 12-volt car generator and a 12-volt car battery. PS. The generator put out as much A/C as the armature could deliver as (it is not governed like an alternator.) I was working on the perpetual motion theory. The car battery initiated the project sequence, ie, it fed the generator which delivered a constant 12-DC to the inverter which stepped up to 220-volts by the inverter which recharged the car battery through a voltage regulator. I ran it for 3 weeks. It was portable and required no exterior fuel input. Overheating bearings inside the generator was the Achilles heel factor since after running nonstop for 14 days it started to overheat and the casings were disintegrating. I shelved the project 25 years ago because I couldn’t get bearings to run for longer. The typical surface hardness for bearing components ranges from 60- 64 on the Rockwell hardness C scale (Rc). I was thinking, ceramic bearings for surface friction?!? Then just stopped. Sorry, got a bit carried away there. Pardon the ramblings of an old fart.

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    • that sounds like an interesting project 25 years ahead of its time!!!! Interesting solution, i would wonder if the newer ceramic bearings might actually do a better job – thanks for sharing this i’ve got something to think about!

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  2. I have a smartphone but don’t use it a lot so I never run out of battery power. I do have a watch that I have had for almost 10 years now and it is solar powered so I never had to change or need a batery and I love it;

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  3. I’m not good at talking for long thus I become mentally exhausted when I talk on phone for more than a half-hour. My phone’s battery gets drained because of being online for long and playing games.
    Some of the facts you stated were new to me.

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  4. There is no spare battery for my phone. I have a cable in my car to charge my phone. I use GPS on my phone when traveling in an unfamiliar territory. I take pictures with my phone as a last resort. I prefer my camera.

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  5. I always have my GPS switched off unless I am travelling alone. We used to have solar calculators when I was in school. I wish we could harness the energy created by people in markets , train stations , bus stations etc.

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