Volvo sunshade charges with solar power

[Sherman A1]

There are a little over 6,200 operational electric vehicle charging stations across America, so if you have an electric hybrid car in some parts of the country, getting juice is a little trickier than popping into the nearest gas station.

A new solution designed for Volvo Auto Italia by Synthesis Design + Architecture, Buro Happold, and Fabric Images aims to let the car charge wherever it happens to find a parking spot in the sun. Called "Pure Tension," it's a portable pavilion that unfolds in a series of organic, parabolic curves embedded with photovoltaic panels for harvesting solar energy.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57595183-1/volvo-sunshade-charges-with-solar-power/?part=rss&subj=news&tag=title

While the design is a bit large for many places, it is certainly interesting and it's a start.

[mopinko]

1. looks pretty cool.

seems like it could do other things than power a car. would make a great tent.

i always thought they should just put solar on the car roof to charge all the time.

[tinrobot]

2. Takes up a few parking spaces and another few days to charge the car.

Chalk this one up as a nice design exercise... but impractical.

[Sherman A1]

3. It does have some design problems

but, it is certainly a good start in my opinion.

[kristopher]

4. This isn't intended to be a consumer offering

It is an advertising devise that Volvo intends to use as they take their car on a nationwide rollout tour.

There are no plans to commercialize it.

[cbayer]

5. Cool.

I am sitting here under the wind generator and wondering why they couldn't be put on cars. They would run when you were moving, but also while parked if there is wind.

While they don't put out a massive amount of power, they put in a rather constant charge which deep cycle batteries like.

[Curmudgeoness]

6. Every step in the right direction is a good step.

I can see that this is impractical, and is not meant to be a consumer product, but at least they are looking at new ideas.

I remember the days of computers that took up whole floors of buildings....and they didn't even have a great amount of function. This is one of those steps toward practical solar energy. I can't wait until they design devises that will cover every roof of homes and cars.

[cbayer]

7. Great comparison with the computers.

They are now making a solar sheet that you can, say, cover the decks of your boat. Our panels are huge and we had to have hardware built to accommodate them.

[Curmudgeoness]

8. About those solar sheets

that you can cover the deck of a boat---can they only be used if you are not on the boat? Are they flexible? I dream of the day when we can have solar cells that can be in panels that are so durable that they can be walked on---maybe even driven on. I don't know enough about the mechanics of it all, so I don't even know if that is possible, or ever will be.

How much power can you get from the panels you use now? Think of what the future holds!

[cbayer]

9. I have not actually seen them, but from what I understand, they

go on like a piece of contact paper and are sturdy enough to walk on.

Right now they are prohibitively expensive, but I see the day when we can cover boats, cars, houses, etc.

The tricky part is in the wiring, I think.

We have four big panels, just installed a wind generator and have a bank of 8 golf cart batteries for storing what we make. It's working great, though we are still working out the kinks to maximize it's input.

Nice to see you back in here, curmudgeoness. Hope you are doing well and enjoying your summer!

[Curmudgeoness]

10. I love summer, so yes, I am enjoying it.

I've been here at DU most every day, at least to check on what is new and exciting. And I keep wishing I could see more posting in this group....I just don't find anything of interest often. But I am always looking.

I think it is so great that they are developing panels that are so sturdy. Everything is extremely expensive when it first is developed, so that is no surprise. We need more people to buy into solar and other alternative energy sources so that it becomes economically feasible. It will come.