Close

4. Solar Panel

A project log for Solar-Powered Tech Fashion - SolarCycle&Microsoft

This outfit has a solar panel on the shoulder which can charge a 5V device, like a phone, a speaker, a portable charger, etc. through USB.

artbyphysicistkittyartbyphysicistkitty 06/11/2018 at 00:500 Comments

The solar panel comes with six holes and two hooks.

Solarpad | 5 Watt Ultra-Lightweight USB Solar Charger System by Solarcycle

I used the two hooks to attach the ribbons onto the bottom of the panel. And the top two holes were fed with the two spikes on the 3D printed parts. Originally, I planned to feed the bottom spikes through the bottom holes but the geometry was a little off and the spikes were a little too thick. If I polished the bottom spikes too much, I was afraid of breaking them. Oh well, maybe for the next version. This works for now. Usually there would be many iterations in the process of prototyping. This is the first edition.



Solarpad | 5 Watt Ultra-Lightweight USB Solar Charger System by Solarcycle

I fed the USB cable through the gap on the shoulder (mentioned section 1) so the cable is hidden under the cloth until it comes out at the bottom of the bodice but then can be hidden inside a pocket together with the phone.


The phone is in my pocket but you see no sign of it nor the USB cable.

Now I don't need to worry about running out of battery outdoors for a whole day. See you at Maker Faire!

Discussions