Show your support! Solar Roadways paves up a parking lot and launches Indiegogo campaign [w/video]

April 22, 2014 at 9:03 pm

via Autoblog

The innovators at Solar Roadways have pulled together a demonstration site (i.e., parking lot) to showcase how their technology works – it’s got a textured glass surface that can (among many other things) generate low-carbon electricity, melt snow, and throw up safety warnings with its integrated LED lighting system. Pretty cool, right? 

Their vision for smarter roads has grown considerably from conception to an award-winning early prototype to a test deployment.  It is poised to take the next logical step forward – manufacturing, which usually costs a ton of money. So they have put together a nice campaign video and lauched the fundraising efforts over at IndieGoGo for helping move this audacious vision to an everyday reality.

Autoblog notes that if successful, the concept will next start appearing in parking lots, driveways and sidewalks before taking that final leap toward paving the way to a solar-powered paradise. Let’s hope it does succeed.  Show your support over at their IndieGoGo campaign site.   

Note: As of this minute, the campaign has raised $4,712 (in just a day) and they have about 39 days left to reach the $1million goal (by May 31 @ 11:59PM).

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Park, Charge, Go Green! Solar Carport Gives Plug-Ins a Charge

April 1, 2009 at 2:29 pm

(Source: Wired)

Powerpark_sized

One of the great criticisms of electric vehicles is the power they rely on often comes from fossil fuels, leading critics to question how “green” they are. A British firm has a solution for that — a carport topped with photovoltaic cells that can charge an EV.

Specialty glass and plastic manufacturer Romag says the PowerPark is just the thing for parking lots where electric vehicles may one day compete for spots to plug in. The first PowerPark was installed at the company’s headquarters, and Romag says additional installations are planned around the United Kingdom.

So far, the cost of installation and materials varies based on volume and location, but Webster said that the canopies could be purchased singly or in groups. Pricing “should be competitive with other forms of BIPV.” That’s Building Integrated Photovoltaics, for those of you who are really off the grid.

 

Each PowerPark canopy is rated at 1.5 kilowatt peak, a measure of a photovoltaic system’s peak output. Even in misty, foggy Northern England, the company estimates each parking space could generate about 1,100 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. The canopies are linked to the electric grid so energy “can be generated for use in the associated buildings when cars are not being charged,” Webster said. “No electricity is wasted.”

It’s got a distinctive shape that advertises itself and just might end up the most attractive piece of engineering in a Walmart parking lot. It could even help to drive sales, as customers might linger a little longer in the store waiting for their Tesla to charge.