Why are there no cheap and long lasting solar panels? The unknown true reason, and the machine that collapses the existing micro-solar panel market

A small solar panel "micro solar" used for charging of smartphones and the like is a bottleneck that the price is high and the life is short, but in order to make cheaper and high quality micro solar, We invented our own original machines that replace the solar panels we were assembling on behalf of human beings "The Solar Pocket Factory"is.

The Solar Pocket Factory: an Invention Adventure by Alex Hornstein - Kickstarter

The movie is from the following.


Aimed at making cheap and high quality perfect solar panels, invented was the machine "The Solar Pocket Factory" capable of making micro solar everywhere in the world


I am making inventors Alex Hornstein and Shawn Frayne who love clean energy.


The two people are working on now is micro solar.


Talking about solar panels, you tend to imagine something big to fit on the roof of a building ... ...


Micro solar is a pocket-sized portable solar panel.


If you use micro solar, for example, a type solar system that petthes on the window glass ... ...


Make a panel pasted behind a cell phone,


You can also set up a charging place using sunlight in the city.


It is also possible to make a charger using a child's toy.



Using a solar panel chip you can create a charger in 5 minutes.



A disadvantage of micro solar is that it has a lifetime of 2 to 5 years, and it costs more than a larger solar panel.


Shawn Frayne traveled around the world on a motorcycle to find out what is wrong to make a solar panel with lower cost and higher quality.


As a result, we found that 50% of the cost for making solar panels is in the assembly work.WaferAfter making small pieces, solder it, gluing it to the panel and cover with plastic is done by human hands. At the same time, 15% of the micro solar panels are discarded due to insufficient adhesion, which is one of the reasons for cost increase. And by using less expensive materials than the standard,Silicon cellDespite being ready to use for 25 years, the deterioration of the plastic cover will cause the solar panel to reach its end of life in a few years.


So, if you make a machine that automatically assembles solar panels, you can reduce the cost by about 25%, and if you change the material used at a floating cost to a high quality one, It will be possible to collect long-lasting solar panels. By doing this it is possible to make a product with a lifespan extended by 5 years at a price of 70% of existing solar panels.


So I made this micro solar production machine "The Solar Pocket Factory".


With the same precision as many times as you like, we will fully make solar panels automatically.


The prototype was like this.


With this machine it is possible to make one solar panel in 15 minutes.


The Solar Pocket Factory is currentlyKickstarterI am in the process of seeking investment. Although The Solar Pocket Factory is complete, it is seeking support for developing new environmentally friendly technology.


You can have a solar pocket kit that you can easily assemble solar panels yourself by equipping 35 dollars (about 2800 yen).


Also, in addition to the kit, the two want to release a story that led to the invention of The Solar Pocket Factory. The two have a bit of ambition to collapse the $ 1 billion micro-solar market, we will record the forthcoming conflicts, hopes, strange discoveries and will release videos every week. And I plan to publish books with photographs and stories behind the scenes with them. You can get this book if you invest 30 dollars (about 2400 yen).


The front cover looks something like this. "How did we change the micro solar panel and saved the lost child kitten?"


However, if this attempt fails, the title of the book may be "how we failed to start up and had to go back".


The deadline for investment is Japan time on Saturday, September 15, at 1 AM.