We are very excited to announce that Tindie seller Bobricius is one of the 10 finalists in the first round of the Hackaday Prize — Planet-Friendly Power! This round is all about getting and storing power locally, which is one way we can reduce our burden on the planet. Many of the projects in this round focused on typical ways of creating and storing energy — wind turbines, solar arrays, hydroelectric, etc. But Bobricius’ entry focuses on a much smaller scale.
His entry is the ArmaLamp, a small light source that uses a supercapacitor, photocells, and a very efficient boost converter to provide nighttime illumination. Because it uses a supercap, it can be charged and discharged an almost unlimited number of times. Typically secondary (rechargeable) battery cells would wear out over time and require replacement. Because it uses a supercap that doesn’t need to be replaced, the entire module could be potted, making it waterproof and very rugged. It’s interesting that the design uses photocells instead of typical solar panels. This is just as valid an approach and allows more flexibility in shape and size, though often at the cost of lower efficiency. But for such a low-power device, this is a great application for photocells!
We’d also like to congratulate the other 9 finalists from this round — you can check out the announcement detailing the finalists here! Keep an eye out for the next round — Reuse, Recycle, Revamp. It’s going on right now, so you still have time to enter your project! Entries must be submitted by June 12th, 2022, and the finalists from that round will be announced on June 27th! You’ve got a chance at winning the grand prize of $50,000! Check out the official Hackaday Prize page for all the details.
