Solar Power with Balls
September 16th, 2007
Solar panels have long been plagued with lower power output when they are not directly facing the sun. The Kyosemi Corporation is the first company with the balls to tackle this problem. I got to see these first-hand at Wired NextFest. Basically, if I understand this correctly, the solar cells are actually tiny balls connected with fine wire, which can be embedded in clear plastic shapes, like the half-dome shown in the image. This fits in the palm of your hand, and performs consistently regardless of the angle to the sun. They can also embed large grids of these balls in a transparent flexible sheet, or flexible ribbons, which are as shapable as they are beautiful.