Concept art (via Frog.com)
A few weeks ago the website frog.com held a competition called Future of Fiction for the first time, where they challenged their own staff to come up with innovational and non-conventional solutions to wind power harnessing. Their employees decided that a portable wind turbine was worthy of reality, and thereafter, engineers looked at the idea and came up with a prototype for a beautiful commercial grade portable wind turbine called the Revolver.
This prototype claims to produce 35 watts in the swiftest breeze. It could charge batteries, power an electric lantern, charge phones and other mobile devices and even keep your laptop juiced, all while you are enjoying being far away from “the grid."
(Left) Turbine setup (Right) Concept structure of the turbine (via frog.com)
The final design will be easily portable because of its shape and flexible turbine blades. Initially the Revolver is a slender cylinder, just a couple feet long. A sliding collar, to which the bendable urethane turbine blades connect, slides up the vertical axis turbine shaft. When this collar slides up, the blades “blossom” to reveal their beautiful spiral shape and the die-cast magnesium tripod legs on which the Revolver stands. There is no mention of how it could anchor to the ground, but engineers will find a solution before it becomes available to the public.
The future of camping is near, and it will involve a new type of “revolver”; one that keeps things alive.
Eavesdropper
