LuminAID Brings Light To Those in Need
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CREDIT: LuminAID Lab |
Out camping, or in a disaster area, emergency lighting is always helpful, but most flashlights and battery-powered lights are bulky, and sometimes expensive (to say nothing of not so waterproof). A pair of students at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture came up with the idea of putting a thin solar panel, an LED and a battery on an inflatable plastic bag. They wanted to create a lamp that would work in a wide variety of conditions, could be shipped cheaply, and would require no fuel or batteries.
Waterproof, light, with the ability to fold flat, the LuminAID can store enough power to stay on for up to four hours at its brightest setting after four to six hours of charging in sunlight. It measures just 9 inches by 9 inches. The inflatable bag diffuses the light, and also allows it to float. Since it is a flat piece of plastic lots of them can be stacked and shipped in a small space. It even folds into a pocket.
With this source of light, people in disaster areas or refugee camps needn’t use kerosene lamps, which can cause fires. For a contribution of $10 as part of IndieGoGo’s “Get Light, Give Light” campaign, you can get one of these and help ship more of them to people in need.
