All sorts of ingenious little renewable charging devices are popping up lately, mainly since our energy consumption needs have shifted toward having to charge small gadgets, a task that can easily be handled by such devices. The so-called Bioo plant is one of the more ingenious offerings in this area. It is a potted plant that can generate enough juice to charge your smartphone up to 3 times per day.
The Bioo plant pot was created by the Spanish company Arkyne Technologies. It is fitted with a 5V 1A USB charging port, which is connected to a ‘biological battery’ of sorts located within the base of the pot. The device is also very low maintenance, since all that is needed on the part of the owner is to water and care for the plant to keep it alive. In this way, for at least five years, the plant will continue to provide enough electricity to charge your gadgets during the day and night, and it will not suffer any harm in the process.
Arkyne Technologies are currently raising funds via a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo. Apart from the smaller version, they are also planning to produce a larger and more powerful version of the bio-battery. This so-called Bioo Panel, will measure 3.28 ft by 3.28 ft (1 m by 1 m) and will be able to generate up to 40 W of power, producing up to 280 kWh of energy per year. A Bioo plant pot can be reserved for a donation of $135 (120 EUR) and the units will be shipped in December of 2016. There are also other donation options available.
This is definitely a very clever idea, especially since the plant is capable of producing energy during both the day and the night, independent of sunlight. And a houseplant also has the added benefit of purifying the air, so let’s hope this projects gets off the ground.
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