Can you kick it?

Can you kick it?

"... yes you can!"

According to a recent report from the UN, over 1.5 billion people—one quarter of the world’s population - live in areas with no access to electricity.

Introducing sOccket, the soccer ball that turns energy from a kick into electricity. This the product of the imagination and creativity of a group of Harvard students who have found a way to harness energy from the world's favourite sport and pastime.

"This portable energy-harvesting device captures the impact energy normally dissipated when the ball is kicked, storing it to charge lights, cell phones and batteries. It works with inductive coil technology, similar to that found in flashlights that power up when shaken. For each 15 minutes of play, it can store enough energy to power a small LED light for three hours."

Simply brilliant!

Currently in its prototyping stages, sOccket has been successfully piloted in Durban, South Africa, and the development team has plans to market a commercial version of the sOccket in Western countries as a high-end tech toy, possibly using a "buy one-give one" model, to subsidize the cost of distributing sOccket in developing nations. If ever you needed an excuse for a lunchtime kick around this is it!

Categories SUSO Tags Sport