GROW: Solar ivy for the home
Sun, Jul 05 2009 at 5:11 PM EST
There was eco-eye candy aplenty on display at the special Design Boom-curated Kitchen Ecology exhibition at last month’s Dwell on Design.
Since kitchen-borne creations, edible or not, need to be shared, I’ll be taking a closer look at a few tasty green designs from Kitchen Ecology that deserve a closer look (although I'm not exactly sure how this particular concept fits the "kitchen" theme).
First up is GROW, an alternative energy delivery system employing fluttering photovoltaic “leaves” that generate power when they move in the wind. Say what?
Here’s how the Brooklyn-based, brother-sister team of Samuel and Teresita Cochran from sustainable design start-up SMIT (Sustainably Minded Interactive Technology) describe their unique, verdant concept that's slated to enter production in 2011 (they'll be be sold in modular kits at design stores in lieu of more heavy duty home improvement outlets) :
Using a life-cycle analysis (LCA), GROW will utilize recycled and reclaimed materials wherever possible and insure that at the end of GROW's lifespan, sustainable methods of recycling and reclamation will be carried out to minimize GROW's environmental and resource footprint.
All iterations of GROW will incorporate an intuitive energy monitoring system allowing both SMIT and end-users to have a one-to-one relationship with their energy output, while enabling the ability to track and fine-tune the performance of GROW's wind and solar energy production.GROW's unique design incorporates a proprietary, patent-pending combination of photovoltaic and piezoelectric technologies in one system that can adapt to different building typologies, programmatic demands, and regional climates.
Okay, I may have lost you there. Basically, 100 percent recyclable polyethylene GROW panels — now in phase two of the design stage ... the first phase found 'em featured at the Museum of Modern Art last year — are meant to be affixed to the exterior of a building in a vertical garden fashion that resembles climbing ivy. The "leaves," which will be available in various colors, generate power through both built-in solar cells and through wind movement.
Still confused as to what exactly GROW is? If that's the case, just took a look at the photos and imagine the “leaves” as being substitutes for rooftop solar panels.
Via [Design Boom]
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