Motorola sheds light on solar powered cell phones
By George Gardner
Motorola has been granted a patent on an LCD panel that will not only display color images, but serve as a solar panel as well. This technology will allow Motorola to develop mobile phones that are more efficient, meeting the demands of today’s power-hungry mobile devices.
First reported in the May 2007 edition of New Scientist magazine, Motorola has made a breakthrough in developing LCD screens with solar panels, a technology which has previously been attempted by other manufacturers with little success.
The problem lies in the way that today’s LCD’s absorb light, allowing for little or no light to pass through the screen to the solar panel.
Motorola engineer, Zili Li, recently proposed building the LCD with special filters made from a polymer film that reflects narrow bands of the light spectrum.
This allows a sufficient amount of light to pass through the screen to the solar panel, while still providing an adequate color picture on the mobile’s LCD.
While the use of this technology will not make for a self-sufficient mobile phone, it will greatly aid in battery life; allowing for mobile devices that need charging at shorter intervals.
Motorola can’t say when devices that incorporate this technology will reach the market, but Zili Li notes the acquisition of this patent is surely one step closer to the development of these ‘green’ mobile devices.
Despite the solar panel being behind the LCD, it’s a rare occurrence to see a solar panel on the flip side of a mobile phone, and it’s a wonder why they haven’t gained attention until recent times.
Solar panels were developed in 1883, and were first introduced to calculators in 1978. But until recently, mobile electronics have consumed far too much power to justify the practical use of the inefficient solar panel.
As today’s electronics become more sleek and efficient, this may be an optimum move for Motorola, as they re-invent uses for the solar panel.
As far as realistic use is concerned, we’re not too sure about leaving a mobile device in direct sunlight or how this technology would be applied to flip phones with single LCD screens; but the idea of integrating a vintage technology with current technology is definitely admirable.
Source: issue 2602 of New Scientist magazine, 02 May 2007, page 30
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