Development Of A Wearable Solar Jacket

ABSTRACT

This work is on wearable solar jacket which is a device that uses solar energy to supply electric power to the garment industry (solar jacket) which allows wearers to carry, connect and charge their portable devices. The materials used for developing the solar jacket and its specifications include solar cells, batteries, solar jacket, and solar charger. The power developed by a solar cell depends on the product of current and voltage. A solar powered jacket concentrates on the integration of electronic functions, components and systems into textile products.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE

TITLE PAGE

APPROVAL PAGE

DEDICATION

ACKNOWELDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

1.0      INTRODUCTION

1.1      STATEMENT OF PROBLEM

• AIM AND OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
• PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
• SIGNIFICACE OF THE STUDY
• APPLICATION OF THE STUDY
• LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
• PROJECT ORGANISATION

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

• OVERVIEW OF WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY
• SOLAR-POWERED CLOTHING
• USER ACCEPTANCE OF TECHNOLOGY
• Functional, Expressive, Aesthetic (FEA) Needs of solar clothing
• Environmental Concerns
• AGE COHORTS IN SOLAR CLOTHING

CHAPTER THREE

3.0     MATERIALS AND METHODS

3.1      DESIGN OF A SOLAR HARVESTING

3.2      DESIGN OF A CHARGE CONTROLLER USING MICROCONTROLLER

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0     RESULT ANALYSIS

4.1    CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURE

4.2      SELECTION OF SOLAR CELL

4.3       TESTING OF SYSTEM OPERATION

4.4       ASSEMBLING

4.5       INTEGRATION OF SOLAR CELL

4.6       OBSERVATION

4.7         DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED ON THE SYSTEM

CHAPTER FIVE

• CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION AND REFERENCES
• CONCLUSION
• RECOMMENDATION
• REFERENCES

CHAPTER ONE

1.0      Introduction

Solar-powered clothing, within a context of wearable technology, is an innovative product still in its introductory stage (Macguire, 2011). Wearable technology is a blanket term for electronics that can be worn on the body, either as an accessory or as part of material used in clothing. The concept of smart clothing has been initiated from the idea of the wearable computer, actually a portable rather than wearable device, from the 1980s. In the late 1990s, collaboration with professionals in the areas of electronic engineering, and clothing and textiles rapidly increased. Prototypes were developed that concentrated on consumer-oriented design (Rantanen, Alfthan, Impio, Karinsalo, Malmivaara, Matala, &Vanhala, 2000) and smart clothing is now being developed for everyday life (G. Cho & Cho, 2007).

Currently, researchers of wearable technology have shifted their primary interests to solar-powered clothing that can create renewable and wearable energy sources from solar cells (Suh, et al., 2010). Among the alternative energy sources (e.g. wind, waves), and due to the increased concern about dependence on oil and coal, the sun became the greatest potential, because it can directly generate electrical energy with the aid of solar cells (Mather & Wilson, 2006). Since a solar cell produces electricity directly from sunlight, it is also called a photovoltaic cell, meaning “light electricity;” in this term, the word “photo” means “light” and the word “voltaic,” originating from the name of an electrical engineer, Alessandro Volta, means electricity (Cho, 2010, p.250). Solar-powered clothing uses the solar cell as an alternative energy source to generate electricity. Thus, integration of photovoltaic materials into clothing can provide power for portable electronic devices and opens a wealth of opportunities for technology-based fashion.

Solar-powered clothing gained popularity from researchers and industry due to its functionality and pro-environmental attributes, since it uses a solar cell as an alternative energy source to generate electricity. Solar energy is “the first long-term energy source for human beings,” and one of the most potentially important sources of energy recognized by present scientists (Jeon& Cho, 2010, p. 251). Since the major problem of wearable electronics is the necessity to rely on conventional power supplies (e.g., batteries) which are usually physically heavy and have a short lifetime (Jeon& Cho, 2010), solar-powered energy sources that are flexible and light can be incorporated into clothing without being a burden to the wearer. Thus, most solar-powered clothing offers a universal socket for portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones and mp3 players, ultimately a solution to the constant problem of encountering limited battery life.

Specifically, mobile phone usage has become an integral part of digital activity among consumers of all ages. Mobile subscribers increased from 5.4 billion in 2010 and to 6.8 billion in 2012, and users have expressed numerous complaints about limited battery life when using mobile phones (International Telecommunication Union, 2013). To better serve consumers, researchers working from a multidisciplinary approach, including the disciplines of computer science, engineering, and design, have actively dealt with textile development, commercialization possibilities, and product development (Jeon& Cho, 2010; Schubert & Werner, 2006; Zou, Wang, Chu, Lv, & Fan, 2010).

1.1      Statement of the problem

Today the world is facing a number of problems. The world is coming closer to technology at high rate and with such high speed, energy is consuming. The conventional energy sources which are now available with us are slowly diminishing. A purpose of manufacturing this “SOLAR JACKET” is to encourage the idea of energy conservation by shifting focus on renewable energy source.

Also energy efficiency, the number of battery-operated mobile devices is increasing rapidly. The common issue for most of them is the need to recharge the batteries using power taken from power grid or other source of electrical power. The amounts of voltage gotten from these sources are relatively high causing overheating and some devices to explode or catch fire. The solar jacket will be able to perform the same actions using much less voltage.

1.2      Aims and objectives of the study

1.2.1    Aim

To successfully develop a wearable solar jacket that is able to generate low voltage to power micro devices.

1.2.2    Objectives

1. To design and implement a solar jacket
2. To incorporate flexible solar panels and micro components to the solar jacket

• To evaluate the voltage and current from the solar jacket

1.3      Significance of the study

In a world where over 90% of the population is in constant need of personal electronic devices [] such as phones, tablets, ipadsetc for business or for pleasure, a technology such as the solar jacket will be efficient. For example, the battery of a mobile device when low can be charged with the solar jacket. This will enable constant power on the mobile device so as not to miss out on important communication or information. Be it an important business meeting or call, or even the latest news on a blog or news section. The solar jacket can be used for uninterrupted power supply.

The solar jacket can also be applicable for health monitoring devices []. Even when it’s a rainy day or there is a low solar visibility from the sun, the stored energy in the rechargeable battery will serve as an alternative power source until there is availability of solar power.

This is to bring greater convenience to daily lives, especially in the current digital age when people are nearly inseparable from their devices. Also in third world countries like Nigeria where electricity has a very epileptic nature, people with very busy or important schedules would love to have their mobile devices handy. Therefore, the jacket would be able to provide charging on the go and prevent from missing out on important calls due to low battery

1.4                                                PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this research is to integrate solar panels into apparel in an expressive and aesthetic manner for the consumer market.

1.5                                            APPLICATION OF THE STUDY

This device is used by travelers, military to supply enough electrical powers to [Internet of Things] devices such as sensors, or maybe iPhone or smartphone systems to supply charge to the smart devices.”

1.6                                           LIMITATION OF THE PROJECT

• It can only be recharged with solar energy through solar panel
• The duration of the charged when in used depend on the number of cell used.
• Using solar energy for this device means that charging the power bank during cloudy or raining time becomes a problem.

1.7                                        PROJECT WORK ORGANISATION

The various stages involved in the development of this project have been properly put into five chapters to enhance comprehensive and concise reading. In this project thesis, the project is organized sequentially as follows:

Chapter one of this work is on the introduction to the study. In this chapter, the background, significance, objective, limitation, application, purpose, of the study were discussed.

Chapter two is on literature review of this study. In this chapter, all the literature pertaining to this work was reviewed.

Chapter three is on design methodology. In this chapter all the method involved during the design and construction were discussed.

Chapter four is on testing analysis. All testing that result accurate functionality was analyzed.

Chapter five is on conclusion, recommendation and references.