In Africa, at night, homes are sometimes lit by kerosene lanterns. Kerosene fumes aren’t healthy. Kerosene lamps contribute upwards of 190 million tons of emissions into our atmosphere each year. sOccket has come up with an ingenious way to rid homes of the kerosene.
sOccket has developed a soccer ball with an inductive internal mechanism that’s similar to the technology inside ‘shake to charge’ flashlights. Ball movements forces a magnet through a coil that induces voltage in the coil to generate electricity. Just 15 minutes of play time creates enough energy to light a small LED light for three hours.
The ball, which began life as a Harvard class project, has been tested in South Africa. While not quite regulation, it’s an improvement over the homemade balls that many kids use. sOccket is considering using the buy one – give one model. The balls can be sold in Western markets as a high-end gadget and the profits are then used to distribute the balls at little or no cost in poor countries through organizations such as Whizz Kids United.
It’s a win-win situation for everyone.
soccer ball
