In its continuous effort to pioneer disruptive technologies that mesh with seemingly unrelated areas, the MIT Media Lab is back once again with a new invention that reimages the park bench for this 21st century connected world. Well, Changing Environments is not exactly the MIT Media Lab per say, but a spin-off company embodying the same principles nonetheless. The environmentally friendly group is installing its solar-powered bench/charging station hybrid — a device called Soofa — in various parks throughout Boston for free mobile device charging.
The sustainable Soofa will be placed in Titus Sparrow Park, Boston Common, the Rose Kennedy Greenway, and one more location that Bostonians themselves can select by placing pins on Google Maps, or Tweeting and e-mailing their favorite spots. “Your cell phone doesn’t just make phone calls, why should our benches just be seats?” said Boston Mayor Marty Walsh. “We are fortunate to have talented entrepreneurs and makers in Boston thinking creatively about sustainability and the next generation of amenities for our residents.”
Changing Environments claims an integrated battery stores the solar energy that provides Soofa with a charging capacity rivaling that of “charging at home,” but it’s still unclear if this refers to the 500-milliamp (mA) capacity of USB charging or the 1500 mA of adaptor charging. Judging by the image, it appears that devices uses USB and/or microUSB.
Charging mobile devices is but of fraction of what Soofa can do; the cyber-benches are also equipped with built-in sensors that monitor the air quality, the levels of noise pollution, and even the number of people who used the service. Once the systems are fully activated and online, the data gathered by the benches will be made available on the Soofa website.
Via Soofa.com
Advertisement
Learn more about Electronic Products Magazine
