What began as an engineering sciences class project fusing soccer with energy storage is well on its way to becoming part of the solution to bringing light to the developing world. Its name, Soccket, is perfect.
In most African countries, more than 90 percent of the population lives off the grid with no access to electricity. And if you’ve been to Africa, you know that almost that many people play soccer whenever they get the chance. But it took four young women to realize that all the energy being used on the field could be used to power people’s homes.
The magic soccer ball created by Harvard students Jessica Lin, Jessica Matthews, Julia Silverman, and Hemali Thakkar is beautiful in its simplicity. The “sOccket” captures energy from kick, dribble, and throw, and stores it for later use. Kids can play a game, then bring the ball home and charge a LED lamp, cell phone or battery.
Fifteen minutes of playing with a soccket generates enough energy to power an LED light for three hours, according to its creators. Right now the ball weighs 21 ounces, but the team is working on getting it down to the regulation weight of 16 ounces. Changemakers has more about it.
Tags: soccer
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