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$49,215 pledged of $85,000 goal
This was what the latest status of this charger is at Kickstarter few days back.
Bicycle-powered generators have been in use for cycle headlamps / taillamps for quite a while. There are some treadmills that can help generate little power.
With more and more gadgets being used like power hungry Smartphones (especially with GPS/Wi-Fi, Bluetooth ON), people are coming up with new inventions to cater to different environments besides car charging. Some of these have included the PedalPower+, the EcoXPower, Nokia’s Bicycle Charger Kit, and Dahon’s BioLogic ReeCharge. Some bicycle devices don’t charge when the paddling stops.
Siva claims that they are trying to overcome this limitation by launching the Atom generator to keep the energy flowing smoothly. What is different is that it also charges up an on-board battery which can be detached and used to charge compatible devices.
The Siva Cycle Atom is built to be lightweight, so it should be easy for cyclists to carry around and attach to a bike without altering the balance of the bike. The device weighs 10.58 ounces (300 g) and stands 7.5 inches tall, 3 inches wide, and 1.2 inches deep (19 x 7.6 x 3 cm).
The Atom is specifically designed to output a high quality, USB compatible 5V @ up to 500mA (same as the USB 2.0 output from your computer) so a device with USB connection (iPhones, iPods, Android phones, GPS trackers, tablets, etc.) can be charged.
The 500mA charge means that instead of sitting on your desk and charging it, you can paddle for same amount of time to fully charge it.
Siva Cycle’s Atom generator box contains the generator, the detachable battery pack, a USB port that needs to be installed under your seat, and a ribbon cable to connect the two.
The Atom is currently up for funding on Kickstarter, where a pledge of $95 will get you one of your very own.
There are two ways the device can be used:
1. Directly charge your smartphone or
2. Charge the removable 1300 mAh battery and then connect another device to it later.
It has a 1,300mAh lithium polymer battery. Just to give you an idea, capacity of the battery is enough to charge a flat battery iPhone5 to 70 percent.
So how does it work? A small gear inside is engaged by the spinning of the back wheel, which then activates a generator. This rotation produces current, which then passes through the internal electronics, where it is converted to usable electricity. This process charges the battery connected to the device like any other battery backup.
The installation process is claimed to be very easy and does not need any tools.
Source: Siva Cycle via Kickstarter
