A bright idea:
IoT and Solar Energy Power Up Remote Areas
Flipping on the lights, driving to the store, cranking up the furnace: we take our energy-powered conveniences for granted.
We're wrong.
Almost one in five people on the planet lack access to power for basic needs such as clean water, sanitation, and healthcare as well as lighting, heating, cooking, transportation, and telecommunications.
In developing nations such as Africa, simply charging a mobile device can require a two-day walk to a nearby village, and essential services consume up to 40% of annual income.
In these areas, it’s cost-prohibitive to build roads, lay cables, and develop the infrastructure necessary for traditional power grids.
How can people in remote areas tap into a reliable energy source?
The answer is in the sky, the Internet of Things (IoT) and with SOLARKIOSK.
Let us explain.
Always On:
The Sun and Thales’s IoT Wireless Connectivity
Thales partnered with award-winning SOLARKIOSK (now Solarkiosk Solutions GmbH, based in Berlin) to enable connectivity for an off-the-grid energy hub that provides sustainable electricity.
The solar-powered energy production kiosks are compact, mobile, locally-sourced, and easy to deploy.
They provide up to 1800 kWh of renewable energy every year – enough to charge 220 cell phones a day while running appliances every day. Several kiosks together can form a local power company.
In addition to providing services such as internet connectivity and copy/print/scan services, SOLARKIOSKs offer a venue for people to gather, listen to music, and enjoy a refreshing drink, thus enhancing a community’s social framework.
Cinterion® wireless modules provide rugged wireless connectivity that serves as an electric charging station for remote communities while enabling continuous monitoring and management of the kiosk’s rooftop PV cells.
There's more.
Cinterion IoT technology also helps track energy production and consumption, encrypt data and securely transmit data to authorized operators for billing and business management.
The Future is Bright for Off-the-Grid Communities
Thales' Cinterion wireless modules are designed for natural evolution to next-generation technologies without equipment overhauls and expensive design revision, which is vital to resource-constrained developing nations.
This feature makes adding new services such as mobile WiFi hotspots and other 4G capabilities easy and cost-effective.
Regardless if it’s today’s or tomorrow’s version, the SOLARKIOSK provides much more than clean energy.
Access to power means reliable wireless communications, which ultimately means access to the Internet, healthcare, government services, information, and education.
SOLARKIOSK has the power to transform lives.
More inspiring IoT examples
-
Eltopia: IoT solutions to save bees
- MedMinder makes Medication Smarter with IoT Connected Pill Box
- Exeter to reach carbon neutrality by 2030
- Bonaverde Berlin disrupts the coffee ecosystem (with IoT)
- OnKöl mHealth Device (IoT at work)
- Mobike demonstrates the power of IoT
- Svep Design Center and the IoT (Interview)
- Cargo Tracck Protects Rainforest Trees
- Globalmatix to connect the unconnected
- iLOC watch enhances safety for loved ones
- Enkom Active Oy and the IoT (Interview)
- ERTICO enables eCall across Europe
- Aware 360 and Thales in IoT
- Vignet and the mHealth Challenge
- Tauron and Smarter Energy (IoT connectivity)
- ExactTrak: protecting data on the move
- Faraday Future and connected vehicles