Sustainable Technologies Category Winner, "Create the Future" 2007 Design Contest

LEDTRICITY™

Ted Bristow
Creative Electric
Kailua Kona, HI

LEDTRICITY™ uses a combination of various electrical principles, unique wiring circuits, and state-of-the-art components to produce a safe, low-voltage/current output. The illumination of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) using the LEDTRICITY system results in the ability to use extremely long, inexpensive wires to illuminate hundreds to thousands of LEDs.

To date several prototypes have been tested at over 2,000 feet (with each circuit x 4 = 8,000 feet on four pair of 24- gauge wires), illuminating 700 super-bright LEDs. Additionally, combining the LEDs with special storage cells means no batteries to replace, and greater than 500,000 charge cycles. There also are no critical memory problems as with batteries, and they are Earth friendly and can be thrown away in a landfill.

The LEDTRICITY Solar Powered System uses a small, inexpensive single array of solar panels to charge a deep-cycle storage battery during the day that runs the system day or night. The present invention has the ability to travel vast distances from the solar array and storage battery location, where typical DC, or direct current, is limited to short lengths. Imagine a home of 1,500 square feet. The LEDTRICITY system and storage battery are inside the garage and the solar array is on the roof. The output circuits branch out in all directions to the LEDs installed throughout the home. This scenario would be ideal to illuminate the entire home and property on solar power. The system would pay for itself over time and serve as emergency back-up lighting in the event of utility failure.

Other LEDTRICITY systems include:

• LEDTRICITY Bicycle System offers virtual frictionless operation, never needs batteries, operates LED headlights, tail and signal lights, and charges cell phones and iPods.
• LEDTRICITY Low-Velocity Wind System requires no transmission or braking, and as little as 7 mph operation.
• LEDTRICITY Low-Volume Hydro System features 1⁄ 2" pipe at 30 P.S.I. standard home water pressure, and produces enough force to operate the generator.
• LEDTRICITY Hand Crank System features low RPM requirements to reduce work and the gearing necessary for standard hand cranks to achieve charging voltage.
• LEDTRICITY LED Street Signal Lighting and LED Road Sign Lighting provides residential, commercial, in dustrial, marine, auto, and security lighting.

For more information, visit www.ledtricity.com, or contact the inventor at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Honorable Mentions

Wave Energy-Harnessing Device

Michael Raftery
Stevens Institute of Technology
Hoboken, NJ

This device harnesses ocean waves to generate electricity. The advantage over existing technologies is a patent-pending spring-rewind cable reel system. The cable reel system does not have limited stroke like the existing piston, linear magnet, and oscillating water column systems. A buoy or any other floating object can be used on the sea surface to drive the system. The generator housing can be lowered to the sea floor, where it is safe from storms. The system is modular so thousands of units can be placed offshore, out of sight from the beach, and produce enough power to replace nuclear or conventional fossil fuel power plants in average seas.

For more information, contact the inventor at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Energy-Saving Clothes Dryer

Danny Blount
Sulphur Springs, TX

Clothes dryers literally pump the heated and cooled air out of a home. The dryer sits inside the home and intake air enters the dryer from within the home. The exhaust goes out of the home, pumping 12,000 cubic feet per hour of conditioned air out of the home.

This invention is a dryer design with an air intake inlet, which would take intake air from the exterior of the home. An internal duct inside the dryer takes the air from the inlet to the inside of the drying system. By taking intake air from outside of the structure, the dryer would no longer be pumping out the conditioned air from within the home. This is a “green” innovation that will greatly reduce the energy consumption needed to heat and cool the home. The system has been tested in very cold weather, as well as in hot, rainy weather with humidity at 100%.

Transportation Category Winner, "Create the Future" 2007 Design Contest

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