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Step 6Wiring and Mounting the Solar Cells
So... if the box we just built is the heart (and lungs, I guess) of our project, then this is definitely... the soul! SOULAR! he he he!....
OK. Calm. Control.
The cells I've got are from PowerFilm, product number MP3-37, and they're nicely thin and flexible. For this project, we want to wire two of them in series, to make up the 6V supply. Align the cells like so (or however you want them, physically,) so that the positive end of the first one lines up with the negative end of the other. You can tell the difference here, as the "crossbars" on the white "T"s intersecting the cells lie towards the positive, and the "verticals" point towards the negative.
Scratch or melt off the plastic covering the silverish contacts on either side. You can tell if you've gone through enough plastic when you start scraping the contact below. Solder on a single piece of wire across the two. Solder on the stripped + and - lead of a dual-stranded wire to the other sides, and you're done. Work the other end of the wire through the bag so that it reaches the box with enough slackroom.
Dab some hot glue on the joints to insulate them from the weather.
As for attaching the panel to the bag, lay down a length of the "hook" side of the velcro to the back of each cell, and cut three lengths of the "loop" side to match the span, inclusive, between the "hook" pieces. Space them out evenly over the length, peel off the backing, and smack them in place wherever you would like to have your panels set. I've got two spots on my bag, depending on the angle of the bag to the sun. You might have to sew down the edges of the loopy stuff, depending on the kind of adhesive they've applied to it, so it doesn't fall off.
OK. Calm. Control.
The cells I've got are from PowerFilm, product number MP3-37, and they're nicely thin and flexible. For this project, we want to wire two of them in series, to make up the 6V supply. Align the cells like so (or however you want them, physically,) so that the positive end of the first one lines up with the negative end of the other. You can tell the difference here, as the "crossbars" on the white "T"s intersecting the cells lie towards the positive, and the "verticals" point towards the negative.
Scratch or melt off the plastic covering the silverish contacts on either side. You can tell if you've gone through enough plastic when you start scraping the contact below. Solder on a single piece of wire across the two. Solder on the stripped + and - lead of a dual-stranded wire to the other sides, and you're done. Work the other end of the wire through the bag so that it reaches the box with enough slackroom.
Dab some hot glue on the joints to insulate them from the weather.
As for attaching the panel to the bag, lay down a length of the "hook" side of the velcro to the back of each cell, and cut three lengths of the "loop" side to match the span, inclusive, between the "hook" pieces. Space them out evenly over the length, peel off the backing, and smack them in place wherever you would like to have your panels set. I've got two spots on my bag, depending on the angle of the bag to the sun. You might have to sew down the edges of the loopy stuff, depending on the kind of adhesive they've applied to it, so it doesn't fall off.
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