Solar Shrub

I'm a solar energy advocate, tinkerer, and enthusiast, but let's face it; solar panels are ugly!

Flat, rectangular panels can only be arranged in so many ways and always look industrial, boring, and out of place. So I decided to build a functional, but more aesthetically pleasing version of a USB solar charger.

I call my creation the "Solar Shrub". It's designed to resemble a round-leafed plant in a flower pot, but unlike a real plant, this one can charge my iPod, iPhone, and any other USB chargeable device!

I used eight 1.5 Volt round solar cells (leaves) attached to shrink-wrapped wires and clothes hangers (stems) to create an array capable of producing 5 Volts at about 300mA. I wired two sets of four cells in series (to get the voltage) and then wired the two arrays together in parallel (to get the current). I stabilized the power by building a 5 Volt Regulator circuit, then added an on/off switch, power LED, and female USB connector.

Now you can build one too! Just follow these instructions, then put it in sunlight, flip the toggle switch, and plug in your favorite USB device!

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Step 1: Materials and Tools Used

Materials for Power Circuit:

1 - 7805 Voltage Regulator (Radio Shack #276-1770)
1 - Heat sink for the 7805 (Radio Shack #276-1368)
1 - Hea sink mounting hardware(Radio Shack #276-1373)
1 - Red LED(Radio Shack #276-041)
1 - SPST mini toggle switch(Radio Shack #275-0324)
1 - 22uf capacitor(Radio Shack #272-1026)
1 - .01uf capacitor(Radio Shack #272-1065)
1 - 220 ohm resistor(Radio Shack #271-1313)
1 - 4.7k ohm resistor(Radio Shack #271-1124)
1 - 3.3k ohm resistor(Radio Shack #271-1122)
1 - USB extension cable (Male to Female)
1 - Blocking Diode (1N4001)(Radio Shack #276-1101)
1 - Round Proto Board (Radio Shack #276-004)

Materials for Leaves and Stems:

8 - Round solar cells (hacked from solar garden lights) (Lowe's #379421)
8 - Wire clothes hangers
1 - Roll each of red and black 22 AWG wire (Radio Shack #278-1224)
2 - Pkgs of assorted shrink wrap (Radio Shack #278-1610)
10 - Small wire ties
1 - Can green spray paint

Misc Materials:

1 - 6" Clay Plastic Self-Watering flower pot (Lowe's #285869)
2 - Metal angle brackets
1 - CD
2 - Plastic standoffs(Radio Shack #276-1381)

Tools:

Soldering Iron
Solder
Wire strippers
Side cutters
Dremel

out-of-the-box says: May 22, 2013. 6:57 PM

I love this!I have seen a few usb chargers and made a few. I love the personal touches made to this. very unique!

mikesoniat (author) in reply to out-of-the-boxMay 24, 2013. 5:16 AM

Thanks! Have you checked out my latest one? I've improved my original design quite a bit. Here's a link to Solar Shrub II http://www.instructables.com/id/Solar-Shrub-II/

JoshuaZimmerman says: Jul 31, 2012. 2:01 PM

Very nice! Did you ever consider throwing in a super capacitor into the mix in order to store up some charge or smooth out the power flow?

mikesoniat (author) in reply to JoshuaZimmermanAug 1, 2012. 5:41 AM

Thanks, Joshua! Can you elaborate on that idea? I'm always interested in improving my gadgets.

JoshuaZimmerman in reply to mikesoniatAug 9, 2012. 8:28 AM

No problem. As solar power is not 100% constant it helps to have some sort of storage in the mix to smooth out the incoming power flow. Or, if for nothing else, a random cloud comes by.

More or less you could add about 6V worth of super capacitor after the 5V regulator (you always want more cap than you'll need). The super caps wouldn't store an insane amount of power, but enough to keep things moving smoothly.

Or add a bunch of AAA rechargeable (5 or 6 of them actually) before the 5V regulator.

Send me a PM. I received a whole bunch of random super caps as samples awhile back and they're just taking up space. I'd be happy to send you a couple for this project.

109

SelkeyMoonbeam says: Jul 31, 2012. 2:51 PM

You should enter this in the Hurricane Lasers Contest! http://www.instructables.com/contest/hurricanelasers/

mikesoniat (author) in reply to SelkeyMoonbeamAug 1, 2012. 5:22 AM

Thanks for the heads up Moon Beam!

MacOSJoey says: Jul 27, 2012. 2:02 PM

Very cool and astethically appealing! One question: Is it waterproof? Could I leave it outside like a regular plant, or will any water fry the circuits?

mikesoniat (author) in reply to MacOSJoeyJul 27, 2012. 5:30 PM

Thanks for your comment! I don't think it's weatherproof, but it could be pretty easily. Since the electronics are hidden beneath the CD, I think if you put some silicon sealer around it and in the center, it should be able to withstand a bit of weather.

If you like it, please vote for me in the Green Tech Contest!

Dapper Hippo in reply to mikesoniatJul 28, 2012. 3:13 PM

The spray-on plastic dip you can get at Home Depot could waterproof the components even if water got in the pot.

mikesoniat (author) in reply to Dapper HippoJul 30, 2012. 9:17 AM

I'll have to give that a look. Thanks!

vincent7520 says: Jul 29, 2012. 3:03 AM

where do I cast my vote ??

mikesoniat (author) in reply to vincent7520Jul 29, 2012. 5:03 AM

Hi Vincent, you can vote from the Green Tech Contest "Entries" screen. Here's link: http://www.instructables.com/contest/greentech2012/?show=ENTRIES

Thanks!

vincent7520 in reply to mikesoniatJul 29, 2012. 5:27 AM

Done !…
Glad I did it too : you made my day !…

mikesoniat (author) in reply to vincent7520Jul 30, 2012. 9:16 AM

Thanks for your vote!