<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Spot on! Check him out on <a href="http://www.servalproject.org/">http://www.servalproject.org/</a><div><a href="http://www.servalproject.org/"></a><br><div><br><div><div>On 27/01/2011, at 10:56 AM, Aidan Wilson wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><div>This (the stuff on the <a href="http://finemespot.com">finemespot.com</a> website, not the lab-in-the-case stuff) seems reminiscent of an invention I saw on the New Inventors (ABC Australia) about this system, in which a portable mobile coverage tower is rolled out to areas after disasters (Haiti was the most recent disaster at the time and was the cited example) which would allow people to connect to one another and call emergency numbers while the normal towers are non-functional. The benefit of the system was that users retained their regular numbers and could therefore call one another in the effectively closed system. And calls inside the cell network are free since it never goes to a telco.<br><br>I'm going entirely off memory here, so I might be getting a couple of details wrong, and can't remember what it's called. And I'm also getting significantly off-topic...<br><br>-- <br>Aidan Wilson<br><br>PhD Candidate<br>Dept of Linguistics and Applied Linguistics<br>The University of Melbourne<br><br>+61428 458 969<br><a href="mailto:aidan.wilson@unimelb.edu.au">aidan.wilson@unimelb.edu.au</a><br><br>On Thu, 27 Jan 2011, Xavier Barker wrote:<br><br><blockquote type="cite">Hi all,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">As always, i can offer no practical fieldwork advice, but...<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Our company provides small mobile internet connected computer labs in a suitcase (or, rather, pelican case) to a number of schools<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">in off-grid parts of Uganda. We fit 11 netbooks with 9 cell batteries and a single loom charger. Most netbooks are designed to<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">draw 19V, but we have no problem at all fitting the loom directly to a 12V battery and providing DC power. With this<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">lab-in-a-case, we are able to provide fully internet-connected(3G/gprs/edge/sat (with a SPOT<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">(http://www.findmespot.com/en/index.php?cid=116)) to places that have no power. The system is able to be used for about 5 hours<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">without a charge, but a whole day oif trickle charging from solar. Whilst this solution works for getting everything charged at a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">base station where solar panels can be permanently fixed, there are also a number of really good portable options. Keeping in mind that the netbooks will run fine on 12V DC (as will small desktop PCs like the Eee Box which can be fitted with a DC<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">LCD monitor), it is possible to rig a 12V folding solar panel directly to the charger of the netbook. Suntech make small folding<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">60W 12V panels but they still weigh about 15kg - not great for lugging around. ALternatively, and much better if weight is a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">concern, is the 20W solar-charging laptop bag<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">(http://www.multipoweredproducts.com.au/products/Voltaic-Generator-%252d-Solar-Laptop-Charger-Bag.html). This bag has batteries<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">which will bring your netbook up to a full charge in a day, provided you get about 5 hours of sunlight. It's probably not going to<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">be enough to charge a full-sized laptop though. It also has outputs for you to connect 5V USB devices and car-plug options. This<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">means you can plug in a caravan/car/camping style lamp into the case at night and give yourself plenty of power. Cheers,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">Xavier<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite">On 27/01/2011, at 4:06 AM, Jeremy Hammond wrote:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Hi All,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> I am pretty much in agreement with Tom and have being successfully doing a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> similar setup for the past 3 years in Vanuatu. I also buy lead acid<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> battery in-situ but am considering getting a solar-specific one this year<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> if I can find it in Port Vila. I'll just add 3 points.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 1. Buy a universal battery charger. They are great and means you can<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> really cut down on the amount of chargers you have to take (I.e.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> phone/Camera/AA/video/AAA/USB are all doable with mine). Here is one<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> http://www.solartechnology.co.uk/shop/camcaddy-cc1005.htm but there are<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> different brands/models. You can buy them at most camera stores. I just<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> have two of these for all my charging needs (plus my laptop charger of<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> course).<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 2. Consider getting solid panels. If you have easy enough access to your<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> fieldsite and have a long term relationship with them then it is an easy<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> process to take it there and set it up on a roof etc. I usually take a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> solid 50W panel with me each time I go so that now I have around 150W<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> which should be above 200W this coming year. They are super strong, and<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> great long term value. Plus now I leave them there setup with LEDs on the<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> battery so that people there can use the light at night, even when I'm not<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> there.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 3. While tom suggested the "workman's" light and they are good, if you are<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> electrically handy then making your own LED setup is really inexpensive<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> and easy. There are some great yellow ones that are good for<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> reading/working by as well. On that note as Tom said, test your setup but<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> also understand how it works. Get a friend who knows something about<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> electronics to explain it to you and when things go wrong, you will be in<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> a much better position to fix it.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Jeremy<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> -------------------------------<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Jeremy Hammond<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Syntax, Typology and Information Structure Group<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> P: +31-24-3521171<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> E: Jeremy.Hammond@mpi.nl<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> W: http://www.mpi.nl/people/hammond-jeremy<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> On 26/01/11 7:27 AM, "Tom Honeyman" <t.honeyman@gmail.com> wrote:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Hi Jeff,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Despite the negative "reality check" at the end of the paper Pat<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> mentions (thanks Pat!, also the paper supersedes the blog posts, but<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> thanks Peter!), I am now quite happily using solar power for fieldwork<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> in Papua New Guinea.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> My current setup (well actually I've dropped/genericised/forgotten a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> few items to simplify!):<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 1 low power netbook (they're all almost exactly the same)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 2x DC adapter for netbook, but also adapters to charge USB devices,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> mobile phones etc also very good<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 2x Li-Ion battery pack chargers (for camera, video camera etc... can<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> be very handy)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 1x DC-DC adapter with multiple plugs (very handy for powering all<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> sorts of things if you know what you're doing)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> DC plug adaptors (so I can plug in many things at once)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 50W foldable solar panel<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> charge regulator with load cut-off<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 10x AA NiMH AA batteries<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 8x AA NiMH AAA batteries<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 1x AA/AAA battery charger (charges 10 batteries at once, each<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> individually)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 1x AA/AAA battery charger (charges 4 batteries in pairs - this can be<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> a pain if you have a device that uses 3 batteries!)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Head torch and mag-lite - make sure they work with rechargeables!<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Often they don't work well with them.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 12v/DC workman's light, fluro or LED based, low power consumption<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> (these are really good for a lot of light!)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> All the regular equipment otherwise (recorders, speakers, mike,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> cameras, etc), but make sure they work well with rechargeables).<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> And then I also pack the following for fixing stuff (but only if you<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> know what you're doing):<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> fuses, glass and blade with several spares for each device that has one<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> pack of alligator clip wires<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Gaffer tape (often available in country)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> digital multi-meter<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> pocket knife<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> jeweller's screw driver set<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> super glue (often available in country)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> I tend to buy a (preferably deep cycle) lead acid battery in country.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> This let me work for a few hours a day on the laptop, use torches/<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> flashlights at night, and put on a "movie night" once a week. Every<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> now and then an activity might come along (like a big recording<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> session, or very rainy weather, or on one occasion my roof blowing<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> off!), which would drain the battery too much. Then I'd have a day or<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> two not using the laptop (far and away the most power hungry).<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> 4 things I'd recommend:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> (a) check _everything_ beforehand. There are many "single points of<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> failure" in a solar setup. That's why its good to have backups, or<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> multiple ways of achieving the same thing.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> (b) get a charge regulator with a load cut off. This magical box will:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> - ensure that the battery is charged properly, dropping the power as<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> it approaches a full charge and cutting the power entirely when the<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> battery is full<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> - stop power flowing back into the panel at night (this is often<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> redundant depending on the panel)<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> - cut the power to your devices when the battery is too low<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Basically this will let you safely run your equipment, but it'll<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> ensure that the battery doesn't fail because you've drained it too<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> much... this is something that is _very_ easy to do. If you know what<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> you're doing then you can drop this, but you'll spend more time<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> managing your power setup and less doing work.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> (c) try to eliminate using AC power. This is costly. I guarantee that<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> you will not have enough power to do all the things that you'd like to<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> do. So this means do not use "wall adapter" plug equipment, use "car<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> adapters" for all of your equipment. The DC adapters for charging a<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> laptop can often power other equipment. The DC-DC adapter is extremely<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> useful for powering low power equipment. Having these flexible, multi-<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> plug adaptors can be very useful for unexpected scenarios like<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> powering a cassette recorder you've borrowed because your audio<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> equipment fell in the river. Or powering your recorder directly<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> because your batteries or battery chargers have failed for some reason.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> (d) check that the AA/AAA powered equipment works, and works well with<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> rechargeable batteries. Rechargeables operate at a lower voltage than<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Alkaline batteries. A lot of equipment is designed for use with<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Alkaline batteries, and even though initially they may work fine,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> later in the field you may discover that they have a (seemingly) short<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> life. Digital cameras often are designed to work with rechargeables<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> these days (sometimes they last longer with rechargeables), but<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> torches/flashlights for instance are often not.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Hope this helps,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Tom<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> On 26/01/2011, at 3:48 PM, Patrick Hall wrote:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Hi,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Honeyman also coauthored a paper with Laura Robinson on this topic in<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> LD&C which might be of use:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Honeyman, Tom & Laura C. Robinson. 2007. Solar power for the digital<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> fieldworker. Language Documentation & Conservation 1(1): 17-27.<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> It's available online:<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> http://hdl.handle.net/10125/1722<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> cheers,<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"> Pat<br></blockquote><blockquote type="cite"><br></blockquote></div></blockquote></div><br></div></div></body></html>