Help
Sign In
alternative energy
August 2006 
Most Efficient, Powerful and Affordable Solar Panels.
APositiveWorldView
Bill Gross and his company Idealabs have invented the absolute best piece of technology in the solar industry. Named after it's similarity in shapes, the Sunflower 250 is set to revolutionize the alternative fuel market, and eventually the economy. The Sunflower operates by concentrating light to amplify it's power, like holding a magnifying glass over an ant, except the magnifying glass is now 25 mirrors. The mirrors are on the ground and reflect the light upward, into a photovoltaic silicon panel, which absorbs the concentrated light and begins the energy creation process.
Part of their mission statement reads:
"At the heart of this mission is our drive to make renewable energy affordable and cost-effective. Even though there are enormous benefits to renewable energy that go beyond saving money on your electric bill, for a product to become widely adopted by consumers and businesses, it must make economic sense as well. When we release our first product into commercial distribution in 2006, we anticipate that it will be priced at about two-thirds that of comparably rated PV-based systems."
It's hard not too get incredibly optimistic upon the upcoming release of the Sunflower with a powerful statement like that.
Pictures of the process can be seen here: Sunflower.
Idealab.com has a long list of Q & A which I will post for your to see here. To see the full list, go here.
2.When will you have a product for homes?
We expect to deliver our systems for commercial rooftops in 2006. After we gain experience in serving these customers as well as get operational data from these installations, we can begin to modify our designs for use in other settings, including homes.
4. When are you shipping and what will it cost?
We will be shipping our first commercial units in 2006. We have yet to determine final pricing.
6. How do I become a dealer for your products?
Please send us an email at partners@energyinnovations.com with your contact information and qualifications. We are looking for qualified systems integrators with experience in installing solar electricity systems on commercial rooftops.
9. What about using a lens to concentrate light instead of mirrors?
One of our prototypes, the SunPod, used a Fresnel lens to concentrate light onto PV cells. It was highly effective, but the cost of Fresnel lenses was too great to deliver a market-competitive product.
12. What about storing the electricity in some sort of battery system for later use?
Battery storage is very definitely an alternative for systems designed to ensure uninterrupted power during a blackout or in off-grid settings. While we are not producing these systems ourselves, third-party developers can easily integrate batteries or other storage devices according to their customers' needs.
15. Can it withstand being hit by hailstones?
All devices of this type must pass the "hail test," among others, before being certified for commercial use.
16. How much electrical power is produced in full sun?
Our current design is capable of producing 200 watts of peak power.
17. Where will the system be useful? What about rainy locations like Seattle or British Columbia?
Solar electric systems can be used any place where there is sun, which pretty much means everywhere. Whether it's cost-effective to install a system, however, is another matter. Clearly some areas of the world get more insolation (amount of solar radiation per unit of surface area) than others and would therefore generate more electricity using the Sunflower. The map in this timeline on the home page will give you an idea of the relative sunlight in various parts of the U.S.
Click here to inquire about purchasing a Sunflower 250,
To contact Idealabs, go here.
Do your part to help the environment by telling others about this information.
Access: Public
