While at a mates farewell drinks I was talking with a fellow tech, explaining the tiny little computer that is the Raspberry Pi. Specifically I was talking about the small power consumption and it occurred to me that we could run this off practically any energy source. It was at this point I remembered the Potato Powered Clock.
I’ve never build one of these myself, but a healthy dose of American TV and internet leads me to believe we can get energy from the humble spud and enough to power at least 1 simple device. In theory if we got a few of them together in series and maybe with a few capacitors, transformers, and a regulator we could power a Pi! The moment I said, “Potato Pi” I had sold myself on the idea.
How many potato batteries would I need to power this thing? I figured that it runs off USB (so 5 volt), and I’ve seen it powered by a 1amp phone charger. So 5 watts right? How many watts does a good potato battery make? 0.80 by some counts. Let the half-bakery of the Potato Pi begin!
I have ordered the Raspberry Pi 2 from Element 14 in Australia and it’s on its way. I suppose I should start building the potato power grid.
to be continued….
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