Sometimes technology and progress only make things more and more complicated than they originally were. With growing population and a constant need for space, we have created man made structures that demand more energy to run them due to their limited design. Most modern structures are too closed to natural light and run on mostly artificial lighting even during the day. While the sun is still shining bright and clear outside, we are forced to use up energy as we have no way of using the natural light.
But that is now about to change forever. (Ok, maybe that sounded a bit too cinematic, but still, live with it). We already have skylights being used across the planet, if not already in a major way. The SunTrackerOne is a system devised by Ciralight which uses the light of the sun to light up your building. Unlike the skylights, it does not allow the light to just fall in to the room. It actually is a huge dome that adjusts the mirrors present in it to bring in as much natural light as possible into a room.
SunTrackerOne has two giant mirrors that catch all the light, but no heat. They adjust their angle with the movement of the sun throughout the day. It can catch the rays of the sun even when the sun is just 10 degrees above the horizon. The company says that it reduces 15-35% of usage of power in a building. This was a major hit at the Greenbuild 2007 exhibition and is the flagship product of the company.
SunTrackerOne is still to be patented and has shown some splendid results through testing. For example, a new Wal-Mart store in Aurora, Colorado, with 28 day lighting units could save $23,184 yearly, compared with using fluorescent lamps of the same output. Apart from this, the company claims that it improves productivity also. It is sure to become a major hit with time and might just be the technology to watch out for.
Via: Jets On Green
