Skateboard charges devices, triples as a boom box
The Chargeboard uses the kinetic energy generated from its spinning wheels to charge devices, and speakers in its base turn it into an iPhone dock.
Skateboarders need no longer feel left out of the whole kinetic charging movement: a designer has built a skateboard that harnesses the kinetic energy from the motion of the wheels to store power and charge your devices.
It's called the Chargeboard, and its creator -- Bjorn van den Hout, who designed the board as his graduation project from the Willem de Kooning Academy of art and design in Rotterdam, the Netherlands -- explains, "The two dynamos in the in the rear axles generate 6V each, this electricity is then converted back to a 5V current and gets stored in to a powerbox. So when you'll plug your iPhone in the dock your phone gets charged and in the meanwhile you can listen to some of your favourite tracks."
That last part refers to the Chargeboard's third function: an iPhone boom box. Van den Hout has added an extra component to the underside of the board, between the two axles -- a dock speaker. When you dock your iPhone (compatible with 4 and 4s) to charge it, you can play your music through the speakers. A 3.5mm audio jack and a USB 2.0 port means you can also use it to play music from and charge other devices.
According to the specifications, one hour of riding will generate enough energy to charge your phone, and the built-in battery can store enough power to charge your phone eight times over. (Obviously this is using the iPhone as a baseline and mileage between devices will vary.)
Although it's a graduation project, van den Hout would like to take his Chargeboard further. "Chargeboard is now still a prototype in development," he wrote. "If there is a brand, product developer or anyone else interested in Chargeboard it can hopefully be further developed."