Development of a Universal Solar Energy Harvesting System Suited for Textile Integration Including Flexible Energy Storage
With the growing interest in smart textiles the need for a lightweight energy supply that is compatible with textile properties is increasing. Here we describe a proof of concept for a universal solar harvesting system which is scaled for the integration into clothing including flexible energy storage and flexible solar cells. The flexible solar cells show efficiencies of above 10 % and are integrated as individual strips in order to minimize the effect on the bending and draping properties of the textile. The integrated batteries are lithiumion based and include an electrolyte that guarantees safety when in proximity to the human body.