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The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

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  • The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

    Nice story.

    " The tent has button-powered lights, two USB ports, a micro-USB port, and the girls have even tested a sanitizing UVC light on a countdown timer."

    http://mashable.com/2017/06/15/diy-g.../#iCRNmY2XsSqB
    - Laura
    Coleman Dome/Instant Cabin Tents, Kamprite IPS, Shasta Oasis 18ft Travel Trailer


  • #2
    Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

    sounds interesting,
    wish i could read more,
    cant stand the rolling images and blog style writing,

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

      I have an idea;
      How having about all the other states legalize marijuana so all the freeloading bums move there...
      Problem solved and we can continue cleaning up the messes they leave behind... with an end in sight.
      They only seem to want jobs (WORK???; why?) when talking to the media... its easier to become traffic hazards and panhandle, or sponge off the naïve, for a tax free living.

      (Rant over).

      Enjoy!

      Edit); ... maybe a tax on the unemployed...an unemployment tax...
      Last edited by Happy Joe; 06-19-2017, 10:52 AM.
      2006 Jeep Rubicon, TJ; 4.11 gears, 31" tires, 4:1 transfer case, lockers in both axles
      For DD & "civilized" camping; 2003 Ford explorer sport, 4wd; ARB & torsen diffs, 4.10 gears, 32" MTs.
      Ground tents work best for me, so far.
      Experience along with properly set up 4WD will get you to & through places (on existing, approved 4WD trails) that 4WD, alone, can't get to.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

        Originally posted by Happy Joe View Post
        ... maybe a tax on the unemployed...an unemployment tax...
        Do you somehow work in Maryland government?

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

          We have a high number of homeless near where I live. I can say that the majority of them could not hold down a job period. How they got that way - who knows. But they are and they are unemployable.

          As for an unemployment tax, how could that possibly change anything. If you have nothing, you can't pay taxes. So, the only unemployed who will pay the tax are those who go out and get a job as soon as possible - and they're not the ones who are "freeloading".

          Back on topic, it's an interesting idea. Out here, we have to worry about homeless campfires starting wildfires, so solar lighting could help. But they need to include some sort of safe heat source to make it really work.
          “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

            I don't get it. It took $10,000 to develop a tent with solar powered accessories? For the homeless, who will pay for this how? Where I work we are over run with homeless people. They are homeless because they don't abide by any rules not of their own making. They don't show up for work, hence they are unemployable. The majority are either addicts or mentally ill. The rest are just shiftless. Sorry to seem unsympathetic, but those are just the facts. I deal with them all the time, coming into my store to steal. They ain't gonna buy this tent, let me tell you.
            2018: Any way the wind blows; doesn't really matter to me....Too Meee....

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

              YES,YES,YES. Happy Joe hit the nail on the head. The worst effect the legalization of Pot in CO has been the homeless and vagrants coming here and trashing our National Forest and towns. 90% of them just want to drink and smoke and have no desire to be a productive member of society.
              I am ready for more states to legalize it, or for CO to ban it.
              Nights camped in 2019: 24
              Nights camped in 2018: 24

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                $10,000 grant and they went with sleeved poles? Don't they know how much easier clips are? Less weight and probably cheaper (or at least not as expensive).

                And am I the only one who doesn't understand this fascination with "3-D Printed" stuff? I get it, 3-D printing is a fantastic prototyping tool and much cheaper than some alternatives (hand carving, injection molding, etc.) when you're working out the design of a thing. However, once you have the appropriate dimensions and materials, those other methods are going to crank out a lot more product at a lower price (per piece). In this case, they 3-D printed "a box to hold the wiring". Are all of the Radio Shacks in California shut down? Don't they have a Fry's or MicroCenter anywhere nearby? Any of those places have project boxes in a huge variety of sizes. Again, if they're looking to create an easily manufacturable product, using off-the-shelf parts is going to make that a LOT easier.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                  Originally posted by ChadVKealey View Post
                  $10,000 grant and they went with sleeved poles? Don't they know how much easier clips are? Less weight and probably cheaper (or at least not as expensive).

                  And am I the only one who doesn't understand this fascination with "3-D Printed" stuff? I get it, 3-D printing is a fantastic prototyping tool and much cheaper than some alternatives (hand carving, injection molding, etc.) when you're working out the design of a thing...
                  I think choosing sleeved poles over clips makes sense in this case. Clips would require buying clips and more time spent stitching each one on. A sleeve, on the other hand, is pretty much just another quick run with the sewing machine. And, as much as they're more of a pain, sleeved poles actually do make for a more durable and wind resistant tent. But you're definitely right about them 3D printing the boxes. Even if they couldn't find boxes in a brick and mortar store, there has to be about a bazillion places online to get what they need.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                    In regards to the 3-D printer, the concept of this program is to encourage girls to go into the sciences, math and engineering. Buying a box at Frye's does nothing to teach someone what it feels like to imagine something and then create it. The 3-D printer did that for them - they took an idea and created it. That their box wasn't new isn't the point - it's that they came up with an idea and took it through to production.
                    “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                      could nit pick on the girls design,
                      but in the end they are kids and they are trying , give them credit for that,
                      back to nit picking,
                      that tent is large, bulky, heavy, and probably not legal in most places homeless plan on using it,
                      most tent designs have many many patents on them, girls need to check if their design infringes on existing patents, not just patent on whole solar wheelie backpack design, but patents on every part incorporated into it, a simple eyelet into pole could have a patent on it,
                      for solar lights,/usb better to have seperate solar charger for such, not incorporated into the tent,
                      the handle wheelie thingy probably wont last very long,

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                        I think this was more of a feel-good project than a practical one. Most homeless like to hide their bivies...in places where the sun don't shine much. If they had talked to actual homeless people they might have come up with something...Like a way to take a shower or wash your clothes.
                        2018: Any way the wind blows; doesn't really matter to me....Too Meee....

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: The DIY Girls: How 12 teens invented a solar-powered tent for the homeless

                          This is really incredible! I hope it would be available in the camping market soon so we could buy one too.

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