Solar Power 7: Rubberized Protection

The solar panel is pretty delicate, as it's essentially made of the same stuff as printed circuit boards. I wanted to make it more rugged and protect the cells on the front, without making it too bulky. I thought about trying to 3D print or laser cut a sliding case that would include some kind of cover, but as usual in engineering, the simplest solution was the best. I found a long strip of aluminum-cored rubber that worked perfectly. I cut long piece into four strips and mitered the edges for a some nicer corners. I covered the whole thing with gaffer's tape just to keep it together. It's not beautiful, but I designed the whole system the with the replaceability of the solar panel in mind, so it doesn't have to be. The rubber will protect the panel from minor drops and scrapes while keeping the overall weight and size down.

The small Dragon Plate carbon fiber piece is going to be used in my prototype for XRL's battery cover.