If you need power on the go, there are a range of small options, including , a handheld wind-powered charger for your cell phone and other gadgets. Now, designers Marcos Madia, Sergio Ohashi, and Juan Manuel Pantano are taking that notion to the next level with Eolic, a collapsible, portable wind generator that could be used to power individual homes, or to make juice in places where there’s no electric service. The blog reports that the contraption (still in the concept stage) is made of ultra light materials like aluminum and carbon fiber and can be mounted in three steps by two or three people.
No word on Eolic’s potential power output, or cost. If it does hit the market, such a device would be extremely valuable in aftermath of natural disasters like the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti—where there is still no electricity two weeks after the event, adding additional to the city’s recovery.