Former architecture student Tyler Short from University of Oregon has developed window blinds that will revolutionize the contraption! Its mechanical louvers move in three dimensions and change their orientation as per the sunlight at different times of the day.
From the first look, they appear as any regular Penumbra shades. But soon enough, they can be seen moving left to right to cater for the east to west movement of the sun along the day. Best of all, these tech savvy blinds can also fold upwards to form a horizontal shade against high afternoon sun.
Short explained the motivation behind the design,
“This project was designed to offer a kinetic and mechanical solution to a problem that would otherwise be nearly impossible to solve with static architectural components: providing shading across a building facade for both low evening sun and high afternoon sun conditions,”
He added,
“Our solution was a series of vertical shading louvres, that can independently pivot to maximize solar protection, and when the sun reaches an altitude in which vertical louvres would be ineffective, completely rotate upwards to act as a horizontal shading element and light shelf.”
Short animation above demonstrates the concept, flaunting the tech savvy louvers powered by a system of cogs and gears. The designer says that his system can either be moved by hand or a computer. A similar mechanism has been applied in a host of a new generation rotating solar panels, such as the Smartflower.
This Sunflower Shaped Solar Panel System Always Faces The Sun
Watch the video below to watch these blinds and Smartflower in action!
