Your winding me up (Freeplay FPR 2 SC)

Member Name: heneghan

Product:	Freeplay FPR 2 SC
Date:	11/05/01 (1008 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: No batteries, No pollution, Great fun!

Disadvantages: Quite expensive

It’s no joke. No batteries. No power lead. Ever.

~ THE HISTORY ~

The concept of a clockwork radio” first came into the public consciousness in the mid-nineties when the inventor Trevor Baylis was featured on the BBC programme ‘Tomorrows World’. Trevor’s invention had been inspired by a TV documentary about attempts to halt the spread of Aids in Africa. Radio was an obvious way of educating and informing people, but the lack of availability of batteries meant that millions of people had no access to vital information.

Batteries were expensive, and could even cost as much as the equivalent of a weeks food. The clockwork radio invention was much more than a novel energy saving idea, it was a tool for empowerment on a massive scale. To date, over two million radios have been produced, many of which are assisting people in some of the worlds poorest developing countries.

Anyone who remembers this edition of Tomorrows World or the subsequent documentary that was made about Trevor Baylis will have been immediately endeared to this remarkable man and his up-hill struggle to convince manufacturers that he had come up with a viable idea. Fortunately, the Tomorrows World feature provided the break that he needed and he secured the necessary backing to turn the clockwork radio from prototype to reality.

~ HOW IT WORKS ~

The technology is simple, but inspired. The user winds up the unit by turning a crank handle at the back of the radio. This is linked to a spring that is made from the same material that is used in car seat belt recoil mechanisms. The mechanical energy from the winding motion is converted into a reservoir of potential energy that is held in the coiled spring. As the spring unwinds it turns a shaft that is connected to a gear system and a small electrical generator (essentially a small motor in reverse) powers the radio. The gearbox has a ratio of 1:1000 which converts
the slow turning speed of the shaft into the high rotational speed needed to power the generator.

In all other aspects the radio is just a conventional one.

~ PRODUCT DETAILS ~

My radio is the Freeplay FPR2S. This is the older type model which currently retails at about £50.

They come in a choice of clear red, clear blue, clear green, clear or matt grey. The clear ones are great as you can see the mechanism in action! The units themselves are chunky and robust and are very smart looking. They measure about 30 cm long, 20 cm wide and 20 cm tall.

It takes about 50 winds to fully ‘charge’ the system which will then play for about an hour. (The newer model S360 is much more advanced and has a 15 hour playing time!) Although there is a moderate resistance in the crank handle it is far from hard work and it takes less than a minute for the full 50 winds. There is a safety system built in that prevents over-winding.

The radio has a small solar panel on the top of the unit which is sufficient to fully power the radio in direct sunlight. If the crank handle is wound up, the radio will automatically play off solar power and then switch to mechanical power if the light levels drop. If you are planning some lazy days in the garden this summer these radios are perfect!

The controls are simple – tuning and volume. The reception is crisp and clear and the maximum volume is very impressive!

~ PRODUCT RANGE ~

As well as clockwork radios, clockwork torches are also available from Freeplay. These are excellent and very handy in case of emergency. They even have a power out function so you can wind up the torch and use it to power other AA battery powered products. More information about these products can be found at the Freeplay website – http://www/freeplay.net

~ FINAL THOUGHTS ~

As I mentioned at the beginning of this review, the concept of the cl
ockwork radio was born from a very determined mans desire to help his fellow man. His invention provides lessons for us all about the impact of our dependence on fossil-fuel derived energy, and the effect that energy use has on inequality, poverty and of course the environment.

If this type of product in some small way starts to change our lifestyle patterns and helps people in the industrialised west to become more aware of energy use and its consequences it will be a success indeed.

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