Solar Powered Hearing Aid
Posted on January 24, 2006 Comments (5)
African-Made, Solar-Powered Hearing Aid
The SolarAid is a hearing aid designed and built by Godisa Technologies, a Botswana company founded to make low-cost hearing aids for the developing world. The SolarAid system combines a small hearing aid and a lightweight solar charger; Godisa developed the first No. 13 rechargeable button battery for the system. Godisa is Africa’s only hearing aid manufacturer, and the only one in the world making hearing aids specifically for the sub-Saharan Africa environment.
Innovation through creating effective solutions using technology solutions that have existed in other contexts can have huge impacts. Appropriate technology solutions offer the opportunity for great gains for humanity.
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5 Responses to “Solar Powered Hearing Aid”
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March 16th, 2006 @ 8:43 am
[…] Additionally the opportunities to save lives and improve health in the world often do not require cutting edge science. It is often a matter of engineering effective solutions for hundreds of millions and billions of people living without what those in the wealthy take for granted […]
July 15th, 2006 @ 9:11 am
“It’s a simple idea. As children spin on a merry-go-round, water pumps from below the ground. It is stored in a tank just a few feet away, making a safe, plentiful supply of water available in the community…”
November 22nd, 2006 @ 2:19 pm
I read about the solar powered hearing aids somewhere else, and they sound like a great
idea.
What wasn’t clear to me, was if these devices relied on large amounts of sunlight to
be effective (as one might expect in Botswana), or if they are commercially viable
anywhere?
Best wishes
Charlie
Aid to Hearing
October 12th, 2007 @ 8:38 pm
“MIT researchers have discovered a hearing mechanism that fundamentally changes the current understanding of inner ear function. This new mechanism could help explain the ear’s remarkable ability to sense and discriminate sounds…”
January 10th, 2009 @ 5:20 am
I know that this post has been up a while, I’ve only just come across it now. The fact that the developing world is coming up with these things is fantastic, and obviously utilising one of their biggest resources to provide “free” power is great. But surely the Western world should be pushing for more of these type of solar powered chargers, not just for Africa but for everywhere. Sunlight and wind power have got be used more, and this hearing aid demonstrates that it can be done at all levels, from the smallest gadget to power for buildings.