Meet Ventyra R1: A DIY 50 watt portable wind turbine that fits in your backpack

Denver, Colorado-based DIY Electronics is promising a portable wind turbine that fits nicely in your backpack and can charge your smartphone in just over half an hour. Dubbed Ventyra R1, the turbine is designed to be your clean energy buddy when the sun doesn’t shine and you are far off from the grid. When countries pledged to move away from fossil fuels, it was assumed that the responsibility to switch to wind and solar would rest with the governments and clean energy would need to be fed into the grid. Little did we know that the transition would also see a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) moment of its own, and people would take matters into their own hands and put solar panels on the balcony by themselves and build batteries on their own. While much of this has been achieved due to the low cost of manufacturing of solar panels and battery components, startups have made it easier to people to adapt to solar energy with small and portable solutions. A similar moment is now arriving for wind energy, with Ventyra R1, as the turbine can neatly fit in a backpack. What is Ventyra R1? Designing a portable wind turbine is a double-edged sword. Make it too small and light, and the power output will suffer. Work on delivering maximum power and the setup will be too bulky to carry around. While new to the scene, DIY Electronics seems to have balanced both these aspects well, as the turbine is easy to set up, generates an output of 50 watts and does not weigh an ounce over 2.2 pounds (one kilogram). The turbine blades are foldable, much like its tripod stand. Much like your outdoor tent, the setup is supported by four ground stakes, and the unit can generate energy even when wind speeds are low (6 miles an hour, 3 meters per second). An XT60 output cable sends the energy generated by the turbines to a power hub, which you can easily connect your devices to and tap into the clean energy you just generated. The R1 is also equipped with a tail vane, so that it aligns itself in the direction of the wind and you do not have to keep worrying where the wind is blowing. There isn’t much that the Power Hub cannot connect to. Phones, smartphones, tablets, power banks, cameras, emergency lights, even USB-C charging laptops can be charged with this portable wind turbine, wherever you are. Clean energy for a small price The Ventyra R1 isn’t the first portable wind turbine to make such claims, but it seems to have gotten a lot of things right. First and foremost is the peak load of 75 W and 12 V DC support, which can charge your phone in about 35 minutes if the wind is blowing at top speeds. If you intend to stay off-the-grid for long, you can also connect multiple R1s to the same power hub for faster charging. Although it’s a wind energy system, the R1 can also be paired with solar panels, making it more versatile than other offerings out there. For all its promise, the price tag of the device is just $179, making it a steal at that price. This is evident in the fact that more than 750 people have backed this project on Kickstarter within days of its launch. If we had to be skeptical about the product, it would only be for two things. The claims for the product have not been independently verified. Also, being a Kickstarter project, it might actually never be delivered for a host of reasons. But even it does deliver, somebody is sure to take inspiration from it and try to make it a reality, sooner or later. Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.Ameya is a science writer based in Hyderabad, India. A Molecular Biologist at heart, he traded the micropipette to write about science during the pandemic and does not want to go back. He likes to write about genetics, microbes, technology, and public policy.