washington business
Natural
Gas
Instead of building a production facility, he bought a membership in a 3D printing
shop where he plans to “print” prototype Hydrobees.
Instead of seeking patents for the device, Hamner will make most of it open-source.
That means anyone in the world could build on the basic idea, coming up with new and
better ways to use it.
He’s even incorporating the company as a Social Purpose Corporation, a new category of corporation in Washington.
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Just about everything about the Hydrobee business model may be new, but the
technology behind the product isn’t particularly new or complicated. Someone
probably could’ve produced it years ago if they wanted to. But why would someone
want to make something that produces just 1 watt of power?
For most of electrified human history, the goal has always been to produce as much
power as possible, Hamner said. Enough to run a factory is good. Enough to light up
a city is better.
“There has never been a point of producing 1 or 2 watts,” he said. Hamner’s
revelation — and the reason he thinks there will be a market for the Hydrobee — was
the realization that USB outlets require almost exactly that amount of power.
The USB, or Universal Serial Bus, was developed in the mid-1990s as a way to
standardize the connection between computers and peripherals, such as keyboards,
mice and printers.
Since then, it has become ubiquitous, giving devices a way not only to transfer
information — think zip drive or thumb drive — but also as a means to transfer power.
The USB became the industry standard for cell phone char