They will have the ability to get energy from the sun – Read what services they will offer to passersby
The benches we usually see on the streets and in parks will now be created in a "smart" version. They will have the ability to receive energy from the sun and, in addition to the relaxation they will offer passers-by, they will also help them in a number of other things, as they will have special sockets for charging mobile phones, they will offer wireless internet access, but also information that will be relevant to the specific location, such as air quality.
"The mobile phone is not made just for making calls. So why should benches be just for sitting?" asks Martin J. Walsh, the mayor of Boston in the US, as, unfortunately, we will not see "smart benches" on a Greek street but on the other side of the Atlantic (at least for now).
The name of this new invention is "Soofa" and it was built by three female engineers from MIT.
As one of them, Sandra Richter, said, "we want to make our cities more modern so that they respond to the new generation.".
In the winter, there were only 2-3 smart benches on the streets of Boston, but as time goes by, new "Soofas" are popping up every day, funded by the internet giant Cisco Systems, at no cost to the municipality, while future plans include expanding their use to San Jose, California, and New York.
Source: protothema.gr
