profdant139 wrote:
I stumbled upon this interesting article -- the researchers have developed a battery that can also serve as a structural member. Thus, the battery may no longer be a dead weight but instead is part of the vehicle. They don't mention RVs, but it seems like this product might fit our needs, if it ever pans out:
Massless or structural battery article
Just another possible development to watch!
Planned Obsolescence..
Full definition HERE
" What Is Planned Obsolescence?
Planned obsolescence describes a strategy of deliberately ensuring that the current version of a given product will become out of date or useless within a known time period. This proactive move guarantees that consumers will seek replacements in the future, thus bolstering demand.
Obsolescence can be achieved through introducing a superior replacement model, or by intentionally designing a product to cease proper function within a specific window. In either case, consumers will theoretically favor the next generational products over the old ones.
Important:
Planned obsolescence differs from perceived obsolescence, which is when designers make frequent stylistic changes to their products, due to the decrease in the perceived desirability of unfashionable items."
Ever hear of the "Centennial light"?
It is the longest continuously burning light bulb ever made.
Installed in 1901.. and is still burning, you can view a live webcam of the bulb.
LIVERMORE'S CENTENNIAL BULB
Was made by Shelby Electric Company.
They marketed it as the longest life bulb but that same strategy was the downfall of the company since the bulb lasted a long time, the customer base would not need to buy again for a long, long time..
So to combat this issue as the story goes, the light bulb manufacturers eventually got together and agreed to limit the life of the bulbs to 1000 hrs which meant the consumer would have to change bulbs every 40 days..
So, the Phoebus cartel was born..
See HERE
" Greater sums of money could be reaped, companies figured, by making bulbs disposable
The business model changed, however, as the light bulb customer base grew more mass-market. Greater sums of money could be reaped, companies figured, by making bulbs disposable and putting replacement costs onto customers. Thus was born the infamous โPhoebus cartelโ in the 1920s, wherein representatives from top light bulb manufacturers worldwide, such as Germanyโs Osram, the United Kingdomโs Associated Electrical Industries, and General Electric (GE) in the United States (via a British subsidiary), colluded to artificially reduce bulbsโ lifetimes to 1,000 hours. The details of the scam emerged decades later in governmental and journalistic investigations.
โThis cartel is the most obvious exampleโ of planned obsolescenceโs origins โbecause those papers have been found,โ says Giles Slade, author of the book Made to Break: Technology and Obsolescence in America, a history of the strategy and its consequences.
The practice cropped up in all sorts of other industries, too. For instance, competition between General Motors and Ford in the fledging 1920s auto market led the former to introduce the now-familiar model year changes in its vehicles. GM had pioneered a way to entice customers to splurge on the latest, greatest car, to satisfy themselves and impress those in their social circles. โIt was a model for all industry,โ says Slade.
Although the term โplanned obsolescenceโ didnโt enter common usage until the 1950s, the strategy had by then permeated consumerist societies.
Alive and well
In various forms, from subtle to unsubtle, planned obsolescence still very much exists nowadays. From so-called contrived durability, where brittle parts give out, to having repairs cost more than replacement products, to aesthetic upgrades that frame older product versions as less stylish โ goods makers have no shortage of ruses to keep opening customersโ wallets."
Yeah, "disposable cars", I am not into..
