Megan Barber for Curbed:  In the past six months, we’ve seen camouflage solar panels and new rooftop tiles from Tesla founder Elon Musk that look nothing like the dark, gridded rectangles of yore. But an Austrian-based company is looking to shake things up with the Smartflower, a solar system that aims to provide homes and businesses with plug-and-play power.

Based off the concept of how a sunflower follows the sun, the Smartflower is a portable, adjustable petal system that tracks the sun’s path throughout the day. When the sun rises in the morning, the Smartflower automatically unfolds and begins producing energy by setting its petals at a ninety-degree angle. The flower goes “back to sleep” into a folding position at night or whenever high winds make it unsafe to operate.

It does all of this autonomously through GPS-based dual axis tracking. It also boasts a cooling and cleaning system that brushes the back of each panel every time the unit folds and unfolds. Because the Smartflower is always at an optimal angle to the sun, it can generate 40 percent more energy production than traditional solar.  Full Article: