A clockwork radio is a radio that is powered by clockwork wind-up mechanism, rather than batteries or solar cells or mains electricity or thermoelectrics. The modern clockwork radio is a patented design by Trevor Baylis through a company called Baygen .

Baylis claims to have devised his clockwork radio in response to hearing a news broadcast about the spread of AIDS in Africa. Baylis thought that the people at greatest risk from AIDS -- poor, isolated communities in Africa -- would be unable to afford a supply of batteries in order to receive broadcasts educating them about the disease. Thus, a clockwork-powered radio that he remembered from his youth would be an elegant solution to the problem.

There is now a Clockwork torch .

Alternate names

Just as a radio might be called "wireless telegraphy", a clockwork radio might be called a "batteryless radio".

Battery (electricity)