We have just posted the complete instructions for the personal powerPlant on instructables. You can check it out here:

personal powerPlant

Have Fun!

Thanks everyone for coming! We had a successful and informative day, and worked out many ticks. By the end, everyone had a fully functional personal powerPlant.

The personal powerPlant is a portable device that harnesses electricity through a solar cell and hand crank generator, into a NiMH battery. The device also includes a volt meter that monitors the amount of energy stored. The personal powerPlant can be used to power applications up to 8V.

Schematic circuit for the personal powerPlant.

Printed Board Diagram that can be placed on perf board to place and solder components.

Materials

Electronics

For the power plant circuit
1 - Stepper motor (Japan Servo KP4M4-029 12VDC)
1 - Solar panel (8V)
1 - NiMH battery (7.2V, 70 mA)
9 - 1N4001 Diodes
3 - Terminals
1 - 5 pin male header
18 or 20 gauge solid wire (red, black, blue, green)

For the visual multimeter
1 - Red LED, 1.5V
1 - Yellow LED, 1.5 V
1 - Green LED, 1.5 V
1 - 100 Ohm resistor
1 - 150 Ohm resistor
1 1N4730 zener diode
1 1N4733 zener diode
1 1N4737 zener diode
1 momentary switch

Hardware
PCB prototyping board
Printed Board Diagram (above)

Equipment
Soldering iron
Solder
Multimeter
Wire Stripper