Powering Medical Devices with Your Organs
Image via Vintage Collection and Technology Review
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Generating power via the motion of our bodies has captivated researchers for some time now. Scientists are working on developing everything from fabrics that can be sewn into energy-ha…Read the full story on TreeHugger
Maker Faire 2010 – Crazy Bike Creations (Pictures)
A big portion of Maker Faire is dedicated to bikes – hacking, modifying, making them solar….making them into cupcakes. This year’s Maker Faire featured an outstanding collection of the coolest, and oddest, bikes out there. Check out the rides featured in the bike-powered carnival, the solar powered chariot bike pulled by a robot on roller skates, and more!…Read the full story on TreeHugger
Power Up With Your Shoes? New Material Pulls Kinetic Energy from Your Kicks
Image via Louisiana Tech University
The idea of getting our feet to produce power for our gadgets is not new. Inventors have been working on the concept for years, with some surprisingly impractical results. However, as technology gets better for piezoelectric energy generation, scientists are hoping to create some sneakers that do more than just get you from place to place. While some <a href="http://www.treehugger.com/fi…Read the full story on TreeHugger
Treadmill Bike Gets You Running On Two Wheels (Video)
Image via Red Ferret
We love random human-powered vehicles. The weirder the better, at least most of the time, because it stirs up creativity and hopefully gets people out and about without the use of fossil fuels or coal powered electricity. Plus exercise is always a good thing. That’s why the Treadmill Bike is intriguing. We saw one as a concept awhile back – the Rollator – and that idea …Read the full story on TreeHugger
DARPA Seeks Porta-Reactor Technology for Troop Poop Fuel
Image: Flickr, Jurvetson
Alert Pentagon-watchers who stumbled upon the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) solicitation SN-10-37 looked past the official title “Request for Information (RFI) on Deployable Reactor Technologies for Generating Power and Logistic Fuels,” and saw deep into DARPA’s soul. DARPA is looking for portable nuclear reactors that can turn troop poop into fuel. …Read the full story on TreeHugger
Nokia Moving Into Kinetically Charged Cell Phones, Files New Patent
Photo via jurvetson
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So far, kinetic charging for cell phones has been confined to the realm of external chargers (which are only now starting to be actually useful) and <a…Read the full story on TreeHugger
Six Sidewalks That Work While You Walk
Photo of self-lighting tile credit copyright Pavegen systems twitpic.
Sidewalks – we use ‘em everyday. Which is why there’s no end to the innovative ideas for making sidewalks work for us. Using piezoelectric, (also called kinetic energy) has been mostly confined to the novelty of the dance floor. That’s mainly for cost and efficiency reasons. A new spate of projects coming this year, however, both with piezo technology as well as other innovations may make it worth a look at cities that are harne…Read the full story on TreeHugger
French Using Sewage to Heat Their Swimming Pools
When water from the shower, dishwasher, or washing-machine is drained into the sewer-pipes, it’s not just a waste of water, but a waste of the energy used to heat that water. In fact, the water in city pipes averages a temperature of 68°F–energy-produced heat that is simply wasted. This unused energy pestered folks in one French town so much that they decided to put it to good use… and now it heats their swimming pools. …Read the full story on TreeHugger
LED Flashlight Combines Solar and Pull Power So You’re Never In The Dark
Image via Essential Gear
Solar powered flashlights are great, but you have to wait for a charge. Pull-cord flashlights are great but you have to work for a charge. But what about one that combines both so if you’re short on light or short on energy, you still get a charge? The ECOPower Solar Pull Light combines two sources of reliable alternative energy to make sure you’ve always got a light in a pinch. …Read the full story on TreeHugger
New Rubber Film Could Harvest Energy from Breathing, Walking to Power Gadgets
Photo via Science Daily, Credit: Frank Wojciechowski
Princeton University engineers have come up with a rubber film that harvests kinetic energy. But it’s not just another piezoelectric film. The team has been able to combine silicone and naonoribbons of lead zirconate titanate (PZT). PZT is the most efficient of kinetic-energy harvesting materials, converting as much as 80% of mechanical energy into electrical energy. By being the first team to successfully embed it into silicone, the Princeton engineers have opened up a whole slew of possibilities …Read the full story on TreeHugger
