Human Powered Technology: Energy Storage Technology Articles: Eco20/20

Human Powered Technology

Human powered technologies are quickly gaining the reputation of being the technology of the future. Powered by the body's natural movements, this technology transfers collected mechanical energy into electrical energy that can be used to power a device, a process known as energy harvesting. With green technology gaining popularity, businesses around the world are taking advantage of the varied applications.

The efficiency of human powered technologies is dependent on the type of technology that is being applied. At a human-powered gym in Portland, Oregon, wind-generator motors in stationary bikes harvest the mechanical energy provided by the rider and convert it into electrical energy that is then used to power the gym's televisions and DVD players. However, the amount of energy collected is not enough to power the entire gym, meaning nearly everything else must be powered through conventional means.

Across the world in Rotterdam, Netherlands a dance club, Club Watt, uses a special floor to harvest the mechanical energy provided by the body movements of the patrons. These floors are only 30 percent efficient but for businesses like Club Watt it is not the efficiency rate that is the important aspect of human powered technology-it is the process. The simple existence of places like Club Watt gives the technology a chance to grow and further develop. Despite the low efficiency rate in the current technologies, green engineering companies around the world are working to improve the floors so that businesses utilizing them are less reliant on traditional means of power.

Transportation companies are looking to install these special floors in train and bus stations where the simple act of riders walking to their various gates will help power the vehicle they are about to use. As they are, these 'green' floors only produce one kilowatt-hour a day with normal activities, which is only worth €0.10. For now these floors are more of a marketing tool than an economically sound investment.

This lack of efficiency, however, only applies to the big picture-buildings, vehicles, cities, etc. What about simply powering a small device, such as a cell phone? Scientists are working to develop technology that can use the pressure your foot feels when you walk and convert it into the electrical energy needed to charge any mobile device. Normal office walking would be enough to power a cell phone for an entire day.

What is probably the most remarkable aspect of this type of technology to date is its uses in the medical field. Princeton University engineers have created a specially designed chip that, when implanted in the body, will act as a never-ending source of power to pacemakers. The chip converts the natural pressure of the lung wall pressing against it into an electrical energy that will continuously supply power to the pacemaker making batteries obsolete. Unlike the bigger energy projects such as the gyms and night clubs, the pacemaker chip has an efficiency rate of 80 percent. The chip is safe to use and made of materials that the body's immune system will not reject.

Human-powered technology is the next great power source for all of our little devices and possibly even something as big as our cities. With a growing world population and shrinking land space human-power may soon become a highly demanded, practical source of electrical energy.