Monday, November 12, 2007
A Coat That Generates Its Own Power?
Posted by Jon Westfall in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 08:35 PM
"Coats are wonderful things. In ancient times, they served as protection against hostile sword-wielding enemies, while today they mainly protect us from the elements. In the future, however, they may also power our portable electronic devices, if an Australian organization called CSIRO has anything to say about it. CSIRO, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, is Australia's national science agency. The organization recently received a grant of about $4.4 million Australian dollars (about $4.1 million US dollars) to develop what it calls a "Flexible Integrated Energy Device" (FIED), a piece of technology incorporated directly into a coat or jacket that would generate electrical energy to power the wearer's portable electronic devices. "It will look like an ordinary garment but have extraordinary capabilities," CSIRO principal research scientist Dr. Best said in a statement. "As the person wearing the garment moves, the vibrations they create can be harvested and channeled into recharging the battery or powering plug-in electronic device or devices."
Hmm, so the days of powering my gear with my own vibrations may be at hand. One problem - I don't think I spend enough time in my jacket to really do anything about powering up that dead cell phone! But that little pragmatic thought doesn't take away from the idea's "coolness" factor one bit, does it?
Hmm, so the days of powering my gear with my own vibrations may be at hand. One problem - I don't think I spend enough time in my jacket to really do anything about powering up that dead cell phone! But that little pragmatic thought doesn't take away from the idea's "coolness" factor one bit, does it?
