A new technology ‘piezoelectric vibration energy harvester’ has hit the headlines, for its ability to amplify electrical power generated by humans walking by about 90 times and then using the energy to power small wearable devices.
Basically, it’s another breakthrough in the area of energy harvesting, a technology that converts energy such as heat and light into electricity sources for small gadgets.
Led by Associate Professor Takeshi Yoshimura from the Osaka Metropolitan University, a research team has developed a harvester that is only approximately 2 cm in diameter with a U-shaped metal component, known as a dynamic magnifier, as per a report.
Talking about the innovation, Professor Yoshimura remarked, “Since electronic devices are expected to become more energy-efficient, we hope that this invention will contribute to the realization of self-charging wearable devices”.
Vibration energy harvesting has been dubbed as a highly practical solution since it has the ability to convert kinetic energy from vibration into electricity. Also, it is not affected by the weather.
The new harvester also allows for an increase of about 90 times in power converted from impulsive vibrations generated by the human walking motion.
Yoshimura’s team has been working on vibration energy harvesters that work on the “piezoelectric effect”, a phenomenon in which certain materials produce an electric charge or voltage after pressure is applied to them.
Under this breakthrough, non-steady vibrations such as walking motion can generate energy to power devices such as smartphones and wireless earphones.