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Body heat touted as power source
Getting a little hot under the collar?
By Tom Jowitt, Techworld | Techworld
Published: 14:50 GMT, 28 August 07
German scientists claimed to have a developed a procedure that harnesses body heat in order to generate power, which in the future may be used to power mobile devices.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits have said that they can use the difference between the body’s surface temperature and that of the surroundings to produce energy which could be used to power medical equipment, such as sensors attached to a body of a patient in an intensive care ward.
Essentially, the system works on the principle of thermoelectric generators (TEG) - semiconductor elements which extract electrical energy from the temperature difference between a hot and cold environment.
Peter Spies, project leader at the institute and his team have apparently improved these thermoelectric generators. Traditionally a temperature difference of several tens of degrees (Celsius) is needed in order to generate enough power. At most, the difference between human bodies and the surrounding environment is only a few degrees.
“Only low voltages can be produced from differences like these,” explains Spies. Traditional TEG produces roughly 200 millivolts, while electronic devices require at least one or two volts.
However, the German engineers have resolved this by combining “a number of components in a completely new way to create circuits that can operate on 200 millivolts.”
“This has enabled us to build entire electronic systems that do not require an internal battery, but draw their energy from body heat alone,” he said.
“We have a working device in our labs” confirmed Spies, who has demonstrated the device at various trade shows. When a hand is placed on a specifically designed pad, “it powers a wireless transceiver and a temperature sensor.”
However Spies admits that the technology is not currently a viable option to power mobile devices, although it does have some battery charging capabilities.
“The problem is the human body is not sufficient to power mobile phones at present,” said Spies. “Perhaps in the future this might be a feasible vision.”
He points out that at a recent trade show in California, aircraft maker Boeing said it was looking to use thermoelectric generator technology to power the switches located in airplane seats.
Spies believes that when further improvements have been made to the switching systems, a temperature difference of only 0.5 degrees will be sufficient to generate electricity.
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Add your commentComments
No1 | Published: 10:17 GMT, 30 August 2007
Why not just stick a few electrodes into the patient and use him as a "potato battery", which has also been done in books, and might also be one of the techniques used in the Matrix
balaji Sadegaonkar | Published: 05:20 GMT, 30 August 2007
We can operate device at 70 mv or less by using semiconductor which is made by using bioelectronics. That can make device to operate at low energy even at sunlight.
Stiv Ostenberg | Published: 20:57 GMT, 29 August 2007
Ha! This has been around a long time, but the government and business have kept a lid on it. Currently the technology exists in office chairs and in the floors where they make you wait in line at the DMV. They are sucking up your precious bodily energy at work and using it to power an army of robots that pretend to work as "civil servants". The end is near!
nemesisgeek | Published: 17:43 GMT, 29 August 2007
What happens to your power when the air temperature is the same as your skin temperature? In fairly cool climates it might work, though.
Voice | Published: 16:30 GMT, 29 August 2007
@BrotherOtter: This is radiated 'waste' body heat anyway. It's not like they're talking about implanting a heat pump in your body for this. In really hot places (like where I live right now), this will be ineffective unless it doesn't matter which *side* is hotter than the other, in which case there's a 1 degree range about 98.1 to 99.1 where these pumps will be ineffective, with the actual temperature range varying slightly based on the person and his/her health.
BrotherOtter | Published: 13:12 GMT, 29 August 2007
TANSTAAFL*: in cold climes these will drain body heat faster than normal; in hot climes they will be ineffective or perhaps warm the body even more. * There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.
james.m.k | Published: 12:15 GMT, 29 August 2007
Didn't I see MIT doing the exact same thing on the PBS show Scientific American Frontiers (Hosted by Alan Alda) about 5 years ago? Way to be at the fat end of the curve!
Zuber Patel | Published: 11:47 GMT, 29 August 2007
"Powered by Human Body" will be tag on next generation electronic gadgets including computer - Great to imagine.
Gowrisankar | Published: 06:37 GMT, 29 August 2007
Isn't that what Matrix talks about ;-) ?