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Breath Powered USB Charger (And Stillsuit)
The Breath-Powered USB Charger is an interesting creation from instructables.com. The device scavenges power from your breathing and lets you keep the power as electricity for USB devices.
(Breath powered USB recharger)
According to the site, which offers instructions on how to build the device
Using some parts scavenged from an old CD-ROM drive, a simple electronic circuit, and a few rubber bands you will soon be huffing and puffing your way to fully-charged pseudo-useful electronic gadget nirvana.
Fans of Frank Herbert's Dune should find this familiar; it's the chest strap portion of a stillsuit, which reclaimed the body's moisture on the absolutely arid planet. When the Fremen leader Liet-Kynes inspected the Duke's stillsuit to help him adjust it, he paid special attention to the chest straps:
Kynes tightened the chest fit...The Duke lifted his arms at a gesture...
"Breathe deeply," Kynes said...
Kynes studied the underarm seals, adjusted one. "Motions of the body, especially breathing," he said, "and some osmotic action provide the pumping force." He loosened the chest fit slightly...
(Read more about Frank Herbert's stillsuit from Dune)
Read about other variations on the power scavenging idea:
-
- Backpack Generator Harnesses Power Of Walking
- Nanogenerator Harvests Mechanical Energy
- Vibration Energy Scavenging By Tiny Generator
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 11/5/2007)
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Related News Stories - (" Engineering ")
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'... he had tightened the chest to gain maximum pumping action from the motion of breathing.' Frank Herbert, 1965.
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Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
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