Sound Wave Powered Phones?

December 5th, 2008

OMG, this technology would be perfect for my girlfriend who has her cell phone permanently glued to her ear and is always low on battery.  Just imagine a self-powering cell phone that never needs to be charged because it converts your own sound waves into the energy it needs to keep running. It’s not as far-fetched as it may seem thanks to the recent work of Tahir Cagin, a professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

Amazing materials known in scientific circles as “piezoelectrics,” Cagin, whose research focuses on nanotechnology, has made a significant discovery in the area of power harvesting – a field that aims to develop self-powered devices that do not require replaceable power supplies, such as batteries.

I nominate my yappy girlfriend as the first beta tester for these.

Entry Filed under: Cool Weird Stuff,Odd Stuff,Weird Ideas