Generation of Electricity by Normal Human Movement

描述(申请人提供)：人类已经变得越来越依赖技术，特别是电子设备。在过去的十年里，电子设备变得更加移动，使人们能够在城市或荒野中使用医疗设备、蜂窝/卫星电话、笔记本电脑和GPS。目前，所有这些设备都使用寿命有限的电池，并增加了相当大的设备重量。有限的寿命和巨大的电池重量相结合，对救灾人员、急救人员、实地科学家和长期探险的探险者来说尤为关键。这些人通常必须携带沉重的背包(80磅)，而且大部分重量都是更换电池。数百万美元用于开发一种便携式和可再生的人类产生的能源，但还没有解决方案。为了解决这个问题，我们开发了一种被动装置--悬挂式背包，它可以在行走过程中提取机械能，然后将其转化为电能。当负重80磅时，个人可以产生超过7W的电力，而在负重40磅时可以产生大约2W的电力。这是一个重要的结果，因为之前发表的将设备安装在鞋子上的尝试产生的功率要低约300倍(约20瓦)。我们的背包产生的电力可以用来实时为设备供电，并为电池充电。有趣的是，新陈代谢实验表明，产生这种电力只会增加2-3%的代谢率，实际上降低了携带负荷的能量成本。此外，从人体工程学角度来看，与标准背包相比，携带悬挂式背包更加舒适，因为减少了对身体的作用力，因此应该可以减少常见的骨科损伤。由于背包代表着每年2.95亿美元的业务，一个发电背包具有相当大的商业价值。更多的创新设计/工程对于将“概念验证”推向商业化是必要的。 具体目标1：减轻悬浮负荷发电背包的重量。 具体目标2：建立发电背包的数学/计算模型。 具体目标3：开发控制减震、便携设备和电荷存储设备的电路。 在发展中国家，这种设备也有同样令人信服的健康/社会应用。世界上有很大一部分人口依靠电网生活。正因为如此，他们的饮用水经常被病原体污染，他们没有常规的医学检测，也没有获得疫苗的机会。已经开发了许多便携式、低功耗的设备，它们可以提供巨大的改进，但缺少的是一个小电源。背包可以提供足够的能量用于：使用便携式紫外线灯(SteriPEN)对水进行消毒，帮助提供必要的疫苗冷藏、简单的诊断测试和紧急情况下的通信设备。在第二阶段，我们将开发一种新的、更轻、更高效的原型，并进行临床测试，利用第一阶段发展出来的改进技术和理解。我们的发电背包提供的电力独立性对救灾人员、森林消防员、野外科学家、探险家、环境测试员和一些急救人员极其重要，他们都必须依靠电网工作。发展中国家也有同样令人信服的健康应用。世界上很大一部分人口的一生都生活在电网中：因此，他们的饮用水经常受到病原体的污染，他们没有常规的医学检测，也无法获得必须冷藏的疫苗和药品。许多便携式、低功率设备已经开发出来，背包可以为以下方面提供缺失的小电源：杀菌水(UV；SteriPEN)、帮助冷藏疫苗、简单的诊断测试以及紧急情况下的通信。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Humans have become increasingly dependent on technology, particularly electronic devices. In the past decade, electronic devices have become more mobile, enabling people to use medical devices, cellular/satellite phones, laptop computers, and GPS as they move around cities or in the wilderness. At present, all of these devices run off of batteries which have limited lifetimes and add considerable weight to the device. The combination of limited lifetimes and large weight of batteries is particularly crucial to disaster relief workers, first responders, field scientists and explorers on prolonged expeditions. These individuals often must carry heavy packs (> 80 lbs), and much of the weight is replacement batteries. Millions of dollars have gone into developing a portable and renewable human-generated energy source but there has not been a solution. To solve this problem, we developed a passive device, the Suspended-load Backpack, which extracts mechanical energy during walking and then converts it to electricity. While carrying an 80 lb load, individuals can generate in excess of 7 W of electricity, and approximately 2 W with a 40 lb load. This is a significant because previously published attempts with devices fitted in shoes generated ~300-fold less (~20 W). The electricity generated by our backpack can be used to power equipment in real-time, and recharge batteries. Interestingly, metabolic experiments show that generating this electricity increases the metabolic rate by only 2-3%, and actually reduces the energetic cost for carrying a load. Further, carrying the load is ergonomically more comfortable with the Suspended-load Backpack than standard ones because of reduction in forces on the body, and thus should reduce common orthopedic injury. As backpacks represent a $295 million annual business, an electricity-generating backpack has substantial commercial value. Additional innovative design/engineering is necessary to bring the "proof of concept" to commercialization. SPECIFIC AIM 1: Reduce the weight of the Suspended-load electricity-generating backpack. SPECIFIC AIM 2: Make a mathematical/computational model of the electricity-generating backpack. SPECIFIC AIM 3: Develop circuitry to control damping, power portable devices and charge storage devices. There are equally compelling health/societal applications for the device in Developing Countries. A large percentage of the world's population lives off the electrical grid. Because of this, their drinking water is often contaminated with pathogens, they have no routine medical testing, nor access to vaccines. Many portable, low power devices have been developed which can provide a great improvement but what is missing is a small source of electricity. The backpack can provide sufficient power for: sterilizing water with portable UV lamps (SteriPen), help provide requisite refrigeration of vaccines, simple diagnostic tests, and communication devices in the case of emergencies. In Phase II a new, lighter and more efficient prototype will be developed and clinically tested, taking advantage of the improved technologies and understanding developed in Phase I. Electricity independence provided by our electricity-generating backpack is extremely important to disaster relief workers, forest fire fighters, field-scientists, explorers, environmental testers, and some first responders, all of whom who must function off the electric-grid. There are equally compelling health applications in Developing Countries. A large portion of the world population lives their whole lives off the electrical-grid: Hence their drinking water is often contaminated with pathogens, they have no routine medical testing, nor access to vaccines and medicines that must be refrigerated. Many portable, low power devices have been developed, and the backpack can provide the missing small source of electricity for: sterilizing water (UV; SteriPen), helping refrigerate vaccines, simple diagnostic tests, and communications in the case of emergencies.