The human body will be able to recharge smartphones, smartwatches and other electronic devices: the new invention on the fingertips
Smartphones are always with us at all times of the day but they have a problem: their battery runs out quickly and often does not arrive at night, forcing us to bring with us annoying cables for charging. A new invention of U.S. scientists, however, promises to change everything with what has already been dubbed the "Holy Grail" of all inventions, which is charging with the human body. It is a "wearable" device capable of bringing to 100% the batteries of our cell phones that, according to research published in the scientific journal "Joule", will be implanted directly into our hands.
How to recharge a smartphone with your fingers: the new invention
According to engineers at the University of San Diego, the most efficient way to harvest energy from our bodies is at the tips of our fingers. A thin, flexible strip placed on the skin could generate enough electricity from the wearer's sweat to power all the devices we carry with us every day.
Biofuel cells (BFCs) in addition to generating electricity from sweat could also harvest extra energy from the gentle pressure of our fingers in activities such as typing or playing the piano.
An energy source from human body sweat: scientists comment
Joseph Wang, professor of nanoengineering at UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, said: "We imagine that our invention can be used in any daily activity that involves touch, things that a person would normally do while at work, at home, while watching TV or eating. Our goal is for this device to be able to work for us while we forget we're wearing it.
This is an amazing innovation, according to Wang, because it's the first power source that doesn't rely on something external and irregular like sunlight or movement.
"Sweating on the fingers is probably a result of evolution that helps us grasp things better," said the study's first co-author, Lu Yin. "The sweat rate on the fingers can be as low as a few microliters per square centimeter per minute. In other areas of the body, the levels are two or three times lower."
The researchers concluded that this innovative method will be able to produce 300 millijoules of energy per square centimeter, a significant step forward that could lead in the coming years to forget about power cords for smartphones altogether and beyond.
Armando Mercuri