Harvesting power from breathing

João Paulo Lammoglia, an industrial designer based in London, has created AIRE, a concept mask that converts wind energy (provided by the wearer's breath) into electricity for the recharging of small electronic devices.

 

AIRE was the winner of a Red Dot design concept award, the competition for design concepts and prototypes is held annually in Singapore.

 

According to the designer: the consumers in today's society make the use of gadgets increasingly common, either by necessity or hobby. Though many gadgets offer benefits, they tend to consume a high amount of electrical energy. This may cause problems for the environment, especially if the energy used by these devices is derived from non-renewable sources.

 

The use of renewable energy sources is the most important step we can take for the minimisation of environmental damage. Harnessing energy from human activities and transforming it into electrical energy is possible, and is a great solution to such energy issues.

 

AIRE offers a way to do this. It is an electronic mask capable of converting the wind energy provided by the wearer's breath into electrical energy. Inside the unit there are small wind turbines that make the conversion and the energy is transferred through a cable to one's small electronic device.

 

AIRE can be used in any situation, indoors or outdoors. It can be used while you sleep, walk, run, or read a book, for example. Besides saving energy (and contributing to environmental preservation), it also encourages the practice of physical exercise. Its energy is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. There is no indication of whether this concept will go into production.

 

 

For more read Energy Harvesting and Storage for Electronic Devices 2011-2021 

 

And attend Energy Harvesting & Storage Europe 15-16 May 2012 Berlin, Germany