U-M researchers develop heartbeat powered battery

One word: Piezoelectricity
 
Researchers at the Department of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Michigan have developed a battery prototype that can take the motion generated by a heartbeat and use it to recharge pacemakers.
 
Excerpt:
 
"For the latest study the team measured heartbeat-induced vibrations in the chest. They then used a 'shaker' to reproduce the vibrations in the laboratory and connected it to a prototype cardiac energy harvester they had developed.
Measurements of the prototype's performance, based on a wide range of simulated heartbeats, showed the energy harvester generated more than 10 times the power required by modern pacemakers."
 
Read the rest here.
 
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