Innovative device could power electronics using body movements

New technology that can generate electricity from vibrations or even small body movements means you can charge your laptop while typing or power your smartphone battery during your morning run.

Researchers at the University of Waterloo have developed a small, portable generator in response to the urgent need for clean, sustainable energy. It is also scalable for larger machines. Their paper, “Breaking Dielectric Dilemma: Polymer Functionalized Perovskite Piezocomposite with Large Current Density Output,” is published in the November issue of Natural communications.

“This is a real game-changer,” said Dr. Asif Khan, the project’s principal investigator and a postdoctoral fellow in Waterloo’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “We have manufactured the first device of its kind capable of powering electronics at low cost and with unprecedented efficiency.”

The device uses the piezoelectric effect, which generates electrical energy by applying pressure to materials like crystal and some ceramics. Piezoelectric materials are currently used in various sensing technologies, including sonars, ultrasonic imaging, and microwave devices.

“These older materials are fragile, expensive and have limited ability to produce electricity,” said Dr. Dayan Ban, a professor and researcher at the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology. “The materials we created for the new generator are flexible, more energy efficient and less expensive.”

In addition to Khan and Ban, the research team includes two other Waterloo professors, a University of Toronto professor and their research groups.

The researchers have filed a patent and are working with a Canadian company to commercialize their generator for use in aviation, including powering aircraft systems that monitor the status of safety equipment.