But how did we get here, and what does it mean for the future of electric vehicles?
Lets take a deep dive into the science.
Dont worry, Ill make it easy to understand.
Energy harvesting is nothing new
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But its preceded by the ultimate yuppie status trend of the 1980s, the Quartz watch.
Quartz watches are battery-powered watches that always tell the correct time.
The battery sends electricity to the quartz, which makes an oscillator vibrate.
These vibrations generate one electrical pulse per second, which drives the watchs motor, ensuring a correct time.
What does this have to with cars, you ask?
Why do we need energy-harvesting roads?
They also reduce vehicle charging time, reducerange anxiety, and lessen the reliance on charging stations.
And this sound is a form of energy.
In his research, the energy generated by cars is 0.20 volts.
Its not much, but it demonstrates the efficacy of the technology.
And Im sure that theres room for improvement.
More recentresearchhas found that energy generated from high-speed rail is sufficient to power a variety of low-power electric devices.
This is just a few of the research projects into piezoelectrics and thermoelectric energy harvesting.
You think EV-charging roads are weird?
Well, it gets weirder
Another tool for energy generation is people-powered kinetic floor tiles.
Yep, I told you it was weird.
A commercial app isPavegen.
As part of the system, Low-Power Bluetooth beacons connect to the Pavegen-GO platform.
Pavegan can communicate with users smartphones, and provide rich customer analytics data via a permission-based rewards system.
Story byCate Lawrence
Cate Lawrence is an Australian tech journo living in Berlin.
