In a new study, researchers have created a new wearable technology to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy.
The research was conducted by researchers from Purdue University.
In the current study, the team developed a liquid-metal-inclusion based triboelectric nanogenerator, called LMI-TENG.
It is a new triboelectric energy harvesting transducer, which can conserve mechanical energy and turn it into power.
The new device can sense and harvest the biomechanical signals from the body and then use the signals to power and direct technological equipment.
According to the researchers, the new device has a layer of liquid metal embedded functional silicone sandwiched between two Ecoflex layers.
They suggest that liquid is the ultimate form of anything that can be deformable and morphing into different shapes
The finding may help develop self-powering devices such as consumer electronics and defense innovations.
The new device will help wearable electronics to take wasted energy and transform it into energy.
The harvested energy can be used to power and control electronic devices and tools in military defense and consumer applications.
The team believes their finding is an important step toward the self-powered, human-integrated technologies.
Their new creation has applications for many self-powered innovations for emerging technologies.
This includes user interfaces, augmented reality, wearable sensors, human-machine interfaces, robotics, virtual reality, pervasive computing, advanced health care, teleoperation and the Internet of Things.
The leader of the study is Wenzhuo Wu, the Ravi and Eleanor Talwar Rising Star Assistant Professor of Industrial Engineering.
The study is published in Journal of Materials Chemistry A.
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