A knee brace that generates adequate electricity to capability 10 cellphones was demonstrated by scientists recently. The brace harvests the energy of a person’s knee braking after taking a step, similar to the way hybrid car brakes gather energy to charge their batteries. The device only weighs 3.5 pounds, and does not need the intense effort that other human-powered energy generators such as hand cranks require. And while the cellphone measurement given by the creators is pretty useless, they do have several practical applications in mind.

Scientists propose that the brace could be used by campers and soldiers to ability GPS locators and satellite phones in areas with limited access to electricity. It could plus charge prosthetic

knees, eliminating the need for periodic surgery to replace the batteries in the joint.

The current version of the knee brace is just a proof-of-concept; the team plans to invent the device less bulky while still retaining its energy harvesting capabilities. We think that is a great concept with lots of potential (even whether it was created in part by a University of Michigan professor). Hopefully we can get a working model before CES next year so we’ll never need to anguish about our laptop running out of juice. [Science via Science Daily]

Orginal post by Benny Goldman