Sandeep Manohar Nirikhi says: The concept relies on kinetic energy and there is no dearth of motion around us. The idea helps one of the worst environmental offenders today - vehicles contribute to green energy generation. It also taps human motion, most of which is otherwise expended as vibration. Regardless of the advent of electric-cars in future, the need to move, be it for humans or vehicles is here to stay in the foreseeable future, which is what makes the service sustainable. Moreover, it shall help reduce consumption of oil, coal and other fossil-based energy sources considerably thereby minimizing pollution to a great extent.

Since the piezo-electric generators placed under road-beds or floors don’t offer resistance to motion unlike speed bumps, the former can be made use of to generate electricity even in the accelerating motion of vehicles, while the electro-kinetic speed bumps(ramps) help tap only decelerating motion. Suitable deployment of both of these could help tap vehicular motion very effectively throughout a vehicle's cycle of motion unlike regenerative braking which only taps decelerating motion.

Similar systems could be deployed anywhere vibration or motion can be tapped efficiently: under roadbeds, on railroads, in airport runways, at gymnasiums etc. Moreover, I plan to come up with charging equipment for mobile/portable electronic devices. The charger which would tap human motion to make electricity available for charging.

Imagine the potential if people world over and vehicles world over contribute to the process of electricity generation. The possibilities are endless and the list is limited only by imagination. My project seeks to bring together some of my innovative ideas and different realms of ongoing research in an attempt to design a sustainable solution. Join me in my humble bid to create a greener future for our progeny!

Franziska Schneider says: 2 Questions:

1. What system would you propose to capture this energy and how much would it cost to install? When would it break even?
2. Have you done any research to see how people would react to their - effectively- being slowed down in their movement? The energy you are trying to capture doesn't come free - it is taken 'out of the step' of people, slowing them down.

Sandeep Manohar Nirikhi says: Hi,

1. Using piezo-electric materials(generators) under road beds or floors would help tap vehicular and human motion. This energy could either be made use of as and when it is generated to light traffic lights and the excess energy could be fed to the local electric grid. So it would amount to adding a layer over a road or designing a floor with energy tapping in mind to begin with. I have done the math for costs and revenues. It would very well break-even since it is more of a one time investment with low maintenance costs and brings the prospect of long-term energy tapping.

2. Well, people shall not really be slowed down in their movement. Just imagine, today you are probably walking or driving your car on a tar/cement road. What if you have a road of some other material which has the property of tapping vibrations to generate electricity. I agree with you a 100% that energy doesn't come for free. Energy can only be transformed from one form to another. Today, when you walk, some part of your energy is used to physically move and most of your energy is expended as vibration. It is this excess energy that is being tapped as opposed to creation of "new energy". The otherwise expended vibration is being made use of to generate electricity.

Unlike speed-bumps or ramps, here you still move on a flat surface as you are used to, which offers no additional resistance to motion. At the same time, the surface makes use of the temperature changes, vibrational changes and motion before and after a human/vehicle moves over it to to tap the vibrational energy which was being wasted earlier and converts it into electricity.

Please note: Even today, motion of vehicles results in temperature changes and vibrations over the surface it moves over. It's just that today the surface does not have the property of tapping this wasted energy and the system I propose has.

I am glad you raised this question. It helped me make myself clear on adherence to the law of conservation of energy.

James Caska says: As per usual the problem of energy comes down to energy density

I think the point really is either you are making a very small amount of localised energy eg enough to power a wristwatch ( like those that already exist ) in a non-noticeable way just really for the convienience of not changing watch batteries

But if you the dream is to produce transmittable non-localised energy to do work elsewhere then you really are going to have to extract noticeable work. Shoes that feel like walking in sand or a stepmaster, car roads that are spongy and draw energy from the vehicle as the travel over it. Thats the point isn't it, kinetic ie kinetic conversion - this is not free energy and I don't think drivers are going to enjoy paying extra petrol to pay for your electricity profits.

Localised convienience power for micro devices, sure, good idea and is already out there. Power for solving the worlds problem, the energy has got to come from somewhere! so no.. I don't think so.

Sandeep Manohar Nirikhi says: Hi James,

Thanks for the question. Your doubt is justified. But the concept being discussed does not suffer from few of the problems you've touched upon. Imagine the possibility of a hard road with piezo-electric crystals underneath. The vibration or temperature changes required to trigger these piezo electric generators aren't much. So you don't really need a spongy road to extract energy at the expense of the vehicle's fuel.
The idea is just about tapping the energy currently lost as heat and vibration when vehicles move over a road. If the heat/vibration so generated is good enough to trigger a certain kind of material like the piezo-electric generators, well why not tap it? It doesn't come at the expense of extra consumption of fuel. It just uses the energy already being lost currently.

Coming to the question of energy density, ongoing research suggests that some serious power can be generated by tapping the current energy losses in the form of heat and vibration.

Research studies state that about 500kW of electricity per hour can be generated using a 1km long piezo-electric roadway. Thats quite some power considering the fact that it was earlier being lost in the form of heat and vibration. This power is much more than what would be required to light roadways and could be transmitted over local electric grids.

Joao Paulo Amaral says: Hi,

I am doing a reseach on human motion energy generation in the context of Olympic Games, specifically the London 2012 OG. I'd like to know more about the kinetricity technology and about it´s feasibility. I am thinking if this could be applied not only into the olympic games structure for the spectators, but for the athletes' arena.
Congratulations for the innovative idea.
Could you please forward this answer to my e-mail: jp.ambiental@yahoo.com.br.
Thank you.