The world is relying more and more on mobile devices and this has made not only battery life, but also our capability to charge our devices on the go really important. We have seen solar chargers, and other innovative products come out as a solution to this. But how about using our clothing! It might seem strange but inventors have been developing clothing and material that actually charges devices. A recent Mashable story discusses a few and we have gone into more detail below.
Rain Boots that Charge Your Phone
Orange, a British mobile carrier that partnered with a firm named GotWind in 2010 to produce rain boots that consumers can use to charge their phones. The boots were just a prototype, presented at the Glastonbury Music Festival, but the prototype showed enough potential to get mobile users excited.
Military Tech
The military is usually coming up with innovative technologies and this holds true for charging technology as well. The military is currently using a product made by Intellectual Textiles. It is pieces of fabric that are sewn into vests, shirts, and helmets. Essentially, it charges one battery at a time. Then the power from that battery is sent to whatever device needs to be charged through the clothing.
The Most Advanced Felt in the World
And if you thought that was sophisticated, check out Power Felt. Scientists at the Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials at Wake Forest University are developing this currently. It is a thermoelectric device that turns body heat into electricity. It’s like something out of a sci-fi novel but if they nail this technology down, then we may have an unlimited supply of electricity from our clothing for our devices.
These technologies will alter the way we charge our devices and almost remove the limitations we currently have due to inadequate batteries. That will be a great day!
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