THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Are you willing to sweat it out to power your own future?
In a few months, visitors to airports will be greeted by an exercise system developed by Thiruvananthapuram-based CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR-NIIST) that will be able to charge gadgets — with you stepping on the pedals.
Users will be able to monitor not only the calories burnt during a session but also see their effort being converted into electrical energy. ‘Vidyut Swasthya’, a first-of-its-kind system in India that integrates several patented technologies, will soon be adapted to various machines that involve human movement.
“The technology has been put to use in some airports abroad. In the next three to four months, we will set up Vidyut Swasthya in Thiruvananthapuram airport, and subsequently in other airports,” CSIR-NIIST director C Anandharamakrishnan said.
The system that converts kinetic energy into clean electricity makes use of CSIR-NIIST’s hybrid nanogenerator technology. A product of six years of meticulous research, scientists at CSIR-NIIST developed the interactive model to promote sustainability, wellness and awareness of renewable energy.
The team was led by principal scientist Achu Chandran. He said there is a lot of research being carried out to harvest energy from human movements using various technologies, but the outputs have not been very encouraging.
“Use of peizoelectric and triboelectric methods generate electricity in the milli- or micro-ampere range. These would not be sufficient to power up appliances, especially in the era of fast charging, However, our system generates a 230V, two ampere, 50Hz regulated electrical output that is ideal for charging gadgets,” Achu explained.
The technology can be put to use in scenarios involving human movements such as the use of manual treadmills and elliptical exercise machines. This is expected to encourage its adoption, making it a valuable proposition in offices, parks and community spaces as well, he added.