MicroGen taps into 'jiggle power' to fuel batteries for the future

Robert Andosca, the founder, president, and CTO of MicroGen Systems holds a wafer of chips to be manufactured into micro electro mechanical systems that can harvest electrical energy from vibrations transmitted from the object they are attached to. MicroGen uses the facilities of the Cornell Nano Scale Science and Technology Facility, such as the $1 million silicon etcher in the background, to remove silicon freeing a cantilevered section of a piezoelectric coated molybdenum metal layer that then vibrates and harvests energy. / SIMON WHEELER / STAFF PHOTOS

ITHACA -- As your car's wheels roll and the appliances in your house hum, they create tiny vibrations that can be tapped to charge a new generation of Dell xps m1530 ac adapter battery being developed in Ithaca.

Look for these high-tech power cells to begin replacing traditional Dell vostro 1400 battery later this year. The new Sony vgp-bps2 battery will power sensors that will soon be required in cars to monitor tire pressure. Keeping tires properly inflated will improve gas mileage and reduce hazards from driving on under-inflated tires.

Batteries (dell inspiron 1545 battery) will also power sensors used to check bridge safety and temperature changes.
MicroGen Systems of Ithaca specializes in harnessing energy on a micro scale from naturally occurring vibrations for use in building, automotive, military and industrial applications. It is designed to replace traditional Dell latitude pp01l battery for the growing wireless sensor network market, which has traditionally relied on limited Dell inspiron 1501 ac adapter battery power to communicate data to remote radio transceivers.
"We are a power plant in an extremely small package," said Michael Perrotta, MicroGen Systems chief financial officer.
Founded in 2007 by Robert Andosca, the small start-up uses MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical systems) technology — tiny chips found in laptop computers, cell phones and other wireless devices — to power wireless sensor networks through vibrations in the environment.(Dell inspiron 1525 ac adapter)
The company is at the forefront of using MEMS technology in the energy harvesting field, said Perrotta, who has helped launch start-ups on the east and west coasts.
MicroGen Systems moved to Ithaca in 2008 to develop the prototypes at Cornell University's Nano Scale Science and Technology Facility (CNF). There, Andosca, his partner Junru Wu and their team assemble the hardware made up of microscopic moving parts etched into a silicon wafer.(TOSHIBA pa3285u-1brs battery)
The MicroGen BOLT Power Chip generator is one centimeter in diameter, Perrotta said.
Because it's wireless, it can be placed anywhere and is capable of producing vibration frequencies between 50 and 120 hertz, enough to charge sensor nodes within a sensor network for up to 20 years, the company estimates. The power chips come in different frequencies and are also designed to power non-electronic devices.
Applications for the device include powering wireless sensors that monitor the structural integrity of a bridge, replacing the need to change and dispose of traditional HP omnibook xe2 battery, a costly environmental and financial endeavor, said Perrotta.
Instead, the sensor network is powered by the rumbling of traffic for a continuous charge. Other uses include monitoring tire or airbag pressure, the temperature inside a freight container or the gravitational force of a military helicopter.(HP pavilion g60 battery)
Andosca began working on the technology some 20 years ago while at the University of Vermont, which gave him seed money to start the company. Andosca has relied on grants and received support from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). The device is expected to hit the market later this year.
more tags: HP pavilion dv6000 ac adapter, Dell inspiron 15 ac adapter, hp pavilion zd8000 battery, HP pavilion dv3500 ac adapter, ibm thinkpad g40 battery, IBM thinkpad a21p battery, Dell xps m1330 battery, HP f2299a battery, HP compaq business notebook nx7010 battery, TOSHIBA tecra 740cdt ac adapter, dell inspiron 1545 battery, HP pavilion dv5-1200 ac adapter, HP pavilion dv6000 ac adapter, HP elitebook 8730w ac adapter
next blog: Top computers: reviews and specifications