Skip to main content

Powered by body heat, this tiny flashlight doesn't need batteries


For the past ten years or so, I've made it a habit to carry a tiny penlight in my pocket whenever I travel. I wouldn't consider myself a hardcore flashlight enthusiast, but when I was younger I used to collect flashlights of different shapes, sizes and output colors. I still have them, lying somewhere in the house, ready for action in case of a zombie apocalypse.

If you're looking for a small flashlight with enough light output to find objects in the dark but would rather not keep supplying it with batteries, you might be interested in Lumen. It doesn't need any external energy source except your body heat. Ross Zhuravskiy is using Kickstarter to raise funding for his creation, and with 26 days until his initiative closes, he officially surpassed his initial $5,000 goal thanks to 477 backers. So how does it work?
"Lumen has relatively simple work principle - you touch TEG (Thermoelectric Generator) - small ceramic bar that can produce electric current when we provide temperature difference between upper and lower parts of TEG. 
In my application difference between temperature of your body (about 98 °F) and environment (at least 82 °F) is enough to generate power for single led. Metal body of Lumen serve as a radiator."
Check out the video below to learn more about this eternal flashlight.


Comments

  1. Without batteries a flashlight is so modern. I think its a fashionable flashlight. Thanks for describing in details. Nice and instructive post.......

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Eric van Straaten's 3D-Printed Statuettes

I can't remember when I first became entranced with Eric van Straaten 's 3D-printed sculptures. I think I stumbled onto his work through tumblr when I was searching for new artists to follow. Eric's attention to detail is pretty amazing, and the image of the eroticized child-woman is familiar throughout his work. Most of his hyper surreal pieces are 3D-printed in sandstone material, which are created by laying down a thin layer of gypsum powder and using a binding agent and color inks to print a pattern onto it. Once the entire model is printed, it is withdrawn from the print bed and the excess powder is removed. The model is then sealed and ready for display. "I think that the girls I create in my work are visualizations of my own feelings, fantasies and thoughts," the Dutch artist explains. "The girls actually look like someone I (used to) know and the different ‘portraits’ tell something about what I think of myself in regards to her or women ...

Eric Ogden and his 'Half-Remembered Season'

Michigan-born Eric Ogden produces images that look as if they were stills captured from films. What I really like about his work is his ability to execute striking photos with great use of light. Eric's portfolio includes portraits of A-list celebs, breathtaking landscapes, and other commercial stuff. His photos have appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, The New York Times Magazine, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, Time, and Rolling Stone, among others. My personal favorite is his photo series called A Half-Remembered Season , in which the subjects look like they were frozen in time. They're both intriguing and seductive. Whether it is a child on a swing in midair, a young waitress standing inside a soda shop, or a beautiful brunette floating in a swimming pool, someone is trying to tell a story. You can explore more of Eric's work on his website .

The Adorable Sculptures of Yen Yen Lo

These images are from a series of wall sculptures created by Yen Yen Lo . Here you can see her intricately textured ceramic pieces, looking downright adorable. Yen Yen Lo's eye for the unique and whimsical is delightful. Apparently they are not intended for kids under 16. Fifteen-year-olds cannot be trusted with fragile stuff. Get them a Funko Pop instead.