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

Some snaps from Eskinita

 

Katy Ann Gilmore is my new favorite on Instagram

Katy Ann Gilmore is a Los Angeles-based visual artist who specializes in making extraordinary illustrations on paper and large scale murals using micron and gel pens. Her elaborate line work is painstakingly methodical, layering strokes of the pen in varying directions to create amazing shapes and topography that look like they are covered with intricate mesh netting. I was wondering how many pen strokes does it take to complete just one of these drawings, so I did some research and found out that her small 5 in. by 7 in. illustrations typically take a few hours, while an 11 in. by 14 in. picture can take anywhere from 10-25 hours. "My hand does hurt a bit after marathon sessions, but never anything too crazy," she told Lisa Congdon. "I try to rest my eyes/hands/brain every once in awhile by looking away from the drawing, dropping the pen, and taking a breather." Katy received a BA in Mathematics, Art, and Spanish from Greenville College in Il...

This tiny e-bike weighs just 12kg and folds away in seconds

An electric bicycle that folds up neatly is one of the greatest ways to solve the last mile problem. Unfortunately, a lot of commuters write folding e-bikes off because of their reputation for being heavy, uncomfortable, and bulky. Some are even awkward to use and difficult to ride. A group of UK-based entrepreneurs hope to change all that with the A-Bike Electric, an innovative vehicle which they claim is the lightest and most compact electric bicycle ever built.    The A-Bike Electric weighs only 12kg, which means it's light enough to take on a bus or a train, carry up stairs and get through busy crowds. The bicycle has a range of 15 miles (25km) and uses a brushless front hub motor and 24V removable lithium battery to reach a top speed of 12.5mph. The battery can be recharged via USB, and takes 2.5 hours to juice it up. Although the wheels have a diameter of only 13 centimeters, a dual-chain system allows for a normal pedaling action.    The bike's inventor,...