Traffic vibration on bridge generates electric power
The Metropolitan Expressway Co., a company managing the construction, renovation, maintenance, and administration of expressways in and around Tokyo, has announced a project to generate electricity by converting energy created by the vibration resulting from automobiles driving on the Shuto (Metropolitan) Expressway. This is a large scale application of something we already knew about at human scale. It really looks like someone read our suggestion for its application.
The principle is reversing how loudspeakers work: loudspeakers vibrate and produce sound from an electric current. Apply this reversely and you can produce electricity from the passing cars' vibrations. The concept was first implemented at the Goshiki-Zakura-Ohashi-Bridge over the Arakawa River on the Central Circular Route, one of the five famous bridges on the Shuto Expressway. Not that they get a lot of power, but the churned electricity is enough power for some of the lights on the bridge (pictured above).
[Source: Japan for Sustainability]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jason Bontrager 10:48AM (6/11/2008)
I have to wonder how cost effective this is. Even if the hardware is cheap, what about maintenance? It'll have to cope with wind, rain, pollution, and guano. If the costs of installing and maintaining the system exceed the cost of an equivalent amount of electricity that would have to be purchased from other sources, then this is just a wasteful PR stunt.
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Andrew Leinonen 11:18AM (6/11/2008)
I tend to agree. That would have to be fairly cost-effective electricity if it's less than the cost of using grid power, or even mounting solar panels for the lighting.
It's elegant in that it would otherwise go to waste...but I think there are better strategies.
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Richard 1:51PM (6/11/2008)
I don't know, I see speakers meant for outside last several years without any maintenance. Although solar would help, they are too costly at current prices. Electricity generating speakers could be cheaper. Then there's the environmental benefits...
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Art 3:49PM (6/11/2008)
There is a guy in California that already implemented this type of technology on bridges. I believe it was on CNN or ABC a while back.
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stevefazek 3:14AM (6/12/2008)
yeah i saw that Art in Sand Fran. It appeared to be cost effective as any other green energy
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John L 1:29PM (6/12/2008)
Wow-very cool...how did BOSE let this technology
slip by them? or are they licensing it?
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M.de la fuente 10:11PM (4/28/2009)
Maybe the can also place this technology on roads, traintracks (and stations ), in houses, sportarena's and on pathes were people walk all the time.....and so on..... It would generate allot of power. The city will give it's own power without even knowing. Plus it wil reduce your power-bills in euro's/dollars....whatever ;).
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