By: Megan Treacy / Source: TreeHugger

We’re increasingly reliant on our smartphones and other small devices. They connect us to the world around us and to each other. They give us directions on demand, serve up our email and text messages and let us read articles and books on any subject we type in. But all of those features require a good-size battery to make it useful.

The constant charging of our devices means we’re also increasingly reliant on the grid for electricity. The search for alternative ways to power these devices is ongoing. There are plenty of great solar chargers out there, but researchers have really been aiming for a way for our devices to be human powered, harvesting our movement or heat to give our gadgets a boost.

A new flexible, wearable generator would harvest the energy from the static electricity created from our movements throughout the day. About the size of a postage stamp, the patch could be applied to the skin and generate energy from the friction of the patch against the skin when the muscles are moving underneath.

Read more @ TreeHugger