Hacking the Orchestra of Life: A Movement for Capturing Ambient Energy

HACKING THE ORCHESTRA OF LIFE A MOVEMENT FOR CAPTURING AMBIENT ENERGY

DAMON AHOLA

HACKING THE ORCHESTRA OF LIFE A MOVEMENT FOR CAPTURING AMBIENT ENERGY

DAMON AHOLA

A THESIS BOOK BY DAMON AHOLA SCHOOL OF VISUAL ARTS MFA PRODUCTS OF DESIGN NEW YORK, NY FALL 2013 - SPRING 2014

“Ere many generations pass, our machinery will be driven by a power obtainable at any point of the universe ... throughout space there is energy.

Is this energy static or kinetic? If static our hopes are in vain; if kinetic - and this we know it is, for certain - then it is a mere question of time when men will succeed in attaching their machinery to the very wheelwork of nature.�

Nikola Tesla

Copyright 2014 Damon Ahola All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing from the author.

For inquires, contact damon@damonahola.com School of Visual Arts MFA Products of Design 136 West 21st Street New York, NY 10011-3213 productsofdesign.sva.edu

DAMON AHOLA Author Designer IOANNIS ( JOHN) KYMISSIS Off-campus Thesis Advisor ALLAN CHOCHINOV SVA Products of Design Department Chair Thesis I Instructor ANDREW SCHLOSS Thesis I Instructor ABBY COVERT Thesis II Instructor JESSICA LOUDIS Editor

CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

10-13

2. GOALS AND OVERVIEW

14-17

3. METHODOLOGY

18-21

4. RESEARCH

22-43

5. AUDIENCE AND MARKETS

44-47

6. LENSES

48-111

7. DEVELOPED DESIGNS

112-157

8. LOOKING FORWARD

158-161

9. BIBLIOGRAPHY AND NOTES

162-171

10. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

172-173

11. ABOUT THE DESIGNER

174-175

1

INTRODUCTION

While jogging on a treadmill at the gym a few years ago, I turned to view the landscape of people bobbing up and down on machines. We were all exerting huge amounts of human power, yet nobody was producing anything, unless you count tighter glutes. I was using electricity to power a large belt so that I could run on it. It seemed ridiculous that I was consuming energy to exert energy. It occurred to me that there must be a way to take advantage of all this human activity. That observation has stayed with me since then. This body of work focuses on that notion through exploring the potential of harvesting ambient energy.

12

Ambient energy harvesting is the process of obtaining usable power through natural or human-made sources that are readily available within the immediate surroundings.1 Both sources are essentially renewable. Natural energy harvesting sources are derived from the outputs of the earth while human-made sources are produced through actions of fabricated objects or humans. Natural sources such as wind, solar, hydro, wave, gravity and geothermal are most efficiently used in large-scale applications. Substantial amounts of investment, architecture and

13

INTRODUCTION

infrastructure must be built to harvest usable energy from wind farms, photovoltaic power stations and hydroelectric dams. Human-made sources, such as light, thermal, kinetic, sound and electromagnetic energy created by people, animals or objects are more appropriate for powering small-scale applications, and are most efficient on a decentralized local level. Once harvested, human-made energy is usually converted into electricity and stored in a battery. Though energy harvesters currently provide a small amount of power, they are ideal for low-energy devices such as self-winding watches and wireless sensors on machinery.

hour 4 and experts predict that we will need to produce 50% more energy than we currently do to sustain humanity’s energy needs in 2050.5 Saul Griffith, Australian American inventor and CEO of Otherlab, predicts that sixteen terawatts of energy is needed to sustain humanity for the next twenty-five years. 3 terawatts are possible from fossil fuels, 1.5 terawatts from existing non-carbon resources such as hydro and nuclear, however 11.5 terawatts need to be generated from new clean energy methods.6

The proliferation of people and products over the past several decades has put unprecedented pressure on energy resources. As objects become smarter and increasingly interconnected through Sources of potential ambient energy are omnipresent in the environment. Unlike oil and a wireless network facilitated by embedded sensors more energy is needed to power this coal, which are site-specific, finite resources that require transportation, ambient energy is “Internet of Things.” Every device in this system everywhere and available for anyone to tap into. requires power—a battery-dead phone can’t alert Wherever there is light, heat, movement, sound you that you forgot your keys. Currently, the or electromagnetic waves (e.g. radio, television or vast majority of power used to run this network WiFi transmissions), there is an opportunity for is sourced from rechargeable batteries that energy harvesting. need to be plugged into an outlet to be charged frequently. The amount of energy required to Energy harvesting is not a new idea. The Roconstantly recharge new batteries is on a serious mans first invented the waterwheel between rise, which is contributing to the alarmingly the third and first centuries BC.2 The Greeks rapid depletion of natural energy resources. engineered the windmill in the first century AD.3 Humans have been hacking their environ- In 2012, California was the first in the nation to approve an energy efficiency standard for ments for centuries to create energy. Today, the global population is growing at an amazing rate. electronics manufacturers. The standard aims to Currently there are fifteen thousand births every decrease the wasted energy from battery char-

14

INTRODUCTION

gers used for cell phones, tablets, laptops and other devices. There is an average of eleven battery chargers per California household with an estimate of 170 million chargers statewide. The proposed energy standards save almost 2,200 gigawatt hours every year, or enough to power 350,000 homes. Once completely implemented, California residents will save over $300 million per year and eliminate one million metric tons of carbon emissions.7 California remains a leader in setting energy standards for the rest of the world. However, this is only decreases the global energy consumption slightly. A renewable energy method for charging the billions of electronic devices needs to be seriously addressed. The International Telecommunications Union estimates that within the year 2014, the number of cell phones in existence will exceed the global population of 7 billion.8 Ambient energy harvesting has the potential to create meaningful change. For example, over the past decade wireless devices such as kinetic battery chargers for cell phones, watches and mobile computers have entered the market. These chargers eliminate the need to replace or recharge batteries, and, in addition to reducing the costs associated with owning electronic products, they also help decrease the production of battery-related carbon. Kinetic chargers demonstrate how ambient energy harvesting has the potential to harness the routines of daily living with minimal or no disruption.

Through research, prototyping and interviews with industry experts, I have come to the conclusion that the amount of energy that can be generated though human movement with current energy harvesting technology is quite small. However, if that amount were multiplied by a factor of thousands or millions, it would become significant. Nearly 8.5 million people live in New York City, and these people walk, run, bike and move around every day.9 1.6 million of them commute in and out of Manhattan every day.10 If an energy harvesting system were to be adopted on a mass scale, New York would essentially become a living, breathing power plant.

If such a system were implemented on an even larger scale—within cities, countries and globally—it would reduce dependence on coal, oil and other antiquated energy sources, and could even serve as an engine for economic redistribution on a local level.

This thesis will explore the energy harvesting possibilities that are available with current technology and will speculate on how harvesting can be conducted in the future on a larger scale. While both natural and human-made sources have great potential for disruptive change within the energy industry, my focus is harvesting on the individual local level. Therefore human-made energy sources are the most applicable for this work. My ultimate aim is to encourage discourse and influence the way readers consider energy production and use.

15

2

GOALS AND OVERVIEW Ambient energy harvesting has great potential to create value by tapping into established and functioning sources. The goal of this body of work is to disrupt status quo thinking about energy production through highlighting the potential relationships between outputs and inputs of life. In order to do this, I designed several provocations that range from creating stand-alone products to developing services and systems. The further developed designs, which are organized into a system called Harvest, have the potential to be implemented today, and also to be used in future applications.

16

Harvest is a conceptual product and service platform that transforms a user’s movement into quantifiable energy stored to a small onboard battery. The system targets two sources that I have identified as significant to ambient energy harvesting: individual people and objects within urban environments. In the first case, I focused on how human movement generates energy that can be harvested to create usable electricity. With regard to harvesting energy from built urban environments, I focused on individual elements such as bicycles and cars, rather than on structural components such as

17

GOALS AND OVERVIEW

18

GOALS AND OVERVIEW

buildings. Through looking at cities as living, breathing entities, it’s possible to discover a vast amount of potential sources within them for energy harvesting.

The Harvest system stores energy captured through movement to small batteries, or “pods.”

On a human scale, these pods can be integrated into footwear, apparel or bicycle accessories to maximize energy harvesting potential. The more pods one attaches to the body, the more energy is harvested. Through syncing the Harvest smart phone, users may view metrics of harvested energy, collaborate with others within the Harvest community and create challenges for generating energy. This system builds on current trends such as the ‘quantified self ’ movement, gamification and incentive programs. Users also have the option of donating their energy to a local community, cause or event.

Unnoticed opportunities for energy are illuminated through gorilla harvesting methods of existing public infrastructure, or “energy pirating.” An example is “Taxi Hack,” in which pods are attached to the wheels of cabs in order to harvest the energy generated through means of

transportation. These pods can also be attached to the wheels of a bicycle for a similar purpose.

When applied to the urban environment, energy harvesting—which is essentially scavenging energy from public movement—may raise issues of ownership and energy rights.

On both a human and an urban scale, the system should produce enough energy to offset the inputs used to produce and implement it.

It should be reasonably self-sufficient, as it will harvest energy without requiring the use of objects that would demand routine maintenance and repair. The aim of Harvest is to enhance life in a meaningful way through seamless integration into existing routines.

Finally, while Harvest is the product service platform for this work, “Harvest Lab” is the experimental hacking component. Under the umbrella of Harvest Lab, I created multiple prototypes for speculative projects, which I discuss further in the “Developed Designs” section.

These prototypes are interesting within their contexts, but they still require development in terms of function and design.

19

3

METHODOLOGY

The body of this work explores energy harvesting on a micro level (the individual) and a macro level (the community). Research, synthesis, concept exploration, making and refining were all integral to development. While the project began with a wide scope, by synthesizing and downselecting areas of investigation, methods began to align with the goals of the work.

20

Initial research involved exploration of numerous academic books and technical papers on electricity, electronics, physics and energy harvesting. The book Electronics for Dummies ( John Wiley & Sons, 2009), by Cathleen Shamieh and Gordon McComb, acted as a crash course in understanding the basics of electricity and electronics. While Energy Harvesting for Autonomous Systems (Artech House, 2010), by Stephen Beeby and Neil White, established what exists and framed what is possible. Technology blogs and websites inspired my thinking and insights for potential opportunity spaces. Science fiction literature and film helped me push the boundaries of future scenario building. Interviewing industry experts was crucial to my understanding of energy production and consumption.

21

METHODOLOGY

22

METHODOLOGY

During the process, I tracked my thoughts and source materials on a public blog dedicated to this thesis (www.damonaholathesis.tumblr. com). The blog played an important role as a living journal, helping me document my progress while guiding me into the future. Weekly writings and other assets that I created for this project, from paper mockups to concept videos, live there as well. I was also inspired by student projects, experiments and research links, all of which provide a snapshot of the current energy harvesting landscape.

This work can become quite technical, filled with esoteric words and industry jargon.

Through describing my thesis to strangers as an elevator pitch, I realized that most people couldn’t define the phrase “harvesting ambient energy.” Straightforward explanation and relatable scenarios helped them understand the value of energy harvesting, both in terms of its added value and the ease with which it can be integrated into everyday life. Through these conversations, I developed a lexicon of terms to use and avoid.

Concept exploration began with observing the actions and interactions of people, animals

and objects. I compared small frequent daily movements to specific quickly repetitive or powerful movements for potential harvesting.

I made short conceptual videos to illustrate future-thinking scenarios for harvesting, and I used mind-mapping to illustrate relationships and potential areas of investigation. As I downselected concepts, I created low fidelity mockups to better understand user scenarios.

Throughout the process, advisors and experts in the field provided reality checks, helping me plot out concepts that are already feasible today or will be in three to five years’ time. By creating real and speculative designs in tandem, I pushed each area in beneficial ways.

Making either proves or disproves thinking by forcing it to take physical form. Through producing and demonstrating proof-of-principal functional prototypes, I turned the concept of ambient energy harvesting into reality. Through creating a suite of functioning objects, I laid the groundwork for future speculation based on proven methods. By approaching the work at a systems level, I was able to bring all of the individual parts and pieces together in a codependent ecosystem.

23

4

RESEARCH

My research began with understanding the basics of energy and electricity through books, blogs and instructional videos. Keeping abreast of related projects and new technologies helped me understand the current landscape of energy harvesting as well as its potential futures. I immersed myself in the world of energy through numerous interviews with industry experts, by reading academic technical papers and textbooks, finding inspirational projects online and even picking up the occasional science fiction novel.

24

The industry focus of alternative energy research has been based on natural sources of energy, such as solar, wind, waves and thermal. Researchers and scientists have only been studying human-made energy harvesting for about two decades. Studies based on kinetic, piezoelectric, vibrational and airborne frequencies are relatively new, though there are a select few experts who specifically focus in this field.

The relatively recent emergence of the study made it challenging to find established methodologies, but it also has its benefits, as most work in energy harvesting has been extremely focused and recently conducted.

25

RESEARCH

|

SOURCES OF AMBIENT ENERGY

ENERGY TYPES NATURAL solar wind hydro wave gravity geothermal

HUMAN-MADE light thermal kinetic sound piezoelectric electromagnetic

Figure 3.1 Examples of natural and man-made energy types.

The two areas of potential energy sources for harvesting, natural and human-made are both considered renewable. Natural energy harvesting sources are derived from the outputs of the earth while human-made sources are produced by objects or interactions of humans.

While the majority of natural energy is largescale, there are growing efforts in which these sources are used on a smaller individual scale.

Human-made energy harvesting sources are more efficient on a decentralized local level.

While both have great potential for disruptive change within the energy industry, my focus is harvesting on the individual level, therefore human-made energy sources are the most applicable for this work.

26

RESEARCH

|

SOURCES OF AMBIENT ENERGY

TRANSDUCTION PROCESS ENERGY INPUTS

TRANSDUCER

PROCESSOR

piezoelectric thermoelectric electrodynamic electrostatic photovoltaic

power conversion energy storage power management

light temperature change motion electromagnetic field

battery or capacitor

Figure 3.2 Energy harvesting sensor diagram by Cymbet Corporation, http://www.cymbet.com/design-center/energy-harvesting.php

Energy harvesting inputs, such as light, change in temperature, motion or electromagnetic radiation must go through a “transduction� process to allow the energy to be converted into usable electricity.1

27

RESEARCH

|

SOURCES OF AMBIENT ENERGY

Kinetic energy harvesting is one of the most studied processes within the human-made energy field. Kinetic energy generators convert ambient mechanical or electromagnetic energy into electricity. Examples of ambient inputs are vibrations, pressure or displacements. Through transduction of piezoelectric, electrodynamic or electrostatic mechanisms, energy may be produced and stored to a battery. In some instances, the energy is immediately consumed, negating a battery, as in a cuckoo clock. Gravity Light, designed by the London-based company Deciwatt, is an example of this application as well. A variety of sources have potential to be mined for kinetic energy harvesting. These categories are industrial, structural, transport and human-based.2 Vibrations can be harvested from industrial machines such as refrigerators, microwaves, washing machines and factory equipment.

Industrial machinery creates mass amounts of vibrations due to the movement of multiple mechanical parts. However, the amount of energy potential in industrial machinery is low in comparison to that which can be harvested from human movement.

28

Harvesting structural kinetic energy targets vibrations from infrastructures such as buildings, roads, railways, bridges as well as heating and cooling systems. A study conducted by the School of Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton measured the vibrations of a concrete bridge with cars traveling across it. Tests resulted in low frequencies with the potential to be harvested, but extremely small quantities.2 Harvesting energy produced by transportation targets the vibrations of moving vehicles. Cars, trains, planes and ships are all potential sources for vibrational energy harvesting. The funded project Vibration Energy Scavenging (VIBES) at the University of Southampton measured frequencies on a range of cars. Testing concluded that though cars do produce vibrations through movement, current suspension systems are very effective. Therefore vibrations through moving vehicles are not substantial sources for harvesting.2 Humans produce low frequency high amplitude movements through walking. Large forces such as the heel striking the ground have been found to produce a significant amount of energy in

RESEARCH

comparison to other ambient sources. A battery developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology by Zhong Lin Wang and colleagues is able to convert kinetic energy into chemical energy.

That system is able to produce and store enough energy equivalent to a 1.5V battery, about enough to power a pocket calculator.3 The first successful human-powered device was the self-winding wristwatch. The Swiss manufacturer, Abraham-Louis Perrelet, patented the design in 1770. As the user walked and moved his or her arm, a weight oscillated around an axis and wound the watch.4 More recent iterations rely on the same principal of inertial mass rotation, but they store harvested energy in a small battery. Watches use low amounts of energy, so they are ideal for this application. Current mobile electrical devices require a considerable larger amount of energy. Over the same duration of time, it takes 20 to 50 milliwatts of power to run the average mobile phone while it takes only 10 microwatts to power a watch.5

|

SOURCES OF AMBIENT ENERGY

my research I have found that in order to fully charge a standard AA nickel-metal hydride battery embedded in a shoe, a 5’10� male with an average stride must walk about 84 miles.6, 7 The average American male walks 5,117 steps, or roughly 2.5 miles, per day.8 At this rate, two AA batteries, one in each shoe, can be charged in just over a month of walking. For this reason, harvesting today is primarily used for powering sensors and devices that require low amounts of energy. However, research and reports focusing on human-powered energy harvesters have increased over the last decade. As devices decrease in size and become more mobile and wearable (e.g. smart phones, activity trackers, Google Glass) there is a growing interest in powering them through daily movement. A range of startup companies are currently connecting the dots of applicable inputs and outputs, and in the process, are realizing the broader potential of energy harvesting.

In general, although energy harvesting is a viable source, the amount that can potentially be generated per individual is quite small. Through

29

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

One of the first experts I reached out to was Cameron Tonkinwise. Tonkinwise worked as a sustainability expert in Australia for 15 years.

As Associate Dean of Sustainability at Parsons The New School for Design, he increased design sustainability education and research across all disciplines. He is currently Director of Design Studies at Carnegie Mellon University, where he is developing a design studies program. His interests lie in design solutions that make people want to live more sustainable lives. Through conversations with him, I became more aware of the current sustainable energy industry and the barriers, such as mobile storage, associated with ambient energy harvesting.

Tonkinwise believes that buildings should be producing their own energy as well as giving back to the grid. He spoke of the wind turbine on top of the Parson’s building, which produces steam to heat water in the building. He also mentioned other small design elements that can produce incremental energy changes, such as painting hot water pipes on a roof black to help them absorb heat from the sun. Though energy production is most efficient in a large-scale system, little bits add up to a lot. Tonkinwise’s examples are analogous to producing a small

30

cell phone charge though kinetic movement generated throughout the day. Drip-feeding the batteries for billions of phones has the potential to produce a large impact.

One limit on energy harvesting is storage. By decentralizing energy aggregation, individual capacity is constrained. Aggregation is a physics problem. How does the energy get redistributed when the storage system consists of numerous localized closed loops? Through re-framing an existing situation, potential solutions may be found. For example, a hydroelectric dam is always on, producing energy. The dam can become a battery when water is stored that can be used as energy at a later date.

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

“Little bits add up to a lot.”

Cameron Tonkinwise

“Drip feeding batteries on everyones’ phones has the potential to be quite a large impact.”

31

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

The next expert I interviewed was Alex Marrs.

Marrs is an Engagement Manager at McKinsey and Company where he is a leader in the Disruptive Technologies area. Previously, he was AVP of Product Development at InfoNgen and an Associate at Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

Marrs received his MBA from the University of Chicago. His expertise is in future technologies and their impacts on economies, environment and health.

The McKinsey Global Institute report, “Disruptive technologies: Advances that will transform life, business, and the global economy� addresses twelve technologies that may transform the world by 2025. The twelve potentially disruptive technologies described in the report are mobile internet, automation of knowledge work, the Internet of Things, cloud technology, advanced robotics, autonomous and near-autonomous vehicles, next-generation genomics, energy storage, 3D printing, advanced materials, advanced oil and gas exploration and recovery and renewable energy.9 The report argues that the Internet of Things is increasing dramatically. There has been 300% rise in the production of machine-to-machine connected devices in the past 5 years as well as an 80-90% decrease in price for MEMS (micro-electromechanical systems) sensors. There is a current potential for 1 trillion things in health care, manufacturing and mining which could be

32

connected though the Internet. The estimated economic value for operating those industries is $36 trillion.

Lithium-ion batteries and fuel cells currently power over 200,000 electric vehicles as well as billions of portable electronic devices. According to the report, since 2009 there has been a 40% decline in the price of a lithium-ion battery pack for an electric vehicle. There are 1.2 billion people globally without access to electricity, and the potential value in providing energy to those households is about $100 billion. Batteries have the potential to provide reliable power to developing countries that lack electricity.

In his work at McKinsey, Marrs emphasized the immediate need for the production of new alternative energy sources in emerging countries. Many parts of Africa, India and other emerging countries do not have access to electricity due to a lack of organized infrastructure. There is an urgent need for intermittent sources of energy created locally off-grid. The complexity and cost structure of creating these sources is substantially lower when energy is locally distributed, even through a micro-grid.

Piezoelectric technology is not efficient enough to provide large amounts of energy for homes.

Another viable option for these countries is to install solar panels on houses that feed batteries.

These panels are about as efficient as fossil fuels.

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Marrs repeatedly noted the fact that a lot of energy is wasted that has potential to be used.

The major limitation on harvesting this energy is that it is very difficult to store. According to Marrs, currently only 4% of all energy is stored.

However, if energy harvesting technologies continue to develop, there is reason to believe that these inefficiencies will exponentially diminish over time and that battery storage will increase.

Alex Marrs

“Emerging countries like Africa and India don’t have access to electricity because of a lack of organized infrastructure.�

33

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Matthew Scullin is an advocate for thermal energy. He is a San Francisco-based scientist and alternative energy entrepreneur. He is currently the CEO of the Hayward, California-based company Alphabet Energy, which he co-founded with Peidong Yang in 2008. Alphabet Energy is the first company to manufacture silicon thermoelectric devices and deploy commercial thermoelectric waste heat recovery systems.

Matthew describes what his company does with thermal energy as collecting “wasted heat.”

Thermal energy is the most power-dense source of free available energy, though he admits that wind, water and solar are efficient sources as well. Energy harvesting from vibration, kinetic, noise and motion are currently not as efficient.

Matthew Scullin

“Thermal energy (wasted heat) is generally the most power-dense source of free available energy.”

34

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Neil White is head of the Electronics Systems and Devices Group and Deputy Head of School for Enterprise at the School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton located in the United Kingdom.

He is a fellow of the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) and the Institute of Physics (IOP), as well as a senior member of the IEEE. Neil earned a B.Sc. in electronics engineering at North Staffs Polytechnic and a Ph.D. in sensors from the University of Southampton.

White’s focus of study lies in harvesting processes specifically designed as autonomous systems. With Steven Beeby, his colleague at the University of Southampton, White co-authored Energy Harvesting for Autonomous Systems (Artech House, 2010), which investigates and has been an invaluable source of information in my research. With regard to my project, White told me that while harvesting can be conducted outside of autonomous systems, researchers have observed that when these technologies are applied to an urban environment, they almost always scale up well and can generate useful amounts of power.

Neil White

“Some people have looked at urban applications of the technology and it does always scale up particularly well to generate useful amounts of power.”

35

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

While researching bicycle-generated energy, I came across the Copenhagen Wheel. This after-market rear wheel hub transforms an ordinary bicycle into a battery-powered hybrid electric-bike. According to the description on the website, www.ericbaczuk.com/the-copenhagen-wheel, “The hub contains a motor, batteries and an internal gear system - allowing users to capture the energy dissipated while braking and cycling and saving it for when they need a bit of a boost.� Eric Baczuk, Senior Interaction Designer at frog, was fundamental in the development of the wheel as a project leader. Before I began working on my thesis, I met Eric last summer while interning at the New York studio of frog. I had the chance to talk with him about the inner workings of the Copenhagen Wheel.

According to Eric, the Copenhagen Wheel uses a flywheel, which is extremely efficient for energy generating. The flywheel consists of a 250-watt motor that reverses polarity when harvesting energy then switches to normal direction when power is needed. A package of batteries that can store up to 36 volts holds the harvested energy.

Baczuk gave me meaningful feedback in response to various thoughts I had pertaining to my work. He noted that in order for economies of energy to be favorable, a real demand for use must exist. He believes that a successful

36

harvesting system should be functionally autonomous, and that integrating harvesters into wearable electronics is a rich area for opportunity as the industry is rapidly growing. These systems should be able to scale well on a macro scale, and must be easily adoptable through viral processes. He also mentioned that human-generated energy raises questions of ownership.

Does the harvester company or the individual own the energy? Finally, finding an appropriate audience is fundamental to making a system sustainable.

The Copenhagen Wheel

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Eric Baczuk

“In order for economies of energy to be favorable, a real demand for use must exist. ”

37

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Tomorrow Lab was founded by Theodore Ulrich, Pepin Gelardi and Dean DiPietro. Together they design and develop products with a unique focus on prototyping new hardware technology. I sat down with the three partners in their Manhattan studio to get their insights relating to my thesis work. They told me that the main obstacle to decentralized energy production is the lack of large capacity storage.

They also suggested that disassembling existing products is an effective method for creating functional prototypes. Their development process often consists of hacking off-the-shelf devices to test a design concept. By benchmarking existing products on the market, they believe it is possible to identify potential opportunities for energy harvesting.

“The main obstacle to decentralized energy production is the lack of large capacity storage.�

38

Theodore Ullrich

Pepin Gelardi

Dean DiPietro

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Valentine Lehr is the founder of Lehr Consultants International (LCI), a recognized leader in mechanical and electrical engineering, and he is a lecturer and lifelong educator. His firm challenges the traditional approach to electro-mechanical engineering through new technologies, thought and applications. LCI specializes in providing environmentally conscious and enhanced safety solutions to large-scale buildings. They also implement unconventional energy generation technologies.

Lehr helped me take my work into new territory by directing my focus toward walking.

Energy harvesting through floor tiles is an area that has received quite a bit of attention lately.

Lehr noted that although these tiles are relatively reliable, they generate very small amounts of energy per step. Piezoelectric methods, used for vibrational harvesting, are more relevant, as they require less maintenance than mechanical harvesters. Machinery that generates constant motion, such as rotating car wheels, is another efficient source for energy harvesting. Other sources of mechanical rotation such as bicycle and subway wheels are potential opportunity areas as well. Above all, he noted that for energy harvesting work to be successful it must cohesively integrate technology, implementation and economics.

Valentine Lehr

“Technology, implementation and economics are critical for the system to work.�

39

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

Other experts in the field have directed me toward relevant articles, websites and projects.

Rob Walker, the prolific author and journalist— as well as a faculty member of Products of Design—has sent me many insightful energy-related articles. He also put me in contact with colleagues such as Reid Lifset. Lifset’s expertise lies in the emerging field of industrial ecology, the study of the environmental consequences of production and consumption. He is associate director of the Industrial Environmental Management Program at Yale University. His numerous scientific reports have added much validity to the potential for energy harvesters.

One such report states: “In the near future, EH (energy harvesting) technology will power an increasing number of consumer and industrial products that are untethered or need to become disconnected from electrical outlets.” 10 Talking with John Thackara, author and Director of The Doors of Perception, an event production company that focuses on innovation and design, led me to other areas of potential exploration. He recommended not using batteries, and therefore circumventing their potential limitations. He cited a cuckoo clock as an example of a battery-free mechanical device. The weights on the clock essentially act as batteries, exerting energy as gravity lowers them. John also advised me to compare gross energy with net energy. Gross is the total amount of existing ambient energy, and net is the percentage of harvestable energy available for use.

Lawrence Abrahamson is a Design Lead at IDEO. He gave me feedback on my concepts, and recommended relevant projects and inspirational articles as reference points.

40

Rob Walker

Reid Lifset

John Thackara

Lawrence Abrahamson

RESEARCH

Other experts acted as sounding boards for my thoughts, and helped inspire me throughout my work. Todd Edwards is a Sustainability Consultant and PhD candidate in Climate Change Governance at Vrije Universiteit Brussel. He shared many insights into the existing sustainable product landscape, and offered perceptive observations about green energy technology.

|

EXPERTS

Todd Edwards

Becky Stern, Products of Design faculty member and Director of Wearable Electronics at Adafruit, suggested utilizing specific use cases for energy harvesting scenarios. Applying a feasibility timeline to my design concepts aided in determining what prototypes needed to be developed further.

Lawrence Abrahamson is Design Lead at IDEO. He gave me feedback on my concepts, and recommended relevant projects and articles as reference points.

Michael Reber is a PhD candidate at Zürich University for Applied Sciences. His studies focus mainly on solar energy, specifically “Luminescent Solar Concentrator (LSC)”. His recommendations about technical papers have been relevant in my solar-related research.

Ian Spalter is a user experience lead manager at YouTube. Previously at the renowned design firm R/GA, he was a lead designer on the Nike Fuel Band. Spalter had many insights in regards to the Nike Fuel system, as I proceeded to model the Harvest service platform off of it. His perspectives on branding and appropriate value propositions were crucial in the development.

Becky Stern

Michael Reber

Ian Spalter

41

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

The many variables involved in energy harvesting make it difficult to define objective metrics.

For example, the large range of harvesting technologies and many ways that harvesters can be attached to the body complicate quantification. Additionally, human bodies differ in height and weight, and individuals vary in terms of activities and movements. In-depth research led me to a technical report conducted by a team of Columbia University electrical engineering graduate students and professors.

The 2013 report, “Movers and Shakers: Kinetic Energy Harvesting for the Internet of Things”

by Maria Gorlatova, John Sarik, Min Cong, Ioannis Kymissis and Gil Zussman, is pivotal to defining quantifiable metrics of energy generation through human movement.

The study involved 40 participants preforming four common human motions in an unconstrained setting. A Sparkfun ADXL345 accelerometer sensor was placed in each participant’s shirt pocket, on his or her belt and in their trouser pocket. The sensors recorded movement while the subjects were relaxing, walking, fast walking, running, cycling, and walking upstairs or downstairs. Motions samples of 20-seconds each were then compared. Running produced the highest amount of motion and relaxing the lowest. In this study, walking downstairs was determined to be more advantageous for harvesting energy than walking upstairs. The

42

median amount of energy generated from running with the sensor in a shirt pocket was about 40 microwatts per second. This number seemed extremely low, as lighting a single LED for one second requires a thousand times more power.

I reached out to the authors of this study to see if my calculations were accurate. John Sarik, an author and graduate student at Columbia Laboratory for Unconventional Electronics, told me that it would require 1,000 seconds of running (about 16.5 minutes) to power a small 40 milliamp LED for 10 seconds. This did not bode well for the viability of energy harvesting and I challenged this metric through further research and prototyping.

Another author of the paper, Ioannis ( John) Kymissis, also responded to my inquiry. John earned a PhD in electrical engineering at MIT and is a professor at Columbia University. John has been instrumental to me as an expert and as my off-campus thesis advisor. Through weekly Google Hangout meetings I updated him on my progress, and he gave me feedback, advice and insight. Perhaps because he measures his own energy harvesting research with an accelerometer, he suggested I conduct a study by hacking a shake-powered flashlight. In these devices, the LED light is illuminated through an electromagnetic induction process, known as Faraday’s Law. A magnet passes over a coil of copper wire causing a change in the magnetic

RESEARCH

|

EXPERTS

environment. The repetition of the magnet passing back and forth induces an electrical current to power the LED. Using a multimeter I discovered that when the 1/2” diameter magnet passes over the 3/4” diameter coil of copper wire, I measured a current of 50 milliamps of current at 1 volt, equivalent to 50 millijoules.

This amount is much more viable for the possibility of ambient energy harvesting. A standard AA nickel-metal hydride rechargeable battery has the capacity of about 9,072 Joules of energy. An average 5’10” male would be able to charge two rechargeable AA batteries (one in each shoe) through walking about 84 miles.6, 7 Through reading, writing, interviewing and making, I gained an appreciation for the complexity of ambient energy harvesting.

Basic electrical engineering and electronics books aided me in understanding the essential building blocks of energy use and production.

Technical papers and science textbooks helped me apply this understanding. Industry experts directed me toward areas I may have not discovered otherwise. Each research component was crucial to defining, revising and completing this body of work.

Ioannis ( John) Kymissis,

“Joules are energy, watts are power (i.e. a rate change in energy).”

43

RESEARCH

|

FINDINGS

Low fidelity prototypes were created by disassembling electromagnetic shake flashlights and attaching to shoes. Potential energy harvesting values were calculated through walking. I estimated that 50 millijoules per step of energy are possible. The chart below are based on an average 5’ 10” male with a typical walking gait.

The metrics indicate the distances required to power each product through walking.

PRODUCT

44

ENERGY REQUIRED

WALKING REQUIRED

5mm LED (Illuminate for 1 minute)

1.8 Joules

1.4 miles

AA NiMH rechargeable battery (full charge)

9,072 Joules

84 miles

iPhone 5s (full charge)

19,620 Joules

182 miles

iPad Air (full charge)

116,640 Joules

1,083 miles

MacBook Pro 15” (full charge)

342,000 Joules

3,174 miles

45

5

AUDIENCE AND MARKETS My target audience for Harvest consists of those who are both physically and socially active. They partake in “fun runs” within their community. They are “do-gooders” and receive satisfaction by giving back to a community.

Besides walking and running, they may participate in other sports and activities. They enjoy being part of a club that encourages physical fitness and social networks. They are part of the ‘quantified self ’ movement, and are avid users of activity trackers such as Nike+, Fitbit and Jawbone UP. According to NPD (National Purchase Diary) the fitness activity tracker industry was valued at $330 million in 2013. Within user demographics, women (58%) outnumber men slightly.1 As of late 2012, 19% of smartphone users have health apps on their devices.2 That same year, there was a total of 156m global downloads for sports and fitness tracking apps.

The amount of global downloads for sports and fitness tracking apps is projected to grow 63% by 2017, to 248 million.3

46

47

AUDIENCE AND MARKETS

This demographic is also concerned about the environment and their impact on it. They are conscious of their consumption habits. They bring reusable bags to the grocery store. They walk, bike or use public transportation. They are believers in hybrid and electric cars, solar and wind technology and recycling. Global demographics include both men and women, Gen Xers and Millennials in industrialized countries. Highly populated urban settings with vast amounts of movement, heat, light and sound are rich sources of ambient energy.

The general public is beginning to be much more aware of the detrimental effects of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, which are produced by the large amount of automobiles on the road. This is one reason why hybrid electric vehicles are now surpassing innovators and early adopters on the adoption curve. The adoption curve, or diffusions of innovation, is a theory that describes the rate at which new technologies and ideas are accepted among cultures.4 Hybrid sales in the US surpassed the 3 million mark in October 2013,5 and total global sales are expected to rise 67% in 2014.6 This increase has been facilitated by tighter emission standards, especially in Europe.

Once energy harvesting is accepted on a national scale in industrialized countries, it has the potential to address issues on a global

48

scale. A secondary audience is of energy-poor citizens in developing countries. According to a report conducted by the International Energy Agency and the World Bank, almost one fifth of the world’s population is without electricity.

Experts predict that the gap will not be closed within the next 20 years unless a great amount of financial backing and effort is applied.7 The rate at which traditional electricity systems are being implemented is slower than global population growth. Yet potential harvesting sources do exist in the developing world. We cannot afford to not take advantage of this technology, especially when population growth is increasing faster than traditional energy systems are being implemented.

There is great potential to create value by tapping into established and functioning sources.

Energy harvesting isn’t just a convenient way to charge an iPhone, it has the possibility to decrease one’s environmental impact and reliance on traditional energy production.

AUDIENCE AND MARKETS

|

ADOPTION CURVE

Figure 5.1 Ambient energy harvesting market adoption curve

Ambient energy harvesting is currently in its infancy within the context of the target audience.

Therefore the market consists of innovators or those who are first among society to embrace an idea or concept.

49

6 LENSES

There are many ways to think about the potential applications and benefits of energy harvesting. Through applying a diverse range of lenses to the study of energy harvesting and by conceiving of speculative objects, I developed new perspectives on the field. The body of work was honed though branding, story telling—as developed through future-building props, science-fiction writing and concept films—by establishing instructions for harvesting, and even by designing objects aimed to repel the target audience. I also turned my thesis into a 30 second elevator pitch. The work as a whole has so many dimensions—it’s a digital experience, a product platform, and a designed performative experience—developing the lenses below played an important role in helping me find new areas of inspiration and opportunity, and in helping me think about potential audiences.

50

51

52

I mapped out domains of research and focus and created high-level diagrams to guide my further development. The primary spaces I addressed as potentially fruitful sources for energy harvesting were machines, animals and humans.

53

LENSES |

54

IDEATION

LENSES |

IDEATION

How can we harvest energy through the vessels of transportation?

An obvious source for hacking mass movement is vehicle transportation. Cars, trucks, trains, airplanes, ships and bicycles are all rich areas for tapping into for energy harvesting. Substantial amounts of energy is possible through conversion methods such as inertial mass rotation and vibrational. A multitude of transportation methods have great potential for energy harvesting.

55

LENSES |

56

IDEATION

LENSES |

IDEATION

How can we harvest energy through human movement?

Harvesting energy through human activity is applicable for many areas. Humans are constantly moving. This is quite apparent especially in urban environments. By considering all of the activities involved with daily living, unnoticed opportunities are discovered.

57

LENSES |

58

IDEATION

LENSES |

IDEATION

How can we harvest energy through the use of tools?

The majority of hand tools are designed to do one task. Since energy is exhausted by the user through working with the tool, it seems plausible to create a secondary profit through harvesting this energy. As with all harvesting processes, the additional benefit should not disrupt or add to the activity of the tool. By addressing the relationship between existing energy inputs and appropriate secondary outputs, meaningful benefits are realized.

59

LENSES |

60

IDEATION

LENSES |

IDEATION

How can we harvest energy through living things?

The medical implant industry is growing rapidly. Devices such as pacemakers require small batteries to function. These batteries need to be replaced every 5-10 years.1 Currently, surgical operations are the only way to replace the batteries. Scientists and engineers are already exploring the possibility of charging these batteries though the movement or heat of the user.

Implanted sensors that track human vials are now becoming a reality as well.2 Harvesting energy from animal movement is a possible area. One example is a speculative concept involving a catch and release program for New York City rats. Kinetic powered WiFi transmitters could be embedded in rats that populate the subway tunnels as well as crevices around the city. Free internet access would be available throughout the city, even in dead zone areas such as the underground subway system.

61

LENSES

62

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

a.

b.

c.

d.

e.

f.

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

I created a series of speculative objects to provoke critical thinking and promote interactions with energy production. Object a illustrates the concept of basic thermodynamics. As a candle burns, heat is converted to energy that turns a paper turbine. Object b is a conceptual bracelet, which the wearer can attach an array of modular blocks to collect energy. Object c is a conceptual energy generator that produces power as the user tows it around. Object d is the Taxi Hack pod that turns captures energy from the movement of vehicles, which I developed and expand on later. Object e channels vibrational movement, and could potentially harvest disruptions in the earth’s surface as they are produced along fault lines. Object f demonstrates the secondary benefits of a simple tool used for manual labor. In this instance, a dust vacuum system is powered though sanding.

a. thermodynamic experiment b. energy harvesting blocks bracelet c. energy spindle d. Taxi Hack pod e. fault line vibration harvester f. sanding block dust vac system

63

64

65

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

The Taxi Hack pod is temporarily attached to the wheel of a taxi via magnets before the passenger enters. The pod harvests energy through the rotation of the wheel.

Upon leaving the taxi, the pod is removed from the wheel and used to charge personal devices, such as a cell phone. This concept was developed further as a functioning and tested prototype described later under “Harvest Lab.�

66

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

67

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

This modular tool system derives secondary benefits from labor. A light pod may be connected to various hand tools throughout the day in order to be charged by kinetic energy. For instance, a user may plug it into a shovel, and then later connect it to a broom or a rake. Once the battery in the light pod is charged through movement, the user may use it as a lantern at night. This concept may be especially useful in developing countries that lack access to electrical infrastructure.

68

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

69

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

Energy harvesting to power life-sustaining devices.

These speculative devices are reliant on harvesting a user’s energy outputs. The design on the left is an insulin pump that is powered though kinetic movement. The user needs to remain active in order for the pump to continue to function. The design on the right is a pacemaker powered by the user’s body heat. If the design were to be developed, it would eliminate the need for complicated surgery every few years to replace the device’s battery.

70

LENSES

|

SPECULATIVE OBJECTS

71

LENSES

|

SET OF INSTRUCTIONS

I developed a set of instructions to demonstrate the concept of energy harvesting. These instructions take the form of a bent wire structure, a small magnifying lens and a perforated sheet of paper with input and output action words (e.g. move = light) printed on it. After folding and tearing the paper instructions, light from the sun is focused on them through the magnifying lens. When the paper catches fire, the resulting heat rotates a small paper fan turbine through thermodynamic power. The essence of energy harvesting is demonstrated through the physical use of the instructions.

72

LENSES

|

SET OF INSTRUCTIONS

73

LENSES

|

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

Almost a fifth of the world’s population, do not have access to electricity. Over 95 percent of this population is in sub-Saharan Africa or in developing Asia, and 84 percent of it is in rural areas. The estimated cost of extending the energy grid into these areas is estimated at $35 billion to $40 billion per year over the next 20 years.3 Ambient energy harvesting that is produced locally and off the grid is ideal for these “energy poor” areas. So long as there is movement, light, and sound, potential sources for energy harvesting already exist.

The majority of the population of sub-Saharan Africa live in rural areas accessible only by dirt roads. Public transportation is rare and unreliable. Vaccines, drugs, mosquito nets, condoms delivery as well as doctors are reliant on various modes of two-wheeled transportation.3 In areas that rely on such precarious forms of transportation, secondary benefits can be derived by attaching energy harvesting rods onto the wheels of bikes. Once the rider reaches his or her destination and energy has been collected, the energy harvester can be dropped off at the village in order to provide power for light, heat and other utilities.

74

Riders for Health’s Kenya Program

LENSES

|

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

Utilizing existing transportation infrastructure to address critical needs.

75

LENSES

|

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

Additionally, people can provide their own energy through government subsidized energy bands. A sense of communal collaboration is foregrounded in this conceptual energy-harvesting scenario.

76

LENSES

|

SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

77

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

Branding inspiration mood board

78

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

Object inspiration mood board

79

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

A brand pyramid describes the overall ethos of a brand through highlighting distinctive elements and the principles the brand stands for.

80

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

Through viewing a single work as part of a brand, it’s possible to identify the distinctive characteristics, stylistic elements and overarching ethos that are present throughout the design ecosystem.

81

LENSES

82

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

Parasitic biomimicry to harvest energy.

Energy harvesting stickers mimic parasites.

When attached to moving objects, people or animals, the stickers convert kinetic activity into energy. These thin power-scavenging devices can be sealed and sent in envelopes or packages, essentially hacking the postal service in the name of energy creation. The sender can also mail battery-depleted stickers across the globe, and by the time they arrive, the recipient will get a fully charged usable battery.

83

LENSES

84

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

A new economy based on energy, current currency.

These quarter-sized stones are the currency of the new economy. Each stone stores kinetic energy to a micro internal battery. As the amount of energy converted and stored to each stone increases, the value of the stone directly increases as well. The charged stones may be exchanged for goods and services like existing currency. They may also be used to charge devices through inductive charging bases.

85

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

Energy harvesting through play.

86

LENSES

|

BRANDED OBJECTS

These conceptual objects demonstrate the process of energy harvesting though playful interactions. Through twirling, bouncing, rolling and spinning, power is created. The wooden case not only acts as a storage box, but as an energy converter as well. Once the micro internal battery in each object has reached storage capacity, they are to be placed back into the case. Devices and appliances may be plugged into the back of the case depending on mobile energy requirements.

87

LENSES

|

FUTURE-BUILDING

Energy harvesting should seamlessly integrate into our daily routine.

“Hacked Couture” is a concept video that describes a day in New York City in the year 2018. By that point, individuals have the ability and the technology to power their electronic devices by “hacking” into daily activities.

88

89

LENSES

|

FUTURE-BUILDING

In order to envision a future in which ambient energy harvesting could sustainably exist, I turned to reading, writing, storytelling and object-making to generate ideas. I diagrammed three speculative worlds set in the early 2050s, using them as settings for thought experiments that would probe the possible benefits and consequences of harvesting ambient energy. Each world elaborated on an existing trend that may have the potential to affect citizens on a global scale by the year 2050.

In “Disruptive Nature” I describe a world in which nature becomes very angry. Tsunamis, earthquakes and floods occur on a frequent basis. Smog engulfs much of the planet and citizens take to living underground. Engineers have found a method to harvest the forces of natural disasters to generate energy.

90

The second world, “Indie Capitalism,” portrays a global economy in which consumerism and greed are deeply ingrained in society. 3D printers are in every home and every individual operates as a business, selling their wares. Citizens power their daily needs through scavenging for ambient energy waves, such as WiFi and radiation backscatter.

The last world, “Maximum Security,” envisions a future constructed around extreme digital security. The World Security Administration (WSA) has been established to regulate all e-commerce, communications and social media interactions. Citizens create off-grid energy through solar, wind and water. In this world, energy is the new global currency.

LENSES

|

FUTURE-BUILDING

91

92

LENSES

Story telling is a necessary component of speculative thinking. These three worlds were used to construct short narratives about energy harvesting. Referencing the format of the hero’s journey, each story crafted a society, norms and behaviors around a speculative object. In the story, “Harvesting Drones,” the protagonist is an engineer at a large energy-harvesting drone corporation in the year 2053. James, the engineer, starts to doubt the ethics of his work and goes on a life-changing journey. “Disruptive Nature” describes a world of environmental chaos set in the year 2052. Most of civilization is living underground. The main character, Sofia, is notified by her father that planet Earth is deemed “uninhabitable” and must be evacuated. Only the rich and privileged will be able to migrate to Mars to start a new civilization. Her academic research has proven that there is a chance of improving Earth’s condition, and she

|

FUTURE-BUILDING

is faced with the decision of staying or leaving.

The third narrative, “The Suit,” is set in 2054, in a world in which citizens are mandated to generate a certain amount of energy through wearing an energy-harvesting suit. The story takes place over a day in the life of the protagonist, Anders, as he goes to work and interacts with his suit. In the end, he discovers a way to escape from the suit.

I used “The Suit” as inspiration for creating a physical object. The object, which is meant to demonstrate speculative principles, consists of an articulating structure that locks onto a subject’s arm. In the fully realized version of the project, energy will be harvested and stored throughout the day as the wearer moves and flexes their arm.

93

94

95

LENSES

| DESIGN TO DELIGHT

One misunderstanding within my audience is how much energy equates to their daily activity. The research paper “Movers and Shakers: Kinetic Energy Harvesting for the Internet of Things� describes experiments of kinetic energy measuring devices that were used to evaluate the potential energy for specific activities. Writing with a pencil produces 10-15 microwatts, opening a door equals 1 microwatt or less, etc.

However, these amounts have no context and are meaningless for the average user. There is a need for a device that not only harvests energy from activities, but also produces relatable and understandable energy metrics.

96

LENSES

|

DESIGN TO DELIGHT

This conceptual device is similar to a wearable activity tracker, but instead of measuring steps taken or calories burned, it measures energy harvested. As the user goes about his or her daily activities, the wearable device harvests energy. The energy is then measured with familiar objects that require energy, such as a light bulb, cell phone and laptop. These indications of how much each object requires to charge or power are easier to understand than arbitrary wattage.

Once a certain level of energy is accrued on the device, the user is rewarded with a “free� charge or power of their light bulb, cell phone, etc. This incentive system creates an enthusiasm for remaining active throughout the day. It also creates a direct correlation between the activities and energy requirements for their devices.

This connection creates an understanding and awareness of the large amount of energy required for powering the devices of our lives.

The energy pods may be stacked on one another to create a more powerful energy cell to charge larger devices as well.

97

LENSES

| DESIGN TO PROVOKE

Over the course of my research, I reached out to a number of professors in the fields of psychology and human behavior in order to gain an understanding of the differences between habit, routine and ritual. As a substantial amount of movement is needed throughout the day in order for a person to generate enough energy to power a battery, I realized that successful energy harvesting is contingent on establishing links between repetitive movement and habits, routines and rituals.

To corroborate my research into habits, routines and rituals, I decided to design something that I knew my audience would hate. Some habitual activities are sequential. For example, one wakes up, takes a shower, eats breakfast and

98

then brushes his or her teeth. Very rarely do people brush their teeth before they eat breakfast. Jumping off this insight, I created a suite of speculative designs titled “Codependent Appliances.� One design is a coffee maker that also functions as a coffee bean grinder. Pairing the two separate yet dependent appliances is logical, however, this grinder is powered by a battery that can only be charged by energy harvested from the coffee maker. As a result, the coffee maker has to be used before the grinder can be, but the coffee maker depends on the grinder to grind the beans. Once they become aware of this infuriating dynamic, users will likely respond with confusion and anger. Designing for extreme user scenarios helped to frame what designs were appropriate for energy harvesting.

LENSES

|

DESIGN TO PROVOKE

99

LENSES

|

ELEVATOR PITCH

To pitch my thesis, I created a 30 second animated GIF. The animation was showed to complete strangers on an iPad in an elevator. The process initiated conversation about energy use and whether the general public really knew what ambient energy harvesting was. I found that the majority of people I encountered did not know what “harvesting,” “ambient,” or “energy” really meant. They were, however, intrigued with the idea of harnessing movement to charge their iPhones. This exercise helped me define a thesis lexicon containing terms that were appropriate for the work as well as terms to avoid.

100

101

LENSES

|

LEXICON

Through the practice of describing my thesis in a concise and pithy manner to strangers, I became aware of specific terminology I should and should not use. These terms were compiled into two lists, “Lexi-can” and Lexi-can’t.”

I frequently referred to these lists throughout the development phase, attempting to abide by the curated set of vocabulary.

102

LENSES

LEXI-CAN terms to use throughout the thesis work Ambient: within your immediate environment Amp: the unit measuring the amount of electricity that flows Battery: a device that produces an electric current using chemicals, the ability to storage energy Benefit: something that promotes well-being, advantage Current: the steady flow in one direction Disrupt: a change in the ways things are currently done or thought of Electricity: a form of the ability to work caused by the movement of tiny particles (i.e. electrons, ions, or other charged particles) Embedded: to be or become incorporated into a surrounding Energy: the ability to do things, to work Generate: to create something Hack: do it yourself modification of something Harvest: 1.noun - a supply of anything gathered at maturity and stored 2.verb – to gather (a crop or the like) Incentive: something that promotes effort, as a reward offered for increased productivity

|

LEXICON

Joule: a unit of work or energy (1 joule = 1 watt per second) Millijoule: 1/1000 of a joule (1000 millijoules = 1 joule) Milliwatt: 1/1000 of a watt (1000 milliwatts = 1 watt) Movement: actions or activities, as of a person or a body of persons Platform: a common design, formula or product related to a family or system Power: electricity made available to use, of doing or accomplishing something Resource: something that people can use Scavenge: to take or gather (something usable) from discarded material, similar to harvest Value: relative worth, merit, or importance Volt: the unit measuring the strength or pushing force of an electric current Watt: the amount of power that is created or used LEXI-CAN’T terms to avoid throughout the thesis work Creation of energy Free energy Labor Money-saving Sustainable Work

103

LENSES

|

SERVICE

Every product is essentially a service, and great service experiences are built on relationships and understanding.

Steven Dean, Products of Design faculty, emphasized in the Service Entrepreneurship class that every product is essentially a service, and great service experiences are built on relationships and understanding. By modeling conversations, relationships and experiences around ambient energy harvesting, I reached a better understanding of how critical interactions function with the audience.

I created cybernetic maps to detail various energy systems, such as how a battery may be charged through movement, how a village may be communally powered through energy harvesting, and supply and demand of household energy. These maps illustrate the actions, feedback loops and goals required for each system. They also aid in understanding the system through interactions between the object and the user.

104

LENSES

|

SERVICE

105

LENSES

106

|

SERVICE

LENSES

|

SERVICE

Through conversation maps and visual diagrams, I illustrated the goals and means of energy harvesting in a straightforward manner.

I diagrammed multiple conversation maps in order to understand the interactions required for successful energy harvesting. “Move to Charge� is a map that illustrates a conversation between a user and a conceptual wearable energy harvester who collaborate on charging a cellphone.

107

LENSES

|

SERVICE

The more light-hearted “Digging for Toast� focuses on an energy-harvesting shovel that I had designed as a speculative object. In this scenario, two people work together to achieve different goals. One person needs to dig a hole, and the shoveling motion is also able to power a toaster. Ultimately, the person who digs the hole is rewarded with toast.

108

LENSES

|

SERVICE

109

LENSES

|

DIGITAL EXPERIENCE

To develop a better understanding of my potential target audience for energy harvesting, I developed proto-personas. The proto-personas identify specific demographics and lifestyles that describe potential users.

110

LENSES

|

DIGITAL EXPERIENCE

111

LENSES

|

DIGITAL EXPERIENCE

While designing the concept for an energy harvesting lifestyle brand called “a.life,� I created the framework for a related products, including a mobile app and website. a.life products promote capturing one’s own kinetic movement and turning it into usable energy. One conceptual product I devised under this umbrella is a wearable activity tracker. I referenced an activity tracker again, but in this scenario the system measures Joules of energy harvested. Using the a.life app, the user then has the ability to transfer the energy generated through walking or running to charge their mobile phone or other devices. The a.life website allows users to create on-line profiles and to upload their energy metrics. This encourages community building around energy harvesting and off-grid production methods.

112

LENSES

|

DIGITAL EXPERIENCE

113

7

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

114

115

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

By synthesizing all the insights I arrived at while working on my thesis, I began to develop a brand that would epitomize its goals and messages. This brand became “Harvest.” Embodied as a product and service platform, Harvest transforms a user’s daily movement into quantifiable energy. Using an electromagnetic process, energy is stored to a micro rechargeable lithium-ion battery called a “pod” that is embedded in footwear, apparel and bicycles.

Once the pod has been fully charged through movement, the user may upload their energy at any one of various “Harvest Hotspots.” Nike stores, Lululemon stores, Starbucks and Whole Foods will serve as Harvest Hotspots, as will a select number of small local establishments.

116

Harvest members may upload their harvested energy through on-site kiosks. Kiosks will utilize the already established Square payment platform. Users can transfer harvested energy from their batteries to a local green energy bank by removing pods from shoes or jackets, and by physically plugging the pod into the kiosk.

Harvest members also have the option of donating energy credits to a local charity, cause or event, such as The American Red Cross. City to city energy challenges will encourage frequent participation with the system. Harvest and partner companies will have the opportunity to sponsor large events such as marathons, fun runs, bike races and even music festivals.

117

118

119

120

121

122

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

The free Harvest app displays real-time metrics of generated and stored energy. Through syncing the app with Harvest pods, members may view their harvested energy amounts as well as how much is needed to fully charge the pod. Overall metrics are displayed as a timeline graph, which doubles as an energy harvesting timeline. Members can also collaborate within the online Harvest community and create energy-generating challenges.

123

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

124

| HARVEST

125

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

126

| HARVEST

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

Embodied as a product and service platform, Harvest transforms a user’s daily movement into quantifiable energy. Using an electromagnetic process, energy is stored to a micro rechargeable lithium-ion battery called a “pod” that is embedded in footwear, apparel and bicycles. Once the pod has been fully charged through movement, the user may upload their energy at any one of various “Harvest Hotspots.” Nike, Trek, Lululemon, Starbucks, and Whole Foods stores will serve as Harvest Hotspots, as will a select number of small local establishments. A Harvest member may upload their harvested energy through an on-site kiosk. Kiosks will utilize the already established Square payment platform. Users can transfer harvested energy from their batteries to a local power grid by removing pods from shoes or jackets, and by physically plugging the pod into the kiosk. Harvest members also have the option of donating energy credits to a local charity, cause or event, such as The American Red Cross. City to city energy challenges will encourage frequent participation with the system. Harvest and partner companies will have the opportunity to sponsor large events such as marathons, fun runs, bike races and even music festivals.

127

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

128

| HARVEST

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

129

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

The harvested energy may be uploaded at any one of the numerous Harvest Hotspots in major cities. Nike stores, Lululemon stores, Starbucks and Whole Foods as well as set of local businesses act as Hotspots. A map of the nearest Hotspots may be viewed through the Harvest app. Participating stores prominently display the Harvest logo in their front window as well.

130

131

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

The Harvest user can upload their energy by visiting Harvest Hotspots. The Harvest pod is plugged directly into the existing Square point of sale kiosk and the energy is transferred to the store’s local green energy bank. Once enough energy is accumulated, a Renewable Energy Certificate (R.E.C.) is created. The certificate is then sold on the energy market and the proceeds are donated to a set of philanthropic foundations and charity organizations, such as Red Cross, Renewable World, UNICEF and 1% for the Planet.

132

The components of the partner value proposition are that it is elevates their brand perception, encourages frequent customer visits to stores, promotes purchasing through incentives and creates sponsorship opportunities for races, festivals and charity events. The parts of the value proposition for the customer are that it promotes an active lifestyle, creates an opportunity to donate generated energy to a charity, offerings for discounts and lotteries, encourages a feeling of belonging to a community as well as giving back to a community.

133

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

The Harvest business model mimics how the company 3M sells their Thinsulate product.

3M manufactures Thinsulate, a line of thermal insulation for clothes, and licenses the items to apparel companies for use in their own products. Similarly, Harvest will manufacture energy harvesting technology and sell it to select companies, such as Nike, Lululemon and Trek. Through specialization, Harvest will focus on developing and manufacturing energy harvesting technology, while other companies will be responsible for developing products that utilize the technology.

Nike,1 Lululemon2 and Trek3 are all appropriately aligned with the branding and mission of Harvest. Nike is a leader in integrating sustainable design principles into its product and business practice. Recent examples of this are the FlyKnit running shoe that wastes less material as well as a public “materials sustainability index� as a call to action for the fashion industry.4 Just recently, Nike has announced that is has closed down its FuelBand division and will not be developing and selling any more hardware. However, Nike announced the launch of Fuel Lab, an R&D space where companies will be able to design hardware products that incorporate the Nike+ software.5

134

Moreover, each company has had substantial growth over the past few years, and all their sales are expected to increase. In 2012, Nike earned $24.1 billion in revenue. The brand alone is valued at $10.7 billion, making it the most valuable company in the athletic space. Nike currently sells 120 million shoes per year.6 If the Harvest line accounted for 1% of Nike sales, it would add up to 1.2 million shoes. The shoes will be sold through online channels as well as in Nike retail stores. By establishing a partnership between Nike and Harvest, stakeholders in each company will become reliant on each other to foster long-term sustainable growth.

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

135

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

136

| HARVEST

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST

A campaign featuring Nike-sponsored athletes will reframe perception of energy production and use. Potential customers will be invited to consider the question, “What would you do with the energy of LeBron James?�. Would you put it on the shelf as a collectible, power your iPhone, or donate it to a school to keep their lights on?

137

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

138

| HARVEST

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

There are many benefits to partnering with Harvest. Association with Harvest will enable companies to frame themselves as eco-friendly, innovative and forward thinking. Harvest Hotspots will encourage customers to visit companies’ retail stores, and Harvest-based incentives and discounts will promote additional sales. Finally, sponsorship opportunities for races, festivals and charity events will serve as excellent marketing opportunities.

The value of Harvest lies on an individual level and a community one. Harvest encourages an active lifestyle through gamification and incentives. Product discounts and lotteries will be sponsored by partner companies. Environmental benefits will be realized through self-generated

| HARVEST

energy. A sense of community will be cultivated through online social networks, and by creating challenges to participate in with friends. The option of allowing users to donate energy to charity will encourage a sense of giving back.

While the Harvest system was designed for an audience within a developed country, it has potential to be scaled and customized for developing countries. Successfully designing a platform for an energy-poor population requires extensive on-site research and observation. I was not able to fulfill this requirement, though I am optimistic about the system’s global potential.

Once Harvest is proven to be sustainable, it may be applied to markets throughout the world.

139

140

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST LAB

I found a number of other promising potential sources for energy harvesting, yet I did not refine work in these areas to the point of high fidelity. I did, however, develop working prototypes that stemmed from thought experiments based on these sources. These prototypes and experiments live under the umbrella of “Harvest Lab,” which encompasses the more experimental “hacking” side of Harvest. It’s the Google X or Google Creative Lab to the corporate Google.

141

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST LAB

An early concept that I developed into a working prototype is the Taxi Hack pod. The circular pod is temporarily attached by magnets to the hubcap of a taxi. The pod then harvests energy from the rotation of the wheel through a dynamo. When leaving the taxi, the pod is removed from the wheel and used to charge personal devices, such as an iPhone. I tested the prototype by attaching it to a wheel and driving 6 blocks in Manhattan. The short drive resulted in a successful battery charge signal in an iPhone 5. This is an example of hacking one’s surroundings for personal benefit. The hacker becomes an “energy pirate”—scavenging small amounts of energy from any potential source within their environment. Build instructions along with CAD files would be available to the online community to encourage the energy pirating movement.

142

143

144

145

146

147

DEVELOPED DESIGNS

| HARVEST LAB

Another experiment I conducted under the auspices of Harvest Lab is “Project Zip Light.�

Through research and prototyping, I found that a DC motor is one of the most efficient methods for harvesting energy. By directly connecting an LED to a DC motor and running the device down a zip line to generate energy, I circumvented the need for a capacitor or a battery to turn on the light. The simple rotation of the motor alone provided enough power for the LED. Project Zip Light was inspired by Gravity Light designed by London based company Deciwatt. Gravity Light generates energy to power an LED though taking advantage of potential energy and gravity. The user raises a heavy bag of sand. The lowering of the bag transforms mechanical energy into electrical energy to illuminate an LED. Project Zip Light replaces the need for a lowering weight with the horizontal movement of a zip line.

I conducted multiple rounds of prototyping and testing to arrive at the ideal weight of the lights, distance of travel and angle of the zip line. Through creating four generations of functional prototypes, I gave each individual light the capacity to illuminate two colors, with colors alternating based on the direction the light was traveling on the zip line. I ultimately made five functional copies of the final design and displayed them in a pubic setting. I built a pulley system consisting of PVC tubing and paracord, which acted as the means of deploy-

148

ing all five zip lines. I tested the lights on the deployment rig on the north lawn of Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Sunday, April 13th. To draw public curiosity, it was crucial to set up the system before sundown. The rig was mildly successful, however it seemed to work better at deploying two lights at a time instead of five.

On Sunday, April 20th I tested the second iteration of Project Zip Light at the same location in Prospect Park. I build two additional pulley rigs and attached magnets to the rigs and lights to hold them in place until they reached an appropriate height. The modifications proved successful and the setup attracted multiple groups of people walking by in the park. Project Zip Light acted as an intervention to encourage conversation around energy generation and use. By framing the experiment as a designed system that utilizes weight and gravity to transfer mechanical energy into electrical energy, I prompted people to think about unique methods of energy generation.

I plan to engineer and build another prototype based on my learnings. The new iteration will be geared so that the light travels very slowly along the zip line. This will lengthen the duration of the illumination and alleviate the need for the frequent raising and lowering of the zip line. It could be used as a functional design piece in a home setting as well.

149

150

151

152

153

154

155

156

157

158

159

8 LOOKING FORWARD

160

161

LOOKING FORWARD

162

LOOKING FORWARD

This thesis has been an incredible journey filled with inspiration, discovery, impediments and breakthroughs. I plan to continue thinking and designing for the issues I’ve raised here. Some of the designs I proposed could be further developed for production today. However, much of the thinking throughout this body of work is five to ten years out. Although Harvest is currently only a speculative system, I believe that the ideals and goals of the work will become more important than ever as the global population increases and traditional energy resources are depleted.

gy-harvesting products such as the SOCCKET soccer ball, Gravity Light and the Copenhagen Wheel point to the emergence of self-produced energy products and a greater public awareness of them. This trend will become stronger as technology advances over the next several years.

It’s only a matter of time until harvesters are seamlessly embedded into the electronic devices billions of people use every day. The proliferation of mobile computing and wearable technology devices such as Google Glass and Fitbit will also increase demand for a reliable method of battery charging through movement.

This thesis is a call to the general population to rethink the ways energy is currently generated and used. Great advancements are needed in the fields of battery storage and harvesting before Harvest can become a reality. A green bank infrastructure must also be constructed before the system can be implemented. Though Harvest is a conceptual design service, it is currently possible to harvest usable energy on an individual level. Newly launched ener-

Taking the concept of Harvest and applying it to other facets of movement, anything that moves can be a source for energy. It’s only a matter of time for science to catch up to design.

I plan to continue exploring, thinking, making and designing within the field of energy harvesting. There is an immediate need for new green energy. It is possible to realize meaningful change through reframing our perception of energy use and production.

163

9

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND NOTES

164

165

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Apple.com. http://www.apple.com/iphone-5s/specs; http://www.apple.com/ipad-air/specs; http:// www.apple.com/macbook-pro/specs-retina.

All About Batteries. http://www.allaboutbatteries.com/Energy-tables.html.

Amdahl, Kenn. There Are No Electrons: Electronics for Earthlings. Broomfield, CO: Clearwater Publishing Company, Inc., 1991.

Bassett, David R Jr.; Wyatt, Holly R.; Thompson, Helen; Peters, John C.; and Hill, James O. “Pedometer-Measured Physical Activity and Health Behaviors in U.S. Adults.” Med Sci Sports Exerc.

October 2010. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2927728.

Beeby, Stephen and White, Neil. Energy Harvesting for Autonomous Systems. Norwood, MA: Artech, 2010.

Beeby, Stephen; Torah, R N; Tudor, M J; Glynne-Jones, P; O’Donnell, T; Saha, C R; Roy, S. “A Micro Electronmagnetic Generator for Vibration Energy Harvesting.” School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, Highfeild, Southampton, Hampshire. June 5, 2007.

Beeby, Stephen; Tudor, M J; White, Neil. “Energy Harvesting Vibration Sources for Microsystems Applications.” School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, Highfeild, Southampton, Hampshire. October, 26, 2006.

Beiser, Arthur, Ph.D. Schaum’s Easy Outlines: Applied Physics. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2012.

Bhatia D; Bairagi S; Goel S; Jangra M. “Pacemakers Charging Using Body Energy.” J Pharm Bioall Sci 2010; 2:51-4.

Bumgardner, Wendy. “Steps Per Mile - How Many Walking Steps in a Mile?” March 22, 2014. http://walking.about.com/od/pedometer1/a/steps-per-mile.htm.

The California Energy Commission. “Energy Commission Plugs in Energy Efficiency Rules for Battery-Charged Appliances.” released January 12, 2012. http://www.energy.ca.gov/releases/2012_ releases/2012-01-12_battery_chargers_nr.html.

166

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cusick, Daniel. “Report Sees ‘Energy Harvesting’ Devices Replacing Many Uses For Batteries.”

EE Publishing. October 9, 2013.

Cymbet Corporation. cymbet.com. 2014. http://www.cymbet.com/design-center/energy-harvesting.php.

Ecology.com. “World Birth and Death Rates.” estimated for 2011. http://www.ecology.com/birthdeath-rates.

The Economist. “Energy in the Developing World, Power to the People.” September 12, 2010. http://www.economist.com/node/16909923.

Elvin, Niell and Erturk, Alper. Advances in Energy Harvesting Methods. New York, NY: Springer Science+Business Media, March 2012.

Fisher, Danielle. “How will population growth affect energy?” last modified 29 August 2012, http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/energy/population-growth-affect-energy.html.

Fox, Susannah and Duggan, Maeve. “Mobile Health 2012.” Pew Research Internet Project. November 2012. http://www.pewinternet.org/2012/11/08/mobile-health-2012.

Green Car Congress. “IHS Automotive forecasts global production of plug-in vehicles to rise by 67% this year.” February 4, 2014. http://www.greencarcongress.com/2014/02/20140204-ihspev. html#more.

Griffith, Saul. “Griffith Proposes Massive Increase in Green Energy.” The Long Now Foundation.

January 2009. http://fora.tv/2009/01/16/Saul_Griffith_Climate_Change_Recalculated/Griffith_ Proposes_Massive_Increase_in_Green_Energy.

Gorlatova, Maria; Sarik, John; Cong, Mina; Kymissis, Ioannis; Zussman, Gil. “Movers and Shakers: Kinetic Energy Harvesting for the Internet of Things.” Columbia University. September 2013.

Howstuffworks.com. “How will population growth affect energy?” last modified 29 August 2012. http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/energy/population-growth-affect-energy.html.

167

BIBLIOGRAPHY

IHS. “Sports and Fitness App Market to Expand by More Than 60 Percent in Five Years.” July 11, 2013. http://press.ihs.com/press-release/design- /sports-and-fitness-app-market-expand-more60-percent-five-years.

Kymissis, John; Kendall, Clyde; Paradiso, Joseph; Gershenfeld, Neil. “Parasitic Power Harvesting in Shoes.” Physics and Media Group, MIT Media Laboratory, Cambridge, MA. 1998.

Leber, Jessica. Fast Co Exist. “Are the 613 Largest U.S. Public Companies Actually Working on Sustainability?” April 30, 2014. http://www.fastcoexist.com/3029698/are-the-613-largest-us-public-companies-actually-working-on-sustainability?partner=newsletter#4.

Luschas, S.; Kozinsky, A; Kuligovsky, A.; Illing, M. “Effect of Coil Wire Gauge in Electromagnetic Power Harvesters.” Bosch Research and Technology Center. Palo Alto, CA. December1-4, 2009.

Manyika, James; Chui, Michael; Bughin, Jacques; Dobbs, Richard; Bisson, Peter; and Marrs, Alex.

“Disruptive technologies: Advances that will transform life, business, and the global economy.”

McKinsey Global Institute, May 2013. http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/ disruptive_technologies Mayo Clinic. “Pacemakers - Tests and Procedures.” 2014. http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/pacemaker/basics/results/prc-20014279.

National Purchase Diary. “Wearable Tech Device Awareness Surpasses 50 Percent Among US Consumers, According to NPD.” NPD Group. January 7, 2014. https://www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/us/news/press-releases/wearable-tech-device-awareness-surpasses-50-percent-among-usconsumers-according-to-npd.

Platter, John. “Battery On Shoe Charges With Every Step.” January 9, 2013. http://www.forbes. com/sites/eco-nomics/2013/01/09/battery-on-shoe-charges-with-every-step.

Priya, Shashank and Inman, Daniel, J. Energy Harvesting Technologies. New York, NY: Springer, 2009.

Rabinbach, Anson. The Human Motor Energy, Fatigue, and the Origins of Modernity. Berkley; Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press, 1992.

Rand, Ayn. Atlas Shrugged. New York, NY: The Penguin Group, 1957.

168

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sethi, Regan Kumar “Energy Harvesting from Ambient Vibrations by Electromagnetic Transduction Mechanism.” Bachelor of Technology Thesis. Electrical Engineering Department of Electrical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Rourkela. 2008.

Shamieh, Cathleen and McComb, Gordon. Electronics for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2009.

Shea, Kevin; Howard, Brian Clark. Build Your Own Small Wind Power System. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2012.

Si Team.“World to have more cell phone accounts than people by 2014.” Silicon India, January 2, 2013. http://www.siliconindia.com/magazine_articles/World_to_have_more_cell_phone_accounts_than_people_by_2014-DASD767476836.html.

Spreemann, Dirk and Manoli, Yiannos. Electromagnetic Vibration Energy Harvesting Devices. New York, NY: Springer, 2012.

Statistic Brain. “Nike Company Statistics.” August 22, 2012. http://www.statisticbrain.com/nike-company-statistics/Nike.

Statt, Nick. Cnet. “Exclusive: Nike Fires Majority of FuelBand Team, Will stop Making Wearable Hardware.” http://www.cnet.com/news/nike-fires-fuelband-engineers-will-stop-making-wearable-hardware.

United States Census Bureau. March 5, 2013. http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/ american_community_survey_acs/cb13-r17.html.

United States Energy Information Administration, “How much electricity is lost in transmission and distribution in the United States?,” http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=105&t=3.

Van Vleet. Carmella. Explore Electricity. White River Junction, VT: Nomad Press, 2013.

Vullers et al. Solid-State Electronics, 53/7.“Micropower Energy Harvesting.” pages 684–693, 2009.

169

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wikipedia. “Abraham-Louis Perrelet.” last modified on March 23, 2014, http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Abraham-Louis_Perrelet.

Wikipedia. “Diffusions of Innovation.” last modified on April 26, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations.

Wikipedia. “Hybrid electric vehicles in the United States.” last modified on April 16, 2014. http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hybrid_electric_vehicles_in_the_United_States.

Wikipedia. “Lululemon.” last modified on April 19, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lululemon.

Wikipedia. “New York City.” last modified on April 24, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_ york_city.

Wikipedia. “Nike, Inc.” last modified on April 26, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc. Wikipedia. “Trek Bicycle Company.” last modified on March 18, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Trek_Bicycle_Corporation.

Wikipedia. “Water Wheel.” last modified on March 25, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_wheel.

Wikipedia. “Windmill.” last modified on April 18, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windmill.

170

NOTES

CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION 1. Fisher, “How will population growth affect energy?”.

2. Wikipedia, “Water Wheel.”

3. Wikipedia, “Windmill.”

4. Ecology.com, “World Birth and Death Rates.”

5. Howstuffworks.com, “How will population growth affect energy?”

6. Griffith, Saul, “Griffith Proposes Massive Increase in Green Energy.”

7. The California Energy Commission, “Energy Commission Plugs in Energy Efficiency Rules for Battery-Charged Appliances.”

8. Si Team, “World to have more cell phone accounts than people by 2014.”

9. Wikipedia, “New York City.”

10. United States Census Bureau, 2013.

CHAPTER 4 - RESEARCH 1. Cymbet Corporation, cymbet.com.

2. Beeby and White, p. 92-95.

3. Platter, “Battery On Shoe Charges With Every Step.”

4. Wikipedia, “Abraham-Louis Perrelet.”

171

NOTES

CHAPTER 4 - RESEARCH (CONT.) 5.Beeby and White, p. 117.

6. All About Batteries, www.allaboutbatteries.com.

7. Bumgardner, “Steps Per Mile - How Many Walking Steps in a Mile?”

8. Bassett et. al., “Pedometer-Measured Physical Activity and Health Behaviors in U.S. Adults.”

9. Manyika et. al., “Disruptive technologies: Advances that will transform life, business, and the global economy.”

10. Cusick, “Report Sees ‘Energy Harvesting’ Devices Replacing Many Uses For Batteries.”

11. Apple.com

CHAPTER 5 - AUDIENCE AND MARKETS 1. National Purchase Diary, “Wearable Tech Device Awareness Surpasses 50 Percent Among US Consumers, According to NPD.” 2. Fox, “Mobile Health 2012.”

3. IHS, “Sports and Fitness App Market to Expand by More Than 60 Percent in Five Years.”

4. Wikipedia, “Diffusions of Innovation.”

5. Wikipedia, “Hybrid electric vehicles in the United States.”

6. Green Car Congress,“IHS Automotive forecasts global production of plug-in vehicles to rise by 67% this year.”

7. The Economist, “Energy in the Developing World, Power to the People.”

172

NOTES

CHAPTER 6 - LENSES 1. Mayo Clinic, “Pacemakers - Tests and Procedures.”

2. Bhatia et al., “Pacemakers charging using body energy.”

CHAPTER 7 - DEVELOPED DESIGNS 1. Wikipedia, “Nike, Inc.” 2. Wikipedia, “Lululemon.”

3. Wikipedia, “Trek Bicycle Company.”

4. Leber, “Are the 613 Largest U.S. Public Companies Actually Working on Sustainability?”

5. Statt, “Exclusive: Nike Fires Majority of FuelBand Team, Will stop Making Wearable Hardware.”

6. Statistic Brain, “Nike Company Statistics.”

173

10

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

174

I’d like to thank the many people that encouraged, inspired and challenged me throughout the thesis process. My parents, Ron and Dawn Ahola, as well as my sister, Briana, have supported me in every step along the demanding journey of graduate school. I appreciate their enthusiasm for my work. Allan Chochinov, chair of the SVA Products of Design MFA program, has been instrumental in advising and challenging me. I commend him for taking a risk in creating this amazing program. It has been an honor and a privilege to be a member of the inaugural class of Products of Design.

Andrew Schloss, my Thesis I class instructor, navigated me through unknown terrain. Abby Covert, my Thesis II class instructor, tested my assumptions and helped me explore fruitful new spaces. Many SVA faculty members encouraged and inspired me, including Brent Arnold, Emilie Baltz, Steven Dean, Sinclair Smith, Rebecca Silver, Claire Hartten, Jason Severs, Becky Stern, Rob Walker, Helen Walters, Janna Gilbert, Elliot P. Montgomery, Kyla Fullenwider, Richard Tyson, Leif Mangelsen, Boris Klompus, Tak Cheung, John Heida, Marko Manriquez and Gabrielle Kellner. My fourteen classmates in the 2014 Products of Design graduating class pushed me in ways I could not

have imagined. I am grateful for the contributions of Richard Clarkson, Clay Kippen, Willy Chan, Emi Yasaka and Rona Binay in particular for their assistance with shooting video and in documenting my work. Thank you to Matthew Barber and Lucy Knops for modeling and acting in multiple shoots, often involving costume changes. A special thanks to Ioannis ( John) Kymissis for acting as my off-campus advisor. I reached out to him after discovering his technical paper, “Movers and Shakers: Kinetic Energy Harvesting for the Internet of Things,” and he was on-board from day one.

John guided me through the complex world of electrical engineering, physics and batteries. The industry experts who generously shared their time, knowledge and thoughts include Cameron Tonkinwise, Alex Marrs, Matthew Scullin, Neil White, Reid Lifset, John Thackara, Todd Edwards, Lawrence Abrahamson, Michael Reber, Ian Spalter, Eric Baczuk, Kathleen D. Vohs, Wendy Wood, Theodore Ulrich, Pepin Gelardi, Dean DiPietro, Valentine Lehr, John Sarik and Gil Zussman. And finally, thank you to my amazing editor and roommate, Jessica Loudis, for doing a wonderful job organizing all of my thoughts into a cohesive, and hopefully coherent book.

175

11 ABOUT THE DESIGNER

176

Damon Ahola is a graduate of the 2014 inaugural School of Visual Arts, Products of Design MFA program. He is a multi-talented senior designer with a passion for innovating and creating.

His work spans a number of industries, including pro audio, medical, packaging and consumer products. With over a decade of experience, he has worked at forward-thinking firms such as frog, Teague and Radius Product Development, where he defined opportunity spaces and solutions for clients such as Starbucks, Kimberly Clark, 3M and Shure. His portfolio is split between client and self-proposed projects. He holds a BFA in industrial design with a minor in business administration. As an SVA Products of Design graduate, Damon plans to apply his newly gained knowledge and skills to impact society through empathetic design. damon@damonahola.com www.damonaholathesis.tumblr.com www.damonahola.com @damon_ahola 773.733.9505

177