"The Biostep, designed by a team of Pratt students, is "a pressure-sensitive floor tile that can convert footsteps into energy stored in a high-capacity battery cell." It's a rubbery tile designed for use in areas with high foot traffic. The product emerges from research at MIT Media Lab; and of course, the idea of capturing kinetic energy is becoming quite a trendy idea in renewable, green energy." - from
Worldchanging.com.
But I invented that! Years ago, I had this wondrous idea: a theme park, powered entirely by the patrons who visit it. As the hordes of people walk around the park, their footsteps provide energy for all the lights and rides. Presumably backed up by solar and wind. And best of all, the nature of a such a power system requires that the floor be (and I knew this when
I invented it!) soft and comfortable (so it can absorb the energy of the footstep, just as they describe it as 'rubbery' above), which is ideal for tired theme park visitors. Another part of the idea was to let some of the energy be wasted on LEDs built into the tiles, so that as you walked, colorful glows would come from under your feet and dissipate outward in interesting patterns. I think that would be a really nice touch, especially at night. I always wanted to have a theme park. I think they're relatively expensive, though. Much like flying swimming pools.
I (and probably you too) have invented hundreds of amazing inventions. I just never implemented or patented them. So lazy, and so poor... oh well! I'm glad these exist now. I'll just have to buy them to implement my theme park. I'm sure the engineers who created them did a much better job than my complete lack of electrical knowhow could do, anyway. And what a perfect concept it is for our increasingly obese society! Although I suppose part of the reason for that is that nobody walks anywhere anymore... kind of a catch-22.
What did you invent that was stolen from you? Or share your unimplemented ideas now, so we know when you get robbed! Of course, that's encouraging them to be stolen, but with an idea like this one, I really don't mind. I was sure never going to be able to create it with my skills.
