Forget Radio Batteries, Harvest Soldier Power

Today's grunts tote so much electronic equipment -- radios, GPS receivers, and even small computers -- that running all this stuff requires a new way to power them besides batteries. The folks up at the Army Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center in Natick, Mass., think that "personal energy harvesters" could make for good battery substitutes.

In a notice to industry last Friday, the research outfit said it wants ideas on, among other things, how to use body heat to generate electricity.

Other technologies worth pursuing, the soldier center said, include kinetics-based solar and wind power (i.e. Trains can capture energy from braking into a flywheel, which then provides power when the train accelerates. I have a hard time figuring out how to attach a flywheel to a grunt, let alone a windmill, but that's another issue.).

As a Marine grunt who once to toted two 15-pound batteries (one a spare) to power a 30-pound radio, I applaud the idea.