Soundpower Corporation is developing and commercializing a power generating system that uses sound and vibration in the Fujisawa Train Station in Kanagawa Prefecture.
"Our firm is advancing with research and development with focus in two areas including 'sound power generation' and 'vibration power generation'. 'Sound power generation' is the generation of power using sound and is based on the viewpoint of using the vibration that is transmitted through the air by sound. 'Vibration power generation' on the other hand is the generation of power using all vibrational forces other than those transmitted by sound.
"One typical example of vibration power generation is the 'Power Generating Floor'. When people walk across a floor or cars drive over a road, vibrational forces are generated, and the 'Power Generating Floor' is a new type of generator that uses that vibration to produce electricity."
The power generating floor is equipped with a built-in compact vibrational force generator and a "Vibration Battery". Both of these devices were developed independently by Soundpower and are used to convert the vibrational energy that is produced through walking and driving to electrical energy.
"We're installing interactive light displays that use this 'Power Generating Floor' in locations throughout Japan. In December of last year, we installed a 'Power Generating Floor' with an interactive light display in the plaza in front of the Hachiko statue at the Shibuya train station, and we also installed a large-scale interactive light display in front of the Bank of Japan in Nihonbashi. This year we're also planning to install additional Power Generating Floors throughout Japan, and we encourage everyone to visit these sites and experience the technology first hand."
Soundpower plans to begin production on a built-to-order basis of the "Power Generating Floor" as the first commercially available product for use in home flooring and stairs some time in the fall of 2009.
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