An Origami Inspired Bacteria-Powered Battery

jan_jes writes: Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding created by Akira Yoshizawa, which can be used to create beautiful birds, frogs and other small sculptures. Last year a team of engineers from MIT and Harvard has developed an origami flat-pack robot (YouTube video) which can fold itself and crawl away without any human intervention. But now a Binghamton University engineer says this technique can be applied to building batteries, too. The battery generates power from microbial respiration, delivering enough energy to run a paper-based biosensor with nothing more than a drop of bacteria-containing liquid. This method should be especially useful to anyone working in remote areas with limited resources. The total cost of this potentially game-changing device is "five cents."

Comments

Five cents?

[ArcadeMan]

The total cost of this potentially game-changing device is "Five cents".

Don't worry, the legal and the marketing departments will have that fixed very soon.

An Improperly-Hyphenated Title

[sexconker]

An Origami Inspired Bacteria-Powered Battery

Which origami, specifically, inspired "Bacteria Powered Battery"?
Who (or what) is referred to by the proper noun "Bacteria Powered Battery"?

Akira Yoshizawa meet Al Gore

[frovingslosh]

Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding created by Akira Yoshizawa

I find it extremely hard to believe that Akira Yoshizawa, born in 1911, invented Origami. Oh sure, he apparently did a lot of Origami, as did others. But to claim he created the concept is a pretty bold claim.

Re:Akira Yoshizawa meet Al Gore

[sims 2]

is those time travelers making a mess of things again

Re: Akira Yoshizawa meet Al Gore

[frovingslosh]

I clearly remember Al Gore claiming to have invented Origami.

Re: Akira Yoshizawa meet Al Gore

[Triklyn]

http://internethalloffame.org/...

i wish all our politicians were as dishonest as gore.

I got zeroth post on this one

[Theovon]

Because I work at SUNY Binghamton and therefore saw the original article before it got slashdotted. :)

False Advertising

[Livius]

The alleged "origami flat-pack robot" had components that weren't paper.

History of origami

[__roo]

Origami is the Japanese art of paper folding created by Akira Yoshizawa, which can be used to create beautiful birds, frogs and other small sculptures.

According to that page, Akira Yoshizawa was born in 1911. Origami dates back to at least 1797, when the first known origami book was published (see the history of Origami).

What kind of bacteria?

[viperidaenz]

Does this have anything to do with the recent "oops" involving anthrax?

I don't want anthrax powered bio-sensors.

Expensive

[viperidaenz]

Cost of bacteria battery: $0.05
Cost of 100 AG13 cells from China: $4.99 or $0.0499 each

http://www.aliexpress.com/item...

There are probably cheaper ones out there.

CR2032's pack a decent amount of power for $0.13c

Re:Expensive

[someone1234]

Did you add the biosensor cost?
0.05 was the total cost of the device, the bacteria battery is just part of it.

Paper folding != Akira Yoshizawa

[Anonymous Coward]

Slashdot's articles are getting more and more ridiculous!!

For example, the claim

Origami is the created by Akira Yoshizawa

is totally false

Paper was created thousands of years ago before Yoshizawa's parents copulated, and for thousands of years people from many cultures, mostly from East Asia, had been folding papers into many kinds of shapes, styles, and for all kinds of uses

To credit Mr. Yoshizawa for Origami is way beyond ridiculous, it is utterly irresponsible and shameless!

And the slashdot editors should be push to the street and shot for their utter stupidity in letting this kind of stupid shit to pass through

Well, that makes sense,

[sabbede]

after all, we generate power from microbial respiration! We just call them mitochondria.

Have mine for free

[RuffMasterD]

I must be covered in $50 worth of bacteria right now, and I have more where that came from.