Publications

Assistive and Rehabilitation Robotics Lab

International Journal

Synchronous Generation of Electrical and Cellular Energies via Body-Mediated Energy Transfer: Inevitable Electric Field Concentration
Author
Hyungseok Yong, Hyeonhui Song, Dongchang Kim, Juneil Park, Deokjae Heo, Kyunghwan Cha, Myunghwan Song, Sungwon Jung, Woo Jin Choi, Patrick T. J. Hwang, Sunghan Kim, Woochul Nam, Giuk Lee, Jinkee Hong*, and Sangmin Lee*
Journal
ACS Energy Letters
Status
Published
Vol
8
Page
2954-2961
Year
2023
The effect of body-mediated energy transfer and harvesting on biological tissues has not been considered yet. We demonstrate through clinical protocols that body-mediated energy harvesting concentrates inevitable and local electric fields in biological tissues, which reduces muscle fatigue (6.4%, P-value = 0.020). The waveform (AC and DC) and intensity (∼3000 mV/mm) of these electric fields can be adjusted by controlling several variables (grounding method, external resistance, charging capacitor) depending on the purpose (usefulness, energy strength) without using any additional
battery or wiring. Moreover, the harvested energy can be used to operate small electronic devices semipermanently. These findings indicate that body-mediated energy harvesting is a promising solution for powering wearable technologies and as a noninvasive treatment for harvesting energy and stimulating biological tissues synchronously.

Funding Information
*National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) (No. 2021R1A4A3030268)
*Korea Drug Development Fund (HN21C1410000021)