Lessons from Power Generating Floor at Train Station

There are two things we can learn from the JFS article (below) on the generation of energy from passengers walking through the ticket gates at train stations.

One, the “think out of the box” mentality. If we put our mind to it, we can think of innovative ways to generate energy from different sources (not just depend on power plants) and use it for local specific purposes.

Two, the “first to try” spirit. If we don’t try, we would not know whether it works, especially for something that has not been done before. Either we take the risk, put in some money and do it first. Or we can be “kiasi” and wait for others to try it out and see how it goes. If it is successful, it is usually too late for us to follow suit and lead since others already have accumulated enough experience and know-how to do it better.

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Power Generating Floor Tested at JR Tokyo Train Station

The East Japan Railway Company (JR East) conducted a demonstration experiment from January 19 to March 7, 2008, at Yaesu North Gate, Tokyo Station, on a new power-generating floor. Installed at the ticket gate area, it generates electricity from the vibrations created by passengers walking through the ticket gates.

The power-generating floor is embedded with piezoelectric elements, which are 35 millimeters in diameter, and disc-shaped components used for loudspeakers. It uses 600 of these elements per square meter. While the loudspeaker creates sound by converting electric signals to vibrations, the floor adopts the reverse mechanism that produces electricity by harnessing the vibrational power generated from passengers’ steps. It is being developed by JR East with the aim of making stations more environmentally friendly and energy efficient.

Following the first experiment in autumn 2006, this test was aimed at verifying the improvement in power generation efficiency and durability. It was also targeted at verifying power-generating capacity, now more than ten times per unit of installation area compared to the performance in 2006. JR East expects to generate enough electricity to light a 100-watt bulb for about 80 minutes per day. It intends to use the power for station facilities such as automatic ticket gates or electric displays in the near future.

Source credit: Japan for Sustainability.

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