Pavegen’s floor tiles could power future cities offices with footsteps. The company’s smart flooring solution relies on pedestrians to generate reusable energy strong enough to power public lightning. When stepped on, the tiles cause electromagnetic induction generators to move – setting off a rotary motion that in turn generates power.
According to the company, one footstep is enough to generate the amount of off-grid energy needed to light an LED lightbulb for approximately 20 seconds. The tiles also have a wireless API sensor, which transmits data about movement behaviour in areas where Pavegen is installed. This can help to create an idea of peak times for foot traffic in an area, predict consumer trends, and create heat maps of popular urban spaces.
When installed in a retail setting, visitors and customers in a shop are able to earn digital currency for every step that they take, which is collected using a smartphone app and could be used towards a purchase or to donate to charitable causes.