Patented hiking stick that allows recharging mobile devices

Patented hiking stick that allows recharging mobile devices

It has a handle that wraps the hand when walking and becomes a helix at rest

  A research group from the University of Jaén has patented an electronic hiking stick that allows recharging electronic devices.

The invention, as reported by the Discover Foundation, stores, from wind or hydraulic sources, electricity in an internal battery that allows recharging mobile devices, such as GPS or cameras on medium and long haul routes. The recharge of these electronic devices allows to increase the security of the hiker, according to the investigators, who assure that, precisely, that was the beginning of the invention.

"During a route with my daughter I had an accident and I ran out of battery in the mobile, it was impossible to establish communications, so I asked myself how to solve the problem with a specific device", explains the researcher Cristina Martín.

  According to this expert, the depletion of batteries in environments with no electricity supply can have fatal consequences and the first hours "are vital to locate the hikers injured or lost."

The novel cane has a handle that wraps the hand when walking and becomes a helix at rest, which rotates an axis included in the staff tube and activates a generator. The generated energy accumulates in a battery inserted inside the body of the cane, which allows its later use through a USB connector.

The stick is completed with a fixing device coupled to the central tube that fulfills a double function: on the one hand, it favors the grip on firm terrain and, on the other, it allows coupling it to any bar, bicycle or lamp, thus facilitating the generation of energy in displacements or camping.

After finishing several prototypes, the researchers now undertake trials to optimize the device with a view to its commercialization.