Can we build the newest robotic warehouses for the Gillette, Wal-Mart and the Department of Defense to be ultra energy efficient? Can we turn off all the lights and save on the energy? Can we turn off all the peripherals and save that energy too? If there is a natural disaster and the power goes off can the warehouse run on minimal back-up energy and do so for weeks?
As we saw with Hurricane Katrina and Rita the power went out, but delivery of goods to Wal-Mart went on. What if the warehouses where all the products were had their power out also, then what? Can we prevent such a potential eventuality?
I propose that we use the rumble of the conveyor belts and robotic fork lifts to power up the LED RFID Tag readers using electromagnetic induction technology to charge a capacitor instead of the headlights working off the power grid, a battery or the back-up power in an emergency. Currently there are some nifty micro-flashlights being used which you can buy which use a similar technique and are available thanks to the Everlite Flashlight technology research lab. These smaller flashlights work by shaking them for about thirty seconds and shine for about 6 minutes and they shine quite bright since they use a very bright LED light. Here is a link to this home use flashlight:
http://www.modernoutpost.com/gear/details/ee_shakelight.html
Here is a quick movie you can watch online to see how this technology works.
http://www.modernoutpost.com/gear/movies/ee_forever.MPG
I propose we use the robotic warehouse machines, motors and their vibrational rumble to run robotic sensors and RFID readers. If the RFID LED Tag readers get too dim from not enough robotic activity, then they would revert back to the battery or back-up power. Perhaps this is a good way to save back up generator fuel so it lasts longer and conserve energy when the power is working fine? Think on this.
Lance Winslow
