I think this is a neat story.. apparently DoD sponsors a competition for the developers of wearable energy cells. These things are now apparently about the size of a case for your glasses. In concept, it can power all of the electro-stuff you have hung on you without worrying about the seven different battery types and chargers you typically need today.
The airplane picture, by the way, shows an experimental Boeing Hydrogen Fuel Cell plane in which the hydrogen fuel cell works with some lithium ion batteries. It is only tangentially related to the wearable fuel cell story. The wearable fuel cell uses butane or methanol fuel instead of hydrogen... thereby making it a lot easier to refuel in our present world. But, the airplane picture is cool.
The two SFC fuel cells competed with nearly 170 entries in the inaugural Wearable Power Competition. The Department of Defense Research and Engineering established the Wearable Power Competition in 2007 to encourage innovation in energy systems carried by personnel during field missions. Attached to a standard military vest, the systems were required to provide 20W of average electric power for 96 hours, meet brief peak-power demand of up to 200W and weigh no more than 4 kg (8.8 pounds), or less than half a battery-powered system.
Hey, 20 watts for 96 hours straight? That's cool! Although 200W isn't enough for my personal laser melting beam. But, a kilowatt burst in a backpack would seem very practical.
See the whole story at THIS LINK
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