News: We made the SciAm 50! [download pdf]

At Lightning Packs, our goal is to develop innovative backpacks that recover electricity from normal walking and that provide wearers with ergonomic benefits such as reduced joint stress. Our design is based on the patented Suspended-Load Backpack, as shown below with a standard hiking frame in the electricity-generating configuration.

This is something I've thought about ever since Paul Mathews mentioned it before the backtrip this summer. It *would* be nice to keep the batteries charged for the camera, GPS, and headlamps. A much simpler version than the mil-spec thing described in this post ... I wonder if such a pack might actually be tuned to be more comfortable than a regular one, since it would effectively cushion much of the blows your hip and shoulders get as you walk over obstacles?