Tinkerers and tech enthusiasts, brace yourselves: the frontier of biohacking has just expanded. Picture implantable medical devices that don’t need batteries—no more surgeries for replacements or bulky contraptions. Though not all new (see below), ChemistryWorld recently shed new light on these innovations. It’s as exciting as it is unnerving; we, as hackers, know too well that tech and biology blend a fine ethical line. Realising our bodies can be hacked both tickles our excitement and unsettlement, posing deeper questions about human-machine integration.
Since the first pacemaker hit the scene in 1958, powered by rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries and induction coils, progress has been steady but bound by battery limitations. Now, researchers like Jacob Robinson from Rice University are flipping the script, moving to designs that harvest energy from within. Whether through mechanical heartbeats or lung inflation, these implants are shifting to a network of energy-harvesting nodes.
From triboelectric nanogenerators made of flexible, biodegradable materials to piezoelectric devices tapping body motion is quite a leap. John Rogers at Northwestern University points out that the real challenge is balancing power extraction without harming the body’s natural function. Energy isn’t free-flowing; overharvesting could strain or damage organs. A topic we also addressed in April of this year.
As we edge toward battery-free implants, these breakthroughs could redefine biomedical tech. A good start on diving into this paradigm shift and past innovations is this article from 2023. It’ll get you on track of some prior innovations in this field. Happy tinkering, and: stay critical! For we hackers know that there’s an alternative use for everything!
Internal energy harvesting has always irked me a bit in the biohaking world. I wonder if a lot of the issues of energy will be solved with further advancements in battery tech. Anything that harvests mechanical energy means moving parts which doesn’t sound great! Obviously there are a lot of smart people probably working on solutions that can probably allay those fears.
I suppose it also depends on the nature of the implant and how invasive it is. A self charging pace-maker would be amazing. But for mundane implants, wearing an inductive bracelet to recharge a solid state battery once a week doesn’t seem especially cumbersome. I’d be willing to submit to such a regimen if it meant having high quality data on blood O2, movement, blood pressure, etc.
As a final thought, birthcontrol implants are a well trodden territory and the life cycle on those is about 4 years. With the a mindful design, I’m sure that life span could be doubled for something with a battery in ~5 years if not now.
birth control implants are an entirely different matter. They are drug loaded biopolymers that leak their contents over time. They require no power to operate.
You are correct. I bring them up as a reference to their “duty cycle” only i.e. Specific types of implants don’t necessarily need to last forever and many people are already comfortable with this concept.
a subdermal implant is almost as easily removed as it is installed. The same cannot be said for most other implant placements which would require all the risks of more invasive surgery.
While the “duty cycle” of 5-15 years for implantable battery devices is decent, a more permanent system would certainly be more desirable, just as finding a means to avoid external charging would be. Who knows what the future holds.
There used to be a biohacker collective in Pittsburgh called Grindhouse Wetware that put entire circuit boards under their skin with full LED light up and healed over with inductive charging I think circa 2017. This would give them some neat new options.
So many possibilities with these
The time to replace a pacemaker battery is longer than the the time that it takes to develop better pacemakers. If there was no battery requirement eventually people would be walking around (hopefully!) with 20 or 30 or 40 year old devices. May be a good thing if it works as intended but I’ve yet to see anyone getting a battery/generator change that said “naw I’ll take a NOS 10 year old one I’m cool”
Pacemakers being but one example, of course