Put huge piezoelectric strips into a building they're building in an earthquaky place. When the building gets quaked, the motion waves are turned into voltage, which is run into the piezoelectric strips, which bend the other way from the quake. Building stabilized.

(And if you say, "not another Piezo-trash thing", just know that I'm the one that started it. Recently.)
-- galukalock, Apr 26 2003

piezo-babies? is that next?
-- po, Apr 26 2003


The ultimate bakery idea at this point would probably be something like:

Shrodinger & Escher's Custard-filled Piezo-Segway Clock
-- krelnik, Apr 26 2003


piezo?
-- igirl, Apr 26 2003


igirl: Some materials generate electrical potential when subjected to physical stress - the piezoelectric effect. Conversely, applying a voltage to the material can cause it to deform. The idea here, if I read it correctly, is to use the energy from the quake against it, to stabilise the building. Very elegant, very judo. +.
-- friendlyfire, Apr 26 2003


(Obligatory "piezo-delivery" anno.)
-- friendlyfire, Apr 26 2003


ok- i *kind of* get it now. thanks mcuh.
-- igirl, Apr 26 2003


my email obviously failed to reach you = gal!
-- po, Apr 26 2003


Talkinta me? No e-mail did I get from you.

Not talkinta me? Forget I said anything.
-- galukalock, Apr 26 2003


You could also use some similar setup to just generate electricity. Building regularly sway in the wind. How much energy can you generate if the building sways back and forth 2" or 3", but the strip is 500' long?
-- gearweenie, May 01 2003


Call it the Tower of Piezo
-- pashute, Jul 30 2006


or 'Tower of Pizzoaoaoaoa'as',..

Piezo elements could be integrated as to contain photo-voltaic elements, producing power, off-seting the material and installations costs issues.
-- sirau, Jun 05 2011


To capture energy from building-sway, you don't need piezoelectricity. Tall buildings have tuned mass dampers. Put permanent magnets in the pendulum bob, and surround it with wire coils.
-- mouseposture, Jun 05 2011


//huge piezoelectric strips//...

...which are very thin and brittle, thus only successfully used in smaller applications where they can be adequately supported or bonded to more flexible materials. How do you propose to keep them from fracturing under the multi- axis stress caused by even the gentlest tectonic activity?
-- Alterother, Jun 05 2011



random, halfbakery