Drawing inspiration from a creature known as the Namib desert beetle, a US company has developed a prototype for a self-filling water bottle that could help hydrate people in hot, dry, drought-stricken parts of the world. The Namib desert beetle is able to survive in a region which gets as little as one-half inch of annual rainfall thanks to the design of the bumps on the back of its shell. As humidity accumulates on the shell, water droplets form, rolling down the creature’s back and directly into its mount, Owano explained.

The Namib Desert beetle is known for its ability to survive in an environment that gets only half an inch of rainfall a year. The beetle’s secret is its bumpy back, which pulls water droplets out of morning fogs. In an effort to copy the beetle’s move, the Atmospheric Water Collector aims to make old water bottles capable of producing potable water in a similar fashion.

“The NBD Nano team drew from the natural shell design in constructing a bottle that could take advantage of the same water-collecting process,” she added. “The result is that the bottle is able to continually fill itself up. They describe their process as making use of a nano-scale surface to enhance water condensation. The surface of the bottle is covered with hydrophilic (water-attracting) and hydrophobic (water-repellent) materials.” The company is hoping to make it so a fan can get air to pass over the bottle’s surface, condense, and be collected.

The concept is the work of design student Thomas Row. The insert that goes inside the bottle, made to screw into a cap that fits most plastic bottles, is sand blasted to produce a bumpy surface, like the Namib Desert beetle’s back. As water droplets accumulate on the insert, they roll down and collect at the bottom of the bottle.

Row’s goal was to design a product that would collect enough water to provide a person for an entire day. It’s based on biomimicry. Evolution has gotten a lot of stuff right, and is a great inspiration for technology that’s simple, efficient and inexpensive it’s low-tech: The Atmospheric Water Collector is built on a simple concept that doesn’t require electricity or a lot of resources to meet a basic human need and It puts waste to good use: Plastic water bottles can suddenly generate more drinkable water.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20465982

http://www.rwlwater.com/beetle-inspired-water-bottle/

http://www.treehugger.com/sustainable-product-design/atmospheric-water-collector-inspired-desert-beetle.html

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1112736178/beetle-inspires-water-bottle-tech-112612/