IEEE Spectrum August, 2009 - 29

sole made of sleek, pale bamboo-"Renewable!" Kamen crows-
smoothly inlaid with a flat touch-screen display. Here he can see,
in real time, exactly how much power is being produced by his
renewables and how much is being siphoned by every single process on the island, down to the individual LED fixtures.
Along the opposing wall, the custom control electronics
for the Teletrol system hum quietly in glinting server racks.
Basically, the system establishes priorities among the power
drains: At the very top are the necessary functions-lighting
LEDs currently in use, heating or purifying water, or cooling
the house. Heating is not really an issue, because the island isn't
accessible on the coldest days, when the swell in the surrounding seas can reach 9 meters. The house is cooled centrally with
ultraefficient central heat exchangers.
After addressing immediate needs, the system diverts any extra
power to a bank of batteries. "That way, we don't have to waste any
voltage generating energy to charge them," says Kamen.

he formal dining room gleams with the soft yellow light
of two flickering candelabras. But we're standing in the
next room, around the kitchen counters, eating cold-cut
sandwiches on hamburger rolls and washing them down with
warm beer. Kamen is telling us about a speech he gave as the keynote speaker at a high-profile event organized by Minneapolisbased Medtronic, the medical-device colossus. Waiting backstage
as the master of ceremonies and Medtronic senior VP Stephen
Oesterle extolled the many inventions of Benjamin Franklin,
"I thought, wait a second, I thought I was the one who was giving this talk," Kamen croaks, his tone in a perpetual tug-of-war
between acerbic and affable. And then, as Kamen was ushered
onstage to give his speech, he heard, "...and that's why we think
Dean Kamen is the reincarnation of Benjamin Franklin!"
"Of course it's all crap," Kamen says. But then, eyebrows ris-

ing along with his index finger, he amends himself. "Benjamin
Franklin reinvented glasses as bifocals. I also took something
that had been around forever and reinvented it." That would be
the wheelchair. Kamen's version, the iBot, can hop curbs and
raise its occupant to eye level with a standing person. Kamen
also invented a wearable insulin pump and a prosthetic arm.
After all this it should be no surprise that Kamen wields some
influence. Campaigning in New Hampshire in late 2007, Barack
Obama made sure to send an emissary to Deka. But Kamen
says he talks to politicians about only two things: bringing
electricity and clean water to the developing world, and FIRST
(For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology),
a program he developed that injects science and technology
into elementary, middle, and high school classrooms in the
United States. The vehicle? Robots. Contenders are divided up
into robot-building teams. They face off in elimination rounds
throughout the year, culminating in a championship in which
a winning team is crowned. FIRST gives technical fields the
cachet that was once reserved for athletics.
The FIRSTies worship Kamen. They proclaim their devotion on message boards, where they identify themselves by
their team numbers ("I'm on 339!" "Team 862 Represent!"
"Third year on team 88!"). The most devoted extend that love
even to Kamen's mother, who has attended these events religiously since Kamen founded the organization 20 years ago.
Kamen, who hobnobs with George H.W. Bush and icecream activists Ben and Jerry and flies around in a souped-up
Enstrom 480 helicopter (the souping-up is of his own design,
natch), has been called a rock star inventor. But it's hard to reconcile the moniker with his unabashed geekery and top-to-toe
denim uniform. No Savile Row for Kamen, though he could
probably afford to buy Savile Row-the street, not a suit.
The same lack of pretense is apparent on North Dumpling,
which is going through an awkward phase on this cool May
evening. Here in the kitchen,
high-end stainless appliances,
including a massive side-byside refrigerator and a vast
range hood, bump elbows with
frumpy, vaguely olive cabinetry. The cabinets are not long
for this world.
In fact, the whole North
Dumpling complex is in the
midst of a complete face-lift.
The point is to showcase lighting, the most visible aspect of
Kamen's rethinking of the way
we use energy.

o I have to fly anyone to
the mainland?" Kamen
asks around the small
kitchen. If somebody needed
some toothpaste or something,
Kamen would chauffeur them

mooD Lighting: At night,
outdoor LED fixtures wash
the island in a moody blue.

NA * iEEE SpEctrum * AuguSt 2009

www.spectrum.ieee.org

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Spectrum August, 2009